iStarDB (The Astronomy Education Research Repository)
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Item response theory evaluation of the Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory national data set
No full text[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Astronomy Education Research.] This paper presents the first item response theory (IRT) analysis of the national data set on introductory, general education, college-level astronomy teaching using the Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory (LSCI). We used the difference between students’ pre- and postinstruction IRT-estimated abilities as a measure of learning gain. This analysis provides deeper insights than prior publications both into the LSCI as an instrument and into the effectiveness of teaching and learning in introductory astronomy courses. Our IRT analysis supports the classical test theory findings of prior studies using the LSCI with this population. In particular, we found that students in classes that used active learning strategies at least 25% of the time had average IRT-estimated learning gains that were approximately 1 logit larger than students in classes that spent less time on active learning strategies. We also found that instructors who want their classes to achieve an improvement in abilities of average Δθ=1 logit must spend at least 25% of class time on active learning strategies. However, our analysis also powerfully illustrates the lack of insight into student learning that is revealed by looking at a single measure of learning gain, such as average Δθ. Educators and researchers should also examine the distributions of students’ abilities pre- and postinstruction in order to understand how many students actually achieved an improvement in their abilities and whether or not a majority of students have moved to postabilities significantly greater than the national average
Forty Years of Linking Variable Star Research with Education
No full textIn this review, I reflect on four decades of my experience in linking astronomy research and education by supervising variable-star research projects by undergraduates, and by outstanding senior high school students. I describe the evolution of my experience, the students I have supervised, the nature of their projects, the educational contexts of the projects, the need for “best practices”, the journals in which we publish, and the special role of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO). I then describe our recent research on pulsating red giants and related objects, including three astrophysical mysteries that we have uncovered. Finally, I suggest how my projects might be scaled up or extended by others who supervise student research
The Hands-On Universe Project and Modeling Instruction Based HOU: MI-HOU
No full textWe describe here an evolving process to re-cast HOU (the Hands-On Universe project) into the conceptual framework, pedagogical structure, and teacher network of Modeling Instruction (“MI”). This new system “MI-HOU” (pronounced “My H-O-U”) has many attributes that we believe will tilt it towards sustainability and long term success. Before its merging with MI, Hands-On Universe (HOU or Global Hands-On Universe – GHOU – see http:// handsonuniverse.org) has helped pioneer the use of robotic telescope and other professional grade astronomy data in classrooms, and has had evidenced many successes over its lifetime. HOU has enjoyed decades of gradual expansion and growth into many classrooms around the world, and has been an effective enabler of students undertaking high-quality, inquiry-based science education. Now, to enable broader and deeper acceptance across a wider audience, HOU is converting its pedagogy and materials to Modeling Instruction (see http://modelinginstruction.org). MI-HOU will also eventually become part of a high school earth and space science curriculum, besides reaching semester long astronomy classes, and some physics and physical science courses. Modeling Instruction is a very successful and growing pedagogy that affords much deeper conceptual learning by students than that from conventional teaching. Embedding robotic telescopes into this pedagogical framework should allow their use powerfully by a larger number of classrooms within the Modeling Instruction Community (1800 physics teachers, for example). All the while, through assessments that are being developed, we gradually begin the important spade work of convincing school authorities of the power of this kind of teaching and learning
The NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program (NITARP)
No full textNITARP, the NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program, partners small groups of predominantly high school educators with research astronomers for a year-long research project. This paper presents a summary of how NITARP works and the lessons learned over the last 13 years. The program lasts a calendar year, January to January, and involves three week-long trips: to the American Astronomical Society (AAS) winter meeting, to Caltech in the summer (with students), and back to a winter AAS meeting (with students) to present their results. Because NITARP has been running since 2009, and its predecessor ran from 2005-2008, there have been many lessons learned over the last 13 years that have informed the development of the program. The most critical is that scientists must see their work with the educators on their team as a partnership of equals who have specialized in different professions. NITARP teams appear to function most efficiently with approximately 5 people: a mentor astronomer, a mentor teacher (who has been through the program before), and 3 new educators. Educators are asked to step into the role of learner and develop their question-asking skills as they work to develop an understanding of a subject in which they will not have command of all the information and processes needed. Critical to the success of each team is the development of communication skills and fluid plan of action to keep the lines of communication open. This program has allowed more than 100 educators to present more than 60 total science posters at the AAS
Universe in the Classroom: using robotic telescopes in primary schools
