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J. M. Bailey (Department of Astronomy, University of Arizona)
Despite astronomy's widespread inclusion in curricula prior to the 20th century, educational research in astronomy is a relatively new endeavor. To date there are no dedicated paper journals for astronomy education research, although the new electronic Astronomy Education Review (http://aer.noao.edu) has recently released its first issue. As the field of astronomy education research grows - and it is doing so with leaps and bounds - many may find it useful to know what has been done so far. The new SABER database (http://www.cdes-astro.com/saber) represents an ongoing and collaborative attempt for the astronomy education community to collect and summarize the highly dispersed literature on astronomy education research, although it is not yet complete. Starting with and expanding beyond this database, a systematic review and classification of the literature was performed. Some of the recurring research themes that emerged from this review include: student beliefs and misconceptions; collaborative learning; the large lecture classroom; and education in planetaria. Key studies in these areas are described and a detailed bibliography is presented.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: jbailey@as.arizona.edu
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 34
© 2002. The American Astronomical Soceity.