Bulletin of the American Physical Society
2009 APS March Meeting
Volume 54, Number 1
Monday–Friday, March 16–20, 2009; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Session H29: The Physics and Astronomy New Faculty Workshops II |
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Sponsoring Units: FEd Chair: Robert Hilborn, University of Texas at Dallas Room: 333 |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 8:00AM - 8:12AM |
H29.00001: How the New Faculty Workshop in 2004 affected my teaching-learning strategies Natalia Dushkina In this presentation, I will discuss how my experience with the New Faculty Workshop in fall 2004 affected my course offering and teaching-learning strategies in PHYS 103, PHYS 132 and PHYS 331: Fundamentals of Optics courses. PHYS 103, Elements of Physics, is a general education conceptual physics lab course with no prerequisites for non-science majors. PHYS 132 is an introductory algebra-based general physics lab course which deals with electricity, magnetism, waves, light atomic and nuclear physics. PHYS 331, Fundamentals of Optics, is a lab-based course required for physics majors, which was offered for the first time at the MU Department of Physics in fall 2007. I will discuss curricular changes, as well as new teaching-learning and assessment methods implemented in these courses for the first time at our department. I will offer examples of peer group discussions, just in time teaching and the effect of chapter summaries on motivating the students and their participation in problem solving. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 8:12AM - 8:24AM |
H29.00002: Taking inquiry to the next level: Tablet PC's to stimulate active learning and unify introductory physics curriculum Tikhon Bykov, Yelena Kosheleva A project has been started in 2005 to design innovative curriculum for the intro physics courses at McMurry University. The project is rooted in science education research and ideas from the NFW. The goal is to achieve better integration of traditional course components by means of instructional design and technology. First, a system of flexible curriculum modules with emphasis on inquiry-based teaching has been introduced. Second, technology is used to improve continuity among module components (lecture/lab/discussion) and stimulate active learning. Enabling technology suite incorporates Tablet PC's and software applications including java-based Physlets, tablet-adapted personal response systems, and PASCO data acquisition systems. Lab curriculum has been modified to accommodate for different learning styles, and levels of baseline knowledge. Activity options and pre-lab Physlet-based assignments were added. To enhance knowledge generalization, multiple experiments are used to illustrate different aspects of the same physics phenomenon. Physlet-based problems were adapted for student peer group discussions. Student feedback showed that modifications were beneficial. Student knowledge assessment, performed with the FCI test, indicated improvement in student learning. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 8:24AM - 8:36AM |
H29.00003: RealTime Physics at UCF Costas Efthimiou, Dan Maronde, Tim McGreevy, Stefanie McCole, Enrique del Barco RealTime Physics (RTP) is an activity-based laboratory curriculum developed by D. Sokoloff, R. Thornton, and P. Laws which has met with success at other universities and colleges. It was recently been adopted at the University of Central Florida (UCF), a large metropolitan university that is rapidly becoming a major research university. A key question is then if successful physics education practices remain effective in an environment as the one present at UCF. By the completion of the Fall 2008 semester, UCF will have three semesters using RTP in some classes while keeping a traditional format in others. Using a pre and post semester test, as well as student interviews, the preliminary data indicate quite a success at UCF during the initial phase of the project. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 8:36AM - 8:48AM |
H29.00004: How Physics Test Scores Reflect the Students' Time Spent Maria Babiuc-Hamilton, Tim Hamilton We found that exam scores in introductory physics courses show a wedge-shaped pattern when plotted against the order they are turned in. The article will explore some of the factors contributing to this pattern and will propose guidelines to help determine an ideal test time limit, aimed at students with good perseverance and average skill. The reason for this pattern appears to stem from a combination of students' skills and perseverance. The first students to finish tend to have either the best or worst grades in the class, with few in between. Students with the highest skills (knowledge, memory, problem-solving skills) need little time to finish, and they have the confidence to turn in the test quickly, before other students. Good students with moderately high skills tend to take longer. The later submissions gradually converge to a grade close the class average. Results of over 200 grades from students in different introductory physics classes, from two universities, taught using a variety of methods, when collected and analyzed, show the same wedge-shaped pattern. This seems to indicate a universal component of the pattern, which does not depend on the teaching methods or the test structure. From our analysis, we aim at deriving what an ideal test time limit would be, at which students hit a point of diminishing returns. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 8:48AM - 9:00AM |
