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Computers and algorithms have fundamentally reshaped our world in the last few decades. Data is the new oil. NGSS has codified computational thinking as a science practice. Yet programming has yet to penetrate compulsory K-12 schooling in a meaningful way. A number of high school Modeling Physics teachers have been teaching their students to program for two decades. Although teaching programming basics cut into the finite number of minutes they would otherwise have devoted to physics concepts, they valued the trade-off—equipping students with a tool for visualizing abstractions (e.g., EM fields), and for more tightly connecting mathematical, graphical and diagrammatic representations of conceptual models. Five years ago AMTA and AAPT joined forces to adapt HS physics teachers’ pioneering work in computing for use in 9th grade Physics First classrooms. This is a report on where we are presently and what we have learned along the way.

AAPT SM 20

Computational Modeling Physics First: A Progress Report

integrated physics and computing

modeling instruction

physics first

computational modeling

The 2020 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting brought together physics educators from around the globe to learn about the latest in physics theory, research methodology and education from leaders in their field. The program featured plenary speakers, sessions, workshops and many special activities.

For more information please visit the 2020 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting page at: https://www.aapt.org/Conferences/SM2020/index.cfm.


The 2020 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting brought together physics educators from around the globe to learn about the latest in physics theory, research methodology and education from leaders in their field. 

technical paper

The usage of toys to teach physics is an interesting approach to promote engagement and creativity. Traditionally, toys have been widely used in qualitative demonstrations. However, it is frequently difficult to extract quantitative results in physics experiments involving toys. One possible strategy to address this difficulty is the use of smartphone sensors. In this work we investigate the dynamics of a traditional toy, the yoyo, theoretically and experimentally, using smartphone’ sensors. In particular, using the gyroscope, the angular velocity was measured. The experimental results were complemented thanks to a digital video analysis. As the yoyo is a ubiquitous, simple and traditional toy this simple proposal could encourage students to experiment with everyday objects and modern technologies. More information: http://smarterphysics.blogspot.com/

The physics of a yoyo using a smartphone

Physics Resources and Instructional Strategies for Motivating Students (PRISMS) is a high school physics curriculum resource that has been used extensively in UNI teacher preparation and professional development. The original PRISMS materials were a collection of 130 high interest activities related to the real-life experiences of high school physics students designed to develop student conceptual understanding and to cultivate student scientific reasoning and problem skills. The enhanced and revised version, called PRISMS PLUS, focuses on complete learning cycles that provide fully integrated experiences that enable students to develop not only their problem solving and inquiry skills but also deep, long-lasting understanding of physics concepts. This presentation will focus on how PER has been used to develop PRISMS PLUS and adapt it to teacher preparation and professional development including alignment with the Next Generation Science Standards.

Using PER to Develop and Adapt PRISMS PLUS

Quantum mechanics is the centerpiece of modern physics. Teaching quantum mechanics have been difficult because of complex numbers, Hilbert space, and interpretations. We show that a real formulation of quantum mechanics without complex numbers and Hilbert space is included in Schrödinger’s 1926 papers. The legitimacy and advantages of such a real formulation were justified in 1960s. High-caliber quantum mechanics textbooks in real formulation existed since 1970s in France. Experimental observations of atomic and molecular wavefunctions using scanning tunneling microscopy necessitates a real formulation. Practically, in chemical physics and condensed-matter physics, real wavefunctions are sufficient, especially regarding to density-functional theory (DFT). Outlined here is a freshman-sophomore course of real quantum mechanics covering a wide range of applications to dispense with complex numbers and Hilbert space. As shown, the derivation of the real Schrödinger equations is transparent, the mathematics is elementary, and the interpretation is intuitive.

Teach intuitive and practical quantum mechanics with real Schrödinger equations

Addressing complex societal problems requires STEM workers with expertise such that they are able to recognize, understand, and effectively reason out solutions using principles of their disciplines. This need emphasizes the importance of skills-based learning. This presentation will provide details about the development of an introductory physics lab curriculum, which was designed around the theory-evidence coordination (TEC) framework to advance select reasoning skills through scaffolded lab activities. Best practices for using the TEC framework to modify existing curriculum will be provided along with how one might assess subsequent impact on student development of scientific reasoning. We will also discuss our interest in pilot sites for our curriculum.

