Physics Program Plan 2011
Joseph McCullough, Carlos Figueroa, and Marcus Watson
February 9, 2012
“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” – William Yeats
"In the matter of physics, the first lessons should contain nothing but what is experimental and
interesting to see. A pretty experiment is in itself often more valuable than twenty formulae
extracted from our minds." – Albert Einstein
I. Background, Evaluation and Analysis
A. Program Description
The Physics Department program currently consists of three full-time faculty, one laboratory
technician, three adjunct faculty and 13 student tutors. Our mission as a department is to provide
students with the opportunity to develop and analyze physical models based on observed natural
phenomena. Students in our classes develop their scientific thinking as they collaborate and work
in groups to learn how the universe works. Our students also learn how to communicate scientific
results effectively and improve their quantitative analysis skills. As a department, we use many
educational tools to keep our students actively involved in their learning. The lecture portion of
our classes has been and continues to be student-centered, with the use of student personal
response systems, innovative curriculum, and student whiteboards. Our laboratory activities
continue to trend away from step-by-step verification labs to more creative, discovery-based
activities. Our department’s focus on new teaching methodologies based upon the latest findings
from education research has resulted in a collaborative learning environment where our students
actively participate in constructing their own knowledge.
B. Relationships
Elementary and High Schools
We successfully attract high school students to our program with fun hands-on demonstrations at
Cabrillo College's annual "College and Career Night." Our faculty also work with several
Watsonville elementary schools (Landmark, Starlight, and T. S. Macquiddy) to promote science
and expose young students to the joys of learning.
Cabrillo College
The faculty in the ACE (Academy for College Excellence) program, biology, chemistry,
engineering, radiology and mathematics, are aware of the importance of our program. We meet
periodically to discuss issues of mutual interest. As a result of this collaboration, we have
designed and created an integrated science course (DMCP 160 IS) involving biology, chemistry,
and physics.
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A four-year-long collaboration between the Engineering, Etech, CS, CIS, MESA, and Physics
Departments has recently resulted in a $4.3 million STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering,
and Mathematics) grant. This five-year grant from the Department of Education is designed to
increase the number of Hispanic students in the STEM fields and increase their transfer rates to
four-year universities. One exciting highlight of the grant for the Physics Department is the
construction of a new integrated STEM center. This center will combine the Physics/Engineering
Learning Center (PLC) and MESA into a much larger space that will be centrally located in the
800 building. Physics students will have increased access to academic support from peer tutors as
well as more proactive academic and transfer advising.
The Physics Department has also:
•
•
•
•
•
collaborated with the Mathematics Department to better integrate the curriculum between
MATH 5A and PHYS 4A.
collaborated with the Radiologic Technology (RT) Department to integrate important key
ideas for RT majors into PHYS 12.
collaborated with the Energy Academy to help design innovative curriculum and
implement hands-on laboratory activities for students.
presented four Flex workshops introducing remote-controlled student response (clicker)
systems and how to successfully incorporate clickers into instruction. The most recent
workshop (Fall 2010) was a joint presentation between the Physics and Biology
Departments.
presented a Flex workshop designed to better integrate the science and engineering
programs as well as discuss laboratory policies in each department.
Four-Year Universities
Our faculty maintains relationships with other colleges and universities through active
participation in both national and northern California section meetings of the American
Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Individual faculty are in contact with organizations and
professors at Cal Poly SLO, Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships program (SULI) at
San Jose State, Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC), UC Berkeley, and UC Santa Cruz.
These interactions strengthen our program by keeping us aware of the needs of our transfer
institutions. Because of these collaborations, our physics students receive coveted internships at
national laboratories including Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, SLAC, and the National
Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Our collaboration with UCSC and neighboring community colleges resulted in a $600,000 NSFS-STEM grant designed to help financially needy and underrepresented college students obtain a
B.A. in Physics. This grant has already resulted in six Cabrillo students each receiving a $25,000
scholarship to UCSC with three to four more scholarships expected over the next two years.
Transfer Programs
A major segment of our physics students are engineering majors who are encouraged to complete
their lower division science courses at community colleges to alleviate impacted conditions at the
four-year schools. California universities that grant BS degrees in engineering increasingly rely
on Cabrillo and other two-year colleges to provide well-prepared junior transfers. We expect this
trend to result in continuing strong enrollments for Cabrillo Physics.
Articulation agreements have been forged between our program and physics programs at nearly
all UC and CSU campuses including CSU San Jose, San Luis Obispo, Chico, Dominguez Hills,
Fresno, Humboldt, Hayward, Monterey Bay, and Sacramento and UC Berkeley, Davis, Riverside,
and Santa Cruz. Our students have obtained baccalaureate degrees at these institutions and many
others.
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C: Costs
The following data describe productivity (WSCH/FTEF) of the Physics Program compared to the
college as a whole.
Physics WSCH
2005/06 2006/07
4250.5
4132.0
2007/08
4116.8
2008/09 2009/10
4192.9
4455.5
Physics FTEF
6.5
7.0
7.3
7.1
6.9
Physics WSCH/FTEF
653.9
590.3
563.9
590.5
645.7
College WSCH/FTEF
554.1
531.3
543.3
609.9
615.5
Physics/College
118%
111%
104%
97%
105%
Our small department works efficiently to serve as many students as possible. Most of our class
sizes are limited by the number of students we can fit within the lab. Even so, our department’s
productivity has consistently been greater than the college average. It is also much greater than
the 360 WSCH/FTEF recommended for optimum student learning by the American Association
of Physics Teachers.
The following data compare the Physics Program expenses (as a percent of overall instruction
expense) to the FTES generated by our department (as a percent of the overall college FTES).
2005/06
2006/07
2007/08
2008/09
2009/10
Percent of Expense
1.264%
1.335%
1.272%
1.161%
1.314%
Percent of FTES
1.286%
1.268%
1.192%
1.093%
1.226%
The percent expense of the Physics Program is slightly greater than the percent FTES generated
by our department. This is not unusual given the equipment intensive nature of our program.
Physics is a very real-world, hands-on experience. Up-to-date laboratory and demonstration
equipment is therefore essential to the success of our students and we applaud the college for
supporting this essential part of a student’s education.
Although our program’s expenses do exceed those of non-laboratory programs, we are proud of
our overall efficiency. Our department is cognizant of the declining college budget and works
hard to decrease our expenses. Some of the ways our department reduces expenses include:
scheduling two lab sections in the same lecture to reduce teaching units, repairing laboratory
equipment rather than buying new items, and sharing resources such as lab equipment and
supplies with other departments.
D. Student Learning Outcomes
The Physics Department assessed the core four competencies and all student learning outcomes
for each of the courses that we teach. This process proved to be very beneficial for our
department. It sparked many interesting discussions about teaching methodologies as well as
highlighted our students’ strengths. The results of our assessments revealed that our physics
students have a very good conceptual understanding of the material that we teach. Our students
also do well on the homework assignments and demonstrate excellent data analysis skills in lab.
