Sky Watching, March 2012

Moon Phases:

Full Moon — 3/8
Last Quarter — 3/14
New Moon — 3/22
First Quarter — 3/30

Daylight Saving Time begins for most states in the U.S. on March 11 at 2 a.m. local time.  Advance clocks 1 hour.

The Vernal Equinox occurs on March 20 at 12:14 a.m. CDT, signalling the beginning of Spring.  Daylight increases for three months until late June.  At this time, the sun appears directly above the equator, meaning that individuals living at the equator have the sun appear directly overhead.  The sun does not appear directly overhead from the Chicago area.

The month opens with the spectacular Venus-Jupiter gathering in the western sky, just after sunset.  With binoculars and a clear horizon, locate Mercury low in the sky early in the month. 

By mid-month, Jupiter and Venus appear close together.  While millions of miles apart, the two planets appear about 3 degrees (six full moons) apart.  The chart above shows the pair on March 12, one of the nights they appear closest.  Notice the view is one hour later as daylight saving time (advance your clock one hour) on March 11.

The animation above shows Venus and Jupiter each night during March 2012 in the early evening sky.  Watch to two planets appear to converge then separate.

After the closest pairing of Jupiter and Venus, the moon appears in the western sky with them in late March.  Here’s what to look for at approximately 8:15 CDT in Chicago:

March 24:  The waxing crescent moon appears below Jupiter and Venus, near the western horizon.
March 25: Jupiter and the moon are paired nicely, with the moon appearing slightly higher and to the right of Jupiter
March 26:  Tonight, Venus and the moon are nicely paired with both objects appearing about the same height above the western horizon.  This is the night to catch a classic photographic view of the moon and Venus together.
March 27:  The moon stands above Venus and Jupiter as the planetary pair continue to separate.

At the same time that the brilliant group gleams in the western sky, Mars lies low in the eastern sky.  It is the brightest starlike object in this part of the sky, but it dramatically under shines the bright duo in the west.  Mars appears slightly red-orange and its color can be distinguished with binoculars.  On March 3,Earth passes between the sun and Mars — an opposition.  At this time, Mars is about 60 million miles away.  An opposition for Mars occurs about every 25 months.  Because Mars’ orbit is moderately elliptical, this opposition occurs when Mars is farthest from the sun (aphelion), it is not as close or as bright as several previous oppositions.

The waxing gibbous moon appears near Mars on March 6 and March 7.

A few days  later, the Moon appears near Saturn and Spica.  Saturn rises just around midnight in the southeastern sky.  The chart above shows the planet-star pair with the moon for March 10 and March 11.  The constellation Corvus is nearby.

The chart above shows the planets at mid_March 2012. Notice that an imaginary line extended from Earth to Venus goes to Jupiter. That is why the two planets appear close together in our sky, but they are widely separated in space. Additionally notice that our planet is between Mars and the sun — they are on opposite sides of Earth.

Venus, Jupiter and the Moon, Feb 2012

There’s a bright “you shouldn’t miss this” event occuring during the late February, 2012.  The objects are so bright that casual sky watchers can view this grouping of planets and the moon without a telescope or binoculars.  During the next few evenings, look for the moon, Venus, and Jupiter in the western sky, just after sunset.  The chart above shows the western sky at about 6:45 p.m. in the Chicago area.  Venus is the brightest starlike object in the evening sky.  Jupiter, a little dimmer than Venus, stands (east) above and to the left (south) of Venus.  Here are the events to watch:

• February 24:  The waxing crescent moon appears below (west) and to the right (north) of Venus.

Image Credit

• February 25:  In one day the moon moves so that it appears to the upper right of Venus.  During these evenings the nighttime side of the moon is illuminated by sunlight reflected from our planet, as the image above shows.  This gently illuminates the night portion of the moon in a similar effect to when a full moon illuminates the ground here.  From the moon, the earth’s phase is just past full.
• February 26:  The moon appears higher and to Jupiter’s lower right.
• February 27:  Jupiter appears beneath the moon.

