|
 
Why are we the
Academy
of Model Aeronautics?
|
|
Occasionally
I meet a new member of our organization who will ask me 'Why
are we the Academy of Model Aeronautics?"
The word academy in our name goes back to AMA's beginnings in
1936. At the time, most of the newcomers coming into the
hobby were still teenagers in school. There was an
assumption that learning about model building and flying was
important to a young person's education.
Now, more than ever, I can think of no more appropriate name
for our organization. One of the greatest strengths of the
sport and hobby of modeling is lifelong learning, whether
you are young or "young at heart."
There isn't one of us who doesn't continue to grow and learn
something new each year in electronics, mechanical
engineering, or aerodynamics. And it's all because of model
airplanes. In most cases we learn these things from each
other, primarily through club membership and flying for fun.
The bedrock of chartered-club membership is our passion for
trying something new. Looking back at the past 10 years, it
is easy to see how much the world of modeling has changed.
Ten years ago, the term "park flyer" did not exist. Advances
in micro-electronics have made it possible to create
extremely small models that only a few years ago were not
thought possible. More than half of the models now flown are
powered by electric motors. The advent of spread spectrum
radio is upon us, and its use will dramatically increase
sooner than we think!
These are only a few developments. If you are not a lifelong
learner, you just can't keep up!
Some rather famous people started their careers through what
they continue to learn from: model aviation. Burt Rutan and
Paul MacCready come to mind as individuals who used models
as "proof-of-concept" platforms for dreams that became real.
Many of these dreams now reside as permanent exhibits in
national air and space museums.
These men and many others like them use imagination and
hands-on skills to create models that help us extend our
reach to new horizons of human achievement.
Members of AMA's Education Committee understand all of this
and it helps us extend our reach. Through the support of
grants from the Alcoa Foundation, we have trained teachers
to use simple models to provide hands-on science lessons for
middle-school students. Members of the committee have
presented these lessons at numerous educational conferences,
providing opportunities for thousands of teachers to
experience the rewards of high-flying activities.
It is impossible to document just how many students have
benefited from lessons we've designed for science
classrooms, but if we add to them the number of students who
have participated in after-school Science Olympiad
competitions, a conservative estimate would be in the tens
of thousands.
Our Education Committee has chosen to put emphasis on using
models in science classrooms and after-school enrichment
activities because that's where the kids are! Through this
exposure to simple flying models, we hope they get hooked.
A few may join AMA right away, but others may not until they
are parents or even grandparents! We hope that this early
experience will stick with them and they will become part of
the next generation of modelers and pilots.
These lessons will eventually be available to educators and
club members on a DVD. It will be offered by the Education
Committee at a nominal cost to anyone wishing to introduce
children to the excitement of model aviation as an
instructional tool. We hope other aerospace education
organizations will use portions of these lessons in their
own activities to make their use of models more exciting and
effective.
The Education Committee's vision doesn't end with the
classroom. We hope to create more DVDs that will show
members how to develop programs for newcomers of all ages,
how to help teachers organize summer camps for children, and
how to support better instruction for first-time pilots.
We believe the work we do now through education will pay
significant dividends to us in the future in the form of a
stronger, better-informed membership. And that's what an
academy is all about!
MA
Til next month ...
Dave Brown, AMA president
|
|
