Next week is my last astronomy 101 class for the semester. I don't know how much astronomy my students will remember but I really hope they remember how to think critically as they leave my classroom. We discuss mysticism, global climate change, alien life, astrology, and other wild, baseless claims. I only venture into relegion to show how religious doctrine has suppressed scientific discovery over the centuries. I wonder if I have had any impact. I may never know. 
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Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.This coming week is the final one for my Composition Class, ENG101 at the University of Maine, and I, too, wonder, considering the writing levels I encounter of late, whether anything will be retained as they move forward. At least I hope some of the need for critical thought will be retained, some germ of the need for evidence in their thinking and writing, because, as I've tried to instill in their minds, we must continue to insist that without SCIENCE AND EVIDENCE, we are all doomed to the nonlogic of contemporary thought and government. I'd say "pray for us all," but that, of course, denies the evidence we need.
Kennebec11
Level 4
May 6, 2018
1
You sound like the best type of teacher. I was just an elementary school teacher, but I felt that teaching critical thinking skills was the most important. I also brought in Greek/Roman religion as it affected the naming of the planets. (I taught 3rd grade.) Kudos to you for caring so much!!!
DevraisA1
Level 7
Apr 27, 2018
3
Thanks for the support! Right back at you. How cool to be teaching astronomy through mythology in 3rd grade.
A good lesson is understanding the Scientific Method.
nicknotes
Level 8
Apr 26, 2018
1
Yes. Thank you. I agree. Though it is much more chaotic than most people realize. Science is not a series of facts, but a process of observation and critical evaluation, leading to discovery.
Sounds like an awesome class. My college days introduced me to critical thinking, although I only remember that my statistics class really challenged me directly. Critical thinking was and is a slow process for me. But the very best gift from my education.
Annadilly
Level 2
Apr 26, 2018
1
Thanks, Annadilly! I think statistics challenges everyone!! ? I also struggle with critical thinking at times. It can be hard to put on hold the conclusion, belief or outcome I want long enough to see what is there. Many thanks for your reply.
Hmm...so you lump global climate change in with astrology? And you are saying nobody ever saw a UFO? Wow. I myself saw more than I can count in Haiti and the US in the 1960s and 70s, usually with at least one other witness, but sometimes with an entire crowd. One even followed my husband and my car for about 300 miles, stalling our car at one point from hovering so closely. Except that, unlike in the US, nobody cared.
No government rushing in to ridicule and mock anyone who dared say anything.
birdingnut
Level 8
Apr 26, 2018
1
Hi! Eeeek! I'd better be more clear about this. Climate change is very real and a threat to life as we know it in the very short term. I can say that with absolute clarity. Astrology is not. It is completely baseless. Most astrologers don't even know there are 13 constellations in the Zodiac. As for UFOs, most sightings can be explained by natural or known phenomena. The few that can't are just unknown. Now realizing that absence of evidence is not evidence if absence, I think we can only say that there is no evidence of intelligent life outside the Earth can stand up to critical scientific review. But perhaps some day, that will change.
@AstroLou It has..many times, but our government seems anxious so suppress all videos, reports, and information online. It's not the case in other countries. I even had a high school friend who was abducted but brought back when he commanded them to do so. He was so traumatized he had to have therapy. Those stories are everywhere. My dad was within ten feet of a UFO when he was ten years old, for instance, but didn't report it because why?
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