| Type |
Conference Paper |
| Names |
Lauren Siegel, G. Dickinson, E. J. Hooper, M. Daniels |
| Proceedings Title |
Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society |
| Conference Name |
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #211, #05.07 |
| Volume |
39 |
| Pages |
733 |
| Date |
December 1, 2007 |
| URL |
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2007AAS...211.0507S |
| Library Catalog |
NASA ADS |
| Abstract |
This presentation describes the results of collaboration between
instructors in the UTeach teacher preparation program at the University
of Texas at Austin, and an astronomer teaching at the university as part
of a National Science Foundation Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral
Fellowship. The astronomer provided training to give pre-service
teachers an authentic understanding of the principles of telescope
optics. This made it possible for the preservice teachers to include
real design constraints and optical properties into lessons developed as
part of a collaborative field experience to teach astronomical telescope
design and construction to high school Algebra II students.
One result is a sequence of investigations designed to explore how and
why the physical and mathematical properties of parabolic mirrors both
enable and constrain our ability to build and use telescopes to focus
light from distant objects. Various approaches, including generating and
exploring computer models, traditional proofs, even making paper models,
are all woven together into a coherent set of eleven investigations for
use in mathematics and science classrooms.
The presentation will include a description of the suite of
investigations, as well as a discussion of the collaborative process
which generated the work and resulted in an article submission to a
preeminent teaching journal. Teaching Algebra and Geometry Concepts by
Modeling Telescope Optics, 2008, Mathematics Teacher is
currently in press.
Many thanks to the University of Texas UTeach Program for sponsorship of
this submission. |