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The assessments also revealed several areas in which our students currently struggle. Some of our
students’ writing and grammar skills need improvement. They understand the concepts well but
have difficulty communicating their ideas in written form. This was apparent in their formal lab
reports and essay response questions. Some of our students struggle to arrive to class on time,
especially students in our morning classes (PHYS 2A/2B and PHYS 10). Finally, some of our
students need more guidance in organizing their work when problem solving and writing lab
reports.
The physics department has taken concrete steps to address each of the areas where improvement
is needed. For example, to improve student writing skills, we have implemented a peer review
step into the formal lab report writing process and posted sample lab reports on each course
website. To encourage students to arrive to class on time, we often start class with a clicker
question. If students arrive late, they miss the question which then lowers their class participation
grade. To improve our students’ organizational skills, we have created detailed rubrics for
grading homework assignments and lab reports. These rubrics are given to students so they know
the expected format and exactly how they will be graded.
We have already seen improvement in our students’ writing skills, timeliness, and organization.
We will continue to help our students improve in these areas as well as any areas revealed by
future assessments.
The complete Department Analyses for Fall 2007 through Fall 2010 are included in Appendix A.
E. Student Success
Although the concepts and mathematics in physics are challenging and rigorous, our studentcentered approach to teaching and our carefully designed learning activities enable a large
fraction of our students to succeed. Success in physics (grade C or better) indicates that a student
(1) has a strong conceptual understanding of the material, (2) is able to solve complex problems
using the appropriate mathematical skills, (3) is able to work co-operatively with peers to perform
and analyze laboratory experiments, and (4) has developed critical thinking skills necessary for
future success.
The Physics Department promotes student success in the following ways:
•
Our teaching methodologies are highly interactive and student centered. Our department
has been using clicker systems with great success for nine years and we continue to refine
their use. Our labs continue to move away from the standard “follow these steps and
verify this result” labs towards more open-ended, design-your-own experiment activities.
•
Our faculty and staff are highly qualified and committed to teaching excellence. Our
active involvement in professional development and physics education research has
provided the Physics Department with a strong foundation on which to build student
success. Our faculty and staff have presented innovative laboratory activities at national
conferences and trained K-12th grade teachers around the country in brain-based teaching
techniques.
•
Our department’s resources are organized and easy to access. Faculty can access an
online database of all demonstration equipment that includes pictures, detailed
descriptions, and location in the stockroom. Faculty also have access to electronic
archives of all class materials (quizzes, tests, lecture notes, laboratories, …) spanning
almost 10 years for every course we teach. In addition, our department’s well-designed
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web pages provide students with online access to all course materials as well as links to
various resources designed for student success.
•
Our students feel a sense of community with the department and with each other. This is
in large part due to the success of the PLC, which students consistently cited as one of the
major strengths of the department. In addition to getting help from tutors and completing
weekly drop-in labs, students use the PLC as a place to study or do homework together.
Students often form study groups that support and encourage success throughout the
semester. Sometimes these study groups continue for several semesters and occasionally
even after students transfer.
•
Our department’s physical space includes two smart classrooms, a well-equipped
laboratory, the PLC, and a centrally located stockroom. The stockroom is physically
connected to both classrooms as well as the physics lab. In addition to being an efficient
design, this central location means that all full-time faculty and staff interact on a daily
basis and contributes to the sense of community within the department.
•
Our classes have more contact hours than comparable courses offered at the universities.
For example, PHYS 4A/4B/4C at Cabrillo has nine contact hours per week for 16 weeks.
At UCSC, PHYS 5A/5B/5C (their equivalent to our PHYS 4 series) has seven contact
hours per week for 10 weeks. The challenging topics covered in physics take time for
students to assimilate. The increased number of contact hours no doubt contributes to the
success of our students.
The Physics Department use a wide variety of methods to assess our students’ success, including
in-class quizzes (conceptual and mathematical), problem sets, written exams, clicker questions,
formal and informal lab reports, interactive PLC activities, daily journals, and research papers.
The following data show retention and success in the Physics Program compared to the college as
a whole.
Physics retention
2005/06
90.4%
2006/07
86.0%
2007/08
85.8%
2008/09
87.3%
2009/010
86.3%
College retention
81.0%
80.5%
81.3%
85.2%
85.0%
Physics success
81.0%
77.5%
75.1%
74.5%
76.7%
College success
67.5%
66.7%
67.6%
68.7%
70.2%
Success and retention rates of physics students are consistently above the college average. This is
impressive given the relative difficulty of the subject matter. We are particularly proud of our
excellent record of student success in Physics 4A (Mechanics for Scientists and Engineers). Our
success rate in this high-risk course is approximately 70% versus a national average of about
50%.
One of the true measures of the success of any transfer program is how well their students
succeed after transferring. We consistently hear from former students and from faculty at UCSC,
UC Berkeley, SLO and San Jose State that our transfer students are much better prepared and outperform continuing students at those institutions.
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As expressed in an unsolicited email to former Cabrillo College President John Hurd:
Dear President Hurd,
I am the chair of the physics department at UCSC and I am currently teaching a
class that has several junior transfers from Cabrillo. They are excellent, far better
than most of the students from other community colleges. This trend has been
apparent for some time, but now that I am teaching a class that has a good
sprinkling of your ex students it is so clear that I felt I should communicate this to
you. Your physics department is really doing an excellent job preparing students for
the UC system. Please believe me when I say I have no ulterior motives, I am simply
a person who believes in giving credit where credit is due. I write letters of
complaint when they are justified, but I also write letters of commendation when the
situation warrants it. This situation clearly warrants a letter of commendation.
If the opportunity to express these views in a theater where they may help your
college comes up, I will be certain to air them. Once again, congratulations on the
sterling job your physics faculty are doing.
Sincerely,
David Dorfan, Professor of Physics, Chair of the Physics Department, UCSC.
F. Results of Student Survey
The survey of students done in the Fall semester of 2010 indicates that students are very satisfied
with the quality of instruction provided by the Physics Department. Students enjoy and appreciate
the cooperative learning environments that are established in the classrooms, in the laboratory,
and in the PLC. More than 92% of the students surveyed would recommend physics classes to
other students. Most of the written comments cited the instructors as a major strength of the
program. Other strengths indicated by the students include the sense of community created by the
department, the interesting laboratories, and the Physics/Engineering Learning Center (PLC).
The suggestions for improvement of the Physics Program were mainly centered around
expanding the hours and the physical size of the PLC. The written comments indicate that about
80% of the students find overcrowding of the PLC to be an issue. Students sometimes have
difficulty finding an available workspace or computer and many students would like to have the
PLC open on Fridays and weekends. (Note: the $4.3 million grant discussed in Section 1B will
result in a larger PLC space within the STEM center that should address these issues.)
G: Curriculum Review
The physics department met on five separate occasions to look closely at each of the ten courses
that we teach. As a result of these meetings, we made changes to the curriculum in each of our
courses. The following table describes the changes made as a result of curriculum review.