H29.00005: ``Physical Concepts in Cell Biology,'' an upper level interdisciplinary course in cell biophysics/mathematical biology Dimitrios Vavylonis I will describe my experience in developing an interdisciplinary biophysics course addressed to students at the upper undergraduate and graduate level, in collaboration with colleagues in physics and biology. The students had a background in physics, biology and engineering, and for many the course was their first exposure to interdisciplinary topics. The course did not depend on a formal knowledge of equilibrium statistical mechanics. Instead, the approach was based on dynamics. I used diffusion as a universal ``long time'' law to illustrate scaling concepts. The importance of statistics and proper counting of states/paths was introduced by calculating the maximum accuracy with which bacteria can measure the concentration of diffuse chemicals. The use of quantitative concepts and methods was introduced through specific biological examples, focusing on model organisms and extremes at the cell level. Examples included microtubule dynamic instability, the search and capture model, molecular motor cooperativity in muscle cells, mitotic spindle oscillations in \textit{C. elegans}, polymerization forces and propulsion of pathogenic bacteria, Brownian ratchets, bacterial cell division and MinD oscillations. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 9:00AM - 9:12AM |
H29.00006: The Quality Enhancement Plan Matrix (12 years and still tweaking the process!) Gary Mankey As an alumni of the 1997 New Faculty Workshop, I've had plenty of opportunities to experiment with the teaching methods introduced there. Most recently, faculty at UA have been asked to develop a Learner-Centered approach to teaching, where regular, timely and thorough assesments of student learning becomes a key component of the curriculum. This involves four phases: 1) Identifying and defining learning outcomes, 2) Matching assessments to outcomes, 3) Identifying baselines and progression toward benchmarks and 4) Documenting the process using a quality enhancement plan matrix. This has led to the development of learning tools designed to enhance critical thinking and problem solving skills. This will be discussed in the context of setting teaching goals for new faculty, including how to document the process for teaching portfolios. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 9:12AM - 9:24AM |
H29.00007: Pedagogical Reforms from Private Engineering to Public University Lok Lew Yan Voon This talk will document my and associated colleagues' impact on physics pedagogy at the two universities I have been employed at from my initiation at the New Faculty Workshop as an assistant professor in 1998 to being currently a full professor and chair. The present reforms involving our introductory physics courses are connected to our science education program. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 9:24AM - 9:36AM |
H29.00008: Applying Hands-On Activity Concepts to Advanced Mathematical Instruction for Physics William Dieterle While the use of hands-on instruction by constructivist principles has been extensively documented and is covered in great detail in the New Faculty Workshops run by APS, most examples discussed in this series apply to the introductory course level. Many of the same principles can be applied at the upper division level, but topics that are normally considered purely mathematical do not readily lend themselves to such an approach. A common complaint of students first studying vector analysis in an upper division course is the fact that they can't relate the divergence, curl, and gradient to real life. This talk discusses a method of presentation emphasizing the physical significance of these mathematical entities, with laboratory exercises for a two-dimensional gradient and for the divergence theorem in three dimensions. The approach has been successfully utilized in the first weeks of an upper division electricity and magnetism class. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 9:36AM - 9:48AM |
H29.00009: Meeting the Challenges of New Faculty -- My Own Lesson Mirela Fetea A few years ago, I thought that students with different scientific backgrounds posed the biggest challenge for me -- a new assistant professor teaching physics courses at a small liberal-arts private college. I thought that my knowledge of physics, enthusiasm, and willingness to succeed are most of the ingredients needed to become a very good teacher -- how little I knew{\ldots} Now, after being awarded tenure, having received a Distinguished Educator Award, an Outstanding Mentor award, and serving as acting-chair in my department, I am grateful for having had the opportunity to attend The Physics and Astronomy New Faculty Workshop which is responsible for who I am today. This presentation will offer a reflection on how the teaching techniques presented by specialists in pedagogy or educational methodology at The Physics and Astronomy New Faculty Workshop shaped my own performance as a teacher. [Preview Abstract] |
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