Modern astronomy as a field of inquiry may be shaped by what we consider the "scientific" ways of knowing. However, the history of astronomy as a human endeavour dates back millennia before the "modern" notions of "science". This long history means that astronomy is, at its core, built on a rich cultural diversity and…

This paper provides a critical and detailed study of what researchers in the fields of contemporary cognition and neuroscience have revealed about the blurred boundary between perception and cognition. We set out the arguments with a view to what researchers and teachers should now consider regarding the subtleties of their interrelationship in…

In this paper I demonstrate how zines (pronounced 'zeen', a word that is a contraction of 'magazine') about space science can be theorised as a site of science education at the margins. Through exploring different zines and their potential to create counter-narratives I offer a series of objects that might reshape how we teach and learn about…

Physics teachers are sometimes asked to teach an astronomy course for non-majors. One can't make that class dance and sing without the starry night, but on a brightly lit campus viewing deep sky objects may seem impossible. Hence instructors often opt for planetarium shows. However: 1) Planetariums aren't the real thing. 2) People living in large…

Hurricane and galaxy tidal effect are routine teaching topics in community college first year science courses, but there is a knowledge gap without a quantitative discussion of the physics of non-inertia frame. A survey of YouTube videos posted by Education Centers and professors showed that the hand-waving conceptual explanation is the most…

In recent years, studies by education researchers indicate that, despite various instructional methods to enhance the conceptual understanding of seasons, the reasons for the formation of seasons and the processes involved are still not fully grasped. This research aims to investigate the fundamental reasons for the difficulties in comprehending…

Data from the Kepler satellite were analysed using the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes database. With the participation of 53 students, we determined the parameters of the HAT-P-7b (Kepler-2) exoplanet system (transit duration, planet-to-star radius ratio, orbital period, semi-major axis and star mass). We used approaches that are easy to…

The paper describes an upper-division university course in Mars literature taught online since Fall 2013. The course readings comprise six novels relating to Mars. Authors include H.G. Wells, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ray Bradbury, Phillip K. Dick, Greg Bear, and Kim Stanley Robinson. After an introduction, sections of the paper discuss course…

The nature and cause of the phases of the moon are widely misunderstood. Perhaps the problem is a general decline in scientific literacy, or maybe it is the loss of direct and regular observation of the moon in society generally. Many people do not see the moon as a half-illuminated sphere. Adults are often surprised to realize that the moon can…

This dissertation explores the implementation of classical education in a non-classical charter high school, with a focus on science education using classical methodologies. Employing techniques like copy work, history-based science teaching (HBST), the Socratic method, and the Progymnastmata, astronomy, and chemistry were taught. To identify…

In high school, and also in introductory physics courses in higher levels of schooling, the law of universal gravitation of planets is introduced by postulating Johannes Kepler's three laws, and later Isaac Newton's law of the inverse of the square of the distance to the Sun. The justification of the laws is only achieved in advanced courses in…

"Tanjim" means "belief in the effect of the state of the constellations and the movement of stars in human life and terrestrial events" and is one of the topics that have long been of interest to humans, including Muslims. The existence of some narrations, for or against this issue, has caused the jurists of Islamic religions…

The planet Mercury transited the face of the Sun in a rare spectacle on 11 November 2019. It was an awe-inspiring moment for 300 students from Kwabenya Community High School and Ghana Atomic Energy Commission Basic School in Ghana to see this wonder of the cosmos. Celestron Power Seeker 60 mm diameter telescopes were used to project the Sun's…

This paper explores how public and student engagement with NASA's Lucy Mission--targeting the Jupiter Trojan asteroids affects informal science learning, interest in planetary science, and youth engagement with space-related careers. Through a mixed-methods study including surveys, observational data, and analysis of public outreach campaigns, we…

This study investigates the effect of life-based teaching using popular science journals on the success of solving life-based questions prepared by associating them with daily life. The study included 6th-grade students studying in a public secondary school in the spring semester of the 2020-2021 academic year. Using the quasi-experimental method,…