Program Course
Changes
PHYS 10 Introduction to Physics
PHYS 10L Introduction to Physics Lab
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Updated Objectives, Content, Assignments,
Evaluation, and Representative Texts.
Updated Content, Evaluation, and
Representative Texts.
PHYS 11 Elementary Physics
PHYS 12 Conceptual Modern Physics
PHYS 2A General Physics I
PHYS 2B General Physics II
PHYS 4A Physics for Scientists and Engineers I
PHYS 4B Physics for Scientists and Engineers II
PHYS 4C Physics for Scientists and Engineers III
PHYS 4D Modern Physics
Updated Course Description, SLOs, Content,
Assignments, Evaluation, and Representative
Texts.
Changed Course name. Updated Course
Description, SLOs, Objectives, Content,
Assignments, Evaluation, and Representative
Texts.
Changed Course name. Updated Course
Description, SLOs, Objectives, Content,
Assignments, Evaluation, and Representative
Texts.
Changed Course name. Updated SLOs,
Objectives, Content, Assignments,
Evaluation, and Representative Texts.
Changed Course name. Updated Course
Description, Requisites, SLOs, Objectives,
Content, Assignments, Evaluation, and
Representative Texts.
Changed Course name. Updated Course
Description, Requisites, SLOs, Objectives,
Content, Assignments, Evaluation, and
Representative Texts.
Changed Course name. Updated Course
Description, Requisites, SLOs, Objectives,
Content, Assignments, Evaluation, and
Representative Texts.
Updated Objectives, Content, Evaluation,
and Representative Texts.
The Physics Program section of the 2010-2011 Cabrillo College Catalog is included in Appendix B.
II. New Directions
The success of the Physics Program is in large part due to the efforts put forth by each of our
faculty to incorporate elements from Physics Education Research into their classrooms. Many
years of research has shown that students learn physics more effectively when they are actively
engaged in creating their knowledge rather than passively taking notes and listening to an
instructor. We continue to develop active-student-learning tools and strategies such as:
•
Peer Instruction, in which students individually think about a question posed by the
instructor, then after discussing their answers in small groups, respond anonymously
using clicker systems. The answers are then discussed as a class in a safe and supportive
environment.
•
Quantum Learning, in which effective lessons are designed and delivered using proven
results from more than 30 years of research on how the brain learns. A few of the many
elements of Quantum Learning include creating an optimal environment for learning,
piquing students’ interest at the beginning of each lesson, incorporating positive
language patterns into the classroom, acknowledging every student effort, and reviewing
material at frequent intervals.
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•
Innovative, non-traditional laboratory activities including falsification labs, in which
students are presented with a plausible but incorrect hypothesis. The students’
experimental data conflicts with the hypothesis and they must overcome their cognitive
dissonance to understand why the initial hypothesis is not correct.
The results of our core competency and SLO assessments show that our initial use of these
teaching strategies has been extremely effective. We will continue to refine these strategies
as well as implement new teaching techniques as we learn more from future assessments.
Some of the teaching strategies that we plan on implementing in the future include:
•
Modeling Instruction, in which students are guided towards developing models of
physical phenomena. The instructor encourages the students to be invested in their ideas,
then to test them in the laboratory. This way, students are actively involved in doing
physics, testing their ideas, and constructing their own knowledge.
•
Discourse Management, in which students interact like peer scientists rather than relying
on an authority figure to dispense knowledge. The instructor creates a cooperative
learning community early in the semester and sets the expectations that students will
work with their peers to create and test models. By allowing the class to develop their
ideas, students have a stronger investment in their knowledge and retain a deeper
understanding of physics concepts long after the class is over.
•
Inquiry-based laboratory activities, in which a scientific question is posed, and students
must design and execute an experiment to answer the question. The instructor provides
students with the necessary tools by way of intermediate activities designed to teach
them key elements that will help guide them towards an answer.
•
Topic-based laboratory activities, in which lab experiments are designed around realworld physics applications based upon our students’ educational interests. For example,
PHYS 2 consists of many students who are majoring in biology or kinesiology. The
PHYS 2 labs are being redesigned to incorporate more medical applications such as
measuring the torques involved in arm movements and modeling the pressures in the
heart when measuring blood pressure.
•
Accelerated Learning Techniques, in which brain-based teaching techniques are used to
accelerate student learning. A few of the many elements of accelerated learning include
preparing the physical space of the classroom (i.e. lighting, seating arrangements, plants,
paint color, …), incorporating multiple learning modalities into each lesson, establishing
a supportive learning environment, encouraging frequent student interactions, and using
music to influence student state.
III. Program Goals and Recommendations
The majority of the Physics Program goals listed below are the same goals outlined in our 2006
program plan. Because of the recent budget cuts, our department has lacked the funding to
achieve most of our previous goals. Assuming that the college budget recovers sometime in the
not-too-distant future, our department’s goals for the next six years are as follows:
1. As revealed in our Spring 2009 core competency assessment (Communication), our students
need more guidance in writing concise and well-documented lab reports. We will increase
student learning and success by increasing the budget of the Physics/Engineering Learning
Community (PLC) in order to provide students with greater access to peer tutors. (Major
Growth, Improved Transfer, Innovative Scheduling and Delivery)
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•
Increase the PLC tutor budget from $16,000/yr to $25,000/yr. Schedule tutors in the PLC
on Fridays and on weekends. Train tutors to assist struggling students with organizing
their homework problem sets and writing formal lab reports.
Costs: $9,000 per year
2. Many of our students have difficulty completing their coursework in two years because they
can not get into the classes they need to graduate. Our physics classes often fill to capacity as
soon as registration opens. We will increase student access to physics classes by scheduling
additional courses and additional sections of impacted courses. (Major Growth)
•
•
•
•
•
•
Schedule a second lab section for PHYS 11 in the fall semester. Increase staffing by 2.4
units per year.
$4,160 per year
Schedule additional sections (lecture, lab, and PLC) of PHYS 4A, 4B and 4C. Increase
staffing by 7.9 units (4.0 units for lecture, 2.4 units for lab, and 1.5 academic specialist
units for PLC) for each added section.
$14,200 per section per year; $42,600 total per year
Schedule PHYS 4D every year rather than every two years. Increase staffing by 3 units
every other year.
$5,200 every other year
Schedule a second lab section for PHYS 2B in the spring semester. Increase staffing by
2.4 units per year.
$4,160 per year
Schedule PHYS 12 (Introduction to Modern Physics) every year as an alternative to
PHYS 10 (Introduction to Physics) for students interested in modern physics. Increase
staffing by 3 units per year.
$5,200 per year
Schedule a section of Physics 10 Lab in Watsonville in the spring semester. Increase
staffing by 2.4 units per year.
$4,160 per year.
Costs: $60,280 per year, $5200 every other year
3. Based on the results of our assessment of the Global Awareness core competency in Spring
2011, our students need more guidance in designing and implementing their own laboratories.
