Exhibition: “Useful Science. The Object Lessons Textbooks.” Venturada (Madrid), May 30 and 31, 2025
This exhibition offers a glimpse into the world of the “Object Lessons” textbooks, educational textbooks that circulated globally and were widely used in Spain from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century. These books featured rich illustrations designed to support Pestalozzi’s intuitive method, emphasizing learning through direct observation and sensory experience. By combining reading with the acquisition of practical and scientific knowledge, they aimed to make education both engaging and useful.
The exhibition is organized into three thematic sections: Science applied to progress: Inventions and technology; Science applied to nature: Industry, crafts, and labor; Science applied to human needs: Nature’s usefulness to humanity.
The curator of the exhibition was Professor Cecilia Valbuena Canet (UNED). This exhibit presents the results of the research on intuitive teaching and object lessons carried out within the “Global Textbook Resource Center” Project (GLOTREC), directed and funded by the Leibniz Institute for Educational Media / Georg Eckert Institute (Braunschweig, Germany).
Originally presented at VENTUCIENCIA, the 3rd Venturada Science Fair (Madrid), the exhibition took place on May 30 and 31, 2025.
Access to Exhibition Panels
VENTUCIENCIA Brochure
Ventuciencia 2025
Exhibition at the the Science and Innovation Week of the Region of Madrid 2025.
November 3 – 16, 2025
On the occasion of the 2025 Science and Innovation Week of the Region of Madrid, the exhibition “Useful Science: The Object Lessons Textbooks” was moved to the UNED Faculty of Education from November 3rd to 16th.