Computational Modeling in Physics First with Bootstrap
AAPT Course for Credit
Semester: Spring 2020 - Starting January 21 (Running on Tuesday evenings through April 14)
Credits: 3 graduate credit hours
Cost:
- Full Registration (first time participant in a AAPT Course for Credit): $440
- Registration for those who have previously participated in a AAPT Course for Credit: $360
This online course, intended for middle and high school physics teachers, includes a blend of 45 hours of synchronous, online learning.
Register for the course.
Summer 2020 Workshop: June 15 - July 3, Phoenix, AZ
APPLY HERE by February 29, 2020 for full consideration for the 2020 cohort.
Read about this project in the Project Overview, or learn more about the project's rationale and research below:
- Rationale → Why Computational Modeling in Physics?
- Resources → See Student Curricular Materials (Teacher materials are only accessible to workshop attendees and beta testers. Contact rvieyra@aapt.org for additional information).
- Research → Preliminary outcomes (Feb. 2018)
- Video → See what makes our project different in our 2018 STEM for All Showcase video.
Project Overview
Computational thinking is widely recognized as an essential skill for the future workforce and success in STEM. This grant engages teachers in professional development to plan and implement classroom instruction in algebra-based Physics First courses that integrates computational modeling (one aspect of computational thinking) through two existing, widely used approaches - Modeling Instruction for physics and Bootstrap for computational modeling.
This program is especially focused on combating many equity concerns associated with student access to physics sand computer science. Working with Physics First teachers will allow this project to impact student populations which will be demographically more diverse than students historically enrolled in standalone computer science courses or upper-grade physics courses.
This grant supports collaborative efforts between the AAPT, American Modeling Teachers Association, Bootstrap, and STEMteachersNYC.
In August 2016, this project brought together 12 New York area middle school and high school Modeling physics teachers to learn programming using the Pyret language from the team that developed the nationally-recognized Bootstrap project to teach algebra to students through computer science. During the workshop, participants developed curricular resources - compatible with Modeling Physics First courses - that they implement throughout the remainder of the school year. In August 2017, a total of 30 teachers came together to revise, expand, and develop additional curricular resources and instructional approaches. Dissemination workshops for teachers new to Modeling and/or Pyret took place in 2018 and 2019.Learn more about the status of this project at the links below:
- 1 February 2017 - Physics First Modeling: A 3-Week Computational Development Opportunity
- 15 September 2016 - AAPT and Partners AMTA, STEMteachersNYC, and Bootstrap Awarded $1.24M STEM+C Grant.
- 25 January 2018 - "Computational Modeling with Pyret" AAPT Webinar
To learn more about this initiative, contact Rebecca Vieyra at rvieyra@aapt.org.
Get Involved
- Apply: Attend a 3-week fully-funded (travel, meals, hotel), stipended workshop in 2020.
Press Release (15 September 2016)
100Kin10 Award
For more details and information about AAPT's K12 Programs, please contact Mark Hannum, at mhannum@aapt.org
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