We will increase student learning by purchasing new laboratory and demonstration
equipment to provide all students with access to updated experiments. (Major Growth,
Innovative Scheduling and Delivery)
•
Purchase new laboratory and demonstration equipment for the PHYS 4 and PHYS 2
series. In particular, update equipment for mechanics and energy labs in PHYS 4A,
update electrostatics and circuits demos for in PHYS 4B, purchase new optics
experiments for PHYS 4C, and update the PHYS 2 lab experiments to include more
medical applications.
Costs: $35,000 one time
4. As revealed in our Spring 2011 core competency assessment (Global Awareness), our
students need more guidance in designing and implementing their own laboratories. We will
increase student learning in laboratories by hiring Student Lab Assistants to help students
during lab and by expanding our Laboratory Technician contract. (Innovative Scheduling and
Delivery)
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•
Establish a budget of $3,500/yr for a student lab assistant who will work under the
direction of the Laboratory Technician. Lab assistants will assist students during physics
labs, assist instructors with classroom demonstrations, test novel experiments, and
perform other duties assigned by the Laboratory Technician.
$3,500 per year
•
Expand our Laboratory Technician contract from 75% to 100% and add duties to (a)
oversee student lab assistants in the physics lab and stockroom, (b) develop and set up
demonstration experiments in the PLC, and (c) facilitate independent student research
projects.
$17,200 per year
Costs: $20,700 per year
5. Based upon the results of our SLO assessments in Fall 2007 and Fall 2008, our faculty would
benefit from attending seminars and consulting learning experts about teaching methods. We
will increase student learning by enabling and encouraging faculty and staff to attend
professional meetings and workshops on effective physics teaching. (Innovative Scheduling
and Delivery)
•
Create and fund a Cabrillo Foundation endowment to pay for travel and other meeting
costs for faculty and staff. Establish an initial target to provide $1,500 annually to
supplement existing conference attendance funds.
Costs: $30,000 startup (external funds)
6. As revealed in our Spring 2009 core competency assessment (Communication), our students
would benefit from an increased awareness of the role of physics in society. We will increase
student learning and success by developing advanced interactive demonstration experiments
for student groups in the PLC. (Improved Transfer, Innovative Scheduling and Delivery)
•
Increase the equipment budget by $4,000 annually to purchase individual sets of
experimental apparatus that are too expensive for multiple copies in the lab.
$4,000 per year
•
Install display cases in the expanded PLC for interactive demonstration experiments.
$6,000 one time
Costs: $6,000 one time, $4,000 per year
7. As stated in goal #2, scheduling additional courses and additional sections of impacted
courses will benefit those students who can not get into the classes they need to graduate.
However, if the number of teaching units taught by adjuncts exceeds 15, we create a
substantial risk of not finding local qualified candidates in sufficient numbers. We will
increase student access to physics classes by hiring an additional full-time instructor. (Major
Growth)
Costs: $66,000 per year
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February 8, 2012
PHYS Program Planning
Goals and Recommendations
1.
Description:
Increase Budget of Physics/Engineering Learning Center (PLC).
Cost
$9,000 per year
2.
Schedule Additional Sections of Impacted Courses.
$59,700 per year,
$5,200 every other year
3.
Purchase New Laboratory and Demonstration Equipment.
$35,000 one time
4.
Hire Student Lab Assistants and Expand Lab Technician's Contract.
$20,700 per year
5.
Create and Fund a Cabrillo Foundation Endowment.
$30,000 one time (external funds)
6.
Develop Interactive Advanced Demonstration Experiments.
$6,000 one time,
$4,000 per year
7.
Hire Additional Full-Time Instructor.
$66,000 per year
.
.
.
.
.
Cabrillo College
2/8/2012 3:44 PM
Transfer and Basic Skills
Departmental Assessment Analysis Form
Note: Individual Assessment Form precedes this form.
Use the form below to summarize the results of the department meeting in
which you discussed the core competency assessment process or the
assessment of course SLOs. Append this form to your Instructional Plan and
incorporate the results into the narrative of your plan.
Department
Physics
Meeting Date
2/8/2008
FULLTIME
ADJUNCT
Number of Faculty/Staff
participating in dialogue
3
1
Number of Faculty/Staff sharing
Assessment Results
3
1
Total number of faculty/staff in
department
3
2
Core Competency or Course
SLOs measured
Assessment Tools
(Give examples of major
assignments your faculty/staff
used to measure the
competency or course SLOs)
All SLOs for Physics 10, Physics 10L, Physics 12,
Physics 2A and Physics 2B
Research paper, formal lab report, group and
individual quizzes, and problem sets.
Assessment Results
(Summarize the overall results
of your department
Overall, students did very well.
What student needs and issues
were revealed?
Students understand concepts well but need to work
on grammar and writing skills.
Were there any areas where
student performance was
outstanding?
Knowledge of concepts / applications of knowledge.
Any areas where it can be
improved?
Revised 7/20/07
Writing skills need improvement.
Next Step in the Classroom
to Improve Student Learning
How might student performance
be improved?
Check all the items faculty/staff
felt would help them address
the needs and issues that were
revealed by the assessment.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Next Step in the Department
to Improve Student Learning
Check all that the department
felt would help them improve
student learning.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Revised 7/20/07
o State goals or objectives of assignment/activity more
explicitly
Revise content of assignment/activities
Revise the amount of writing/oral/visual/clinical
or similar work
Revise activities leading up to and/or supporting
assignment/activities
o Increase in-class discussions and activities
Increase student collaboration and/or peer review
o Provide more frequent or more comprehensive
feedback on student progress
o Increase guidance for students as they work on
assignments
o Use methods of questioning that encourage the
competency you measured
o State criteria for grading more explicitly
o As an instructor, increase your interaction with
students outside of class
o Ask a colleague to critique assignments/activities
o Collect more data
o Nothing; assessment indicates no improvement
necessary
o Other (please describe)
o Offer/encourage attendance at seminars, workshops
or discussion groups about teaching methods
Consult teaching and learning experts about
teaching methods
o Encourage faculty to share activities that foster
competency
o Write collaborative grants to fund departmental
projects to improve teaching
o Purchase articles/books on teaching about
competency
o Visit classrooms to provide feedback (mentoring)
Create bibliography of resource material
o Have binder available for rubrics and results
o Analyze course curriculum,, so that the department
can build a progression of skills as students advance
through courses
o Nothing; assessments indicate no improvements
necessary
o Other (please describe)
Priorities to Improve Student
Learning
(List the top 3-6 things
faculty/staff felt would most
improve student learning)
1) Increase the amount of writing students do inside
and outside of the classroom.
2) Emphasize the importance of being able to clearly
communicate their ideas in written form.
3) Have students clarify their understanding by
writing and explaining their ideas to other students.
Implementation
(List the departmental plans to
implement these priorities)
1) Implement conceptual questions into quizzes and
exams that demand an in-depth written explanation.
2) Use more group conceptual quizzes during class.
3) Increase the amount of writing in Physics 10 and
Physics 12.
