Physics & Astronomy Articulation Meeting
Friday, May 7th, 2010
Start: 9:30am—meeting called to order by Stan Greenspoon.
Margaret Heldman, Acting Dean of Instruction at Langara College, welcomed
Articulation Committee members to Langara.
Name
James Brewer
Institution
BCIT
Email
James_brewer@bcit.ca
Stan Greenspoon
sgreensp@capilanou.ca
Vladan Jovovic
Capilano
University
Capilano
University
Capilano
University
College of New
Caledonia
Columbia College
Robin Macqueen
Langara College
rmacqueen@langara.bc.ca
Terry Coates
Langara College
tcoates@langara.bc.ca
Ben Pfeiffer
Yue Su
Langara College
Langara College
bpfeiffer@langara.bc.ca
ysu@langara.bc.ca
Tyron Tsui
Langara College
ttsui@langara.bc.ca
Dennis Lightfoot
Dennis.Lightfoot@nic.bc.ca
Richard Christie
North Island
College
Northern Lights
College
Okanagan College
rchristie@okanagan.bc.ca
Per Joensen
Selkirk College
pjoensen@selkirk.ca
Normand Fortier
nfortier@tru.ca
Daniel Murray
Thompson Rivers
University
Trinity Western
University
UBC Okanagan
Arthur Watton
UVIC
awatton@uvic.ca
Mike Freeman
Bernd Simson
Barbara Rudecki
Mahmoud Ziaei
Arnold E. Sikkema
mfreeman@capilanou.ca
bsimson@ghiweb.com
rudecki@cnc.bc.ca
vjovovic@columbiacollege.bc.ca
mziaei@nlc.bc.ca
asikkema@twu.ca
daniel.murray@ubc.ca
Michael Wortis
Alexander College
wortis@sfu.ca
Matt Reid
UNBC
mreid@unbc.ca
Jennifer Kirkey
Douglas College
jkirkey@douglas.bc.ca
Tom McMath
tom.mcmath@kwantlen.ca
Mike Hayden
Kwantlen
Polytechnic
University
SFU
Norm Taylor
UFV
norm.taylor@ufv.ca
Paris Polydorou
Vancouver Island
University
Vancouver
Community
College
College of the
Rockies
Camosun College
paris.polydorou@viu.ca
Andy Sellwood
Jim Bailey
Ed Nelson
mhayden@sfu.ca
asellwood@vcc.ca
BAILEY@cotr.bc.ca
Nelson@camosun.bc.ca
Janusz
Chrzanowski
Beverly McLeod
Coquitlam College
janusz999@shaw.ca
Science World
beverly_m@telus.net
Eric Turner
Northwest College
eturner@nwcc.bc.ca
Mike Hasinoff
UBC
hasinoff@physics.ubc.ca
Fran Bates
UBC
elf@physics.ubc.ca
1. Introductions
Committee members and other attendees introduce themselves.
2. Approval of Agenda
Approval of the agenda as published was moved by Matt Reid (UNBC)
(seconded byJennifer Kirkey (Douglas College)) and passed unanimously.
3. Approval of minutes:
Approval of the 2009 Articulation Meeting minutes as published online was
moved by Robin Macqueen (Langara College) (seconded by Norm Taylor(UFV))
and passed unanimously.
4. Matters arising from minutes
Stan Greenspoon asked that any corrections/changes to the Textbook
Lists/Articulation Charts be sent to him at sgreensp@capilanou.ca. The current
list is online at the Articulation Committee website.
5. Future meetings:
2011 meeting: May 6th, 2011, Friday, at UBCO confirmed.
2012 meeting: UFV will host 2012 articulation meeting on May 4th 2012, Friday,
maybe on Chilliwack campus. [It will likely be at the Abbottsford Campus]
6. Search for System Liaison Person (SLP)
The position is still unfilled. Tom McMath mentioned that it is an important
position that can assist the committee in many ways. Please send any ideas for
candidates to Stan. Ideally the person should be a Dean or a senior person at
the Administration Level.
