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Mechanical TA 2 (MTA2) is an open source web-based peer grading application that leverages trusted TA graders to incentivize high-quality peer review. A previous, prototype implementation of MTA proved the value of the concept, but was…
Instruction tuning of language models has demonstrated the ability to enhance model generalization to unseen tasks via in-context learning using a few examples. However, typical supervised learning still requires a plethora of downstream…
During its annual conference in 2025, the French Society of Astronomy \& Astrophysics (SF2A) hosted, for the fifth time, a special session dedicated to discussing the environmental transition within the French A\&A research community.…
Fundamental coding and software development skills are increasingly necessary for success in nearly every aspect of astronomical and astrophysical research as large surveys and high resolution simulations become the norm. However,…
With the release of Generative AI systems such as ChatGPT, an increasing interest in using Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been observed across domains, including higher education. While emerging statistics show the popularity of using AI…
As distance learning becomes increasingly important and artificial intelligence tools continue to advance, automated systems for individual learning have attracted significant attention. However, the scarcity of open-source online tools…
The hit of the COVID-19 pandemic has hugely affected higher education in the world, and as a result, most of the physical classes have been (partially) replaced by online teaching platforms. This transition is challenging even for…
Traditional knowledge distillation adopts a two-stage training process in which a teacher model is pre-trained and then transfers the knowledge to a compact student model. To overcome the limitation, online knowledge distillation is…
Large-language-model (LLM) graders promise to relieve the grading burden of upper-division STEM courses, but most deployments to date send student work to third-party APIs, violating FERPA and exposing institutions to data risk while…
Providing timely and personalized feedback to large numbers of students is a long-standing challenge in programming courses. Relying on human teaching assistants (TAs) has been extensively studied, revealing a number of potential…
Real-time Advisory (RTA) systems, such as navigational and eco-driving assistants, are becoming increasingly ubiquitous in vehicles due to their benefits for users and society. Until autonomous vehicles mature, such advisory systems will…
Since 2017 the Italian Space Agency (ASI) participates to so-called "Alternanza Scuola-Lavoro" (i.e., "school-work synergy") outreach projects promoted by the Italian government, and the ASI Space Science Data Center (SSDC) actively…
While much of the literature on student peer-review focusses on the success (or otherwise) of individual activities in specific classes (often implemented as part of scholarly research projects) there is little by way of published data…
Physics education research has consistently shown that students have higher learning outcomes when enrolled in active learning courses. However, while there is a lot of literature describing the difference between the two extremes of…
Maximizing the public impact of astronomy projects in the next decade requires NSF-funded centers to support the development of online, mobile-friendly outreach and education activities. EPO teams with astronomy, education, and web…
This article reports the argumentation work of a group of trainee mathematics teachers in an experiment carried out in a virtual class (due to the emergence of COVID-19) during 2020. They worked with a task on fractions in an online…
In March of 2024 the AAS formed our Graduate Admissions Task Force (GATF), asking us to produce recommendations aimed at improving the state of graduate admissions in astronomy. The task was a timely one, as the past decade has seen…
Introductory astronomy is one of the most widely-taken university science courses and a common means of satisfying general education requirements. This course is frequently taught in large sections by a variety of instructors, some with…
Technology is influencing education, providing new delivery and assessment models. A combination between online and traditional course, the hybrid (blended) course, may present a solution with many benefits as it provides a gradual…
Teachable Agent (TA) is a special type of pedagogical agent which instantiates the educational theory of Learning by Teaching. Soon after its emergence, research of TA becomes an active field, as it can solve the over scaffolded problem in…