Bulletin of the American Physical Society
2009 APS March Meeting
Volume 54, Number 1
Monday–Friday, March 16–20, 2009; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Session B3: 10,000 Undergraduate Physics Majors: Progress on Doubling |
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Sponsoring Units: FEd Chair: Robert Hilborn, University of Texas at Dallas Room: 301/302 |
Monday, March 16, 2009 11:15AM - 11:51AM |
B3.00001: Why Do We Need 10,000 Physics Majors? Invited Speaker: The early 1960's saw a huge increase in the number of physics majors, reaching an all time peak of just over 6000 per year. While the number plummeted in the next four decades, it has finally experienced a resurgence to nearly this number. The American Physical Society along with the American Association of Physics Teachers recently endorsed a call to double the number of undergraduate physics majors over the next decade. The main focus of this effort is to increase both the number of high school physics teachers and the fraction of women and under-represented minorities studying physics. In addition, a physics degree prepares an undergraduate with excellent skills that will serve her or him for a variety of occupations both in the sciences and in other fields. This talk will explore some of the data on physics majors and the rationale for taking the bold step of suggesting we try and educate 10,000 majors each year. Sputnik helped catalyze the nation 50 years ago -- What is the Sputnik of today? Bring your thoughts and questions... we hope for a lively discussion. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, March 16, 2009 11:51AM - 12:27PM |
B3.00002: Successful Minority PhD Producing Programs -- Bell Laboratories and the Meyerhoff Scholarship Program at UMBC Invited Speaker: The Bell Labs Cooperative Research Fellowship Program for Minorities (CRFP), founded in 1972 was one of the first programs of its kind in the US to address the issue of under-representation of minorities in the fields of engineering, mathematics and science. As of 2000, well over 100 PhDs graduated with CRFP sponsorship and a significant fraction joined the research ranks of Bell Labs. In the early days of the program as much as 50{\%} of African American PhDs in Physics in the US were granted to students supported by CRFP. Another unique program initiated by Bell Labs in 1974 that introduced undergraduate students to cutting edge research was the Summer Research Program for Minorities and Women (SRP). The SRP served as a natural feeder to the CRFP. Personally, my career in Optical Physics owes its foundation to these programs and I will give my perspective on participation and impact of the Bell Labs SRP (1974) and CRFP (1975) programs. The Meyerhoff Scholars Program at UMBC was developed in 1988. At that time, UMBC was graduating fewer than 18 African-American STEM majors per year. In 1996 the program was opened to all students with an interest in the advancement of minorities in STEM fields. The program enjoys an overall 18-year retention rate of greater than 95{\%} and has over 500 graduates since 1993. As of May 2006, 75{\%} of these graduates are enrolled in graduate and/or professional programs, with 49 PhDs and 20 MD/PhDs completed as of August 2006. The program challenges notions about minority achievement. Meyerhoff Scholars have changed the perceptions of those around them -- the expectations of faculty who instruct them, the attitudes of students who learn beside them, and the perspectives of scientists who engage them in research. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, March 16, 2009 12:27PM - 1:03PM |
B3.00003: Best Practices for Recruiting and Retaining Women in Physics Invited Speaker: |
Monday, March 16, 2009 1:03PM - 1:39PM |
B3.00004: Doubling the number of physics majors who teach Invited Speaker: The American Physical Society has adopted a doubling initiative to increase the number of physics majors. One of the main motivations is to increase the number of physics majors certified to teach secondary physics. I will review some of the possible strategies for reaching this goal, and discuss some of the steps we have taken with UTeach, the program for secondary science and mathematics teacher preparation at The University of Texas at Austin.I will discuss the roles of curriculum revision, financial support, and community support in convincing majors to teach. Finally, I will talk about the expansion of UTeach into engineering. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, March 16, 2009 1:39PM - 2:15PM |
B3.00005: Integrating Research Experiences into the Undergraduate Education Invited Speaker: During the last seven years Michigan State University has been able to increase the number of physics and astrophysics majors by more than a factor of two. Part of this increase can be attributed to introducing special first-year courses on computational physics and on laboratory techniques, designed exclusively for physics majors. Investing into strengthening the Society of Physics Students and Science Theatre and into increased outreach activities also plays a role. But the largest effect is due to integrating a wide variety of research experiences into the Michigan State undergraduate physics and astrophysics experience. An overview of these activities will be given, and ways to upscale these efforts will be discussed. [Preview Abstract] |
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