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Hi Larry - My howler was a case of my fingers apparently autocorrecting the statement - I did send a correction immediately afterwards but I guess you missed this. For anyone else: Larry is correct! I meant to say the misconception was that *phases of the Moon* are caused by the shadow of the Earth. Can vouch also that Alice would have meant a permanent dark side. Best wishes, Jenny On Wed, 27 Mar 2019, 17:37 Dr. Larry Krumenaker, <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > I have been on this list for a couple of years or so, but now I see a > reason to step forward. > > As an astronomy writer, especially once as publisher of a magazine for > astronomy teachers, and as a former instructor in science education at the > University of Cologne and at Seoul National University, I dealt often with > misconceptions in teachers as well as the general public. First, one must > be careful about what one labels a misconception versus what is merely poor > education on the topic, and second, one must watch the semantics and > linguistics of the statements. Two very similar but even slightly > different wordings of a statement can create totally different conceptions > of the topic. > > Jenny, I have to question your statement that a misconception is that > lunar eclipses are caused by the Earth's shadow. Last time I saw one (just > a few months ago) that WAS the Earth's shadow on the Moon. Now if you > meant that the Earth's shadow actively sought out the Moon to eclipse it, > of course not. But the semantics of the statement are not wrong, just > unclear. > > Alice, you stated that it is a misconception that the Moon has a dark > side. No, it is not a misconception. It has a dark side. All objects in > the Solar System (other than the Sun!) have a dark side. They are all half > in darkness, half in light. What has to be said, in all deference to that > renown authority, Pink Floyd, is that there is no "permanent" dark side to > the Moon. > > FWIW, in my workshops and classes for teachers and future teachers I > taught them a pedagogy for unteaching misconceptions. Basically, they > have to create models that had to be used to try out all the different > misconceptions *using the same model for all of them* and seeing > how/if/what things or measures happened. I can assure you that untaught > even the most ingrained misconceptions! > > Finally, since only a few people here know me, let me introduce myself...I > am an astronomy-trained science writer and occasional educator, formerly a > long-time member of the NASW, currently a member of the International > Science Writers Assn. (ISWA) and its most recent Past President. I have > been a freelancer since the early '90s with lots of articles published, but > more recently into book writing, in astronomy and history (not always in > the same book). After nearly three years in Germany I returned > (regretfully and unwillingly) to the USA. > > Dr. Larry Krumenaker > > > ********************************************************************** > psci-com how-to: Once subscribed, send emails for the list to > [log in to unmask] If not subscribed, either subscribe here > https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=psci-com or send requests > for items to be posted on your behalf to [log in to unmask] > To unsubscribe (or silence messages while away) send an email (any subject) > to [log in to unmask] with one of the following messages (ignoring > text in brackets) • signoff psci-com (to leave the list) • set psci-com > nomail (to stop receiving messages while on holiday) • set psci-com mail > (to resume getting messages) Contact list owner at > [log in to unmask] Small print and JISCMail acceptable use > policy https://sites.google.com/site/pscicomjiscmail/the-small-print > Contact Jisc Helpline: Email: [log in to unmask], Telephone: 0300 300 2212 > ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** psci-com how-to: Once subscribed, send emails for the list to [log in to unmask] If not subscribed, either subscribe here https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=psci-com or send requests for items to be posted on your behalf to [log in to unmask] To unsubscribe (or silence messages while away) send an email (any subject) to [log in to unmask] with one of the following messages (ignoring text in brackets) • signoff psci-com (to leave the list) • set psci-com nomail (to stop receiving messages while on holiday) • set psci-com mail (to resume getting messages) Contact list owner at [log in to unmask] Small print and JISCMail acceptable use policy https://sites.google.com/site/pscicomjiscmail/the-small-print Contact Jisc Helpline: Email: [log in to unmask], Telephone: 0300 300 2212 **********************************************************************