Introduction to Astronomy for Educators

Catalog description

This course is designed to engage students with the big ideas of astronomy in ways that will help them understand both the content of astronomy, as well as the practices of science as carried out by astronomers. The course is designed for prospective elementary and middle school teachers (PK-4 and 4-8 majors), although it is available to other non-science majors. Throughout the course, students engage in a series of investigations that lead towards the development of evidence-based explanations for patterns observed in the current Solar System. Investigations will include computer-based simulations, night-sky observations, and use of simple laboratory equipment. These investigations lead students towards an understanding of how observations of the current Solar System can be explained by the model of its formation. The course is designed to build from students' own personal observations of the day and night sky towards developing increasingly sophisticated explanations for those phenomena and beyond. Conducting these astronomy investigations will help students understand fundamental aspects of physics, thus broadly preparing them for future science teaching in these domains. The course models evidence-based pedagogy, thus helping to prepare students for future teaching careers as they learn effective strategies for teaching science.