Timeline for Implementation
1) Implement conceptual questions within one year.
(Make a timeline for
implementation of your top
priorities)
2) Implement more group quizzes within one year.
3) Implement increases writing within one semester.
Revised 7/20/07
Transfer and Basic Skills
Departmental Assessment Analysis Form
Note: Individual Assessment Form precedes this form.
Use the form below to summarize the results of the department meeting in
which you discussed the core competency assessment process or the
assessment of course SLOs. Append this form to your Instructional Plan and
incorporate the results into the narrative of your plan.
Department
Physics
Meeting Date
2/6/2009
FULLTIME
ADJUNCT
Number of Faculty/Staff
participating in dialogue
3
2
Number of Faculty/Staff sharing
Assessment Results
3
0
Total number of faculty/staff in
department
3
2
Core Competency or Course
SLOs measured
Assessment Tools
(Give examples of major
assignments your faculty/staff
used to measure the
competency or course SLOs)
All SLOs for Physics 4A, Physics 4B, Physics 4C,
Physics 4B, and Physics 11.
Formal lab report, lab journal, group and individual
quizzes, and problem sets.
Assessment Results
(Summarize the overall results
of your department
Students not participating in labs / group discussions
did less well than other students.
What student needs and issues
were revealed?
Instructors need to organize better working groups,
encourage more student participation, and work on
increasing conceptual understanding.
Were there any areas where
student performance was
outstanding?
Any areas where it can be
improved?
Revised 7/20/07
Students participating do well on quizzes.
Encourage students to form working groups and
increase student buy-in for group activities.
Next Step in the Classroom
to Improve Student Learning
How might student performance
be improved?
Check all the items faculty/staff
felt would help them address
the needs and issues that were
revealed by the assessment.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
o State goals or objectives of assignment/activity more
explicitly
o Revise content of assignment/activities
o Revise the amount of writing/oral/visual/clinical or
similar work
Revise activities leading up to and/or supporting
assignment/activities
Increase in-class discussions and activities
Increase student collaboration and/or peer review
o Provide more frequent or more comprehensive
feedback on student progress
o Increase guidance for students as they work on
assignments
Use methods of questioning that encourage the
competency you measured
o State criteria for grading more explicitly
As an instructor, increase your interaction with
students outside of class
o Ask a colleague to critique assignments/activities
o Collect more data
o Nothing; assessment indicates no improvement
necessary
o Other (please describe)
Next Step in the Department
to Improve Student Learning
Check all that the department
felt would help them improve
student learning.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Revised 7/20/07
Offer/encourage attendance at seminars,
workshops or discussion groups about teaching
methods
Consult teaching and learning experts about teaching
methods
Encourage faculty to share activities that foster
competency
Write collaborative grants to fund departmental
projects to improve teaching
Purchase articles/books on teaching about
competency
Visit classrooms to provide feedback (mentoring)
Create bibliography of resource material
Have binder available for rubrics and results
Analyze course curriculum,, so that the department
can build a progression of skills as students advance
through courses
Nothing; assessments indicate no improvements
necessary
Other (please describe)
Priorities to Improve Student
Learning
1) Form better self-managed student working groups.
(List the top 3-6 things
faculty/staff felt would most
improve student learning)
2) Encourage student involvement outside of class.
Implementation
1) Attend professional development seminars to see
how other instructors are implementing and
managing student working groups.
(List the departmental plans to
implement these priorities)
3) Learn more about effectively organizing student
groups and group dynamics.
2) Develop funding to support travel to professional
development seminars.
3) Apply theories of learning styles to organize
working lab groups during the first lab of the
semester.
Timeline for Implementation
(Make a timeline for
implementation of your top
priorities)
1) Attend at least one professional development
seminar within one year.
2) Find increased funding for travel within 2 years.
3) Implement student working groups within 1 year.
Revised 7/20/07
Transfer and Basic Skills
Departmental Assessment Analysis Form
Note: Individual Assessment Form precedes this form.
Use the form below to summarize the results of the department meeting in
which you discussed the core competency assessment process or the
assessment of course SLOs. Append this form to your Instructional Plan and
incorporate the results into the narrative of your plan.
Department
Physics
Meeting Date
8/27/2009
FULLTIME
ADJUNCT
Number of Faculty/Staff
participating in dialogue
3
1
Number of Faculty/Staff sharing
Assessment Results
3
1
Total number of faculty/staff in
department
3
2
Core Competency or Course
SLOs measured
Communication
Assessment Tools
(Give examples of major
assignments your faculty/staff
used to measure the
competency or course SLOs)
Formal lab reports, HW assignments, in-class
discussions.
Assessment Results
(Summarize the overall results
of your department
What student needs and issues
were revealed?
Were there any areas where
student performance was
outstanding?
Any areas where it can be
improved?
Revised 7/20/07
Physics 10 students demonstrated poor writing skills
and knowledge of application of physics outside of
class. Physics 4 students demonstrated a lack of
understanding of the proper format for lab reports.
Students did very well on HW problem sets.
Overall, almost all of our students could improve
their writing skills.
Next Step in the Classroom
to Improve Student Learning
How might student performance
be improved?
Check all the items faculty/staff
felt would help them address
the needs and issues that were
revealed by the assessment.
o
o
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
o
o
o
o
o
o
Next Step in the Department
to Improve Student Learning
Check all that the department
felt would help them improve
student learning.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Revised 7/20/07
State goals or objectives of assignment/activity
more explicitly
Revise content of assignment/activities
Revise the amount of writing/oral/visual/clinical
or similar work
Revise activities leading up to and/or supporting
assignment/activities
Increase in-class discussions and activities
Increase student collaboration and/or peer review
Provide more frequent or more comprehensive
feedback on student progress
Increase guidance for students as they work on
assignments
Use methods of questioning that encourage the
competency you measured
State criteria for grading more explicitly
As an instructor, increase your interaction with
students outside of class
Ask a colleague to critique assignments/activities
Collect more data
Nothing; assessment indicates no improvement
necessary
Other (please describe)
o Offer/encourage attendance at seminars, workshops
or discussion groups about teaching methods
o Consult teaching and learning experts about teaching
methods
Encourage faculty to share activities that foster
competency
o Write collaborative grants to fund departmental
projects to improve teaching
o Purchase articles/books on teaching about
competency
o Visit classrooms to provide feedback (mentoring)
Create bibliography of resource material
Have binder available for rubrics and results
o Analyze course curriculum,, so that the department
can build a progression of skills as students advance
through courses
o Nothing; assessments indicate no improvements
necessary
o Other (please describe)
Priorities to Improve Student
Learning
(List the top 3-6 things
faculty/staff felt would most
improve student learning)
1) Students would benefit from constructive feedback
from their peers.
2) Students would benefit from increased awareness
of the role of physics and technology in society.
3) Students could use more guidance in how to write
concise and well documented lab reports.
Implementation
(List the departmental plans to
implement these priorities)
1) Implement a peer review step in the formal lab
report writing process.