7. BCCAT Issues
The committee members are encouraged to read the Articulation Companion
document at http://www.bccat.ca/articulation/companion/index.cfm
The 1-year deadline on articulation requests is working well. A list of the current
requests is attached to the meeting package and committee members are
encouraged to resolve them by answering the pending requests.
Recommended to have all course transfer information put on your course
outlines (ideally put a weblink to the BCCAT website in order to avoid confusion)
Tom McMath mentioned that there are problems getting the correct wording of a
course description and its transfer status on the BCCAT website (mentioned an
example for an engineering course at Kwantlen). Other members responded that
it is usually up to the receiving institution to deal with that so members should
work with that institution for any corrections.
Stan informed the group that Athabasca University has joined BCCAT so
members may hear from that institution regarding course transfers.
8. Round table reports/brief discussions of significant curriculum changes
and associated issues: - see Appendix - Departmental Reports
10:30-11:00 Coffee break.
8. continued round table reports (see above)
9. Proposals for additional afternoon discussion topics (see items #14-#16
below)
Lunch Break from 12:15-13:30.
10. Web-based physics (Dennis Lightfoot – North Island College)
There was much discussion about the articulation and transfer status for remote
web-based Physics Labs. North Island College is now in a position to offer these
labs but needs transfer status granted in order to run them. It will be up to
individual institutions to evaluate these labs and decide on transfer status.
Dennis Lightfoot put forward the following motion: “The Physics and
Astronomy articulation committee supports the North Island College
piloting a web-based physics course, including remote controlled webbased labs for students who are not able to attend scheduled labs. The
committee encourages receiving institutions to give appropriate
consideration to these students for transfer credit.”
The motion passed (with 2 abstentions and nobody opposing).
11. Science World (Beverly McLeod-Science World)
Beverly McLeod presented an idea to the committee. She proposes to develop
both online downloadable physics exhibits and exploration guides of Science
World exhibits. She would like more college classes to visit Science World and
hopes to develop resources for this purpose. She asked for feedback on this
idea and will be sending out a survey to the BC Association of Physics Teachers.
She will take all feedback to Science World in hopes of gaining approval of this
project.
12. Clickers in Physics and Astronomy (Stan Greenspoon-Capilano
University
There was a general discussion about the pros and cons of using clickers in the
classroom. There was also discussion about the methods of delivering the
clicker experience. It was noted that you can download great clicker questions
from MIT and the University of Colorado.
13. Physics Lab Grade & Course Pass? (Mike Freeman/Bernd SimsonCapilano University)
There was a general discussion about physics lab grades and whether passing
the labs should be a requirement for passing the course. No motions or action
items resulted.
14. Institution Support for attending Articulation
This item was a result of an issue that arose during the Round Table discussions.
One of the committee members paid his own way to the Articulation meeting as
their institution would not provide funds for this. This was a surprise to the
committee as the government provides money to individual institutions for this
exact purpose.
It was decided that the Chair of the Physics Articulation Committee will send a
letter to BCCAT expressing the strong displeasure of the committee in regards to
this issue. It is hoped that BCCAT will communicate to individual institutions that
they are given money with the express purpose of sending people to articulation
meetings. [Letter was sent and a reply received from the Executive Director of
the BCCAT]
15. High school transcripts do not specify if courses were taken on-site or
off-site (Mike Hasinoff-UBC)
Mike informed the committee that Ontario Universities are now requiring that
high-school transcripts carry a notation that shows if a course was taken at an
off-site location. There are off-site schools/programs where a student can take a
course and then have the school district include that mark on a high-school
transcript. This has raised concerns about grade inflations and the quality of
instruction.
It was generally agreed that the committee that it is up to each institution to set
its own admission policy.
No action items/motions resulted from this discussion but it led to the discussion
of the next topic.
