Chris Meyer, York Mills C.I.
www.meyercreations.com
christopher.meyer@tdsb.on.ca
“The question, of course, is how well this experiment [his introductory
course] has succeeded. My own point of view – which, however, does
not seem to be shared by most of the people who worked with the
students – is pessimistic. I don’t think I did very well by the students.
When I look at the way the majority of the students handled the
problems on the examinations, I think that the system is a failure. Of
course, my friends point out to me that there were one or two dozen
students who – very surprisingly – understood almost everything in all
of the lectures, and who were quite active in working with the material
and worrying about the main points in an excited and interested way.
These people have now, I believe, a first-rate background in physics –
and they are, after all, the ones I was trying to get at. But then, “The
power of instruction is seldom of much efficacy except in those happy
dispositions where it is almost superfluous.” (Gibbons)”
Richard Feynmann, from the introduction to his set of lectures
for the first year physics survey course (180 students) at Caltech.
The Feynmann Lectures in Physics (pg. 5)
Why change?
 In a traditional lecture, how many students do we
engage?
 What proportion of class time do students spend
wrestling with physics ideas?
 How much writing or talking do they do about physics
in their own words?
 How much feedback do students get to guide their
understanding of physics concepts?
 What have they learned to help them solve more than
a plug’n’chug type problem?
Physics Education Research
 Universities noticed poor results from traditional
teaching practices
 Student understanding explored and
quantitatively measured, and practices refined
 Variety of techniques developed
(Redish, Teaching Physics with the Physics Suite)
Quantified Success
From: Redish, Teaching Physics with the Physics Suite
The Social Learning Principle
 For most individuals, learning is most effectively
carried out via social interactions
MIT – Introductory Physics
Implementations
U of T Practicals
Implementations
Show me the goods!
 Sounds great - how to pull this off?
Change!
Teacher lecture  Student group learning
Cookbook activities / labs  Guided-inquiry activities
Content: broad and shallow  Deep and focused
Plug’n’chug problems  Context-rich problem solving
Furious note-taking  Careful textbook reading
Describing  Explaining
The good news:
I have done most of
this for you.
Less is More
 Less content is covered, but in
more depth
 Each idea explored from many
angles
 Research shows having fewer,
but solid, pillars of
understanding in no way harms
their education
 Question yourself - What is the
purpose of racing through what
they don’t understand?
Target the Whole Class
 Traditional Teaching = Sputnik Model
Find the best of the best fast and educate them as
quickly as possible
 Reformed Teaching = Life Sciences Model
An increasing number of disciplines need core physics
knowledge and skills to prosper in 21st century
From the
Toronto Star
“The trouble with
biologists in the academic
world is they are trained to
work on their own,” says
Edwards. “Ray, by contrast,
was trained as an engineer
to work in teams, to
problem solve.”
Group Work
 Structure the course around
groups
 Provide explicit training in the
good function and management
of groups
 Provide opportunities for critical
reflection of group work skills
 Devote energy to daily coaching
of groups
 Get whiteboards
Group Structure
 Size: 3 people, rarely 4 or 2
 Gender: MMM, FFF, FFM, rarely
MMF
 Group Roles: Manager, Recorder,
Speaker
 Composition: a strong, medium
and weak student
 Rotation: Groups change every
major unit (3-4 weeks)
 Seating: Always face-to-face
human
human
Table
human
Change Your Role
 Moderator and socratic “inquisitor” of group activities
 Facilitate class discussions
 Provide summaries, clarifications and tips
Transform the Lessons
 Lectures are largely gone or
are at most 10 minute intros
 Guided-inquiry activities -
introduce and explore new
ideas
 Problem solving challenges reinforce and apply concepts
The Physics Challenge
CGPS: The Scale Challenge!
Do not write on this page!
You will need:
 One incline, One retort stand, One test-tube clamp, One small object (m < 200 g)
 Brains
Set up your incline at any angle between 25o and 40o. Your teacher will place a digital
balance scale on your incline with your object resting on it. Predict the reading of the scale
in grams. Show the results of your calculations before the test!
Bonus
How would your prediction change if the object and the scale were free to slide down the
incline while making the reading?
Redesign Homework
Homework consists of:
 Textbook note-taking:
extend or formalize
understanding from the
day’s activities
 Problems: a few well-chosen
problems that further the
understanding of concepts –
limit the plug’n’chug
A thing not worth doing is not worth doing well.
Reassess the Evaluation
Evaluation must reflect the
goals of the new course.
Evaluate:
 basic skills
 quality of physics writing
and explanations
 understanding of concepts
 genuine problem solving
The Measure of Success
• Much greater student
engagement across all mark
ranges
• 60 minutes of hard work per
class
• Emphasis on writing
• Direct, face-to-face probing
of student understanding
How to Start?
For the full set of Gr. 12 activities
and teacher resources, go to:
www.meyercreations.com
Resources
• The Physics Suite
http://www2.physics.umd.edu/~redish/Book/
• Cooperative Group Problem Solving
http://groups.physics.umn.edu/physed/Research/CGPS/Gree
nBook.html
• Workshop Physics
http://physics.dickinson.edu/~wp_web/wp_homepage.html
• Tutorials in Physics Sense-Making
http://www2.physics.umd.edu/~elby/CCLI/index.html
• U of T Practicals
http://www.upscale.utoronto.ca/Practicals/
• Tutorials in Introductory Physics
http://www.phys.washington.edu/groups/peg/tut.html
How to Start?
For the full set of class activities
and teacher resources, go to:
www.meyercreations.com
 Try out individual activities
 Try one whole unit
 Go all the way!
 Arrange a visit
Need help?
christopher.meyer@tdsb.on.ca