A Road Less Traveled:
Industrial Ph.D. Physicist to
High School Physics Teacher
Role of Colleges and Universities in
Preparing Future Physics Teachers
Cornell University
June 19, 2006
Christopher Olszewski
Buffalo State College
1300 Elmwood Ave., Buffalo, NY 14222
cjo496@yahoo.com
Personal Background
1977: B.Sc. McGill Univ.
1980
1984: Ph.D. Univ. of IL. (U-C)
(Exp. Part. Physics)
AT&T Bell Labs
1988: Brookdale Comm. College
(Intro Calc)
1990
1995: AT&T Labs
2000: Tellium
2003: Tellium died
2004: Buffalo State College
(Alt. Cert. Prog.)
1999: Project Astro Nova
2000
(3rd Grade Astronomy)
2010
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SUNY - Buffalo State College’s
Alternate Certification Program
Buffalo State College’s (BSC’s) program includes:
 Summer academy of showcase courses (mechanics,
E&M, new physics teacher workshop)
• Extensive student-mode experiences
• Significant Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK)
• Guided reflections
• Student-centric reformed teaching (consistent with
Reformed Teacher Observation Protocol (RTOP))
• Encouragement of student discourse and
whiteboards
 Physics Education Research (PER) seminar course
 Education courses (state mandated)
 Field work
3
Results of BSC’s
Alternative Certification Program



Significant changes to my concepts of good physics
learning and teaching
• Previously: largely teach as taught
• Now: much more student-centric
New concepts documented in
• Class assignments
• Spontaneous class notes
• Guided reflections
• Learning commentaries (thinking changes in one
physics idea – before & after)
Compared old and new concepts of good teaching later
4
Examples of Significant Changes to
Personal Beliefs of Good Physics Teaching
What I Believed Then
What I Believe Now
Different Types of Knowledge
Really, audio and visual input are
the keys: the teacher speaking,
and the students listening
Kinesthetic learning experiences
(and other sensory experiences) give
students a good basis for new
knowledge in an entirely different
way (Arons, 1997)
Student Verbalization & Explanations
Student explanations are
frequently in error: teacher-given
explanations are much preferable
Having
Having students
students explain
explain their
their
reasoning
reasoning is
is valuable
valuable to
to them
them and
and
their
their classmates
classmates
Lab Activities
Laboratory exercises should have
a clear procedure, to minimize the
students chance of making
mistakes and errors
Most laboratory exercises should be
open-ended unstructured activities,
with broad clear goals calling on
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student creativity and thoughtfulness
Examples of Significant Changes to Personal
Beliefs of Good Physics Teaching (Cont’d)
What I Believed Then
What I Believe Now
Process of Science / Learning
At this level, students should do
most of their learning on their own:
They’ll have to learn to work on
their own eventually anyway
Science is done frequently in groups.
Therefore, many activities should be
done in groups, as a demonstration
of “real science”
Encouragement of Thinking
Frustration in students should be
minimized by the teacher by clear
explanations, appropriate
problems, and demos
Students should encounter frustration
regularly as they learn: Intellectual
dissonance / discomfort are essential
6
Varying Levels of Effects
of Program Elements

Assessed influence of various program elements on
changes in my beliefs about good teaching
• Used class notes and assignments

Four approximate categories of effects:
• Triggering element of changed belief
• Essential component of changed belief
• Very strong support of changed belief
• Strong support of changed belief
T
E
V
S
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Effects of Program Elements on
Changes in Beliefs of Good Teaching
Program Elements
Changed
Belief Topic
Showcase Courses
Stdt.
PCK Reflcn. RTOP
Mode
Stdt.
Disc.
/ WB
Different Types of
Knowledge
T
E
E
V
Student
Verbalizations and
Explanations
E
E
E
E
Laboratory
Activities
T
E
V
Process of
Science / Learning
T
E
E
E
Encouragement of
Thinking
T
E
V
V
V
T
PER
Educ.
Field
Courses Work
V
E
V
V
S
S
V
V
V
V
V
E
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Analysis




Student mode activities “triggered” many changes
• Similar to teaching as taught
• No appreciation of benefits without personal experience
Reflection maintained and motivated changes
• Comparison between before & after
• Assessing effectiveness of approach (constant process)
PCK an essential element in many changes
• PCK transfer is important goal of program
• Research based
RTOP, student discourse and whiteboards essential
elements, very strong supporters, and trigger of many
changes
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Conclusions
From my experience and background, I believe an effective
program for physics teachers would include:
• Extensive student-mode activities
• Reflection on learning
• Promulgation of physics PCK
• Promotion of student discourse
• Encouragement of students to be active learners
Programs should also follow PER, and add to it
Warning: Use caution when extrapolating from single event
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