The typical "Astro 101" lecture-based course is passive, and adding well-designed learner-centered labs allows students to experience science as a pattern of thought. In this article, we present an approach to developing an introductory lab course. Identification of goals and student outcomes, particularly skills, and process and attitudinal…

This article presents results from a two-semester field test of the Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory (LSCI). Statistical analysis indicates that the LSCI has the sensitivity to measure statistically significant changes in students' understanding of light-related topics due to instruction in introductory astronomy courses and to distinguish…

In this article, we present an overview of a suite of light and spectroscopy education materials developed as part of Project LITE (Light Inquiry Through Experiments). We also present an analysis of how introductory college astronomy students using these Project LITE materials performed on the Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory (LSCI)…

This research concerns the development and assessment of a program of introductory astronomy conceptual exercises called ranking tasks. These exercises were designed based on results from science education research, learning theory, and classroom pilot studies. The investigation involved a single-group repeated measures experiment across eight key…