Online Astronomy course?

September 14, 2009 10:07 AM

Can someone recommend an online introductory college-level Astronomy course?

I am training to be a high school biology teacher. My state (Minnesota) requires me to have a slightly broader education than I do. The gap is Astronomy. Best would be an Astronomy/Earth Science course.

I need to have an introductory Astronomy class before I take the Praxis II exam. The class needs to be online as I am already committed with student teaching and my practicum work.

Has anyone had great (or terrible) experiences? Cheaper gets extra bonus points!

posted by OlderThanTOS to Education (2 answers total)

You don't say where in Minnesota, but I would start with your closest community colleges.

CCs often offer telecourses in astronomy; the two I've seen most often are

• Planet Earth, which "unifies Earth science, astronomy, and comparative planetology"; you can watch the episodes online from the learner.org link
• Astronomy: Observations & Theories

I also found a link that lists a few online astronomy courses; looks like one's in North Carolina and one's in New York.

If you can do self-study without actual course credits, the Intro to Astronomy materials at MIT's Open Courseware may give you what you need.

Good luck!
posted by kristi at 12:36 PM on September 15, 2009

I watched the webcast ones from Berkeley, featuring Dr. Alex Filippenko, and it was absolutely fantastic. This guy is clearly passionate about Astronomy and even though he's highly geeky - definitely one of my personal heroes now :-)

Astro C10, from 2005 but clearly still relevant: Astro C10, from 2005 but clearly still relevant.
posted by jlstitt at 1:45 PM on September 15, 2009