Session G16: Research on Affect

Connecting Students' Collaborative Learning Experiences to their Epistemological, Ability and Belonging Beliefs

Collaborative learning activities have become more common in undergraduate physics courses, and the learning benefits of collaboration are a common research focus. However, less commonly investigated are the impacts of collaborative activities on students' beliefs about learning and themselves as learners. We conducted semi-structured interviews with introductory physics students to investigate how their collaborative experiences relate to their epistemological, ability and belonging beliefs. In this talk, we will present some observed themes from students' recounted experiences of collaboration in an introductory physics course, illustrating how collaborative experiences may impact and be impacted by these three beliefs. Our work contributes to existing research on physics course design by considering how collaborative learning activities are related to students' epistemological, ability, and belonging beliefs rather than just learning outcomes.   

Connecting Course Structures for Collaboration to Students' Epistemological, Ability and Belonging Beliefs

Course structures (including curriculum materials, course activities, and grading policies) shape students' learning experiences as well as their beliefs about learning and themselves as learners. Existing research tends to focus on the impact of a single course structure on a single learning belief, and while isolating these individual effects for study is valuable, this approach fails to capture possible influences among multiple learning beliefs or consider whether the belief messages of multiple course structures are aligned or not. Building on the previous talk, we focus on collaboration as a nexus practice linking multiple course structures and students' epistemological, ability, and belonging beliefs. From interviews with introductory physics students, we report themes in students' accounts of how course structures impact their collaborative experience and beliefs. This work is part of a larger effort to provide design principles for the development of new collaborative activities that develop multiple student beliefs and explain why existing collaborative activities succeed or fail in fostering students' learning-relevant beliefs.   

Exploring Epistemic Messages in a Calculus-based Intro-Physics Classroom

Prior Physics Education Research (PER) literature has explored student conceptions of "Math" and "Physics" in courses and disciplines, as well as the conceptions of disciplinary experts. We seek to explore how students and instructors think about what "Math" is and what "Physics" is, and how those ideas come together when talking about and doing math/physics tasks in a Calculus-based Introductory course. Electronic field notes were captured in each instructional class period throughout the semester. Field notes document instances where students and the instructor mentioned disciplines in general and the use of each discipline in the context of this course or other courses. Field notes also document any emergent features of student-student and student-instructor discourse and actions. Preliminary analysis of field notes attending to epistemic messages reveals some distinctions between students and the instructor regarding math and physics conceptions and work procedures. Semi-structured one-on-one student interviews were conducted to explore which epistemic messages students retained.   

Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Data to Elicit the Complexity of Students' Self-Efficacy

Researchers have shown self-efficacy – one's confidence in their abilities to complete a task – predicts persistence and achievement in science. Within academia, students may encounter threats or supports to their self-efficacy that may influence their persistence in the sciences. To examine these threatening or supportive moments in a student's experience, we employed a mixed methods approach coupling the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) with individualized daily journal prompts. The ESM, a quantitative technique that uses surveys to measure students' domain-specific self-efficacy in-the-moment, was integrated with qualitative individualized daily journal prompts to further explore how moments in students' daily life related to their self-efficacy. In this talk, we will present results across two iterations of data collection to demonstrate how adding a point of integration between the quantitative and qualitative strands changed the way the individualized daily journal prompts were written to elicit information about students' self-efficacy.   

Students' Affective Experiences in Upper-Level Computationally Integrated Physics Courses

Little is known about students' affective experiences when they simultaneously learn computation and physics, especially at the undergraduate level. This can limit the extent to which physics departments and instructors can structure their courses so that learning computation is a positive, meaningful, and equitable endeavor for physics students. As part of this study, we investigate affective impacts of integrating computation into physics curricula through the form of a mixed-methods case study at a large research university. In this talk, we discuss methodology of and preliminary findings from ethnographic observations and interviews with students enrolled in the first two upper-level courses to undergo computational integration. Specifically, we highlight student-perceived challenges and implications for the development of students' physics identities and physics computational literacy.   

