During the COVID-19 pandemic, informal learning environments (ILEs) were forced to move programming online for the safety of staff and visitors. The Big Astronomy Project responded to the pandemic by releasing a planetarium show as a virtual YouTube 360 stream. This project was also utilized in the late stages of the pandemic in-person at…

The purpose of this study was to provide an online astronomy activity using the Stellarium program as a virtual planetarium. The implementation was conducted with 30 preservice primary school teachers (PPTs) who participated in a non-formal workshop that included interactive, technology-based astronomy practices embedded with the…

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic it was impossible to carry out on-campus teaching and examinations as planned for the first-year elementary school Bachelor's degree teacher training courses during the summer term of 2019/2020. Therefore, we moved our on-campus STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) related courses to schooling…

Technology in college classrooms has gone from being an enhancement to the learning experience to being something expected by both instructors and students. This design-based research investigation takes technology one step further, putting the tools used to teach directly in the hands of students. The study examined the affordances and…

This article describes a unit in which students investigate total solar eclipses, such as the one coming August 21, from several perspectives. It incorporates mathematical thinking and aligns with the "Next Generation Science Standard." This article refers to physical, virtual, and mathematical modeling. Various models and perspectives…

Digital video fulldome has long been heralded as a revolutionary educational technology; yet the discipline-based astronomy education research literature showing planetarium effectiveness has been sparse. In order to help understand to what extent immersion impacts learning and the effect of the "narrative journey" model of presentation,…

Augmented Reality (AR) technology and games can enhance motivation for learning. When combined with mobile devices, AR technology can promote authentic learning in outdoor environments, such as urban parks. These spaces can be used for Science Education, particularly, for environmental education and nature conservation. The EduPARK project…

Supporting elementary student understandings of ideas related to Earth's Place in the Universe (ESS1) can be challenging, especially given the large time and distance scales involved with many of the concepts. However, with effective use of crosscutting concepts and science and engineering practices, important concepts within this content domain…

Educating the public about wildlife and conservation has long been a core component of many zoos' mission statements (Patrick, Matthews, Ayers, & Tunnicliffe, 2007). However, research has demonstrated that most patrons visit zoos to be entertained and to socialize rather than to be educated. Thus, greater emphasis is now placed on encouraging…

Space has fascinated and intrigued humans of all ages since time immemorial, and continues to do so today. The natural curiosity is engaged when looking up into the sky, notice patterns among celestial objects such as the Sun, Moon, and stars, and wonder. Scientific understanding of those patterns has progressed immensely over the span of human…

This article explores the efficacy of virtual environments representing situations that are emotionally significant to patients with eating disorders (ED) to modify depression and anxiety levels both in these patients and in controls. Eighty-five ED patients and 108 students were randomly exposed to five experimental virtual environments (a…

This article talks about fulldome video, a new technology which has been adopted fairly extensively by the larger, well-funded planetariums. Fulldome video, also called immersive projection, can help teach subjects ranging from geology to history to chemistry. The rapidly advancing progress of projection technology has provided high-resolution…