Program overview

AstroConnect is a program being developed at Dartmouth College to connect active research scientists with K-12 and college classrooms via video chat.

Motivation
A primary goal of science education at any level is to promote understanding of the process of contemporary scientific inquiry. One powerful way to achieve this is for students to explore current research, interact directly with the leading scientist, and reflect on the ‘nature of science’ using well-crafted prompts.

Implementation
In the Department of Physics & Astronomy at Dartmouth we have introduced a program in which students connect with a guest astronomer through video chat via Skype or Google Hangouts. The in-class discussions require a small time commitment from scientists (20-30 min, with little or no need for preparation) while providing students direct access to the cutting edge of modern astronomy. We are currently expanding these activities to local high school classrooms.

An overview of the implementation is given in the schematic below (click on the link for a full-size version):

astroconnect_diagram.png

Get involved!
We are continuing the exploratory program for AstroConnect for the 2015-16 academic year, and are looking for additional classrooms and scientists to participate. If interested, please be in touch at ryan.c.hickox@dartmouth.edu.