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A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning
written by
Raymond Zich, Amber Sammons, and Rebecca Rosenblatt
We report on the conversion of a general education sophomore-level astronomy course from traditional lecture-based methods to a more active-learning course. The course was reworked into an active-learning environment through the addition of concept-oriented group worksheets, hands-on experimental activities, and planetarium-based lessons. We reflect on the process of this transition and report on factors that led to the adoption of active learning, factors that supported the change, and barriers faced while implementing this change. We compare and contrast these findings with other case studies of instructional change and theories of adoption. In addition, student learning pre to post was measured with the TOAST and LPCI, and qualitative data was collected in the form of 35-minute semi-structured interviews with each student to investigate student learning, attitudes, and perceptions of the course as a whole.
Physics Education Research Conference 2019
Part of the PER Conference series
Provo, UT: July 24-25, 2019
Pages 687-692
This material is released under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license.
Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the published article's author(s), title, proceedings citation, and DOI.
<a href="https://www.compadre.org/astronomy/items/detail.cfm?ID=15228">Zich, R, A. Sammons, and R. Rosenblatt. "A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2019, Provo, UT, July 24-25, 2019.</a>
R. Zich, A. Sammons, and R. Rosenblatt, , presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2019, Provo, UT, 2019, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=15228&DocID=5143).
R. Zich, A. Sammons, and R. Rosenblatt, A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning, presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2019, Provo, UT, 2019, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=15228&DocID=5143>.
Zich, R., Sammons, A., & Rosenblatt, R. (2019, July 24-25). A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2019, Provo, UT. Retrieved November 11, 2024, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=15228&DocID=5143
Zich, R, A. Sammons, and R. Rosenblatt. "A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2019, Provo, UT, July 24-25, 2019. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=15228&DocID=5143 (accessed 11 November 2024).
Zich, Raymond, Amber Sammons, and Rebecca Rosenblatt. "A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning." Physics Education Research Conference 2019. Provo, UT: 2019. 687-692 of PER Conference. 11 Nov. 2024 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=15228&DocID=5143>.
@inproceedings{
Author = "Raymond Zich and Amber Sammons and Rebecca Rosenblatt",
Title = {A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning},
BookTitle = {Physics Education Research Conference 2019},
Pages = {687-692},
Address = {Provo, UT},
Series = {PER Conference},
Month = {July 24-25},
Year = {2019}
}
%A Raymond Zich %A Amber Sammons %A Rebecca Rosenblatt %T A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning %S PER Conference %D July 24-25 2019 %P 687-692 %C Provo, UT %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=15228&DocID=5143 %O Physics Education Research Conference 2019 %O July 24-25 %O application/pdf
%0 Conference Proceedings %A Zich, Raymond %A Sammons, Amber %A Rosenblatt, Rebecca %D July 24-25 2019 %T A revision of a traditional astronomy course through active learning %B Physics Education Research Conference 2019 %C Provo, UT %P 687-692 %S PER Conference %8 July 24-25 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=15228&DocID=5143
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