Going “All Quantitative” While Teaching About Light and Stars in Introductory Astronomy

Abstract

When teaching a general education introductory astronomy course that includes a mathematics prerequisite, it is important to convey that formulas and equations physically represent properties of actual objects and processes that occur that can actually be observed. Students with varying comfort levels with mathematics often need to be convinced that problems involving formulas and equations are more than simply mathematical exercises, but are meant to enhance their understanding of the physical concepts. One way to attempt to do this is to introduce equations related to concepts that are being studied qualitatively, for instance, with lecture-tutorials. Here are several examples making use of lecture-tutorials on topics related to light and stars from the popular manual Lecture-Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy.