iStarDB (The Astronomy Education Research Repository)
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Motivations, learning and creativity in online citizen science
No full textOnline citizen science projects have demonstrated their usefulness for research, however little is known about the potential benefits for volunteers. We conducted 39 interviews (28 volunteers, 11 researchers) to gain a greater understanding of volunteers' motivations, learning and creativity (MLC). In our MLC model we explain that participating and progressing in a project community provides volunteers with many indirect opportunities for learning and creativity. The more aspects that volunteers are involved in, the more likely they are to sustain their participation in the project. These results have implications for the design and management of online citizen science projects. It is important to provide users with tools to communicate in order to supporting social learning, community building and sharing
Erathostenes: An Example Of Work With University Students In Didactics And History Of Astronomy
No full textWe present below, through an example, the richness of the use of a method of clues to enter the history of Astronomy, tested with university students and teachers in training. The question presented as an example is the study of the work of Eratosthenes to measure the Earth's meridian. It shows how the course generates a chain of questions and new questions and problems arise as the students learn to look for answers and solutions
Evaluation Of Conceptual Frameworks In Astronomy
No full textEven though astronomy is the oldest science, it is still an open question how to evaluate students’ understanding in astronomy. In spite of the fact that some methods and evaluation tools have been developed for that purpose, the sources of students' difficulties in astronomy are still unclear. This paper presents an investigation of the changes in conceptual frameworks in astronomy among 50 engineering students as a result of learning a general course in astronomy. A special tool called Conceptual Frameworks in Astronomy (CFA), which was initially used in 1989, was adopted to gather data for the present research. In its new version, the tool includes 23 questions and five to six optional answers to each question. Each of the answers characterizes one of the four conceptual frameworks: pre-scientific, geocentric, heliocentric and sidereal. These four conceptual frameworks act as a taxonomical system that enables us to evaluate astronomical understanding. The paper describes the background of the CFA, its development, and discusses its validity and reliability. Using the CFA we were able to: (1) identify the students’ conceptual frameworks at the beginning of the course and at its end, (2) to evaluate the students’ paradigmatic change following the course. It was found that the measure of the students’ improvement (gain index) was g = 0.37. Approximately 45% of the students in the course improved their conceptual frameworks in astronomy and 26% deepened their understanding of the heliocentric or sidereal conceptual frameworks. The CFA can also be applied as an evaluation tool in all schools and institutions that teach astronomy
Examining Elementary School Students’ Mental Models of Sun-Earth Relationships as a Result of Engaging in Engineering Design
No full textCurrent reform efforts in science education in the United States call for students to learn science through the integration of science and engineering practices. Studies have examined the effect of engineering design on students’ understanding of engineering, technology, and science concepts. However, the majority of studies emphasize the accuracy of students’ scientific thinking instead of what students’ conceptions are. The aim of this study was to examine elementary school students’ conceptions of sun-Earth relationships as a result of engaging in an engineering design-based science task. Two independent fifth grade classrooms were identified. Each classroom teacher had 2 groups of students: 1 group engaged in traditional science lessons (control) and 1 group engaged in engineering design-based science lessons (treatment). Data were collected via multiple choice knowledge assessments, a draw-and-explain item, and semi-structured interviews designed to elicit students’ working mental models of the relationship between the sun and Earth. Results indicated a range of five different mental models expressed by students in both the control and treatment groups. These findings suggest that students still harbor alternate conceptions and possibly conflicting ideas regarding various sun-Earth relationships. If teachers are expected to implement science and engineering practices, attention must be given to not only what students’ misconceptions are but, more importantly, how best to implement design-based science lessons that facilitate students’ application and understanding of related science concepts
The Role of the Modern Planetarium as an Effective Tool in Astronomy Education and Public Outreach
No full textAs the planetarium approaches its 100th anniversary, today's planetarium educator must reflect on the role of such technology in contemporary astronomy education and outreach. The projection planetarium saw "first light" in 1923 at the Carl Zeiss factory in Jena, Germany. During the 20th century, the concept of a star projector beneath a dome flourished as an extraordinary device for the teaching of astronomy. The evolution of digital technology over the past twenty years has dramatically changed the perception / utilization of the planetarium. The vast majority of modern star theaters have shifted entirely to fulldome digital projection systems, abandoning the once ubiquitous electromechanical star projector altogether. These systems have evolved into ultra-high resolution theaters, capable of projecting imagery, videos, and any web-based media onto the dome. Such capability has rendered the planetarium as a multi-disciplinary tool, broadening its educational appeal to a wide variety of fields -- including life sciences, the humanities, and even entertainment venues. However, we suggest that what is at the heart of the planetarium appeal is having a theater adept at projecting a beautiful / accurate star-field. To this end, our facility chose to keep / maintain its aging Zeiss V star projector while adding fulldome digital capability. Such a hybrid approach provides an excellent compromise between presenting state of the art multimedia while at the same time maintaining the ability to render a stunning night sky. In addition, our facility maintains two portable StarLab planetariums for outreach purposes, one unit with a classic electromechanical star projector and the other having a relatively inexpensive fulldome projection system. With a combination of these technologies, it is possible for the planetarium to be an effective tool for astronomical education / outreach well into the 21st century
A Large-Scale Inquiry-Based Astronomy Intervention Project: Impact on Students’ Content Knowledge Performance and Views of their High School Science Classroom
