A Longitudinal Study of Early Elementary Students’ Understanding of Lunar Phenomena after Planetarium and Classroom Instruction

Abstract

We examined the durability of students’ understanding of lunar phenomena one year after a combination of planetarium and classroom lessons. Children (N=16) were interviewed before and after instruction during Year 1 and then again one year later. Analysis of the interview results and instruction reveals that many students retained an understanding of some of the key constructs targeted in the pro- gram. Results also suggest that students were more likely to learn and remember challenging constructs that they actively engaged with in both the planetarium and the classroom.