Recreating The Early Universe In Classrooms:Leveraging Augmented Reality And Chatgpt In Astrophysics
TalkDuring Astronomy Education in Schools in Practice
6th Shaw-IAU Workshop
Aishwarya Girdhar (LMU - Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich)
The ALICE particle detector at CERN's Large Hadron Collider studies quark-gluon plasma to gain insights into the early Universe and dark matter. To bridge this advanced research with secondary education, a learning module is being developed that incorporates augmented reality (AR) for effective visualisation, ChatGPT as an AI tutor for personalized learning and LEGO models as educational aids for haptic interaction. The module educates students about ALICE's collaboration with the International Space Station in dark matter research. The learning module uses AR and AI to enhance learning while balancing for cognitive load. The talk introduces the module, discusses its development, and explores the interdisciplinary collaboration aimed at advancing science education.
About Aishwarya Girdhar
Aish Girdhar is a Physics Education researcher at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU) in Germany. She was recently awarded her PhD from LMU on study of blackholes and host galaxy coevolution; which she pursued at the European Southern Observatory, Germany and Newcastle University, UK.
She has previously pursued her Masters in Astrophysics as a full-scholarship student of the Astromundus joint-masters degree. Her research interests in astronomy education research are evaluation methods, use of modern technologies for teaching, and the development of accessible educational materials.