2) Create a writing project in Physics 10 where
students read, analyze, and summarize a popular
physics article.
3) Solidify lab report guidelines so that students have
a more concrete understanding of proper format and
procedure.
Timeline for Implementation
1) Implement peer review within one semester.
(Make a timeline for
implementation of your top
priorities)
2) Implement writing project within one semester.
3) Implement improved lab report guidelines within 1
year.
Revised 7/20/07
Transfer and Basic Skills
Departmental Assessment Analysis Form
Note: Individual Assessment Form precedes this form.
Use the form below to summarize the results of the department meeting in
which you discussed the core competency assessment process or the
assessment of course SLOs. Append this form to your Instructional Plan and
incorporate the results into the narrative of your plan.
Department
Physics
Meeting Date
11/10/09
FULLTIME
ADJUNCT
Number of Faculty/Staff
participating in dialogue
2
1
Number of Faculty/Staff sharing
Assessment Results
2
1
Total number of faculty/staff in
department
3
2
Core Competency or Course
SLOs measured
Assessment Tools
(Give examples of major
assignments your faculty/staff
used to measure the
competency or course SLOs)
Assessment Results
(Summarize the overall results
of your department
What student needs and issues
were revealed?
Were there any areas where
student performance was
outstanding?
Any areas where it can be
improved?
Revised 7/20/07
Critical Thinking and Information Competency
Problem sets and example problems for Physics 11,
2A, 4A, and 4B.
Developed a rubric for organizing useful criteria to
grading/assessing problems.
Students need a better understanding of exactly what
is important when organizing and solving physics
problems.
The (initial) rubric is too long and complicated. It
should be more straight forward and easy to
understand.
Next Step in the Classroom
to Improve Student Learning
How might student performance
be improved?
Check all the items faculty/staff
felt would help them address
the needs and issues that were
revealed by the assessment.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Next Step in the Department
to Improve Student Learning
Check all that the department
felt would help them improve
student learning.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Revised 7/20/07
o State goals or objectives of assignment/activity more
explicitly
o Revise content of assignment/activities
o Revise the amount of writing/oral/visual/clinical or
similar work
o Revise activities leading up to and/or supporting
assignment/activities
o Increase in-class discussions and activities
o Increase student collaboration and/or peer review
Provide more frequent or more comprehensive
feedback on student progress
Increase guidance for students as they work on
assignments
o Use methods of questioning that encourage the
competency you measured
State criteria for grading more explicitly
o As an instructor, increase your interaction with
students outside of class
o Ask a colleague to critique assignments/activities
o Collect more data
o Nothing; assessment indicates no improvement
necessary
o Other (please describe)
o Offer/encourage attendance at seminars, workshops
or discussion groups about teaching methods
o Consult teaching and learning experts about teaching
methods
o Encourage faculty to share activities that foster
competency
o Write collaborative grants to fund departmental
projects to improve teaching
o Purchase articles/books on teaching about
competency
o Visit classrooms to provide feedback (mentoring)
o Create bibliography of resource material
Have binder available for rubrics and results
o Analyze course curriculum,, so that the department
can build a progression of skills as students advance
through courses
o Nothing; assessments indicate no improvements
necessary
o Other (please describe)
Priorities to Improve Student
Learning
(List the top 3-6 things
faculty/staff felt would most
improve student learning)
1) Students should know exactly how the instructor
plans on grading HW and test problems.
2) Instructors should grade all problems in a
consistent and fair manner.
3) Students should know how to set up and prepare to
solve problems to get maximum points.
Implementation
(List the departmental plans to
implement these priorities)
Use the initial grading rubric in order to be more
uniform when grading problems on exams and
homework.
Timeline for Implementation
(Make a timeline for
implementation of your top
priorities)
Revised 7/20/07
Begin using the rubric immediately. Modify and
improve rubric and then meet again in spring to
discuss/develop an improved rubric.
Transfer and Basic Skills
Departmental Assessment Analysis Form
Note: Individual Assessment Form precedes this form.
Use the form below to summarize the results of the department meeting in
which you discussed the core competency assessment process or the
assessment of course SLOs. Append this form to your Instructional Plan and
incorporate the results into the narrative of your plan.
Department
Physics
Meeting Date
4/20/10
FULLTIME
ADJUNCT
Number of Faculty/Staff
participating in dialogue
2
1
Number of Faculty/Staff sharing
Assessment Results
2
1
Total number of faculty/staff in
department
3
2
Core Competency or Course
SLOs measured
Assessment Tools
(Give examples of major
assignments your faculty/staff
used to measure the
competency or course SLOs)
Assessment Results
(Summarize the overall results
of your department
What student needs and issues
were revealed?
Were there any areas where
student performance was
outstanding?
Any areas where it can be
improved?
Revised 7/20/07
Critical Thinking and Information Competency
Problem sets and example problems for Physics 11,
2B, 4A, and 4C.
Revised the previous rubric on problem solving to be
clearer and easier for students (and instructors) to
use.
Students need to better understand what the
instructor is looking for in grading problems.
The new rubric can still be improved with continued
use over time.
Next Step in the Classroom
to Improve Student Learning
How might student performance
be improved?
Check all the items faculty/staff
felt would help them address
the needs and issues that were
revealed by the assessment.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Next Step in the Department
to Improve Student Learning
Check all that the department
felt would help them improve
student learning.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Revised 7/20/07
o State goals or objectives of assignment/activity more
explicitly
o Revise content of assignment/activities
o Revise the amount of writing/oral/visual/clinical or
similar work
o Revise activities leading up to and/or supporting
assignment/activities
o Increase in-class discussions and activities
o Increase student collaboration and/or peer review
Provide more frequent or more comprehensive
feedback on student progress
Increase guidance for students as they work on
assignments
o Use methods of questioning that encourage the
competency you measured
State criteria for grading more explicitly
o As an instructor, increase your interaction with
students outside of class
o Ask a colleague to critique assignments/activities
o Collect more data
o Nothing; assessment indicates no improvement
necessary
o Other (please describe)
o Offer/encourage attendance at seminars, workshops
or discussion groups about teaching methods
o Consult teaching and learning experts about teaching
methods
o Encourage faculty to share activities that foster
competency
o Write collaborative grants to fund departmental
projects to improve teaching
o Purchase articles/books on teaching about
competency
o Visit classrooms to provide feedback (mentoring)
o Create bibliography of resource material
Have binder available for rubrics and results
o Analyze course curriculum,, so that the department
can build a progression of skills as students advance
through courses
o Nothing; assessments indicate no improvements
necessary
o Other (please describe)
Priorities to Improve Student
Learning
(List the top 3-6 things
faculty/staff felt would most
improve student learning)
1) Students should know exactly how the instructor
plans on grading HW and test problems.
2) Instructors should grade all problems in a
consistent and fair manner.
3) Students should know how to set up and prepare to
solve problems to get maximum points.
Implementation
(List the departmental plans to
implement these priorities)
Use the initial grading rubric in order to be more
uniform when grading problems on exams and
homework.
