iStarDB (The Astronomy Education Research Repository)
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2071 research outputs found
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Effects of the Context-based Approach on Students' Conceptual Understanding: “the Umbra, the Solar Eclipse and the Lunar Eclipse
No full textThe purpose of this study was to explore the effects of context-based learning approach (CBLA) on 5th grade students’ misconceptions about ‘the umbra, solar and lunar eclipses’. In this study, a quasi-experimental methodology pre-test and post-test design was utilized with control and experimental groups. The study was conducted with 48 5th grade students (aged 10 to 11 years). For the experimental group, the topics were explained using the CBLA while for the control group the 5E teaching model of the constructivist approach was used. For data collection, a two-tier conceptual test and a semi-structured interview were used. Study results indicated that the learning environment designed in accordance with the CBLA was a superior instructional tool than the 5E teaching model learning environment in terms of students' conceptual learning performance and eliminating students' misconceptions. In addition, CBLA helped students to link between the scientific concepts and the context related to the daily life
Implementation and Operation of a Robotic Telescope on Skynet
No full textWe describe the implementation of a remotely operated telescope on the Skynet Robotic Telescope Network, a system developed and run by the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Our telescope, operated by Appalachian State University at its Dark Sky Observatory, runs robotically on this queue-scheduled system, automatically taking calibration images and acquiring program images, and responding to Internet commands to image the afterglow of accessible Gamma-Ray Burst events. We describe the process of implementing a Skynet-run telescope from our client-side view, and offer advice for others who might consider putting telescopes on Skynet. The implementation has proven very successful, obtaining over a hundred thousand images over the past six years, of various targets for research and educational purposes, and has responded to several GRB observation requests with several afterglow detections
Uso de herramientas web para la enseñanza de la gran explosión y cuerpos cósmicos con estudiantes de nivel secundaria
No full textCollaborative learning is a strategy that organizes classroom activities in order to generate social and academic learning experience in it, students work in groups. In this paper the effectiveness of the implementation of this strategy is reported using a web page designed for this purpose with a group of second graders of secondary (group A) and compared with a group that took normal classes (group B). An analysis of standardized conceptual gain was performed and it was found that group A was higher than group B, which indicates that there was this strategy along
with that web page was that improved understanding of the concepts about Astronomy and Cosmology in student’s
high school. According to these results, it is intended to design an online course on these issues to go a step further in using digital tools for teaching physics to secondary level
Novice Explanations Of Hurricane Formation Offer Insights Into Scientific Literacy And The Development Of Expert-Like Conceptions
No full textThe ability to explain scientific phenomena is a key feature of scientific literacy, and engaging students’ prior knowledge, especially their alternate conceptions, is an effective strategy for enhancing scientific literacy and developing expertise. The gap in knowledge about the alternate conceptions that novices have about many of Earth’s complex phenomena (National Research Council, 2012), however, makes this type of engagement in geoscience courses challenging. This study helps to fill this gap by identifying and describing how novices to geoscience explain a complex scientific phenomenon, hurricane formation. Using a pragmatism methodology, 326 students in introductory-level geoscience courses at two public universities in the United States of America, in Georgia (n=168) and Nebraska (n=158), were surveyed. The questionnaire was designed to target and collect novices’ explanations of a single complex Earth phenomenon – hurricane formation. Constant comparative analyses of textual content and diagrams revealed a variety of alternate conceptions. The data suggests that novices seldom invoke scientific first principles, which students matriculating through the education system are expected to learn before college, in their explanations. Two theoretical models synthesize the alternate conceptions and illustrate pathways of conceptual change along which students might move from more novice-like to more expert-like ways of scientific thinking. Our findings provide a basis for the development of instructional activities that aid students in developing more expertlike
conceptions of hurricane formation and other complex Earth phenomena
Design Priorities For Online Laboratories In Undergraduate Practical Science
No full textThe use of remote and virtual experiments to supplement undergraduate practical science instruction has accelerated in recent decades, as isolated proofs of concept have given way to integrated suites of educational content. Online laboratories are poised to assume even greater importance for teaching, as the growing availability of distributed learning approaches, high-speed internet access, and ambient and mobile sensors broadens opportunities worldwide for experiencing practical work. My original contribution to knowledge has been to identify – and differentiate by scientific discipline – key priorities for the design of more effective online labs as informed by students' perspectives of the technology. This dissertation is motivated by three research questions: (1) Which aspects of online labs determine whether participants perceive them as authentic learning experiences? (2) Which online lab characteristics dictate their suitability for social modes of learning? (3) How can educators use metafunctional elements – i.e. computer-mediated features impossible to implement in a proximal setting – to enhance understanding and skill acquisition? Studies of undergraduate cohorts from both distance learning and conventional institutions were carried out, with an initial emphasis on physics and astronomy coursework that was later extended to other scientific fields. A mixed methods approach was adopted, with quantitative data elicited primarily via multi-stage survey instruments and qualitative data derived principally from interviews or focus groups. Statistical and thematic analyses yielded key findings regarding the roles authenticity, sociability and metafunctionality play in the design of successful online labs. For instance, establishing professional relevance and data reliability in online