During the next few weeks watch Jupiter and Venus pass in the early evening sky.  More in the March 2012 sky watching update that will be published here soon.

Technology-Rich Classroom is Not Blended Learning

A technology-rich classroom is not a blended classroom, according to Heather Staker, Senior Research Fellow at the Innosight Institute, speaking at a recent professional development session for the DuPage County Regional Office of Education. (A recording and slides from her presentation are available here.)  Ms. Staker states that data continues to support the predictions made by Clayton Christensen in Disrupting Class that 50% of all high school courses will be online by the end of the decade.  She estimates that approximately 3-5 million students are in at least one digital course this year with 10.5 million predicted by 2014.

In the models of disruptive innovation, Dr. Christensen foresees that classes will be disrupted not entire schools and so the issue of blended learning:  Digital content that is available online in combination with students attending school in a brick and mortar setting.

As the slides in the presentation, referenced above, indicate, Ms. Staker states that the types of blended learning are as varied as schools and local contexts.  The power lies in customizing courses for local needs and individual students.

Developmental Education

At a recent SLATE meeting, Blackboard and K12.com presented a Blackboard-branded program about a service for higher education:  Developmental education.  This is a polished name for remedial courses.  The presenters stated that “60% of all students in higher education need at least one remedial math course.”  Blackboard has a small program that  provides courses (from K12′s Aventa Learning), instructors and supporting services in higher education.  Institutions can use this methodology in conjunction with traditional remedial programs, although the online program supports students with documented challenges, such as family, distance, and time constraints.  The program includes using video conferencing software, student services, and analytics.  The presenters stated that some students can move through multiple paths so that they can enter credit granting courses.  While current enrollment numbers are low, the presenters report high satisfaction with the program.  While I will not publish the costs that were cited in the presentation, the presenters reported that this program could save institutions about 30% of the their expenses in working students through remedial courses.  As this program continues, the proof will show in the long-term completion rates of these students as well as the cost savings.  Further, will these students be successful when they enter subsequent credit-granting courses where the remedial courses were foundational to the credit courses?

50 Years: We Should Continue to Count!

NASA Photo

Today is the 50th anniversary of John Glenn’s space flight.  It was a different era, a time of competition for the high frontier.  Three times around Earth was an accomplishment beyond comparison.  In his 1999 memoir, Glenn described the perils of his trip and the challenges in space flight that followed.

Glenn and his contemporaries inspired a generation to learn science and mathematics.  I can remember being crowded into an elementary school classroom with many other students to watch the mission on a small black and white television.  In the years that followed, teachers included more TV broadcasts into their lessons as we watched astronauts test their resolve and their equipment.  Through space flight our teachers encouraged our passion about science.

We need John Glenns who will take bold steps; who will take the risks; and who will challenge our capacities to improve.  We need them for inspiration for us to take risks.  It seems that today, we insist on everything being risk free.  We continually need inspiration to reach outside ourselves.

After his flight in Glenn’s closing remarks to Congress he said, ” As our knowledge of the universe increases, may God grant us the wisdom and guidance to use it wisely.”

We continually need new examples of excellence to help us and our children have reasons to look back and to keep counting and honoring incredibile accomplishments.  Thanks, John Glenn for the inspiration to show us how far we can go.

Technology is Distraction in Schools

Ron Packard of K12.com spoke today at an Illinois Policy Institute program today in Chicago.  He thinks technology is a distraction in schools because it in not fully part of the core learning.  A classroom may have a few computers at the back of the room and they become diversions from learning rather than being core parts of the learning.  Further, technology has not produced much efficiency based on the number of adults employed in schools, although he misses the point that new regulations have caused
schools to provide more services.  When every student has a computer along with engaging curriculum and strong assessments, powerful learning can occur, he opines.  Further technology allows students to advance at their own rates because students can spend extra time on subjects.

He started K12 over a dozen years ago when he tried to find high quality math instruction on the Internet to supplement his the first grader’s math instruction.

