iStarDB (The Astronomy Education Research Repository)
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Examining features of how professional development and enactment of educative curricula influences elementary science teacher learning
No full textThis research examines factors influencing elementary science teacher learning as they participate in professional development with and enactment of educative curricula in comparison with learning following limited professional development and enactment of traditional curricula. Using a randomized cluster design (125 teachers and 2,694 students in 4th—5th grades) that met the What Works Clearinghouse standards without reservations, teacher learning was conceptualized using four outcomes. Data were analyzed using standard single-level multiple regression models and possible mediation models for the teacher outcomes were considered using piecewise multiple regression and path analytic approaches. Treatment group teachers experienced greater increases in content knowledge, views of science inquiry, beliefs about reform-based teaching, and teaching self-efficacy than comparison group teachers. The findings indicate that what teachers learn from the combination of professional development and teaching with educative curriculum varies according to what their knowledge and beliefs are on entering the experience. Surprisingly, high entry-level self-efficacy was associated not only with lower learning gains for the teachers, but also for their students. Finally, teachers' space science learning and that of their students are implicated as mediators of the positive effect of the professional development and educative curriculum enactment on teacher beliefs about reform science teaching. This work refines and extends a theoretical framework of teachers' participatory relationship with curricula
Demonstrating the Principles of Aperture Synthesis with Table-Top Laboratory Exercises
No full textMany undergraduate radio astronomy courses are unable to give a detailed treatment of aperture synthesis due to time constraints and limited math backgrounds of students. We have taken a laboratory-based approach to teaching radio interferometry using a set of college-level, table-top exercises. These are performed with the Very Small Radio Telescope (VSRT), an interferometer developed at the Haystack Observatory using satellite TV electronics as detectors and compact fluorescent light bulbs as microwave
signal sources. The hands-on experience provided by the VSRT in these labs allows students to gain a conceptual understanding of radio interferometry and aperture synthesis without the rigorous mathematical background traditionally required.
The data are quickly and easily processed using a user-friendly data analysis Java package, VSRTI_Plotter.jar. This software can also be used in the absence of the equipment as an interactive computer activity to demonstrate an interferometer’s responses to assorted surface brightness distributions. The students also gain some familiarity with Fourier transforms and an appreciation for the Fourier relations in interferometry using another Java package, the Tool for Interactive Fourier Transforms (TIFT). We have successfully used these tools in multiple offerings of our radio astronomy course at Union Colleg
Gaming to Learn astronomy, an innovation approach, two study cases
No full textIn this paper I am going to present you two innovative approaches for learning Astronomy through gaming. On one hand we used the subject of Astronomy as a vehicle since Astronomy provides a unique environment for educators from Kindergarten to Lyceum, and because its multidisciplinary character is ideal for an introduction to science education. On the other hand Gaming to learn has been around for a decade, but it is only recently that these possibilities in the realm of education truly have been appreciated. If indeed humans think immeasurably better as part of a network than on their own, then games are an obvious terrain in which to set minds free and let them wander around. Thus it;s really worthy to test and try this new medium of learning to a fachinating science
Impact of a didactic sequence on basic Astronomy concepts for graduates in Physics of online and classroom modalities
No full textThe purpose of this paper is to present the results obtained with the execution of a course of basic subjects in Astronomy for university students of Physics in face to face and in distance learning courses that were organized through Potentially Significant Teaching Units (PSTU). It is an applied and descriptive research, and the technical procedures adopted were survey (pre-test, post-test and qualification questionnaire) and technical action research (application of the course through the PSTU). Through statistical analysis the results show that the difference of the means (before and after the course) of the students is statistically significant, indicating a possible evolution in the basic knowledge of these in relation to the themes of Astronomy proposed in the didactic sequences. In addition, according to the qualification test the activities developed in the course administered, created a favorable climate for learning, thus indicating the success of the same
Pursuing gender equality in Astronomy in basic education: the case of the project “Girls in the Museum of Astronomy and Related Sciences”