labs appears far more important to achieving authenticity than photorealistic depictions of scientific sites. Moreover, interfaces that students perceive as denying
them agency – including the ability to make genuine mistakes – lead to shallow engagement and worse outcomes. Students often deem social interaction a defining
aspect of proximal lab work, so missing provisions for synchronous multi-user presence and communication engender feelings of isolation and helplessness in
online labs. While mostly sceptical of metafunctional enhancements, students nonetheless repeatedly express a desire for practice with non-ideal scenarios and
with the setup and teardown stages of practical work. Incorporating the proposed design principles will better align future online labs with student expectations, thus
deepening engagement and securing improved academic outcomes
Indigenous Sky Stories: Reframing How we Introduce Primary School Students to Astronomy — a Type II Case Study of Implementation
No full textThe Indigenous Sky Stories Program may have the potential to deliver significant and long-lasting changes
to the way science is taught to Year 5 and 6 primary school students. The context for this article is informed
by research that shows that educational outcomes can be strengthened when Indigenous knowledge is given
the space to co-exist with the hegemony of current western science concepts. This research presents a case
study of one primary school involved in the Indigenous Sky Stories Program. It showcases how teachers and
students worked in conjunction with their local community to implement the program. The results suggest
that introducing cultural sky stories into the science program, engaged and primed Year 5 and 6 students to
seek out additional sky stories and to investigate the astronomical content mapped to the National Science
Curriculum. The involvement of Aboriginal elders and community enriched the experience for all involved.
The integrated science program appears to generate positive engagement for both Indigenous students and
their non-Indigenous peers. Additionally, the program provided a valuable template for teachers to emulate
and which can act as a model for the requirement to include Indigenous perspectives in the new National
Science Curriculum
Science learning via participation in online citizen science
No full textWe investigate the development of scientific content knowledge of volunteers participating in online citizen science projects in the Zooniverse (www.zooniverse.org). We use econometric methods to test how measures of project participation relate to success in a science quiz, controlling for factors known to correlate with scientific knowledge. Citizen scientists believe they are learning about both the content and processes of science through their participation. We don’t directly test the latter, but we find evidence to support the former — that more actively engaged participants perform better in a project-specific science knowledge quiz, even after controlling for their general science knowledge. We interpret this as evidence of learning of science content inspired by participation in online citizen science
Capturing the many faces of an exploded star: communicating complex and evolving astronomical data
No full textThis study explored how different presentations of an object in deep space affect understanding, engagement, and aesthetic appreciation. A total of n = 2,502 respondents to an online survey were randomly assigned to one of 11 versions of Cassiopeia A, comprising 6 images and 5 videos ranging from 3s to approximately 1min. Participants responded to intial items regarding what the image looked like, the aesthetic appeal of the image, perceptions of understanding, and how much the participant wanted to learn more. After the image was identified, participants indicated the extent to which the label increased understanding and how well the image represented the object. A final item asked for questions about the image for an atronomer. Results suggest that alternative types of images can and should be used, provided they are accompanied by explanations. Qualitative data indicated that explanations should include information about colors used, size, scale, and location of the object. The results are discussed in terms of science communication to the public in the face of increasing use of technology
Building A Three Dimensional Universe From The Classroom: Multiperspective Visualization For Non-science Undergraduates
No full textWe develop three-dimensional mental models of our physical environs from two dimensional imagery we collect with our eyes. This is possible only because we move through that environment, viewing it from multiple perspectives, and construct a model consistent with a collection of two-dimensional views. The technique works well for structures whose sizes are comparable to the magnitude of our movements, such as rooms, buildings, and even cities; but for much larger structures, we are effectively limited to a single perspective, and therefore must create mental models from indirect measures.
The astronomical realm is almost always in this latter category, and student understanding of the structure of the universe is limited by their inability to use multi-perspective techniques to generate an accurate mental image of astronomical structure. Without an accurate model, students tend to underestimate the distances to and between astronomical objects, leading to inaccurate assumptions regarding the overall size of the universe, the interactions between celestial objects, and our location within and among these structures.
To improve student understanding of the size, scale, and structure of our universe, we have developed hybrid laboratory activities based on a mix of hands-on discovery with physical models and multiperspective visualization using the WorldWide Telescope (WWT) virtual environment. WWT, developed by Microsoft Research, managed and supported by the American Astronomical Society, and freely available to the world community, represents real astronomical data in a three-dimensional environment that students can investigate from a variety of physical perspectives. They can virtually “fly through” astronomical structures and thus use the same techniques they use in their local everyday environment to develop an accurate mental model on an astronomical scale.
These new lab activities connect indirect measurements of distance and structure (based on real astronomical data) to visualizations of those same structures, so that students understand the techniques by which structure is measured, and create accurate mental models of those structures. This not only improves their understanding of their astronomical environs, but also improves their understanding of the physical processes that occur in our universe.
We will present examples of these activities, and assessment data measuring the improvement in student understanding of astronomical size, scale, and structure, as a result of their interactions with these material