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Abstract

The need for more qualified HS physics teachers in the U.S. has been well documented. In Alabama about 10% of practicing physics teachers has an academic major in physics and 25% of HS students are attending a school where physics is not offered. The Alliance for Physics Excellence (APEX) is a comprehensive NSF-MSP project designed to address this need by providing extensive professional development to 77 practicing physics teachers over a five-year period and scholarships for pre-service teachers. APEX is a partnership of institutions and agencies that provides professional development to enhance physics content knowledge and the skills to teach physics (physics PCK), and self-help activities such as classroom action research. APEX will have provided initial training to 44 teachers by summer 2014. This presentation will give an overview of the program and comprehensive baseline data on the classroom environment of these teachers.

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