16. Scholarships based on Provincial Exams (Mike Hasinoff-UBC)
There are concerns that scholarships are being given in an unfair manner if
students have taken an easy off-site course and/or had their grade inflated. This
has become more of a concern since most post-secondary institutions no longer
require Provincial Exams.
The following motion was presented: “That committee members suggest to
their Deans/Administrators that scholarships should be awarded based on
Grade 11/12 Provincial Exam marks”.
The motion passed unanimously (with one abstention)
Members were reminded of the BCAPT meeting being held at Langara College
the next day (Saturday, May 8th, 2010)
The meeting was adjourned at 3:10pm
Appendix - Departmental Reports
Alexander College
Alexander College is a small private college now located in Burnaby near Metrotown. We will
move to a new location at 602 West Hastings Street in downtown Vancouver in the fall of this
year. We have an enrollment of about 500 students (fall 2009) and we are growing. We cater to
a niche market of mainly foreign students, many of whom lack Canadian language and cultural
skills. We offer intensive language training along with a limited menu of first- and second-year
foundational university courses, which are taught in small classes with a lot of individual support
and attention. These courses are designed for transferability and are supposed to be at a level
fully equivalent to corresponding courses at SFU, UBC, U. Vic., UNBC, etc. I am told that
Alexander College students who transfer to other Canadian universities have been quite
successful. Courses which have been offered up to now include biology, commerce, computer
science, economics, English, history, math, philosophy, psychology, and sociology. Teaching in
these courses is done by sessional instructors who work under the general supervision of
academic professionals in each field (I’m an example.)
In this context, I’ve been asked to prepare curriculum proposals for physics. These proposals are
passed by our Standing Academic Standards Committee (SASC) and are then offered as demand
and enrollment allow. So far, there is only one approved course, and that course, PHYS 100 (see
your file), has not yet been taught.
PHYS 100 is a designed to prepare students who have not previously passed BC Physics 12 or
equivalent to take 100-level university physics courses. Both SFU and UBC have courses of this
type. Ours is designed following the SFU model and to be taught in a “studio” format. At SFU
this course carries 3 hours of university credit but does not count towards the physics part of a
physics degree.
We plan next to offer PHYS 101-102: Physics for the Life Sciences, and, after that, a fully
calculus-based sequence suitable for physics concentrators and other students in science and
engineering programs.
It is my proposal to offer all of these courses in a “studio” format, which (I feel) fits well with the
Alexander College objective of providing a high level of individual support. Each of these
courses will provide a full integrated laboratory experience. I have been promised a “physics
room,” in which these courses will be offered, including storage space for lab equipment and
some technical laboratory support in set-up/tear-down. The space will be used for other courses
when it is not needed for physics. Similar arrangements have been made for Biology and
Chemistry. It is certainly my mandate and my objective to provide university-level quality. Only
time will tell whether we will succeed.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BCIT
The Physics department at BCIT has 11 full time faculty, 3 technicians, and teaches around 1000
students in 22 different technologies.
The past academic year at BCIT has seen the implementation of cuts required to balance the
Institute’s budget. The department is left with 11 faculty and 3 technicians following a layoff
avoidance strategy consisting of 2 retirements (1 faculty, 1 technician) and 1 faculty workload
shared with mathematics and computer systems.
The degree transfer program was cancelled, and the articulated calculus based physics courses
(1110 and 2110) that were part of this program will be offered as evening classes. It is foreseen
that these courses will be mainly taken by students who failed the calculus based Civil
Engineering physics courses, and by prospective Radiation Therapy and Biotechnology students
who require an articulated Physics course as a prerequisite. Whether there will be sufficient
demand for these courses to allow them to run has yet to be seen.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Camosun College
Enrolment in college prep (Access) Physics courses and first year Physics courses were up
substantially (20%) in 2009 Fall compared with the previous year. Enrolment in Astronomy
courses (ASTR 101 and ASTR 102) was also high, with large waitlists. Engineering Technology
programs took in additional students, which translated into full sections of first year Physics for
engineers as well.