Transforming Lab Instruction to Promote Essential Scientific Reasoning Abilities

In the undergraduate lab experience, computation and experimentation are typically presented as distinct lab experiences. This approach ignores the important interplay that can exist between these two different ways of understanding the physical world. At Carleton College, we developed one two-week lab that treats computation and experimentation as interconnected, equal partners in students’ understanding of the natural world. I will discuss this lab that focuses on finding the half-lives of two simultaneously decaying isotopes and discuss how we encourage students to think about the interplay between computation and experimentation. Additionally, I will discuss efforts to promote lab skill development and inclusion broadly in this sophomore-level lab course and particularly how these inclusion efforts are manifested in the lab I will present in this talk.

Computation and Experimentation as Equal Partners in Undergraduate Lab Education

Given current cutting-edge science that is in the news, from Gravitational Waves to Particle Physics to GPS, Relativity has a place in the high school physics classroom. I will discuss the Why, Where, and How of putting General Relativity into the classroom. With activities from sources such as the Perimeter Institute, OzGrav, and LIGO, students can delve into a conceptual model of General Relativity in a variety of ways beyond reading and videos. These will include hands-on as well as VR and AR activities that have worked in my own classroom setting.

General Relativity in the High School Classroom

We present a study of a large-scale intervention designed to shift lab instruction away from "cookbook" lab norms. The intervention was implemented in a network of Professional Learning Communities of Israeli high-school physics teachers (N=250; ~20% of the national workforce), operating in a high-stakes exam setting, with limited resources, catering to diverse groups of students. An introductory questionnaire examined teachers' framing of the instructional lab norms as compared to an experimental research lab (via a modified E-CLASS), as well as the lab goals that the teachers valued. The questionnaire was an integral part of the teachers' learning process. The teachers acknowledged the disparity between their optimal lab goals and prevailing ones, in particular as concerns experimental design. We discuss the implications for the design of an intervention addressing both teachers' interest in change as well as the constraints imposed by the setting in which they work.

Re-defining Lab Norms via Professional Learning Communities: Instructors' Expectations

Computational Thinking (CT) is used to describe how our approaches to formulating and solving STEM problems is affected by the availability of modern computers. Many educators use CT broadly to include traditional problem-solving skills, persistence, the ability to work in groups, and so on, along with the development of computational algorithms and coding. Given the wide-spread calls for including CT in both K-12 schools and higher education, educators and policy makers have realized there are not enough teachers to provide stand-alone CT courses for all students. Here I argue that there are strong benefits, both practical and educational, of integrating CT with standard STEM courses. Based on the recommendations of the May 2019 NSF-supported conference on Advancing the Integration of Interdisciplinary Computational Thinking in the Physical and Life Sciences, I discuss how that integration might work in physics courses.

Integrating Computational Thinking with Physics. What Does That Mean?

The University of Connecticut has initiated the transition of its calculus-based intro-physics courses from traditional lecture into interactive studio. Numerous materials have been newly developed or adapted to leverage studio classroom facility to benefit student learning. A mock-up IPLS studio course is taught in the 2020 summer semester with limited enrollment. We would like to share with the PER community the lessons we have learned through the transition so far.

The lessons learned from developing a studio physics course for life sciences

Introductory physics for life science (IPLS) courses can vary wildly in sizes, pre-requisites, major distributions, and pedagogical frameworks. These variations mean some level of adaptation of found materials is almost always required. This talk will focus on the process of adapting materials from the IPLS Portal (and elsewhere) to a two-semester, algebra-based, studio-style IPLS sequence of large enrollment at University of Massachusetts Amherst. In this context, large enrollment means a single instructor, with some TA support, is responsible for two sections of 100 students each in the first semester, and for two sections of 250 students in the second. Therefore, scalability, while maintaining an active learning environment, is a key consideration. Other adaptations motivated by our large number of kinesiology majors, as well as differences arising from algebra- versus calculus-based courses will also be considered.

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Computational Modeling Physics First: A Progress Report

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