No full textUniverse in the Classroom is a science engagement programme that provides under-served Welsh primary schools with improved teaching methods and innovative tools, including access to robotic telescopes through the Las Cumbres Observatory (LCO), to modernise and enhance the way science is taught to young children aged 4-11 years. As a result, the programme has engaged with 133 primary schools from 21 of the 22 Welsh counties, 47% of whom receive below average budget per student per year. In addition to the provision of highquality resources, Universe in the Classroom offers teacher training workshops to improve teachers’ scientific knowledge and confidence, with 75% stating improved confidence using science resources post-training event. The programme has also engaged with of 22,083 schoolchildren, successfully improving their understanding of the Universe and challenging perceptions of scientists, with an additional 10% of girls describing scientists as female after a workshop hosted by our diverse and enthusiastic team of undergraduate role models. Furthermore, the number of complex scientific concepts discussed by students tripled postworkshop. Although we identified several potential deterrents affecting the uptake of robotic telescopes in primary school classrooms, these were addressed by the programme and 25% of teachers claim to have used the telescopes in their schools, with an additional 75% stating their school would find a second LCO account useful
Some Philosophical Musings on the RTSRE conference
No full textThis paper is written in response to an invitation after having had some discussions with the organizer, Dr Michael Fitzgerald. We had been discussing our reactions to all of the papers presented. I had been somewhat dismayed by the “lack of educational knowledge” displayed. Reflection revealed that this was not surprising given that so few had undertaken any advanced training in education. Many were scientists and experts in their fields of astronomy, technology or robotics. Consequently, I cover some key topics that I consider to be important in this domain. These include: the message systems of curriculum, pedagogy and evaluation in education; how these are typically operationalized; and, with this operationalization, how we encounter the problems made manifest during the conference. I offer some suggestions on how to overcome these
A Brief Overview of Robotic Telescopes, Student Research and Education Research in the English Literature
No full textIn this paper, a brief overview of the 245 known academic publications that can be considered Robotic Telescopes, Student Research and Education related articles is provided. Their method of selection is described as well as their availability on the International Studies of Astronomy Education Research Database (istardb.org) database. The typical types of articles are described and their major locations of publications are outlined. From this a rough impact analysis using a blunt citation metric is used to provide a broad overview of the literature for the field as a whole. These explorations are discussed with broad conclusions presented about how to write an article in the field with some impact as well as where and what to publish as the Robotic Telescopes, Student Research and Education (RTSRE) field continues to grow
Space Science: the View from European School Students
No full textGender imbalance in the physical sciences and engineering is a longstanding and well-documented concern within science education, industry, and policy. The current study is motivated by this issue and focuses on space science in particular, which has been promoted as a physical science with the capacity to inspire both boys and girls. A survey of over 8000 pupils aged 9–16 from 11 European countries was utilised to provide the first large-scale investigation of school students’ perceptions of space science. Enthusiasm for space science was clear within our sample, and individual differences were more important than background characteristics (gender, age, country) in driving attitudes to space science. However, although these positive attitudes and perceptions were shared by boys and girls, substantially fewer students, particularly females, expressed interest in pursuing a career in space science
Conceptual Blending as an Interpretive Lens for Student Engagement with Technology: Exploring Celestial Motion on an Interactive Whiteboard
No full textWe present and analyze video data of upper secondary school students’ engagement with a computer-supported collaborative learning environment that enables them to explore astronomical phenomena (Keplerian motion). The students’ activities have an immersive and exploratory character, as students engage in open-ended inquiry and interact physically with the virtual environment displayed on an interactive whiteboard. The interplay of students’ playful exploration through physical engagement with the simulation environment, their attention to physics concepts and laws, and knowledge about the real planets orbiting the Sun presents an analytical challenge for the researcher and instructor encountering such complex learning environments. We argue that the framework of conceptual blending is particularly apt for dealing with the learning environment at hand, because it allows us to take into account the many diverse mental inputs that seem to shape the student activities described in the paper. We show how conceptual blending can be brought together with theoretical ideas concerned with embodied cognition and epistemology of physics, in order to provide researchers and instructors with a powerful lens for looking critically at immersive technology-supported learning environments
An Evaluation of Secondary School Students’ Learning Experiences with Astronomy-based Physics Outreach Activities
No full textEngland and Wales, as with many other countries across the world are faced with a large proportion of secondary school students who are disengaged with physics. Teachers are faced with immense pressure from accountability measures that have been seen to restrict innovation and creativity in the classroom. This study implemented a series of astronomy-based outreach activities that had been designed to apply a novel context to the curriculum and encourage an inquiry-based, student-centred classroom. Though astronomy has been described as a promising point of engagement and portrays widespread interest, no study is seen to evaluate the application of astronomy as a context for compulsory science or physics curricula. This study successfully achieves this through the implementation of a series of outreach activities that apply an inquiry-based pedagogy. The study focuses on the evaluation of their impact on students’ learning experiences in physics. However, findings are not limited to the outreach activities of this study and a robust framework is presented to other practitioners seeking to design and evaluate their outreach initiatives and teachers looking to implement them.
The study also demonstrates that initiatives do not necessarily require large amounts of time or funding in order to have an impact. Though existing research is indicative that attitudes are withstanding and difficult to change, this study demonstrates the influence just a single lesson can have on students’ perceptions of their learning experiences and can encourage them to reconsider their predispositions