Astronomy: Intrigue And Critical Thinking
At the Governor’s Scholar Program (GSP) at Murray State University, the Astronomy focus area is spearheaded by Rico Tyler, who has been an instructor with the GSP for 42 years.
During week one at the GSP, astronomy scholars built personal telescopes from scratch, under Rico’s guidance. The completion of these telescopes was the key to unlocking the expansiveness of not only the stars, but also what this focus area has to offer. “The main focus of the astronomy class is understanding how we know what we know. That’s where my focus is. The things that we talk about, the facts about the universe, the observations, how do we know they’re true? How do we figure things out, how do we discover what the universe is like? The answers are interesting, but how you get the answers is more interesting,” Rico said.
This take on presenting the topic of the universe opens the door to skills that are helpful in the exploration of the stars, but also applicable to further scenarios away from the field of study. Scholars within the focus area attest to this as seen in the comments by astronomy scholars when asked what their takeaway from the class has been so far. “[My takeaway from this class has been]how to critically think better. Rico questions us and makes us figure out things for ourselves, versus knowing it just to know it,” Hugh said.
Scholar Presley added, “I think one thing I’ve taken from this class is just getting out of my comfort zone. Rico is constantly asking us questions, like if we give him an answer he’s not just going to take it, he’s not just going to accept it, he’s going to ask why. That makes me think everytime I answer something I’m like why is this the answer. It makes you challenge your mind in a sense and not just automatically believe what someone tells you and to seek out your own knowledge.”
Astronomy scholars have also been able to take two trips thus far in the GSP: one to Western Kentucky University’s Hardin Planetarium, and another to a local Murray farm in the early hours of the morning to get a chance to view Saturn. This is on top of numerous occasions that the focus area has met on campus at night to catch glimpses of the dark sky. This has drawn the group closer together in the process, as the scholars all hope to better understand astronomy, while the rest of campus sleeps.
This way of studying astronomy helps create an extremely engaged environment in which scholars develop personal skills alongside one another, while working towards a common goal of understanding what exists in the night sky and the essence of space. Scholars within the focus area have also been working diligently toward their final project, a “star party,” noted by Rico, that they will present in week five of the GSP. Although the program may be coming to an end, the scholars can continue to utilize their lessons and experience in many means moving forward.