Back in 2008/2009, we closed our second year courses with the retirement of John Pratt. We
attempted a major recruitment drive amongst first year students to revive the enrolment in second
year courses in 2009 Fall. This was initially fairly successful, with enrolment of 12 students in
PHYS 200 (Mechanics/Relativity). However, only 8 students finished the course, and in the next
semester only 4 students were enrolled in the remaining second year courses, PHYS 210 (E/M)
and PHYS 215 (QM).
After much soul-searching, the department decided to cancel the 2nd year courses at Camosun.
During the last few years, the administration permitted low enrolled sections to run only if faculty
taught overloaded sections or labs for free. We felt that with enrolments typically in the <10
range, this was no longer justified or sustainable.
In the University transfer program (most students transfer to UVic), we now offer only PHYS
104/105 (algebra based) and PHYS 114/115 (calculus based). We offer Physics for engineers
(PHYS 154/191/192), and 2nd year courses for Engineering Bridge Programs (which prepare
students for 3rd year engineering at UVic and UBC).
We have been asked to prepare two new courses for a proposed Medical Radiology Technology
program coming to Camosun College in 2011. These new Physics courses will be structured on
existing Radiology courses currently being taught at BCIT-Physics. One of our faculty will be
working closely with instructors at BCIT in coming months to learn the new material for these
courses, which we anticipate to be quite demanding.
We continue to teach Physics labs for local High School students who are enrolled in their Grade
12 Physics AP courses (both “B” and “C” Mechanics).
Capilano University
We are currently offering first year courses only, including astronomy:
104 – a prep course, with lab, for students with no previous physics
110 / 111 – a stream intended for students who need only one year of physics, e.g. pre-med etc,
using a noncalculus text, but requiring an accompanying calculus course
114 / 115 – a stream for students who would take more physics, mostly engineers, using a
calculus text
Both 110 / 111 and 114 / 115 have a common 2-hour weekly lab.
116 – a course only for engineers, which, with 114 / 115, makes up the complete first year
package
Astr 106 / 107
- one course, offered with and without lab (lab has not enrolled in recent years)
Enrolment has been steady over the last year, but still below the highs in 2003.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
College of New Caledonia
First Year Engineering Transfer Program
CNC continues to offer first year Engineering Transfer Program. This year the enrollment both in
Applied Science and Physics courses was near at the same level as last year.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
APSC 100 (Introduction to Engineering) – 23 students
APSC 120 (Engineering Drawing with AutoCAD) – 25 students
Physics 101 (Introductory Physics I) – 35 students
Physics 102 (Introductory Physics II) – 20 students
Physics 105 (General Physics I) - 25 students
Physics 106 (General Physics II) - 14 students
Physics 204 (Mechanics I - Statics) – 12 students
Medical Laboratory Technologist Program – First Graduates
15 CNC students enrolled in the college’s first-ever medical laboratory technologist program
graduated this spring. The MLTS program’s current class features 23 students and the third class
just began in January with 24 students.
New Medical Radiography Program - Opening in a Fall 2011
There is a severe shortage of radiography technologists in northern B.C., across the province and
nationally. A new Medical Radiography Diploma Program will be opened at CNC in a fall of
2011. We already have more than 230 people on an interest list for 16 seats. CNC's program will
be based on the BCIT model, which is currently being revised.
