Stellar parallax is a concept that is dealt with infrequently in the high school classroom other than by qualitative consideration of stereoscopic parallax and argument by analogy. Use of stellar parallax for distance determination can be difficult for students to understand without some type of hands-on experience to explore the concept. Thus,…

Do you remember boom-boxes with two decks so a personalized playlist could be recorded onto a cassette tape? Perhaps you received a playlist from a friend, family member, or lover? In this project, 14 colleagues first compiled and shared their curriculum playlists--their favorite texts/performances about curriculum including some of their own…

In the context of research universities, what kind of places and spaces can we create for ourselves that foster a holistic vision of learning and community, a vision that is responsive to the shifting social and ecological landscapes of the Anthropocene? How can these spaces simultaneously address the need to nurture both personal and cultural…

This composite nonfiction narrativizes the experiences of Daniel Meyers, an assistant professor of education. Specifically, it details his transition from a graduate program to working as a full-time tenure track faculty member at a public state university. Methodologically, this research relies on parallax as an important tool to understanding…

An overlooked feature in astronomy education is the need for students to learn to extrapolate three-dimensionality and the challenges that this may involve. Discerning critical features in the night sky that are embedded in dimensionality is a long-term learning process. Several articles have addressed the usefulness of three-dimensional (3D)…

Visualizing the three-dimensional distribution of stars within a constellation is highly challenging for both students and educators, but when carried out in an interactive collaborative way, it can create an ideal environment to explore common misconceptions about size and scale within astronomy. We present how the common tabletop activities…

The explanation of certain 3D concepts is based on 2D drawings. These drawings should contain certain depth cues, such as perspective and overlapping. Until recently, parallax has not been used as a depth cue. Nevertheless, new technologies allow it to be incorporated. This forms the background to our study of the design of interactive educational…

Trigonometric parallax is a powerful method to work out the distance of celestial bodies, and it was used in the past to measure the distance of the Moon, Venus, Mars and nearby stars. We set up an observation campaign for high school and undergraduate students with the purpose to measure both the Moon's and Mars' parallax. To have a large enough…

The presented research study investigated the effects of computer-supported inquiry-based learning and peer interaction methods on effectiveness of learning a scientific concept. The stellar parallax concept was selected as a basic, and yet important in astronomy, scientific construct, which is based on a straightforward relationship of several…

The modernization agendas of higher education systems and institutions around the world are littered with debate over definitions of what is a "quality higher education" often paralyzed by the parallax of multiple stakeholder perspectives. Over the last decade or so there has been a hitherto unprecedented appetite for attempting to…

Differences of perspective, standpoint and subjectivity can help to enlarge the conceptual landscape of environmental education theory. Rejections of difference, on the other hand, can become an intolerance that narrows the scope of inquiry. This rejoinder argues that Bowers' repeated rejections of critical pedagogy are based on a partial reading…

The wide-spread digital photography and computer use gave the opportunity for everyone to make three-dimensional pictures and to make them public. The new opportunities with three-dimensional techniques give chance for the birth of new artistic photographs. We present in detail the biological roots of three-dimensional visualization, the phenomena…

Problem-based learning (PBL) is an instructional approach that formed in medical school and holds students responsible for their learning as they solve a hypothetical real-world problem. Research on this instructional approach in K-12 settings is emerging, with most of the existing literature utilizing high school students and science. Few studies…

Discusses the trigonometric or heliocentric parallax method of measuring distances to the stars. A description of how parallax distances are derived, the importance of this method, and the limitations of this method are also included. (DS)

The subject of parallax can motivate learning related to measurement of lengths and angles as well as provide an introduction to trigonometric concepts. (SD)