Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS April Meeting 2012
Volume 57, Number 3
Saturday–Tuesday, March 31–April 3 2012; Atlanta, Georgia
Session Q6: Invited Session: The Role of Physics Departments in Preparing Instructors of Physics |
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Sponsoring Units: FEd Chair: Monica Plisch, American Physical Society Room: Embassy C |
Monday, April 2, 2012 10:45AM - 11:21AM |
Q6.00001: How Well Do We Build the Foundation of Physics? - The Report of the National Task Force on Physics Teacher Preparation Invited Speaker: David G. Haase Only a third of US high school physics teachers have a major in physics or physics education. Each year about 400 teachers are hired with such qualifications, but this is only one-third of the number needed to replace teachers leaving the classroom. This state of affairs affects national science achievement, equitable access to science careers and national economic competitiveness. The AAPT, AIP and APS charged the National Task Force on Teacher Education in Physics (T-TEP) with investigating strategies for increasing the numbers of qualified high school physics teachers, identifying best practices in physics teacher preparation, and examining the research, policy and funding implications of expanding the number of qualified physics teachers. The Task Force consulted the research literature, partnered with other interested organizations, and surveyed or visited numerous campuses which educate physics teachers. The Task Force has produced findings about the current state of physics teacher preparation and recommendations concerning the commitment, quality and capacity of our physics teacher preparation. Although the current national picture is grim, we have identified thriving teacher preparation programs that can serve as models and resources for other institutions. We have also called upon the physics departments, the colleges of education, and the national science agencies to develop a coherent vision for discipline-specific teacher professional preparation and development. I will discuss the activities of the Task Force, its recommendations and findings, and how we as physicists should respond to this national concern. The activities and report of the Task Force are described at http://www.ptec.org/webdocs/TaskForce.cfm. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 2, 2012 11:21AM - 11:57AM |
Q6.00002: Preparing Physics Ph.D. Students as Instructors Invited Speaker: Michael Manhart As demand grows for education in STEM fields, there is an increasing need for Ph.D. physicists with a strong aptitude for and commitment to teaching. Development of these skills begins in graduate school, where most physicists are first exposed to teaching as TAs to undergraduate courses. The TA experience thus has considerable impact on the development of their teaching skills. Unfortunately, many graduate programs do not provide detailed training to their TAs. However, if departments hope to produce physicists who are also outstanding educators, they must create a culture of excellence in teaching that includes adequate training and incentives to excel for their graduate student TAs. As current Ph.D. students in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Rutgers University, we have designed and implemented a TA training program to achieve these goals. Our program, Developing Educational Leaders among TAs in Physics (DELTA P), is aimed at new physics TAs and consists of an intensive orientation followed by 10 weekly seminars during the semester. The orientation focuses on the essential practical issues relevant to TAs before they first step in the classroom, while the seminars delve into more specialized topics, ranging from motivating non-majors to physics education research. Students who complete the program are given an official credential by the department to certify their training. After two years DELTA P has begun to effect positive changes to our department's TA experience, and we believe DELTA P serves as a useful model for other departments. In this talk, we will present our program and hope to engage in an interactive discussion with the audience about these issues. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 2, 2012 11:57AM - 12:33PM |
Q6.00003: Preparing Learning Assistants for University Instruction and Beyond Invited Speaker: Rachel Scherr Learning Assistants (LAs) are talented undergraduates who work with faculty members to improve large-enrollment courses. Effective LA programs support university course transformation, provide undergraduates with low-pressure early teaching experiences as junior university instructors, and recruit undergraduates into the teaching profession. LAs are supported in their growth as teachers by participating in a required course in broad issues of teaching and learning. However, there are few opportunities for LAs and supervising faculty to engage in supported, collaborative reflection on real teaching situations. In a new project supported by the Physics Teacher Education Coalition, we are developing a Video Resource for LA Development, a package of thematic case-based ``video workshops'' that showcase compelling episodes from a variety of exemplary LA-relevant instructional formats. Semi-structured discussions of the video episodes illuminate the issues facing both novice and expert university instructors. The Video Resource for LA Development provides LAs with opportunities to observe, discuss, and reflect on teaching situations similar to the ones they themselves face, developing their pedagogical content knowledge and supporting their emerging identity as teaching professionals. [Preview Abstract] |
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