No full textIt is well known that the number of women in scientific careers is significantly lower than the number of men, especially in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) areas. Considering that science should be used for the benefit of all, by excluding women from the production process of scientific knowledge, we are giving up of 50% of the intellectual capacity to different science fields. Thus, the Museum of Astronomy and Related Sciences, whose mission is to expand society's access to scientific knowledge, promotes the project "Girls in the Museum", aimed at the continuous education of seven high-school female students in topics of astronomy with the goal of stimulating them into liking science. Concurrently with the project, interviews were conducted to evaluate the initiative according to the participants' perspectives, as well as to understand their perceptions about science prior and after six months of the project. We found that the participants were satisfied with the format and content of the project, comprised of theoretical talks and practical workshops. The resulting discourses show that they now view science as something closer to their lives and are more confident to promote scientific discussions. These results show the importance of providing young females with role models they can look up, especially at the age when they are about to make decisions concerning their future career
The Vibrating Universe: Astronomy for the Deaf
No full textThe Deaf have often been overlooked when designing informal STEM education and public outreach activities. Astronomers at UC Riverside and teachers at the California School for the Deaf, Riverside (CSDR), have designed an astronomy workshop aimed specifically for the Deaf using the school’s on-site sound lab. We have used astronomy for this workshop because the field has a significant edge over other sciences to act as portal for K-12 engagement in science given the imagery it presents, the answers it offers to grand questions, and its interdisciplinary nature. The workshop is an unconventional activity that excites the students and provides a positive experience in astronomy, based on knowledge that they already acquired beforehand in the classroom. Our workshop uses electromagnetic emissions, enhanced sounds and sonification processes of cosmic phenomena that have low frequencies and sufficiently distinguishable patterns which are delivered to students through a specialized designed sound lab for the Deaf. Storytelling paired with videos and images are used to give understandable meaning to the sounds of the Universe. Positive feedback was collected from over 80 students who participated in our workshop. Our activity can be reproduced elsewhere to further engage the Deaf community in science
Mental Models Regarding the Concepts of “Space,” “Universe” and “Galaxy” Among Secondary School Students
No full textThe aim of this study was to identify the mental models of fifth and eighth grade students regarding the concepts of space, the universe, and galaxy. The study was performed using a cross-sectional approach, which is a screening-based study model. This study involved two different groups, which were fifth grade and eighth grade students. We investigated the mental models regarding the concepts of space, the universe, and galaxy among these two groups, and evaluated how these concepts differed between fifth grade and eighth grade students. The study was performed with 116 fifth and eighth grade students from a secondary school in a provincial center in northern Turkey. During the study, students were asked three open-ended questions requiring them to explain the concepts of space, the universe, and galaxy. The study data were analyzed using descriptive analysis. The study results indicated that the level of scientific understanding regarding the concepts of space, the universe, and galaxy was low among both fifth and eighth grade students, although eighth grade students exhibited a slightly higher level of knowledge about these concepts
Effects of embedding a problem-posing-based learning guiding strategy into interactive e-books on students’ learning performance and higher order thinking tendency
No full textOwing to the popularity of tablet computers and smart phones, e-books have become an important medium for both formal and informal learning. However, conventional e-books are mainly designed to provide information in the form of multimedia, implying that students spend most of their time memorizing and comprehending what they read from e-books, while seldom engaging in higher order thinking. In this study, a problem-posing framework is proposed for developing an interactive e-book for guiding students to observe and pose questions. An experiment on an elementary school natural science course was conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The participants were 46 fourth-grade students. From the experimental results, it was found that the problem-posing-guiding interactive e-book can significantly improve the students’ learning achievements, critical thinking tendency, and deep motive. It was also found that the proposed approach did not increase the students’ cognitive load owing to the provision of proper supports during the problem-posing process, which has generally been identified as a challenging task
Disciplinary discernment: Reading the sky in astronomy education
No full textEriksson, U. (2019). Disciplinary discernment: Reading the sky in astronomy education. Physical Review Physics Education Research, 15(1), 010133. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.15.01013
Original Research By Young Twinkle Students (ORBYTS): Ephemeris Refinement of Transiting Exoplanets
No full textWe present an outreach research project to followup exoplanets with large uncertainties in their transit times. A fully robotic ground-based telescope network has been used to observe six planets and refine their ephemeris and orbital data. Such follow-up is key for upcoming ground and space-based telescopes which seek to characterise the atmospheres of these planets. For several planets we supplement our observations with TESS data. A significant portion of this work has been completed by students at two high schools in London as part of the Original Research By Young Twinkle Students (ORBYTS) program