 

In the past decade, K12 has grown to about 100,000 students.  He thinks that Chicago is the center of innovation in online learning.  His Chicago Virtual Charter School has about 600 students.  Students attend a school once a week and then learn online at home, with the help of certified teachers who track students’ achievement levels and then provide instructional assistance with video classroom software.  

 

He observes that kids are asked to power down in schools.  When kids have access to powerful technologies at home, school does not look exciting.

 

Further, he forecasts that within a few years high school elective courses will be offered online.  He thinks this will help eliminate the maximum number of electives a student can take.  He thinks students will have more choice in courses and more opportunities at lower costs.

 

His catch words are:  Educational liberty, transformation, and open enrollment (across districts).

Packard claims he is not political and his words are the most neutral I’ve heard from the online providers and digital learning proponents. He did not talk about reforming schools, taking on teachers’ unions, or battling special interests, although he recognizes the political forces as he did not realize he would spend most of his work time tacking through the political headwinds.

He cited multiple successes in his schools that I will look at further and outline here in another posting.

His leadoff point was stated well.

February 2012 Skywatching

 

Orion, winter’s flagship constellation, is in the southern skies during the evening hours of February.  The pattern is easily found by locating three stars of nearly equal brightness and equal spacing about halfway up in the southern skies.  This represents Orion’s belt.   The reddish star Betelgeuse can be found above the belt stars and bluish Rigel below.  The two stars are display contrasts of star color.  Compare the two stars’ colors through binoculars.  The colors indicate temperatures.  Rigel is much hotter than Betelgeuse.  In addition, Betelgeuse is very large.  The sun and  inner solar system could fit inside an empty Betelgeuse.

 

While you have your binoculars, look for the Great Orion Nebula among the stars of Orion’s sword.  The nebula has a distinct, greenish glow.  The fantastic colors in photographs do not appear to the human eye.   Film and electronic photography have the ability to collect light over long time periods where the colors are revealed.

 

During February, we experience about 1 hour of additional sunlight in the Chicago area.  By month’s end the sun sets around 5:40 p.m. and rises around 6:30 a.m.  This year we add a day to the calendar to account for the earth’s revolution around the sun.  To keep our calendar matched with the seasons, we add a day.  If we do not reset the calendar every four years, eventually the coldest days of the year would occur when the calendar reads July.  See the US Naval Observatory for a longer description.

 

Moon Phases

Full — February 7

Last — February 14

New — February 21

First — February 29

As the sky darkens during early February 2012,  two bright planets dominate  the sky.  Venus shines brightly in the western sky, standing above the horizon and Jupiter gleams from the southern skies.  Early in the month, the moon is east of the planets and outside the view shown above.

At night only the moon outshines Venus in brilliance. In turn Venus easily outshines Jupiter, appearing about 6 times brighter than the solar system’s largest planet.  Venus is our planet’s nearest neighbor and its clouds are highly reflective as they return over 70% of the sunlight that reaches them.

Jupiter takes nearly 12 years to orbit the sun once.  As we revolve around the sun each year, stars appear in the morning sky just before sunrise.  Each day they rise earlier than the previous day.  Each week they appear farther toward the west at the same time.  This westward movement of the stars reflects our revolution to the east in our planet’s orbit.  Because Jupiter revolves so slowly, its location in the sky reflects the westward movement of the stars in general, with some differences.

Several weeks after appearing in the morning sky, the stars and Jupiter appear in the east around sunset.  Looking each week at the same time, we notice that the stars are higher in the east.  Several weeks later, the stars are in the south at sunset, continuing to appear farther west at the same time.  As Earth revolves, the stars appear in the west as the sky darkens, and then reappear in the eastern sky just before sunrise, repeating this annual cycle. 

As this westward match continues, watch Jupiter during February approach Venus.  Late in the month, the moon passes in the region of Venus and Jupiter as indicated on the chart above, February 24-27.

