A constructivist approach to the teaching & learning of astronomy

Astronomy is one of the recurrent contemporary issues in the mass media where news related to comets, new stars, satellites, space tests, etc., frequently appear. Through this media presence students develop an interest in learning about aspects of astronomy. However, the information students gain from various sources, both inside and outside the classroom, doesn't often increase their knowledge about the most basic and common aspects of astronomy (Martinez Pena & Gil Quilez, 2001). Studies that have explored students' and teachers' understandings of astronomical concepts (Kalkan et al, 2007; Trumper, 2001) have found many alternative conceptions relating to basic astronomical processes such as day and night, the seasons, gravity and the relative distances between celestial objects.