No full textIn this paper, we present the results from a study of the impact on students involved in a large-scale inquiry-based astronomical high school education intervention in Australia. Students in this intervention were led through an educational design allowing them to undertake an investigative approach to understanding the lifecycle of stars more aligned with the ‘ideal’ picture of school science. Through the use of two instruments, one focused on content knowledge gains and the other on student views of school science, we explore the impact of this design. Overall, students made moderate content knowledge gains although these gains were heavily dependent on the individual teacher, the number of times a teacher implemented and the depth to which an individual teacher went with the provided materials. In terms of students’ views, there were significant global changes in their views of their experience of the science classroom. However, there were some areas where no change or slightly negative changes of which some were expected and some were not. From these results, we comment on the necessity of sustained long-period implementations rather than single interventions, the requirement for similarly sustained professional development and the importance of monitoring the impact of inquiry-based implementations. This is especially important as inquiry-based approaches to science are required by many new curriculum reforms, most notably in this context, the new Australian curriculum currently being rolled out
Professional Development of Elementary and Science Teachers in a Summer Science Camp: Changing Nature of Science Conceptions
No full textMany countries all over the world have recently integrated nature of science (NOS) concepts into their science education standards. Providing professional support to teachers about NOS concepts is crucially important for successful implementation of the standards. For this purpose, a summer science camp was offered to elementary and science teachers. The main objective of this research study was to investigate the progress in specific NOS concepts made by the participant teachers. The responses of the teachers regarding the NOS concepts were obtained through VNOS-C questionnaire and scored using a rubric developed by McDonald (2008). The scored teacher responses were analyzed conducting MANOVA and Repeated Measures MANOVA statistical tests. It was observed that ‘naïve’ or ‘limited’ views of NOS were predominant in the pretest results of the participant teachers. At the end of the summer science camp, some of the participant teachers’ conceptions experienced a transition to more ‘informed’ views of NOS. The amount of the progress made by the teachers appeared to be free from their specific teaching disciplines
A fairytale creation or the beginning ofeverything: Students’ pre-instructionalconceptions about the Big Bang theory
No full textThe beginning of the universe, the Big Bang, being an important subdomain incosmology, marks the very beginning of space and time. Therefore, it has formed the
modern scientific worldview. Transferring this to students through science teaching is a frequent requestin science literacy discussion (e.g., American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1993;Schecker et al., 2004). However, it is not yet clear in science education if students’ conceptions about the Big Bang vary by nationality, and therefore, if it is possible to apply the same teaching modules to students from different countries, who may have diverse social and cultural backgrounds and different curricula. These conceptions with which students enter the classroom were investigated in our study. We implemented an open-ended questionnaire survey in Germany, with questions based on recent U.S. studies. The results clearly showed, with high inter-rater reliabilities, widespread misconceptions like the Big Bang being an explosion of preexisting matter into empty space or the universe having a centre. Furthermore, a comparison of results from researchers in the USA, Sweden and Germany allowed us to identify differences in students’conceptions between the countries. Our findings appear to indicate that German students have slightly better pre-instructional conceptions about the Big Bang theory
Development and evaluation of a context-aware ubiquitous learning environment for astronomy education
No full textIn recent years information technology has been integrated into education to produce a series of trends, beginning with “electronic learning” (e-learning), through “mobile learning” (m-learning) and finally to “ubiquitous learning” (u-learning), which aims to improve learner motivation through overcoming the conventional limitations of time and location. U-learning practices are still being developed, and learners frequently experience difficulty focusing on learning objectives, and effective learning strategy tools are still lacking. This study reports the design of a context-aware astronomy learning system. The system integrates several technologies, including radio frequency identification, wireless communication networks, handheld mobile devices, and databases to help students learn astronomical concepts. Two content modules were developed in the context of natural science education for fifth-grade elementary school students in Taiwan. Indicators of user experience with the system were collected for further phenomenographic analysis, based on four perspectives of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model to assess learner willingness to use this novel u-learning approach. Results show that ease-of-use and the availability of immediate operational or technical support are key factors in increasing learning motivation and performance
Skynet Junior Scholars: From Idea to Enactment--Tales from the Trenches II Implementation with Blind and Low Vision Youth
No full textSkynet Junior Scholars is an ambitious program that aims to:--Develop online tools that enable middle school and high school aged youth to use robotic optical and radio telescopes to do astronomy--Create an inquiry-based curriculum that promotes critical thinking and scientific habits of mind--Proactively incorporate Principles of Universal Design in all SJS development tasks to ensure access by blind/low vision and deaf/hard of hearing youth--Prepare 180 adult youth leaders from diverse backgrounds including 4-H leaders, museum educators, amateur astronomers and teachers to facilitate SJS activities in a variety of settings.In this paper we describe the work of staff and volunteers at the Wisconsin School for the Blind and Visually Impaired who have implemented SJS activities in school and camp environments, as well as ways in which they have empowered their students to take on leadership roles. Students from the Wisconsin School for the Blind and Visually Impaired planned and co-hosted a Magic of Astronomy (Harry Potter Themed) star party that incorporated topics learned as part of the SJS program; filters, exposure time, locating objects in the sky, as well as, how to make an image request from the Skynet network. Their experiences in successfully doing active astronomy will provide insight into how anyone can engage everyone in programs like Skynet Junior Scholars.Skynet Junior Scholars is supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant Numbers 1223687, 1223235 and 1223345