Re-Numerate restoring essential numerical skills and thinking via - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Re-Numerate restoring essential numerical skills and thinking via astronomy education

Kate Brutlag Follette

• Dr. Don McCarthy
• Dr. Erin Dokter

October 13, 2012

Can it be done?

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

Innumeracy/Quantitative Illiteracy

Voters, Consumers, Citizens

NASA’s 2011 Budget: $18.724 billion

1 2 3 4 5

11% 29% 13% 8% 39%

Who ¡Wants ¡to ¡be ¡a ¡Billionaire? ¡ Where ¡is ¡one ¡billion ¡on ¡this ¡scale? ¡

1 trillion E D C B A US 2011 Budget: $3.630 trillion

P s e u d

• s

c i e n c e

“I have here in my hand a list of 205, a list of names that were made known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping policy in the State Department” Joseph McCarthy February 9, 1950

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans

W h y I n t r

• S

c i e n c e / A s t r

• n
• m

y ?

² Based on AIP survey: “introductory astronomy

enrollments have remained in the 180,000-190,000 range since 2004” (Nicholson and Mulvey, 2010)

² + community colleges, where “an estimated

100,000 students take Astronomy 101 in departments not covered by the AIP survey” (Fraknoi 2001).

² Bureau of Labor Statistics: 2.2 million people were

enrolled in college in the US in Fall, 2010.

² >10% of college students eventually pass through

the door of an “Astronomy 101” course in college. “I have always heard a lot about science and math being related, but I have never actually used them together. I have finished an entire year of algebra, but there has never been any science in it. The same holds true in my science class. Frankly, I have never seen any connection between the two of them.”

Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

Part 1: Skill Set

Numerical Skills

²

Percentages and Fractions

²

Multiplication and Division

²

Simple Unit Conversions

²

Powers and Area

²

Estimation

²

Error

²

Graph Reading and Interpretation

Can you do Division? Divide a loaf by a knife - what's the answer to that? Through the Looking Glass

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

You get a letter from your cable company saying that they will be raising your monthly rate by $5. Assuming that the rate does not change again, how much additional money will you be paying to the cable company over the course of the next three years? (a) $60 (b) $100 (c) $130 (d) $180 How confident are you in the answer you just selected? (a) very confident (b)Confident (c) not very confident (d) I guessed

S a m p l e Q u e s t i

• n

s

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

You begin by measuring out the peanut butter in a 2 cup glass measuring cup like that shown above. You fill it to the ¾ cup

• line. If you are to add the shortening to the

same measuring cup on top of the peanut butter, which line should you fill it to? (a) the 1 cup line (b) the 1 ¼ cup line (c) the 1 1/3 cup line (d) none of the above

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans

S a m p l e Q u e s t i

• n

s

Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

Part 2: Attitude

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

P r e l i m i n a r y S u r v e y

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Very Confident Confident Not Very Confident Guessed

Confidence in Incorrect Answers

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Very Confident Confident Not Very Confident Guessed

Confidence in Correct Answers

Actual Score ~10% lower than Predicted Score

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

F a l l , 2 1 1

²

2 classes

²

1 large (188 students)

²

1 small (26 students)

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

I n c l u s i

• n

C r i t e r i a

²

Completed both

²

18+ years

²

Spent ≥10min on both

²

Leaves ~55%:

²

102 in class 1

²

14 in class 2

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

>-1 -0.9 -0.8 -0.7 -0.6 -0.5 -0.4 -0.3 -0.2 -0.1 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 >1

Normalized Gain Scores

Class 1 Class 2

P r e l i m i n a r y R e s u l t s

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans

Class 1 : 64% pre, 64% post Class 2: 68% pre, 73% post

Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

21% 42% 12% 4% 21% interesting useful useless boring hard 29% 46% 8% 4% 13% 16% 48% 2% 11% 23% 15% 56% 1% 11% 17%

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans

Math is…

Class 2 Pre Class 2 Post Class 1 Post Class 1 Pre

Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans

Spring, 2012

• 6 classes
• 4 small (25-35)
• 1 large (100)
• 1 very large (800+)
• 1000+ students
• Large research university +

community college

Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

S t e p 1 : D a t a A n a l y s i s

²

NSF TUES

²

Survey development

²

Curriculum development

²

Instructor training

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

S t e p 2 : S k i l l s V a l i d a t i

• n

² Skills Survey

² Area and Volume ² Calculus (Integrals, Derivatives, Differential Eqns) ² Dimensional Analysis* and Unit Conversions ² Elementary Algebra ² Error, Precision, Accuracy ² Estimation ² Exponents and Logarithms ² Geometry and Trigonometry ² Interpret Graphs (read, extrapolate, etc.) ² Linear and Exponential Growth ² Measurement and Units ² Percent and Percent Change ² Plotting/Making Graphs ² Probability, Odds, Risk ² Proportionality/Scaling and Relative Size/Scale ² Ratios, Fractions, Decimals ² Scientific Notation ² Significant Figures ² Simple Operations (+/-/×/÷) ² Statistics (mean, median, mode, standard deviation) ² Systems of Equations

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

S t e p 3 : C u r r i c u l u m

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

S t e p 3 : C u r r i c u l u m

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

² Based on the following information,

which environment do you think is more crowded, the Solar System or the space between galaxies?

² How many Earths would fit between

the Sun and Earth?

² The distance between the Sun and Earth

is 1.5 x 108 km. The diameter of the Earth is 1.3 x 104 km.

² How many galaxies would fit

between the Milky Way and Andromeda?

² The distance between the Milky Way

and Andromeda is about two million light-years. The diameter of the Milky Way is about 100,000 light-years.

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

Example: “Empty or crowded?”

Think-Pair-Share question

²

How many Suns would fit between the Sun and the next nearest star?

² The light travel time across the

Sun is ~4 seconds.

² The distance to alpha Centauri

is ~4 light-years.

²

The Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies will collide in a few billion years. Do you expect their stars to collide?

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

Followup question and concept

²

Graph Interpretation

²

Powers of Ten

²

Scientific Notation

²

Unit Conversions

²

Dimensional Analysis

²

Fractions and Percentages

²

Ratios

²

Scale Factors

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

L e c t u r e T u t

• r

i a l S t y l e S k i l l A c t i v i t i e s

²

Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 2011

² Hilighted poster ² Contributed article to Mercury

Magazine

²

American Astronomical Society 2012

²

Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 2012

² Panel Discussion ² 1hr workshop

²

American Astronomical Society

² 2hr workshop

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

S t e p 4 : F a c u l t y T r a i n i n g a n d A w a r e n e s s

Summary

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans

²

Innumeracy has serious implications for science literacy, and students’ ability to spot pseudoscience in particular

²

Intro science courses for non-majors captures an important innumerate demographic

²

It is possible to change attitudes!

²

It may be possible to improve skills, provoke awareness of need to improve

Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012

THANK YOU!

kfollette@as.arizona.edu www.katefollette.com/QL

² Motivation ² Study Basics ² Preliminary Results ² Implications and Future Plans Kate Follette University of Arizona NNN 2012 October 13, 2012