July 13–17, 2013
61
Monday afternoon
Session BG: Teaching Physics
Around the World
Location: Parlor A/B
Sponsor: Committee on International Physics Education
Date: Monday, July 15
Time: 4–5:30 p.m.
Presider: Colin Fredericks
BG01:
4-4:30 p.m. Challenging the Status Quo: Experiences in
Producing Lasting Curricular Change
Invited – Ian G. Bearden, University of Copenhagen, Niels Bohr Institute,
Blegdamsvej 17, Copenhagen, NA 3460, Denmark;
We are currently redesigning the experimental component of our curricu-
lum. This project has grown from a desire to ensure that all students master
what we consider the basic experimental skills and competences required
of physicists. In addition to traditional components of an experimental
physics curriculum such as data analysis, error propagation, experimental
procedures, etc., we aim to explicitly focus on other skills that are of vital
importance to all physicists, regardless of whether they follow an academic
or industrial career. Among these are oral and written communication,
project planning and management, critical thinking, and team work—all
skills that are often assumed to be obtained by students despite the lack
of explicit focus on them in traditional curricula. This talk will give an
overview of the initial stages of this process, with a focus on the difficul-
ties encountered in effecting change in a conservative academic environ-
ment, and will discuss possible future strategies for successfully navigating
dangerous academic waters.
BG02:
4:30-5 p.m. Physics Teaching in Spain
Invited – David Méndez Coca, Centro Universitario Villanueva, Costa Brava,
4, Madrid, 28034 Spain;
At the beginning of the century, the percentage of early abandon of the
studies in Spain was 30% whereas in the EU it was 17%. Only 56% of
15-year-old students study in the year according to their age. In science,
the number of students who choose the physics degree has decreased
from 2000/01 to 2009/10 in 43%. The physics scholar studies start at the
age of seven although the first subject of physics can be studied at the age
of 17, the last year before the university studies. The research in physics
education is not very wide, there is no journal of physics education, there
is only one Spanish congress about physics in general each two years. In
this congress there are communications about physics education. In Spain,
physics education is always included in science education.
BG03:
5-5:10 p.m. Bringing Developing World Meaning to Our
Physics Classrooms and Laboratories
Contributed – Stephen J. Mecca, Providence College, Department of
Engineering-Physics-Systems, 1 Cunningham Square, Providence, RI 02918;
Physics teaching-learning and research that have relevance and meaning
in the developing world offers benefits to learners in our classrooms in the
U.S. and to students and others living in rural communities in the develop-
ing world. This paper will describe the authors’ experiences in three pro-
grams designed to impact participants in the U.S. and Ghana. A conceptual
physics course for non-science majors has been offered at Providence Col-
lege with a goal to produce a workbook of demonstrations, activities, and
experiments to help junior high school girls in a village in Ghana master
selected concepts in physics. The four-year experience of a Community
Based Student Internship (CBSI) focusing on real problems in developing
communities is also discussed. The CBSI partners university students from
the U.S. with students from Ghana to address pressing problems in health,
education, and the environment. Finally, the author’s and his student’s
research in the S-lab in the Department of Engineering-Physics-Systems at
Providence College and its global implications will be presented.
BG04:
5:10-5:20 p.m. Secondary School Physics in Shang-
hai, China, and Orange County, California, U.S.
Contributed – Kevin C. Yang, Mission Viejo High School, 25702 Minoa Drive,
Mission Viejo, CA 92691;
Using surveys and information from government/school websites, this
study compares secondary school physics education in Orange County
(OC), California to that of Shanghai (S), China. 18(S)/19(OC) schools were
included in this study. There is a lower students / teacher ratio (S: 100±13
vs. OC: 1494±713.6, p<0.0001) in Shanghai’s middle (8-9th)/high school
(10-11th) where students receive 2/4 years of mandatory physics (240/500
instructional hours). Only 18.9% of OC students complete one year of
physics (180 hours) by the end of 11th grade. None of the 2618 accredited
four-year U.S. universities require the physics SAT II for freshman admis-
sion. 49608 U.S. students took the SAT II physics exam compared to more
than 2 million taking the SAT I or the 4.57 million Chinese students taking
a required physics examination for college admission. To improve second-
ary school physics education, physics exams should be heavily incorpo-
rated into the U.S. college admission process.
BG05:
5:20-5:30 p.m. Practical Study of Extracurricular
Learning and Development Patterns of Physics Students*
Contributed – Fuli Zhao, Sun Yat-sen University, School of Physics and En-
gineering, 510275, China 135, Xingangxi Road, Haizhu District Guangzhou,
GD 510275, P.R. China;
Donghua Yang, Min Chen, Biao Wang, Sun Yat-sen University
With the progressing development of economic globalization and increas-
ingly fierce international competition, we need groups of high-quality
innovative talents to enhance the overall scientific and technological
innovation capacity and competitiveness while also improving the visibility
of students on the international stage. Accordingly, the cultivated talents
should develop a more open vision, more novel awareness, and a more
proactive learning attitude. They will be more sensitive to new things,
have stronger practical capacities, and have the courage to break through
routines to conduct their work more innovatively. Therefore we have
established a talent cultivation philosophy of “Profound Foundation, Wide
Range, Internationalization, Value Innovation” in the physics education
and have explored the extracurricular learning and development pattern of
physics students in order to promote a well-rounded development.
*This work was supported by National Science Fund for Talent Training in Basic
Science of China.
Session BH: Implementations of
Modeling Instruction for Different
Audiences
Location: Salon Ballroom II/III
Sponsor: Committee on Physics in High Schools
Co-Sponsor: Committee on Research in Physics Education
Date: Monday, July 15
Time: 4–5:30 p.m.
Presider: Renee Michelle Goertzen
BH01:
4-4:30 p.m. Modeling Instruction in University Physics
Invited – Eric Brewe, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th St.,
Miami, FL 33199;
We describe the ongoing process of adapting Modeling Instruction from
the high school Modeling Instruction curriculum and workshop project
to university physics. This project has highlighted the strengths of the high
school project and has taken advantage of the opportunities to develop new
materials and approaches to content and especially pedagogy. We describe
the advantages and challenges of adapting the highly successful Model-
ing Instruction to university physics. In this talk we draw on the lessons
learned from Modeling Instruction in high school and then we showcase
our take on curriculum and dissemination efforts.
