Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS April Meeting 2021
Volume 66, Number 5
Saturday–Tuesday, April 17–20, 2021; Virtual; Time Zone: Central Daylight Time, USA
Session S06: Achieving Laboratory Learning Goals Through Remote Lab InstructionEducation Invited Live Undergrad Friendly
|
Hide Abstracts |
Sponsoring Units: FED AAPT Chair: Nathan Powers, Brigham Young University |
Monday, April 19, 2021 1:30PM - 1:54PM Live |
S06.00001: Evaluating multiple remote laboratory instruction strategies Invited Speaker: Jennifer Weinberg-Wolf During the pandemic, four different strategies were used to teach physics labs remotely from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. \textit{At-home} experiments were performed with either found materials or equipment shipped to students. \textit{Virtual} experiments involved combinations of pre-recorded procedure footage, pre-collected data, and interactive ``choose your own adventure''-style activities. S\textit{imulation }experiments allowed students to collect data via online simulations, while \textit{remotely-controlled} experiments allowed students to manipulate physical equipment on campus. Despite added complexity, each strategy exhibited strengths and weaknesses in meeting different learning objectives, and we report on the outcomes from these new instructional modes that were forced upon us. Positive outcomes include higher lab report scores, exam performance, and morale in three different undergraduate physics courses: a general education course for non-STEM majors, the introductory calculus-based sequence for physical science majors, and the intermediate lab course required of all physics majors. Based on this experience, we believe some of the innovations used during this past year should continue to be implemented once in-person instruction resumes. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 19, 2021 1:54PM - 2:18PM Live |
S06.00002: Science, serendipity, and supervision in Maker Labs Invited Speaker: Forrest Bradbury Engaging university students in scientific inquiry is integral to several learning goals in the natural sciences. However, encompassing everything from conception and design of experiments to mathematical modeling for interpretation of data, scientific inquiry is often dismissed as too difficult and/or resource intensive. Following recommendations in the pedagogical literature, we have designed and piloted a lab course devoted to fully open inquiries wherein our local (but not atypical) constraints led to choices for flipped-style instruction and utilization of accessible and affordable Maker equipment and resources. We describe the interdependencies of our chosen teaching methods and elaborate on the course design's serendipitous pandemic resilience: realizing student gains in competence and independence in navigating their empirical research cycles. We discuss how supporting experimental conception, design, and execution in a flipped-lab format transformed the roles of both students and lab instructors. We also discuss the benefits of devoting contact hours to reflection on, and iteration of, experimental design choices and to the non-trivial process of scientific sense-making. Additionally, we describe a faculty online learning community focusing on related teaching methods. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 19, 2021 2:18PM - 2:42PM Live |
S06.00003: Gained in Translation: The Sudden Pivot Taking Physics Labs to the Cloud as a Reform Opportunity Invited Speaker: Blake Laing I will report on a positive experience with using the forced transition to online learning as an opportunity to adopt one of many best-practice examples from the world of Physics Education Research. Following the example in "Developing scientific decision making by structuring and supporting student agency" by N.G. Holmes, et al [1], (and the instructional materials shared on Physport.org), my efforts were directed toward cueing students to make decisions to design their research question during our online meetings, rather than developing materials to micro-manage their behaviors. Characteristics of the new online medium influenced instructional design and accessibility in surprising ways. The centrality of group scientific presentation to their peers prompted responses such as "for the first time, I actually cared what the answer was.” Students participated in a "belonging intervention,” and what was once their least-favorite class became a refuge of supportive relationships during a difficult time. How can we make that "the new normal" for physics lab? \\ N.G. Holmes, Benjamin Keep, and Carl E. Wieman, Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 16, 010109 (2020) [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 19, 2021 2:42PM - 3:06PM Live |
S06.00004: Epistemology and Communities of Practice in Traditional and Online, Hands-On Undergraduate Physics Laboratories Invited Speaker: Angela Kelly In response to national calls for improving undergraduate physics education through fostering a communal learning environment and employing diverse teaching methods, this study explored affective outcomes in two types of calculus-based introductory undergraduate physics laboratory courses at Stony Brook University -- (1) in-person and (2) online, hands-on. The two-phase, quasi-experimental observational study examined students' beliefs regarding physics epistemology, socialization with peers, and engagement with instructors in undergraduate physics laboratory coursework. In the first phase in 2019-20, students ($N=$998) were surveyed in the second half of the semester to elicit their epistemological beliefs about physics laboratory work and their views on social engagement and academic help-seeking in the laboratory. Results indicated that students in both types of laboratories had statistically similar views on physics epistemology and seeking assistance from instructors, however, in-person students expressed significantly higher perceptions of the value of socialization in the laboratory when compared to online, hands-on students, with a medium to large effect size. In the second phase, a social networking intervention was implemented ($N=$716) to improve students' engagement in communities of practice in online learning environments. Online students were introduced to a Slack channel for the purpose of fostering communication during the Fall 2020 semester. Results indicated online students experienced weaker levels of engagement with instructors that in-person students with a large effect size, even after the voluntary intervention was introduced. In-person students experienced stronger levels of engagement with peers than online students, and online students who participated in the social network experienced more social engagement than online students who did not participate; this was also a large effect size. Results suggest that online laboratories, which have proliferated extensively during the recent pandemic, may need formalized mechanisms and incentives to promote social interactions and foster communities of practice among peers. This is also the case for student-instructor interactions and communities of practice, which are often diminished in the online platform. [Preview Abstract] |
Monday, April 19, 2021 3:06PM - 3:18PM |
S06.00005: Final Wrap Up With Panel Final Wrap Up With Panel [Preview Abstract] |
Follow Us |
Engage
Become an APS Member |
My APS
Renew Membership |
Information for |
About APSThe American Physical Society (APS) is a non-profit membership organization working to advance the knowledge of physics. |
© 2024 American Physical Society
| All rights reserved | Terms of Use
| Contact Us
Headquarters
1 Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844
(301) 209-3200
Editorial Office
100 Motor Pkwy, Suite 110, Hauppauge, NY 11788
(631) 591-4000
Office of Public Affairs
529 14th St NW, Suite 1050, Washington, D.C. 20045-2001
(202) 662-8700