Research on Teaching Astronomy in the Planetarium [Paperback]

From a noted specialist in astronomy education and outreach, this Brief provides an overview?of the most influential discipline-based science education research literature now guiding contemporary astronomy teaching. In recent years, systematic studies of effective and efficient teaching strategies have provided a solid foundation for enhancing college-level students learning in astronomy. Teaching astronomy and planetary science at the college-level was once best characterized as professor-centered, information-download lectures.?Today, astronomy faculty are striving to drastically improve the learning environment by using innovative teaching approaches. ?Uniquely, the authors have organized this book around strands of commonly employed astronomy teaching strategies to help readers, professors, and scholars quickly access the most relevant work while, simultaneously, avoiding the highly specialized, technical vocabulary of constructivist educational pedagogies unfamiliar to most astronomy professors. For readers who are currently teaching astronomy at the college levelor those who plan on teaching at the college level in the futurethis?Brief provides an indispensable guide.Chapter 1 Astronomy Education Research in the Planetarium.- Chapter 2 Overview of Planetarium Education Research Methods.- Chapter 3 Learning Research in the Planetarium Prior to 1990.- Chapter 4 Learning Research in the Planetarium After 1990.- Chapter 5 Affective Domain Research in the Planetarium.- Epilogue.- Appendix: Exhaustive Bibliography.- Index.Dr. Tim Slater is an author of several college-level astronomy textbooks who is well known for his extensive work in popularization of astronomy. Professor Slater is a Professor at the University of Wyoming where he holds the Wyoming Excellence in Higher Education Endowed Chair for Science Education. As a member of the UW Physics and Astronomy Department, he is recognized as an expert in education and public outreach in astronomy and space sciel³.