Timeline for Implementation
(Make a timeline for
implementation of your top
priorities)
Revised 7/20/07
The new and improved rubric will be implemented
immediately. We will continue to modify and improve
the rubric over time.
Transfer and Basic Skills
Departmental Assessment Analysis Form
Note: Individual Assessment Form precedes this form.
Use the form below to summarize the results of the department meeting in
which you discussed the core competency assessment process or the
assessment of course SLOs. Append this form to your Instructional Plan and
incorporate the results into the narrative of your plan.
Department
Physics
Meeting Date
2/4/2011
FULLTIME
ADJUNCT
Number of Faculty/Staff
participating in dialogue
3
1
Number of Faculty/Staff sharing
Assessment Results
3
1
Total number of faculty/staff in
department
3
2
Core Competency or Course
SLOs measured
Assessment Tools
(Give examples of major
assignments your faculty/staff
used to measure the
competency or course SLOs)
Assessment Results
(Summarize the overall results
of your department
What student needs and issues
were revealed?
Were there any areas where
student performance was
outstanding?
Any areas where it can be
improved?
Revised 7/20/07
Personal Responsibility and Professional
Development
In-class clicker questions, student compliance with
due dates, HW problem sets in Physics 11, Physics
2A, Physics 4A and Physics 4B.
Most students met the stated deadlines for HW and
lab reports. Many students had difficulty arriving to
class on time on a consistent basis.
Students did very well on HW problem sets.
Students can improve in their ability to arrive to class
and lab in a timely fashion.
Next Step in the Classroom
to Improve Student Learning
How might student performance
be improved?
Check all the items faculty/staff
felt would help them address
the needs and issues that were
revealed by the assessment.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Next Step in the Department
to Improve Student Learning
Check all that the department
felt would help them improve
student learning.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
Revised 7/20/07
State goals or objectives of assignment/activity
more explicitly
Revise content of assignment/activities
Revise the amount of writing/oral/visual/clinical or
similar work
Revise activities leading up to and/or supporting
assignment/activities
Increase in-class discussions and activities
Increase student collaboration and/or peer review
Provide more frequent or more comprehensive
feedback on student progress
Increase guidance for students as they work on
assignments
Use methods of questioning that encourage the
competency you measured
State criteria for grading more explicitly
As an instructor, increase your interaction with
students outside of class
Ask a colleague to critique assignments/activities
Collect more data
Nothing; assessment indicates no improvement
necessary
Other (please describe)
o Offer/encourage attendance at seminars, workshops
or discussion groups about teaching methods
Consult teaching and learning experts about
teaching methods
Encourage faculty to share activities that foster
competency
o Write collaborative grants to fund departmental
projects to improve teaching
o Purchase articles/books on teaching about
competency
o Visit classrooms to provide feedback (mentoring)
o Create bibliography of resource material
o Have binder available for rubrics and results
o Analyze course curriculum,, so that the department
can build a progression of skills as students advance
through courses
o Nothing; assessments indicate no improvements
necessary
o Other (please describe)
Priorities to Improve Student
Learning
(List the top 3-6 things
faculty/staff felt would most
improve student learning)
1) Actively encourage students to take more
responsibility for their own learning.
2) Hold students more accountable to posted
deadlines.
3) Impart to students the importance of punctuality.
Implementation
(List the departmental plans to
implement these priorities)
1) Create NQA (No Questions Asked) coupons and
clearly define policies for late homework.
2) Make part of a student’s class participation grade
based upon punctual arrival to class.
Timeline for Implementation
1) Implement NQA coupons immediately.
(Make a timeline for
implementation of your top
priorities)
2) Implement class participation component of grade
within one semester.
Revised 7/20/07
Transfer and Basic Skills
Departmental Assessment Analysis Form
Note: Individual Assessment Form precedes this form.
Use the form below to summarize the results of the department meeting in
which you discussed the core competency assessment process or the
assessment of course SLOs. Append this form to your Instructional Plan and
incorporate the results into the narrative of your plan.
Department
Physics
Meeting Date
8/26/2011
FULLTIME
ADJUNCT
Number of Faculty/Staff
participating in dialogue
3
1
Number of Faculty/Staff sharing
Assessment Results
3
1
Total number of faculty/staff in
department
3
2
Core Competency or Course
SLOs measured
Assessment Tools
(Give examples of major
assignments your faculty/staff
used to measure the
competency or course SLOs)
Assessment Results
(Summarize the overall results
of your department
What student needs and issues
were revealed?
Were there any areas where
student performance was
outstanding?
Any areas where it can be
improved?
Revised 7/20/07
Global Awareness
Results from formal lab reports on video analysis
projects. Results from formal lab reports on
unknown mass lab and acceleration due to gravity lab
(both labs that students design themselves).
Students thoroughly enjoyed the scientific process of
designing and running their own experiments and
video projects.
Students analysis of the results of these labs was more
in depth and detailed than expected.
Some students need more guidance and initial
instruction in creating their own labs.
Next Step in the Classroom
to Improve Student Learning
How might student performance
be improved?
o
o
Check all the items faculty/staff
felt would help them address
the needs and issues that were
revealed by the assessment.
o
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Next Step in the Department
to Improve Student Learning
Check all that the department
felt would help them improve
student learning.
When filling out this form
on a computer, please
indicate selections by
deleting unselected items.
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Revised 7/20/07
State goals or objectives of assignment/activity
more explicitly
Revise content of assignment/activities
Revise the amount of writing/oral/visual/clinical or
similar work
Revise activities leading up to and/or supporting
assignment/activities
Increase in-class discussions and activities
Increase student collaboration and/or peer review
Provide more frequent or more comprehensive
feedback on student progress
Increase guidance for students as they work on
assignments
Use methods of questioning that encourage the
competency you measured
State criteria for grading more explicitly
As an instructor, increase your interaction with
students outside of class
Ask a colleague to critique assignments/activities
Collect more data
Nothing; assessment indicates no improvement
necessary
Other (please describe)
Offer/encourage attendance at seminars,
workshops or discussion groups about teaching
methods
Consult teaching and learning experts about teaching
methods
Encourage faculty to share activities that foster
competency
Write collaborative grants to fund departmental
projects to improve teaching
Purchase articles/books on teaching about
competency
Visit classrooms to provide feedback (mentoring)
Create bibliography of resource material
Have binder available for rubrics and results
Analyze course curriculum,, so that the department
can build a progression of skills as students advance
through courses
Nothing; assessments indicate no improvements
necessary
Other (please describe)
Priorities to Improve Student
Learning
(List the top 3-6 things
faculty/staff felt would most
improve student learning)
1) Provide students with more guidance in
experimental design.
2) Encourage students to draw more physical
pictures.
3) Encourage students to utilize knowledge and
concepts from previous courses.
Implementation
(List the departmental plans to
implement these priorities)
1) Increase the number of design your own
experiment laboratories.
2) Prepare and post more detailed lab design
guidelines.
3) Train students throughout the semester in openended lab techniques.
