Conference: Broadening Participation in an Astrosociology Curriculum

Harvard University, Cambridge MA

Investigators

Abstract

This project aims to serve the national interest by organizing a conference on broadening participation in an astrosociology curriculum and by producing a White Book of the findings, as part of the NSF IUSE: EDU Engaged Student Learning Track, Level 1. At the dawn of a second Golden Age of space exploration in which humanity is poised to interact with the cosmos in varied and novel ways (e.g., Moon and Mars missions, space tourism, asteroid mining, satellites with enhanced capabilities), space exploration is a fast-growing scientific, technological, and economic sector in U.S. society, creating the need for a rapidly expanding skilled and knowledgeable workforce of a variety of backgrounds. The technical and astronomical challenges of these endeavors will be daunting, but so will the host of social and moral issues raised by them. Awareness of these issues is crucial for both future professionals in astronomy and space exploration and the citizenry as a whole. On the one hand, young people from diverse underserved backgrounds will benefit from developing a critical understanding of space-related issues that might affect them and their communities. On the other, the curriculum is intended to facilitate their entry into this sector of the workforce, which could enable it to become more diverse and inclusive. Moreover, the curriculum focuses on helping students of all majors understand the complex interrelationship between society and astronomy and space exploration, while honing their general skills in thinking rationally through unusual scenarios. The benefits of this practice will extend beyond the course and are intended to positively impact students’ lives. There is a dearth of astronomy courses that systematically integrate the humanities and social sciences, and this conference lays the groundwork for propagating such a curriculum throughout higher education. Recruited with the help of the Quality Education for Minorities Network, participants in this online conference will be educational professionals from all corners of the American higher education landscape. The conference will cover three major topics: (1) an introduction to astrosociology and the astrosociology curriculum; (2) how to infuse the curriculum with diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility for diverse communities; and (3) the support faculty would need or want to successfully adopt the curriculum. This endeavor has the advantage of building on an existing unique course at Harvard University, which has already demonstrated its feasibility. But to implement the curriculum more widely across American institutions of higher education, a necessary first step is to examine, through this conference, how the curriculum may optimally function in a wide variety of institutional environments when designed with diverse students’ experiences at the core, and how it might be further revised to increase its relevance to multiple communities, especially those traditionally underrepresented in science pursuits. In the long run, the goal is a national scale-up of the curriculum in all different institutional types of higher education. The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.