As an extra, with binoculars or at low power in small telescope, look for the planet Uranus near Venus on February 9.  With optical aid, Uranus will display a bluish-green disk while the stars will appear as points.  The chart above shows a magnified view of the area around Venus.  Uranus is just at the limit of human eyesight in a dark sky, so some magnification through a binocular or small telescope will be needed.

With binoculars on February 22, look for Mercury and the moon low in the west at 5:45 p.m.  Locate a view spotting with a good view of the natural horizon, away from houses and trees.

Mars shines brightly from the eastern evening skies during the month near Denebola, the star that represents Leo’s tail, although it is one-third the brightness of Jupiter and only about one-tenth the brightness of Venus.  During the month Mars will increase in brightness as our planet approaches and passes the Red Planet.  On the evening of February 9, the moon appears nearby.

A few nights later, the Moon appears near the star Spica and Saturn with constellation Corvus nearby.  The chart above shows the view at 1 a.m.  As the night progresses, the moon and other objects will appear to rise, appearing in the southern skies around sunrise.

The chart above shows the positions of the planets in the solar system at mid-month.  With the planets moving in a counter clockwise motion, Earth is catching up and readying to pass Mars.  Venus moves faster than Earth and it is slowly catching up with our planet.

Take a look at the sky this month!

January 2012 Sky Watching

Taurus the Bull is visible high in southern skies during January

January opens with a sky full of stars and planets in the evening sky.  Taurus the Bull appears high in the southern skies during January’s evening hours.  Two bright star clusters, known as the Hyades and the Pleiades, help construct the constellation.  The “V” shaped cluster forms the bull’s head and face, although the bright reddish star Aldebaran that forms the bull’s eye is not part of the cluster.  Aldebaran is one of the largest stars in our part of the galaxy.  If placed in our solar system, it would extend beyond the orbit of Mars.  The Pleiades ride on the bull’s back.  The Taurus region of the sky is best explored with the low power of binoculars.  The stars in the clusters are so widely spread that they are best viewed with at low power.

Moon Phases

First Quarter:          January 1 & January 31
Full Moon:                January 9
Last Quarter:           January 16
New Moon                January 23

Our planet, Earth, reaches perihelion – its closest point to the sun — on January 4 at 6 p.m. CST.  At this time we are 91,401,967 miles from the sun. 

 

Along with the bright stars, Venus and Jupiter shine brightly in the clear January skies. 

 

Venus can be seen low in the western sky throughout the month.  As the planet slowly catches up to our planet, Earth, in its orbit, it rises higher in the sky and gets brighter each evening.  The moon is nearby on January 25 and 26.  Only two other objects are regularly brighter than Venus:  the sun and the moon.  It can be easily mistaken for the bright lights on an airplane.

 

The moon passes Jupiter early in January 2012.The moon makes a return pass by Jupiter later in the month.

 

The moon passes Jupiter a second time in late January 2012.

 

Jupiter shines brightly, although not at bright as Venus, from the southern skies during the early evening.  Venus shines about 4 times brighter than Jupiter.  The moon passes Jupiter twice this month as the charts above show, first early in the month (January 2) and then again on January 29 and 30.

 

Morning Sky

 

 

Mercury opens 2012 low in the southeastern sky before dawn.  The planet is difficult to locate without a good horizon and binoculars.  Antares and Sabik are nearby.  Mercury disappears into the bright sun’s glare during the second week of the month and is invisible until it appears in the evening sky in late February.

Mars rises in the eastern sky around midnight this month, appearing near Denebola — Leo’s tail.  On January 13, its identification is easier when the moon is nearby.

A few days later, the moon is near Saturn.  At 5:30 a.m. on January 16, the moon appears near the planet and Spica.

On the morning of January 19, the moon makes a nice configuration with Antares and the stars of Scorpius around 5:30 a.m.

The chart above shows the positions of the visible planets at mid January 2012.  Mercury is headed for superior conjunction (behind the sun) and Mars for opposition (Earth is between Mars and the sun.)  Saturn and Jupiter are nearly on opposite sides of the their planetary orbits from each other.