Timeline for Implementation
(Make a timeline for
implementation of your top
priorities)
1) Implement more design your own experiment
laboratories immediately.
2) Implement more detailed lab design guidelines
within one semester.
3) Implement increased student training in openended lab techniques within one semester.
Revised 7/20/07
Cabrillo College Catalog–2011-2012
PHYSICS
Program Description:
Physics is the study of our natural surroundings, from the tiniest elementary particle to the entire universe. Physics provides a broad range
of knowledge and powerful skills which are useful in practically every
discipline. The program at Cabrillo emphasizes topics that affect our
everyday lives: forces, motion, gravity, waves, sound, electricity, magnetism, light, and heat. The excitement of atoms, nuclei, relativity, and the
cosmos is also included. A physics major degree generally transfers to a
four-year institution to complete a bachelor's degree. Physics graduates
at the bachelor's level are qualified for a variety of technical positions
with government or industry, and they are also well prepared to enter a
graduate program in any other science or in engineering. Physics majors
are welcomed into professional programs such as law, business, or
medicine. Teaching at the high school or two-year college level is an
option if a master's degree is obtained. A physicist generally obtains the
Ph.D. Degree, which may lead to experimental or theoretical research
and/or teaching at the university level or basic research in government or
industry. Nearly every four-year college and university offers a physics
major. Requirements vary from campus to campus. See a counselor and
consult catalogs for specific information. High School Preparation:
Physics, chemistry, four years of college preparatory mathematics.
Cabrillo offers courses that are equivalent to this preparation. The major
will require more than two years at the community college level if high
school preparation is not complete.
Natural and Applied Sciences Division
Wanda Garner, Division Dean
Division Office, Room 701
Joe McCullough, Program Chair, (831) 479-6521
Aptos Counselor: (831) 479-6274 for appointment
Watsonville Counselor: (831) 786-4734
Call (831) 479-6328 for more information
http://www.cabrillo.edu/programs
Model Program for Physics
The following Model Program fulfills requirements for the A.S. Degree
in physics at Cabrillo College. Specific lower division major preparation
at four-year public institutions in California can be found at
www.assist.org. Please see a counselor for advisement for transfer to
any four-year institution.
A.S. Degree: Physics
A.S. General Education
21 Units
Core Courses (39 units)
MATH 5A
Analytic Geometry and Calculus I . . . . . . . . . . 5
MATH 5B
Analytic Geometry and Calculus II . . . . . . . . . . 5
MATH 5C
Analytic Geometry and Calculus III . . . . . . . . . 5
MATH 6
*Introduction to Linear Algebra . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
MATH 7
Introduction to Differential Equations . . . . . . . 3
PHYS 4A
Physics for Scientists and Engineers . . . . . . . . 5
PHYS 4B
**Physics for Scientists and Engineers . . . . . . 5
PHYS 4C
*Physics for Scientists and Engineers . . . . . . . 5
PHYS 4D
***Modern Physics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Total Units
60
*Spring only; **Fall only; ***Fall, even years only
Physics Courses
Note: UC will not grant credit for PHYS 10, 10L, 11, or 12 if taken after
PHYS 2A or 4A; if PHYS 10, 10L, 11, and 12 are combined, only one
course will transfer to UC. PHYS 2AB combined with 4ABC maximum
credit, one series.
1
Cabrillo College Catalog–2011-2012
PHYS 2A
General Physics
PHYS 10
Introduction to Physics
4 units; 3 hours Lecture, 4 hours Laboratory
Prerequisite: MATH 4 or MATH 2 and MATH 3 or equivalent knowledge.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers mechanics, heat and sound primarily for life science students.
Fall semester only.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC.
3 units; 3 hours Lecture
Prerequisite: MATH 154.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers conceptual topics in physics for the non-science major (PHYS
10L lab optional).
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC, with limits: PHYS 10, 10L , 11 & 12
combined: maximum credit- 4 units. No credit for PHYS 10/10L, 11 or 12 if
taken after 2A or 4A.
PHYS 2B
General Physics
PHYS 10L
Introduction to Physics Lab
4 units; 3 hours Lecture, 4 hours Laboratory
Prerequisite: PHYS 2A.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers electromagnetism, optics, relativity, and the atom primarily for
life science students. Spring semester only.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC.
1 unit; 3 hours Laboratory
Prerequisite: PHYS 10 or concurrent enrollment.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Presents a hands-on exploration of topics in physics for the non-science major.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC, with limits: PHYS 10, 10L, 11 & 12
combined: maximum credit- 4 units. No credit for PHYS 10/10L, 11 or 12 if
taken after 2A or 4A.
PHYS 4A
Physics for Scientists and Engineers
5 units; 4 hours Lecture, 5 hours Laboratory
Prerequisite: MATH 5A, MATH 5B or concurrent enrollment; PHYS 11 or high
school physics with a grade of “B”.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers mechanics, fluids, and waves for scientists and engineers.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC.
PHYS 11
Elementary Physics
4 units; 3 hours Lecture, 4 hours Laboratory
Prerequisite: MATH 4 or MATH 2 and MATH 3 or equivalent knowledge.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Presents an introduction to motion, force, heat, electromagnetism,
light, sound, atoms and nuclei designed primarily to prepare students for
the PHYS 4 sequence.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC, with limits: PHYS 10, 11 & 12 combined: maximum credit- 4 units. No credit for PHYS 10/10L, 11 or 12 if taken
after 2A or 4A.
PHYS 4B
Physics for Scientists and Engineers
5 units; 4 hours Lecture, 5 hours Laboratory
Prerequisite: PHYS 4A; MATH 5C or concurrent enrollment.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers electricity and magnetism for scientists and engineers.
Students enrolled in the Honors Transfer Program may count this course
towards the “Honors Scholar” designation. Fall semester only.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC.
PHYS 12
Introduction to Modern Physics
3 units; 3 hours Lecture
Prerequisite: MATH 154.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers conceptual topics in modern physics for the nonscience major.
Explores the nature and meaning of special and general relativity, quantum physics, the atom and nucleus, and elementary particles.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC, with limits: PHYS 10, 11 & 12 combined: maximum credit- 4 units No credit for PHYS 10/10L, 11 or 12 if taken
after 2A or 4A.
PHYS 4C
Physics for Scientists and Engineers
5 units; 4 hours Lecture, 5 hours Laboratory
Prerequisite: PHYS 4A; MATH 5C or concurrent enrollment.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers thermodynamics, optics, and introduction to quantum physics
for scientists and engineers. Students enrolled in the Honors Transfer
Program may count this course towards the “Honors Scholar” designation. Spring semester only.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC.
PHYS 4D
Modern Physics
3 units; 3 hours Lecture
Prerequisite: PHYS 4C.
Recommended Preparation: Eligibility for ENGL 100 and READ 100.
Covers relativity, quantum mechanics and nuclear physics for scientists and engineers. Fall semester only.
Transfer Credit: Transfers to CSU, UC.
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