Education of Earth Science
Online ISSN : 2423-8953
Print ISSN : 0009-3831
ISSN-L : 0009-3831
Volume 68, Issue 2
Displaying 1-6 of 6 articles from this issue
Original Articles
  • Wataru MISHIMA, Junji YAMAMOTO, Kazunori ARITA, Junji TORIMOTO, Tomono ...
    2015 Volume 68 Issue 2 Pages 59-67
    Published: October 31, 2015
    Released on J-STAGE: August 12, 2016
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    We have developed an educational experiment to help children understand rock weathering brought about by freezing and thawing. The experiment consists of two procedures: freezing and thawing of rock pieces and strength tests of the rock pieces. We used welded tuff, called Shikotsu welded tuff or Sapporo soft stone, for the test pieces. The strength tests showed that the test pieces became weaker after 10 repetitions of freezing and thawing. The responses to a questionnaire survey of participants in the scientific events indicated that the experiment was effective in aiding an understanding of rock weathering by freezing and thawing. In some cases, the experiment did not produce any weakening of the rock pieces. In those cases, participants did not understand properly the function of freezing and thawing. This was due to the heterogeneous porphyritic characteristic of the pieces. Thus, it is necessary to improve the test pieces for a practical application of the experiment.

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  • Nobunari ITOH, Hekiro TAKADA
    2015 Volume 68 Issue 2 Pages 69-91
    Published: October 31, 2015
    Released on J-STAGE: August 12, 2016
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) diagrams of non-cluster member stars, i.e., field stars, are effective not only in aiding comprehension of the distinction between main-sequence and giant stars, but also in understanding the difference between apparent and absolute magnitudes. However, there are few teaching materials available on this topic. In light of this, we have developed new astronomical teaching materials for drawing HR diagrams of non-cluster member stars. Observations were carried out for 120 stars with known distances within a 12°×15° area around α Lyr in the B and V bands to prepare the data for our material. To evaluate the usefulness of the teaching materials, trial runs were carried out with 42 high school students. From questionnaires administered after trials, we ascertained that all participants except one were able to understand the distinction between main-sequence and giant stars, and all students comprehended the difference between apparent and absolute magnitudes. It is reasonable to conclude that the teaching materials will prove to be effective for teaching stellar characteristics in high schools.

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