Online learning: Shouldn’t We Do better?

Image Credit

With online learning, shouldn’t we do better?  Shouldn’t we have higher expectations?  Shouldn’t we stop telling partial truths?  Partial truths don’t help online learning initiatives.  All learning through technology is not all powerful.

When I was in elementary school, the teachers used controlled reading projectors.  These contraptions used modified film strip projectors to display the text of stories.  The projectors fed the story’s text through the film gate while a single line was revealed from left to right.  The speed of the text was regulated from 15 lines per minute to 120 lines per minute.  Supposedly, the projector was used to help us develop horizontal movement of our eyes to read and to increase our reading speed.  Didn’t work for me.  My eyes sometimes do not track across the page and it helped make me a non-reader for most of my youth.  Technology “solutions” do not always work.

When I was in junior high, my oldest brother was in the U.S. Navy.  While he spent most of his time stateside, he was involved with the Navy’s target drones.  The Navy had small unmanned airplanes that they launched in the desert near Twenty Nine Palms, CA.  His crew prepared and launched the target and then another group attempted to hit it with it with a missile.  But I digress.

After Basic Training, he prepared for his work with targets in Memphis, TN.  He learned about them through programmed instruction.  He left his instructional materials at home when he went to his next duty station.

During those youthful days, I was fascinated with any vehicle propelled by propeller, jet or rocket engine.  Through the programmed instruction books he left at home, I learned about radial reciprocating engines and aircraft marshalling.  It was self-paced and interesting for me.  No teacher demanding that I put away the books so they could move on to the next subject.

My point is that programmed instruction has been used for many years.  It allows students to progress at their own rates. From theory developed by B.F. Skinner, it evolved into an instructional method.  With computers, it has been called mediated instruction or computer aided instruction.  We know that this is a highly effective methodology, but it has largely fallen from favor.  It is based on mastery learning, yet is not a favored instructional strategy.

There are readers who will claim that this time it’s different.  Yes, first there needs to be a sense of urgency. (See the national number about physics teachers below.)  Financially, the current educational system cannot sustain itself.  Yes, technology gives us a new dimension of student tracking not available before.  Technology allows us to add many different forms of exciting media.  However, the learning system is not new — programmed instruction, CAI, mediated instruction, yet it is rebranded as digital, blended or online.  There is no new methodology, and it is limited; it does not accent or support other skills students need to be successful in their world.

So I ask the question, “Are the blended learning models proposed in many circles a rebirth of programmed instruction?”  Earlier this week I attended a presentation by Bob Wise that was sponsored by the Illinois Policy Institute and the Peoria (IL) Chamber of Commerce.  Gov. Wise gave his standard presentation about the need for digital learning.  (I’ve heard this in other venues.  The video of the presentation will be added here when it is available from IPI.)  His reasons for favoring digital learning are around shrinking state budgets,  loss of experienced teachers and the need for an educated workforce.  He proposes that digital learning allows for comprehensive data systems that can track student learning, converting bubbles to clicks – as I have written about before.  The essence of Gov Wise’s thesis is that for our country to compete in a global market we need a highly educated workforce.  We need more high school graduates that move into higher education, he postulates.  Yet, where do we teach the skills that industry tells us students need: problem solving skills, ability to collaborate, communication skills, etc.?  These can’t be measured with a bubble or a click.

The online learning proponents must set the bar high as naysayers will continue to cite the latest alleged deficiencies quoted in the popular press (NY Times, AZ Republic).  We need to maintain and professionally enforce quality standards.