Faculty Supporting Faculty: Lessons from a Sustained Faculty Online Learning Community

Despite numerous efforts to improve physics education through research-based instructional strategies, the uptake is not as frequent as the community would like. One reason could be the lack of support mechanisms for instructors who want to utilize research-based instructional strategies. Previous research has shown that a faculty online learning community (FOLC) effectively supports adopters of the Next Generation Physics of Everyday Thinking (NG PET) curriculum. The NG PET curriculum is primarily for postsecondary courses in physics or physical sciences for pre-service teachers. The NG PET FOLC has operated for over six years, including two years past the initial grant-funded period, with many members participating throughout that time. Sustained involvement has allowed members to use the FOLC to explore complex pedagogical topics and sustained professional development. In this talk, we will discuss some ways that sustained participation in the NG PET FOLC has supported and impacted faculty members. For example, FOLC members have been able to share and learn about teaching ideas, reflect on their teaching practices, engage with research, and take up leadership roles within the FOLC. The FOLC also provided critical support for those who had to switch to online instruction at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, we will discuss the sustainability efforts that have allowed for the NG PET FOLC (established in 2017) to continue being active to this day.   

Passionate Pedagogy: Unveiling Urban Physics Teachers' Intrinsic Motivation Landscape

This qualitative study investigated how urban high school physics teachers (40-50 years old) in the Midwest conceptualize intrinsic motivation in designing and implementing instructional solutions. Specifically, the perspectives of four teachers (three males and one female) with teaching experiences ranging from 5-29 years were considered through semi-structured interviews and lesson plan drafts. Thematic analysis using deductive and inductive coding was used to identify key themes related to the conceptualization of intrinsic motivation in the teachers’ instructional processes.

The preliminary findings revealed that teachers candidly acknowledge the stifling impact of transactional and grade-focused activities on intrinsic motivation. Challenges facing educators in implementing motivational strategies included substantial gaps in both pre- and post-lesson planning, underscoring the pivotal role of the student-teacher relationship in sustaining intrinsic motivation. Additionally, participants expressed frustration in promoting intrinsic motivation amid the COVID-19-induced shift to online teaching, citing its negative impact on learners' curiosity. Additional challenges identified ranged from administrative hurdles to limited support and pressing technological concerns. The revealed results underscore a significant gap between theoretical ideals and real-world instructional practices, with the absence of formal intrinsic motivation training emerging as a pivotal contributor to this misalignment.

Beyond exposing critical challenges, this research illuminates effective strategies employed by urban physics educators, strengthening the foundation of pedagogical practices in diverse and challenging educational landscapes. The study contributes substantially to the discourse on intrinsic motivation in secondary physics education, offering implications for instructional design, curriculum planning, and policy-making in the pursuit of enhancing teaching practices and student engagement.

 

Keywords: Intrinsic Motivation, Urban Physics Education, Theoretical Misalignment, Pedagogical Challenges, Student-Teacher Dynamics.   

How Emerging Discipline-Based Education Researchers Perceive Their Growth from Professional Development

I present results from a qualitative study on Emerging Discipline-Based Education Researchers (EDBERs) and how they acquire and utilize research-specific skills. Participants are chosen from past participants in the Professional development for Emerging Education Researcher (PEER) Institute, which holds extended, intense professional development workshops to foster research project design. Participants, all at least one year out of PEER, were asked about specific PEER activities they found memorable and specific skills learned that they now utilize in their current research. Participants discussed generative writing, generating and refining research questions, choosing appropriate theoretical frameworks, and learning specific methodologies as key skills learned. Multiple participants also expressed a strong desire to attend a subsequent workshop, articulating both an opportunity to continue their development while at a new, more advanced, stage of their research and to having a well-structured time to conduct research.   

Emerging Discipline-Based Education Researchers' Sense of Community

We investigate common challenges and success Emerging Discipline-Based Education Researchers (EDBERs) experience in entering and navigating research communities. Because EDBERs are often transitioning from traditional research, they face distinct challenges generating and navigating a new community. We interviewed participants from Professional-Development for Emerging Education Researchers (PEER) Institute field schools, which aim to bolster theoretical and methodological expertise and to foster research communities. Participants discussed two distinct impacts on their sense of community: ongoing collaboration with colleagues met at a field school and access to a wider PEER participants community.