Tuesday Morning
Awards Session
Location: Grand Ballroom B
Date: Tuesday, January 7
Time: 10–11:45 a.m.
Presider: Jill Marshall
Homer L. Dodge Citations for Distinguished Service to AAPT
Jan Mader
Great Falls, MT
public schools
Taha Mzoughi
Kennesaw State
University
Gabriel C. Spalding
Illinois Wesleyan
University
Lee Trampleasure
Carondelet H.S.
Concord, CA
AAPT Presidential Transfer Ceremony
Gay Stewart
University of Arkansas
2013 AAPT President
Steven Iona
University of Denver
2014 AAPT President
January 4–7, 2014
Physics education research and teaching modern modern physics
Dean Zollman, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506;
Modern Physics has been used as the label for most of physics that was developed since the dis-
covery of x-rays in 1895. Yet, we are teaching students who would not use the label “modern” for
anything that happened before about 1995, when they were born. So, are we and our students in
worlds that differ by a century? In addition to content, sometimes our students and we have differing
views about methods and styles of teaching. A modern course in any topic of physics should include
applications of contemporary research in physics education and the learning sciences as well as
research and developments in methods of delivering the content. Thus, when we consider teaching
Modern Physics, we are challenged with deciding what the content should be, how to adjust for the
ever increasing information on how students learn physics, and the constantly changing tools that
are available to us for teaching and learning. When we mix all of these together, we can teach
modern Modern Physics or maybe teach Modern Physics modernly.
Dean Zollman
Oersted Medal
presented to Dean Zollman
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