Civil Engineering Technology Initiative
The purpose of this initiative is to increase the number of engineering technologists and degree
graduates serving the north. The thorough labor market research was completed by the Applied
Technical Education & Engineering Consortium (ATEEC) in spring 2009. Civil and Mechanical
Engineering are two of the areas identified in the ATEEC study as having the highest demand in
this region. In response to industry needs, CNC and UNBC plan to offer appropriate engineering
certificate, diploma and degree programs.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
College of the Rockies
Richard Hewko, who taught physics at College of the Rockies for 23 years, retired a year ago at
which time I took over his teaching duties. Richard and I team-taught the combined Math-Physics
courses at the college for many years so the transition was quite smooth. This year we offered
ASTR 100 (Astronomy) which tends to be taken mainly by students who wish to qualify for the
UVic Elementary Teacher Education Program. We also offered PHYS~103--104 (Introduction to
Physics, Calculus). Next year we will not offer the Astronomy course but will offer our two
second year Physics courses, PHYS 201 (Analytical Mechanics) and PHYS 202 (Introduction to
Modern Physics).
College of the Rockies and Selkirk College have been negotiating cooperatively offering courses.
One institution would be responsible for the lectures, teleconferencing (or whatever technology is
considered most appropriate) to the other college. Each college would provide tutorial support to
their students; labs might be handled separately or we could bus students to one location so the
whole class could do them together.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Columbia College
In 2009/10 Columbia College has run five Physics courses, three of them at the UT level and two
high school Physics:
Physics 110 (first part of the calculus based General Physics)
Physics 120 (second part of the calculus based General Physics)
Physics 118 (Engineering Mechanics)
Physics 11
Physics 12.
As for the enrollment at UT courses, it was very high in Physics 110 (full section for lecture and
two sections for labs) and stable in Physics 120. The College offers both courses three times per
year. Physics 118 is on the time table again, and we noticed a significant increase in enrolment, if
compared with the Summer 2008, when this course was offered last time.
For the first time, the College will offer a second year course– Physics 200 (Introduction to
Modern Physics).
Enrollment in Physics 11 is low, but still acceptable, while the number of students in our Physics
12 section is stable.
Depending on the students’ interest, Columbia may try to introduce other Physics courses in the
future.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coquitlam College
There have been no major changes in the Physics curriculum at Coquitlam College in the past
year. We offer the 1st year calculus-based courses of Physics; Physics 101 (mechanics) and
Physics 102 (electromagnetism and optics). Physics 101 is offered twice a year in the Summer
and in the Fall semesters, Physics 102 is offered once a year in the Spring semester. The
enrolment so far has been good and stable. As a rule the classes of Physics 101 are full (20-21
students), and the number of students enrolled in of Physics 102 range from 12 to 14.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Douglas College
Douglas College has had no major changes since last year. Enrolments are steady. We have had a
new President and a new Dean for almost a year now, a brand new Vice President of Education.
The college is undergoing a Strategic Planning Process which will likely lead to changes over the
next year or two. Douglas is in the process of implementing a time table software called
InfoSilum and it is not going well.Our David Lam campus is Coquitlam is doing well overall
since all the Health Science faculty were moved out there a year and a half ago. University
transfer courses, an in particular the science courses, have had small numbers and many classes
cancelled to the extent that you cannot complete first year science at that campus. I predict
changes within the next year - either a big increase with a complete plan or further cuts. I do not
think it will be status quo. It was refreshing, though sad, to hear of other institutions battling the
Registrar's computing system.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kwantlen Polytechnic University
Enrollments in Math and Physics courses were stronger this year, with many sections full. There
was less problem with last minute registrations than last year.
We are revising our Phys 1101 and restoring our Phys 1102, and making them into a more clearly
differentiated life science stream. We believe we can do this within the current course
descriptions; reducing the mechanics component and the toughest EM parts, increasing the
discussion of fluids, heat, and optics, overall increasing the life science applications. Phys 1102
was dropped a few years back, so both streams led into Phys 1220, which somewhat
compromised what we could do differently with Phys 1101. The revised Phys 1102 will be
offered again next spring. Our current Phys 1120 and 1220 will remain as the stream for
Engineering and physical sciences.
We will be running a new course Phys 1112 Reel Physics next fall. This non-science stream
course focuses on common violations of physics principles in popular movies, as well as some
illustrations of properly used physics.
