In order to better understand how computational activities can help students learn quantum mechanics, we present a case study of a student Mary talking about her understanding of how to represent a wavefunction as a discretized column vector. We used a video elicitation interview technique, where Mary was shown a video of her working with her programming partner on a computational task and then asked to discuss how her understanding of the task has changed over time. Mary's experience as an undergraduate teaching assistant allowed her to have more interactions with the course material than most students and gave her experience in communicating her understanding to students, making her a particularly effective candidate for this case study. From this interview, we have identified some of the challenges students face in coordinating discrete and continuous aspects of quantum systems in the computational context.

Discrete and Continuous Challenges in Quantum Mechanics: A Reflective Interview

Quantum mechanics is increasingly being taught “spins-first”: using systems with spin as examples before systems with wave functions. It is important for spins-first instructors to understand how students apply knowledge from spin systems to understand the continuous quantum systems that they study later. We are studying the ideas that students have about discrete bases, continuous bases, and the connections between them. We interviewed six students who were enrolled in a spins-first quantum mechanics course and asked them to participate in a card-sorting task where they organized twenty cards with a variety of quantum mechanics content and representations including braket notation, matrix notation, function notation, and code snippets. In this talk, we will discuss the reasoning participants used to organize cards into “discrete” and “continuous” categories as well as how students described the different types of representations as communicating “discreteness”.

How Students Compare and Contrast the “Discreteness” of Quantum Representations

Students in a spins-first course often have difficulties transitioning from discrete to continuous quantum systems. We believe that computation may naturally support the transition because continuous structures like wavefunctions are necessarily discretized in order to be used in operations like numerical integration. We remotely interviewed six students who were concurrently enrolled in a junior-level introductory spins-first quantum mechanics course and a computational lab course, which were designed to synergize with each other. During the interview, participants organized a set of 20 cards that contained a variety of quantum mechanics concepts and representations, including snippets of Python code. Using a phenomenographic approach, this poster will discuss the various ways that participants made sense of the cards and how they organized the cards into groups such as “discrete” and “continuous”.

How Students Organize Quantum Concepts and Representations: A Card Sorting Task

From our experience teaching the spins-first Paradigms quantum mechanics course, students run into difficulties transitioning from discrete to continuous quantum systems. In computation, continuous structures like wavefunctions are necessarily discretized in order to be used in operations like numerical integration. Because of this feature, we believe that computation may naturally support the transition. Junior-level students at Oregon State University take a computational lab course where they numerically solve quantum mechanics problems by pair-programming in Python. This computational lab course is coordinated with the spins-first Paradigms course. We remotely interviewed six participants at the end of the courses. Participants completed a card-sorting task where they organized twenty cards with a variety of quantum mechanics content and representations. In this talk, we will discuss the ways participants organized this information, the overarching patterns, and the ways that students understand and coordinate discrete and continuous quantum systems.


Computation to Support Understanding of Discrete and Continuous Quantum Systems

Computational physics courses are becoming an integral part of the undergraduate physics curriculum because they prepare students for their post-baccalaureate career where computational skills are applicable to research and industry jobs. The instruction of computational physics courses varies greatly based on curricular requirements and departmental resources. At Oregon State University, the computational courses are a project-driven laboratory experience. The computational physics lab course is strongly related to the content delivered in the junior-level lecture courses, but they are taught by different instructors so that a non-computational physicist can still deliver the lecture material. In the computational physics lab course, students solve physics problems related to lecture course content using Python and pair programming, a coding technique shown to improve code quality and learning outcomes. We will present the design choices of using the lab structure and the coordination with lecture courses, and the development of the computational physics lab course.

Development and Design of a Computational Physics Lab Course

Poster Session

poster

PERC 2022 is focused on "queering physics education" through an intersectional lens. By "queering," we are centering queer theory which breaks down social constructions and hierarchies to unpack normalized assumptions. In the context of physics education, we want to apply the theory to unpack who has power in physics to control the production of future physicists, how physics policies and practices are sometimes built on ideas of punishment and power, and how PER embeds binaries in both its content and sociological research. Further, we want to encourage a dialogue that is both a critique and an imagining of a queer future for PER.

Explicit attention will be given to constructions of race, (dis)ability, gender, sexuality and how they interact and impact lived experiences.

We have had such a fun time organizing this year’s PERC. You might be aware that we were committed to transparency and documenting our processes and decision making which we outlined here. This year has also been challenging to be a queer or otherwise marginalized person in the US. And we continue to seek and provide support for those individuals.

As such, we recommend that folks visiting Grand Rapids who have the means consider giving to some local organizations who are working to advocate for those impacted by historic and ongoing marginalization and violence.


