We purchased two iPads with 3G connectivity to allow the students to conduct real-time research about astronomy while they were at the JWSO observing site with their instructors and classmates.  Being able to confirm visually what was in the sky and to compare that with claims on various websites, the students were able differentiate reliable from unreliable websites and other sources of information on the internet.  Everything from the visibility of eclipses to the apparent size of Mars in the night sky was erroneously reported in a variety of places during the semester, and by using direct observation and astronomy software on the iPad, the students were able to discover accurate information about these and other events in the night sky.

We administered a pre- and post-course test about basic astronomy knowledge to estimate the effects of the course and found a dramatic increase in basic competence over the semester.  The Information Literacy aspect of the course facilitated by the Illuminate Grant played a large role in this success.

SLO1—A  Using the iPads, students will identify specific questions needing further investigation, such as why some stars seem to move through a greater distance in one hour than others. Key terms and phrases such as “angular distance”, and “declination” will guide the investigation, and lead, through further research, to a more refined inquiry into the equatorial coordinate system, and students will thereby come to an understanding of the apparent motion of celestial bodies due to the rotation of the Earth.

SLO 2A—Students will explore a variety of information sources both in the form of apps and websites,

SLO 2B—Students will compare the efficacy of diagrammatic vs. verbal accounts of such phenomena as the causes of the seasons, the timing of the solstices and equinoxes and the phases of the moon.

SLO 3B—Students will compare a variety of sources with canonical sources such as the course textbook, Sky & Telescope magazine and Scientific American magazine and notice the differences.  To pick a recent discrepancy, the Birmingham media, including all TV outlets and the Birmingham News all reported that the recent lunar eclipse (December 10, 2011) would be visible to Alabamians.  This was true of most popular news outlets in eastern part of the US.   Facebook users reposted these articles and recommended that people arise early on Saturday to witness the eclipse.  Reliable correctly reported both that the eclipse would not be visible from our longitude and that the eclipse would be long over by Saturday morning.  
 
SLO4A, B, C—Students will discern the trustworthy from the untrustworthy information and will endeavor to dispel the false beliefs they are likely to have had based on the consumption of popular but false claims about celestial events from eclipses to the causes of the seasons.

 

Test of Basic Astronomical Knowledge     
Spring Semester, 2012    
    
Pre-Test Scores    Post-Test Scores      
Mean 34%           Mean 85%
Median  35%       Median  83%
Mode 20%          Mode 70%