Our second year courses continue to run in guided study mode. We usually get some pretty good
students, but in very small numbers.
Kwantlen has participated in the consortium out of North Island College that is developing
courses including labs to be offered to students in remote locations. The courses are quite
standard, and the labs are also standard in intent and content; the major difference is in the remote
operation of the labs. This was reported at last year’s meeting.
In keeping with University status, Kwantlen has the definite intention of developing and
supporting our own degree programs. This gives opportunity for growth in all areas, but the catch
is that this is all supposed to happen within the existing budget. This leaves the status of transfer
programs such as Engineering and even the physical sciences unclear.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Langara College
Enrolments were strong in 2009-10. We have had waitlists for most of our courses. We filled
five sections of our first-term calculus-based course PHYS 1125 in Fall 2009, two more than
usual (though we had to cancel our course intended for biology students due to low enrolment).
Currently, we have waitlists for six of our seven summer 2010 courses. Prospects for Fall 2010
are good: Arts & Sciences applications are up 18% over last year.
We ran a second-year physics program (after a 3-year hiatus). Relativity and Quanta ran in the
fall with 6 students, and Newtonian Mechanics in the spring with 12 students. The second-year
lab ran both semesters, with enrolments of 6 and 4.
For the first time this year we are running our grade-11-level course, PHYS 1114, as a 6-week
compressed course in May and June. It is full, with 20 on the waitlist.
We again ran astronomy courses in pairwise fashion, with 3 common and one distinct hour per
week, and common lab: ASTR 1101/3310 in Fall, ASTR 1102/3311 in spring.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
North Island College
North Island College offers first-year physics (both calculus based PHY 120/121 and algebra
based PHY 100/101) at three campuses. Enrollments were up slightly this year at the Courtenay
campus, but remain low at Campbell River and Port Alberni.
This year NIC also delivered PHY 141 – Engineering Mechanics I, which transfers to UVic’s
Faculty of Engineering. It is hoped that a new Engineering Transfer program will attract students
on the North Island wishing to start their Engineering education closer to home.
NIC also offers two first-year courses in Space Science and Astronomy (SSA 100 and 101).
These courses are web-based, and make use of the remotely controlled telescope near the Bella
Coola Centre.
Current textbooks for our physics courses include the following:
Course
Title
PHY
100/101
PHY
120/121
PHY 141
College Physics
Physics for Scientists and
Engineers
Engineering Mechanics: Statics
Edition
(year)
8th (2009)
7th (2008)
12th (2010)
Author
Publisher
Serway, Vuille
and Faughn
Serway and
Jewett
Hibbeler
Brooks/Cole
Brooks/Cole
Pearson
Two faculty members have been developing online versions of our courses for BC Campus for
the past two years. The greatest challenge has been to design laboratory exercises that could be
done remotely, but collected real data in real time from real interaction by the students. The
laboratory exercises created are a combination of at-home experiments that can be completed
with a lab-kit, and remote web-based science laboratory (RWSL) experiments which use webcams and remotely controlled equipment. The developers would like to run a first-offering of the
web-based course starting in September, but administration would like assurances that transfer
credit would be given by BC Universities.
The rationale for recognizing these labs is summarized as follows:
1) NIC’s web-based PHY 100, 101, 120, and 121 are identical in content to their face-toface versions. Students in the web-based classes will meet the same learning outcomes as
students in the f-to-f classes. Lectures will be accomplished with web-based material
delivered through Blackboard which will include all the student-instructor and studentstudent interactivity that Blackboard offers.