Here are three examples in Gov Wise’s presentation that need
sharpened:

• We need digital learning for students who don’t have qualified teachers, for example, the state of Georgia only has 80 some physics teachers.  I have heard this before.  There’s never been a reference provided when I’ve heard this number cited by various sources.  Here’s some more powerful, documented information:  In 2007, 66.5% of the nation’s students were taught physics by a teacher without certification in the subject (reference).  In 2007, the Georgia’s higher education system produced only 3 physics teachers (reference).  The national number is frightening and a strong reason to provide high quality digital learning for these underserved students.
• Carpe Diem, a blended learning school in Yuma, Arizona, is cited as having excellent results with low costs, lower than average Arizona costs and lower than national costs.  However, it is average in Yuma County, AZ (reference).  It’s ok to get great results with average expenses.  This should be celebrated, not selectively removed from the presentation.
• Working with some of the district’s most economically challenged students, Valley High School has dramatically improved its test scores during 5 years.  While Gov Wise praises “longitudinal data systems,” AYP is not longitudinal.  Further the principal did not do this alone.  During five years, many of the students came from a middle/junior high school and that school had to be raising their test scores as well.  This was a multidimensional effort — not just that of one school.  It is a longitudinal effort not an AYP effort that focuses on results on single grades or levels.

I hope that he reads this to strengthen his presentation about the need for high quality learning opportunities for all kids.

Skywatching, December 2011

Image Credit

The Sun reaches its southern-most point in its yearly travels at 11:30 p.m. CST on December 21, signalling the beginning of winter in the northern hemisphere and the beginning of summer for southern latitudes.  This is the Winter (December) Solstice.

The Moon  is in total lunar eclipse on December 10, but the best parts of the eclipse are not visible from the Chicago area.  The eclipse begins at 5:33 a.m. CST, when the moon enters Earth’s penumbra.  The lunar darkening is largely unnoticed by most observers.  At 6:45 a.m. CST, the moon enters the darker shadow where the partial eclipse begins.  The moon is very low in the western sky, setting only 25 minutes later.  The sky is brightening as the moon sets with sunrise.  Farther west in the U.S. more of the eclipse is visible, although the full eclipse is visible from the Pacific, Australia and Asia.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon crosses into the earth’s shadow.  The moon’s orbit is tilted slightly compared to the earth’s orbit.  The moon does not cross into the shadow each month.  The next total lunar eclipse visible from the Chicago region is April 15, 2014.  Parts of a partial lunar eclispse are visible  June 4, 2012.

Moon Phases

First Quarter — 12/2
Full Moon — 12/10
Last Quarter — 12/18
New Moon — 12/24

 

Mercury moves rapidly past Earth (inferior conjunction) on December 4 and into the morning sky.  During the last half of the month it makes an appearance low in the eastern sky somewhat near the star Antares.  The chart above shows Mercury, the moon, and Antares at 6:30 a.m. on December 22.  Find a place with a clear view of the horizon to see the widely spaced trio.  Binoculars will help locate Mercury and Antares.

Venus is the bright “star” in the southwest, just after sunset.  Its brilliance can be easily confused for an airplane.  Late in the month, the moon appears near Venus as displayed on the chart above.

Mars is a reddish “star” that rises around 10:30 p.m. during this month.  It is near the stars of Leo (Denebola and Regulus).  On December 16 and 17, the moon is nearby and is identified on the chart above in the southern skies at 5 a.m.

As the sky darkens each evening with Venus in the west, bright Jupiter is in the eastern sky.  Jupiter rises during the daytime and is high in the southeast by 8 p.m.  The chart above shows Jupiter and the moon for December 5 and 6.  Jupiter appears to move westward as  our planet rotates, setting in the western sky around 3 a.m.

Saturn rises during the predawn hours and is visible low in the southeast around 5 a.m.  It is near the star Spica.  The constellation Corvus is nearby.  One December 19 and 20, the moon helps with the identification of Saturn and Spica.

Viewing the morning sky, three planets (Mercury, Saturn, and Mars) line up across the sky in late December.  At 6:40 a.m., Mercury is low in the east, Saturn is in the south, and Mars is higher in the southwest.  The chart above shows the three planets at this time.

Viewing the solar system from above, the trio described above are on the same side of the sun as Earth, appearing in the morning sky.  Venus and Jupiter are in the other side appearing in the evening sky.

As the daylight continues to shrink, the bright winter sky appears earlier and stays longer, giving observers an opportunity for some skywatching.