20
AAPT
2012 Annual Report
ComPADRE
In the summer and fall of 2003, the first ComPADRE resource collections
for physics and astronomy education were launched. ComPADRE started
with a database-driven update to the Physical Sciences Resource Center
(PSRC), a community site for undergraduate students and SPS chapters,
and a collection of quantum mechanics teaching resources. We now
support a dozen resource collections and community web sites, provide
the web presence for conferences and workshops, host online mentoring
for students, and deliver the infrastructure for projects developing and
sharing curricular materials. Up to 2.5 million visitors per month use the
ComPADRE collections and content. All of this is possible through the hard
work of our editors, collaborators, and staff, and the support of the National Science Foundation, the professional societies,
associations, and communities involved with the ComPADRE project, and a generous donation from Physics Academic
Software.
What’s New and What’s Happening
Over the past year, ComPADRE has been involved in several new efforts. Working with Mario Belloni and Wolfgang
Christian, ComPADRE is now hosting the second edition of the Physlet Physics book. This collection of simulation-
enhanced illustrations, tutorials, and problems covers all the topics in introductory physics. It is now web-based and
freely available. We have also worked with the PER community to expand our role in the annual Physics Education
Research Conference, updating the web site and improving access to all of the conference proceedings and presentations.
ComPADRE has partnered with a number of our partner online libraries to improve access to K-12, classroom-ready
resources. This is closely tied to our work with the AAPT and other organizations to review and respond to the recently
published Next Generation Science Standards. ComPADRE editors and staff are working hard on tools that will help
teachers address these new learning goals.
In addition to new projects, existing ComPADRE efforts continue and expand. The PER Users Guide is growing to
include assessment resources and provide instructors with more help with effective use of research-validated curricula in
their classes. The Physics Classroom has added sections on critical thinking and test preparation. The SPS and ComPADRE
hosted two Adopt-a-Physicist mentoring events during the 2012-2013 school year and collaborate on supporting the
annual research opportunities database for undergraduate students. ComPADRE is working with a multi-disciplinary
effort, led by Project Kaleidoscope, to encourage sustainability-related teaching. Of course, the ComPADRE resource
library continues to grow.
Physics Education Research (PER)
PER Conference 2012–Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Theme:
Cultural perspectives on learners’ performance & identity in physics
345 attendees
Organizing Committee:
Ayush Gupta, University of Maryland, College Park, Eleanor
Sayre, Kansas State University, Chandra Turpen, University of Maryland, College Park,
Jessica Watkins, Tufts University
Plenary sessions:
How does “sense of self ” relate to teaching and learning?,
Indigo Esmonde, University of
Toronto, Toronto, Ontario
Cultural variations in epistemological orientations: Impacts on knowledge, meanings, and
reasoning about the natural world
, Megan Bang, University of Washington
When Everyday and Scientific Concepts Grow Into One Another: Syncretic and Connected
Learning
, Kris D. Gutiérrez, University of Colorado at Boulder
PER Leadership
Organizing Council
Eugenia Etkina, Chair
Andrew Elby, Vice Chair
Laura McCullough, Treasurer
Dewey Dykstra
Danielle Harlow
MacKenzie Stetzer
Warren Christensen, ex officio
(chair of AAPT Research in
Physics Education Committee)
