NEXUS – new ways of teaching
physics
University of Maryland’s
Biology Education Research Group +
Physics Education Research Group
Teaching is like tapping
Sir Ken
Robinson
What some students hear
Sometimes teaching is humming
What the best students hear
But what the teacher hears:
Teaching students
• Biology
Physics
Why
How
What
What
Physics – Two pronged approach
• Pedagogy reform – Joe Redish and PERG
• Curriculum reform – HHMI project NEXUS
Joe Redish, Todd Cooke
Kaci Thompson, Joelle Presson, Gili Marbach-Ad
Wolfgang Losert, Karen Carleton
PD: Chandra Turpen, Julia Svoboda, Vashti Sawtelle
Grad: Ben Dreyfus, Ben Geller, Kristi Hall
Biologists: Marco Colombini, Richard Payne
Project NEXUS
• National EXperiment in Undergraduate Science
Education
• Response to Scientific Foundations for Future
Physicians report (2009)
• Four university “collaboration” reimagining premed education based on competencies
Purdue University: Chemistry
UMCP: Physics
UMBC: Math
Univ Miami: Medical case studies
Timeline
Dec 2009
June 2010
UMd submit
proposal
Develop
collaborative
proposal
Old labs
Fall 2011
March 2011
Spring 2012
Joe Redish teaches 20
students
NEXUS kickoff
meeting
Summer 2011
Develop 1st
semester
materials
New labs
Fall 2012
Spring 2013
Joe Redish + Wolfgang
Losert each teach 20
students
Fall 2013
Spring 2014
Phys 131 / 132
goes LIVE replacing
121/122
Meta-goal
• To create a course that both physicists and
biologists will see as authentic to their
discipline AND
• that students will see as giving them insight
into biology that is important to them in their
vision of their future selves as scientists.
1/11/11
NEXUS Workshop
9
Think about teaching physics…
• “Physics should be as simple as possible –
but no simpler.” (Einstein)
• “The physics we are
learning in this class
is simple – but seeing
that it is simple
can be exceedingly
difficult.” (Redish)
Redish 2011 NEXUS Workshop
10
Why this is hard
Physics
Biology
Reasons from a few core
principles with simplest
possible examples
Quantify the world and model
with math
Thinks with equations
No link to chemistry
Approach from overarching
macroscopic principles
Principles true for all time
Biological organisms are
complex
Intro bio is qualitative
Think descriptively
Relies on chemistry
Makes micro to macro
connections
Historical = evolutionary
Negotiating the curriculum
It has to
apply to real
organisms
Energy is key
It has to build
from first
principles
Forces are a
must
Content decisions
Expand or include
Reduce or eliminate
• Atomic and molecular models of
matter
• Energy, including chemical energy
• Fluids, including fluids in motion
and solutions
• Diffusion and gradient driven flows
• More emphasis on dissipative
forces (viscosity)
• Electrostatics in fluids
• Kinetic theory, implications of
random motion, statistical picture
of thermodynamics
• Projectile motion
• Universal gravitation
• Inclined planes, mechanical
advantage
• Linear momentum
• Rotational motion
• Torque, statics, and angular
momentum
Key topics – Semester 1
Homework
.....
Class topics
Lab/recitation
Key topics – semester 2
Homework
.....
Class topics
Lab/recitation
Flip the class: Students read several wiki
pages night before and answer questions
During class
Students work
clicker problems
Lots of debate
with their
classmates
Discuss: How do we know?
New labs – Wolfgang Losert et al
Lab example – Brownian motion of particles
Vary size, temperature, solution viscosity
Quantitative
Exploratory
Phys 131
If you suppress
a lot of traditional mechanics
and stress energy instead,
what happens?
Phys 121
N
Gain
forces
Gain
energy
A
NEXUS test class
20
0.41
0.71
B
Reformed
traditional
(E / with tut.)
189
0.46
0.50
C
Traditional
(with tut.)
201
Redish 2011
Conventional
0.26
0.22
NEXUS Workshop
21
Learning about learning
• Fascinating subject
• Leads to better teaching
Evidence / research based
• Leads to publications
• Leads to community
Thanks to the NEXUS team!!