PERC SM 22

PERC 2022 focused on "queering physics education" through an intersectional lens. By "queering," we centered queer theory which breaks down social constructions and hierarchies to unpack normalized assumptions. In the context of physics education, we apply the theory to unpack who has power in physics to control the production of future physicists, how physics policies and practices are sometimes built on ideas of punishment and power, and how PER embeds binaries in both its content and sociological research. Further, we wanted to encourage a dialogue that is both a critique and an imagining of a queer future for PER. Explicit attention was given to constructions of race, (dis)ability, gender, sexuality and how they interact and impact lived experiences.

(GD) PER: Student Content Understanding, Problem-Solving and Reasoning III

technical paper

AAPT meetings are a great way to reflect on your teaching, recommit to best practices and re-energize your career with new research, products, and techniques. Listen to internationally known plenary speakers, attend sessions, workshops, and special activities. This meeting is an excellent opportunity to share your expertise and learn from and network with leaders in the field.



AAPT SM 22

AAPT meetings are a great way to reflect on your teaching, recommit to best practices and re-energize your career with new research, products, and techniques. Listen to internationally known plenary speakers, attend sessions, workshops, and special activities. This meeting is an excellent opportunity to share your expertise and learn from and network with leaders in the field.

Poster Session 1C

**Making Physics More Inclusive and Eliminating Exclusionary Practices in Physics**

As a gateway discipline to STEM majors and careers, physics plays a central role in deciding who does, and who doesn't, get to discover and pursue scientific careers. Technical and scientific professionals are rewarded with economic privilege and status which affords them both social and cultural power. Therefore, social justice will be realized only when the opportunity, and the choice, to excel in physics is open to all students. The culture and practices of the physics classroom reflect the culture of physics at large, which raises the question of how our professional physics communities can embrace, rather than inadvertently repel, a diverse group of academics that can help improve physics culture.  To this end, the 2021 Physics Education Research Conference will focus on defining inclusive spaces and practices. Additionally, we will explore strategies for eliminating exclusionary practices in our classrooms, research spaces, and professional organizations. We call on the community to propose sessions that will drive conversations related to these initiatives throughout PERC 2021.

Please download the full program [here. ](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TRMC_SYJ3PUqXyP7sskA7LRSA8ow0eRE/view?usp=sharing)

PERC SM 21

August 4, 2021 - August 5, 2021 in a Virtual Conference Format

Making Physics More Inclusive and Eliminating Exclusionary Practices in Physics

PS.B-SA-10: PER: Student Content Understanding, Problem-Solving and Reasoning II

Join AAPT and Physics Educators worldwide in developing and strengthening your professional connections by attending the 2021 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting. AAPT meetings are a great way to reflect on your teaching, recommit to best practices and re-energize your career with new research, products, and techniques.

Listen to internationally known plenary speakers, attend sessions, workshops, and special activities. Attending the virtual summer meeting is an excellent opportunity to share your expertise and learn from and network with leaders in the field.

Please log in with your AAPT account or register for the event if you haven't already.

If you are registered please note that you need to be logged in with your AAPT email / credentials in order to get access.

AAPT SM 21

This is a mixed session of Talks and Posters. 

Posters can be seen on this link: https://underline.io/events/68/posters?eventSessionId=1861
Talks can be seen on this link: https://underline.io/events/68/sessions?eventSessionId=1861

C1.7 Paradigms in Physics Potpourri Posters

AAPT® is a strong professional physics science society dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in physical science education.

Winter and Summer National Meetings:
These National Meetings, held each winter and summer, are opportunities for members, colleagues, and future physicists from around the world to:

- participate in physics workshops
- meet and greet other physics educators
- form networks nationally and locally
- engage exhibitors and learn about the latest physics resources
- discuss innovations in teaching methods
- share the results of research about teaching and learning.

If you're not able to log in, you're most likely using **incorrect login credentials**. Double-check that you are using the same email and password that you used to register for the conference, submit your abstract or access your AAPT membership. There may also be **an issue with your AAPT meeting registration**. Please email aapt2021@underline.io and programs@aapt.org and we will work quickly to resolve this issue.

Christian Solorio

5

SHORT BIO

Presentations

Discrete and Continuous Challenges in Quantum Mechanics: A Reflective Interview

How Students Compare and Contrast the “Discreteness” of Quantum Representations

How Students Organize Quantum Concepts and Representations: A Card Sorting Task

Computation to Support Understanding of Discrete and Continuous Quantum Systems

Development and Design of a Computational Physics Lab Course

Stay up to date with the latest Underline news!

PRESENTATIONS

CONFERENCES

COMPANY

RESOURCES