BLUEshift Africa is a project designed to strengthen undergraduate astronomy teaching in Africa. The project is funded by a Venture Grant from the American Institute of Physics (AIP) through the American Astronomical Society (AAS), titled "Developing astronomy teaching capacity for university educators in Africa." BLUEshift Africa activities are held in partnership with the African Astronomical Society (AfAS). The project comprises a pilot study about undergraduate astronomy teaching around the African continent (2025), two-day workshops on undergraduate astronomy teaching for early-career African scientists (2025 and 2026), online communities of teaching for workshop participants (2025 and 2026), and a panel discussion for AfAS and AAS members. The project is led by Dr. Linda Strubbe. Read more in the AfAS Newsletter (p15-17), APS African Physics Newsletter and AAS website.
Join us for a Two-Day Workshop on Undergraduate Astronomy Teaching at AfAS 2026!
Workshop information
Our 2026 workshop on undergraduate astronomy teaching and professional development will be held March 21-22, 2026, in person at the AfAS 2026 Conference in Kasane, Botswana. Workshops are designed and facilitated by Dr. Linda Strubbe (Lead) and Tabitha Alango (Co-facilitator).
Who : This workshop is for any African lecturer or early-career scientist who is currently teaching undergraduate-level astronomy, or intends to teach undergraduate astronomy in the future. This includes teaching full astronomy courses, as well as teaching astronomy topics within physics, mathematics, or other courses. We welcome early-career scientists such as Master’s and Ph.D. students and post-doctoral researchers who teach or are interested in undergraduate teaching, as well as early-career lecturers. The workshop will have a particular focus on early-career scientists/lecturers. Applicants who also submit abstracts to the AfAS Conference may receive preference in selection of workshop participants.
When & Where : March 21-22, 2026. In person at the AfAS 2026 Conference in Kasane, Botswana.
What : The purpose of this workshop is to support participants in learning and incorporating interactive and inclusive strategies for teaching undergraduate astronomy. The workshop format is interactive and collaborative with many facilitated discussions between participants, and include activity design and/or teaching practice. Discussions will frame astronomy education from an African perspective, for participants’ teaching contexts, and include a focus on building community among participants. The workshop is held in English.
Workshop topics include:
Strategies for interactive teaching in astronomy, including inquiry
Research-based principles of effective teaching from “How Learning Works” (Lovett et al. 2023)
Teaching to promote equity and inclusion
Case studies of teaching scenarios from participants’ experiences
Workshop participants gain familiarity with the fundamental principles of teaching and learning, and experience with several interactive strategies for teaching undergraduate astronomy and readiness to try these in their courses. We hope that participants will also feel increased confidence, motivation, and community around university astronomy teaching.
Following the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to participate in a semester-long online learning community, to continue teaching discussions, share ideas, deepen understanding, etc.
BLUEshift Africa Project team
Project Lead:
Dr. Linda Strubbe
Strubbe Educational Consulting
Winner of the IAU Astronomy Education Prize 2024
Past Co-Director of the Pan-African School for Emerging Astronomers
Workshop Co-Facilitator:
Additional support and liaison with AAS by:
We gratefully acknowledge project contributions by: Dr. Tshiamiso Makwela (IAU-OAE, MPIA, UCT) for collaboration on project visioning and survey design; Dr. Charles Takalana (AfAS, IAU-OAD) and Yunus Manjoo (AfAS) for workshop coordination at AfAS; Dr. Electra Eleftheriadou (Educational Consultant and Coach) for collaboration on workshop design; Prof. Saalih Allie and the PHASER group (UCT) for survey feedback; Pierre Paquette (Astronomie-Québec), Kaoutar Saadi (Oukaimeden Observatory), and Dr. Jamal Chafi (Université Cadi Ayyad) for French translation; and Joyce Achampong and Patrice Ajai-Ajagbe (Pivot Global Education Consulting) for project evaluation.
Download the Workshop Poster
BLUEshift Africa Workshop Poster 2026.pdf