2) Labs: Labs are equivalent to labs that students will do in an f-to-f format. All labs are
assessed through student written lab reports just as they would be if the labs were
performed on campus. There are 2 different delivery modes used :
a. DIY Labs: The labs (In PHY 100/120: Measurements and Experimental Errors,
Vector Addition of Forces, Torque and Rotational Equilibrium, The Simple
Pendulum; In PHY 101/121: Basic Electric Circuitry, Kirchhoff’s Rules,
Capacitance) are supported by a lab kit that the student will purchase with their
books. Students will do their actual lab work at home and interact with their
instructor and lab partners through Blackboard, phone, Skype, face-to-face or a
combination of these and other methods.
b. RWSL Labs: The Remote Web-based Science Laboratory (RWSL) allows
students to interact with their lab partners on-line, to interact with actual lab
equipment in real time, and collect real world data. The RWSL labs (In PHY
100/120: One-Dimensional Motion, Conservation of Energy, Conservation of
Momentum, Oscilloscope and Speed of Sound; In PHY 101/121: Wave Optics,
Geometric Optics, Electron e/m Ratio, Magnetic Forces, Atomic Spectra) are
scheduled using RWSL. At the scheduled time, the lab group (or single student)
will connect to RWSL through the Internet. Control of the lab equipment
through RWSL will be rotated between the various lab partners until everyone
has had a chance to control the experiment. Control is achieved using LabVIEW
virtual instruments (VI) that allow students to control cameras, robotic sliders,
the robotic arm, voltage settings, etc. Students can watch the experiment as data
is collected so they can take pertinent spatial measurements and observations that
might affect the outcome, and unlike in the lab, they will be able to play back an
experiment run to analyze how something moved. …
As such, we would like to make the following motion:
“The Physics and Astronomy Articulation Committee recognizes that some students from North
Island College may be completing their lab work in PHY 100, 101, 120, and 121 remotely and
over the web. Whereas the learning outcomes of the two versions of these courses are identical to
their lecture based versions, transfer credit will continue to be granted for these students”.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern Lights College
1. No major changes.
2. Enrollments were strong this past academic year.
3. Calculus based physics was offered using the text Fundamentals of Physics, 7thed.by
Halliday, Resnick, and Walker published by John Wiley.
4. Algebra based physics (Physics for Geomatics) was offered with 14 entry students with
half of them completing and some expected to transfer to BCIT Geomatics. The textbook
used was “College Physics” 8th edition by Serway/Vuille/Faughn published by
Brooks/Cole.
There was no articulation budget allocation this year.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northwest Community College
No change for 2009-2010
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Okanagan College
Our numbers overall are close to static this year in Science at Okanagan College (-2%).
Applications for next year are up (+21%).
The numbers in Physics at Kelowna this year were down for both streams (-23% calculus-based
and -26% algebra-based). Our Physics numbers in Penticton were up nicely (+54% algebrabased), static in Salmon Arm (0% algebra-based) and up in Vernon (+40% for calculus-based and
+8% algebra-based). Attrition in first-year physics was not a major problem this year. Most of the
attrition still occurs in the first semester.
The numbers in Astronomy were static at all campuses (Kelowna -3%, Vernon -8%, and
Penticton 0%). We ran Astronomy in Penticton for the second time this year and it held its own.
The overall numbers in Astronomy in both Vernon and Penticton were fairly low.
This year saw our fourth year for offering second-year courses at Okanagan College. We planned
to offer the Modern Physics (OC PHYS 200), second-year Classical Mechanics (OC PHYS 228),
Statics and Dynamics (OC PHYS 202), plus our two second-year labs (OC PHYS 219/229). Due
to very low enrolments we had to cancel three of the five second-year courses (PHYS 228, 219,
and 229). The remaining two courses had low enrolments (2 and 4 students each respectively). I
do not know how long we will be able to hang onto the second-year courses with those
enrolments. I suspect one more year yet again or until we have a retirement. We will offer the
same courses next year plus one of the second-year interdisciplinary courses for Arts and Science
(History of Cosmology). I expect to see a shift away from the regular second-year Physics
courses to second-year interdisciplinary service courses to other sciences in order to keep some
second-year presence in Physics (e.g., We have four interdisciplinary second-year courses. They
are Environmental and Energy Physics, Biophysics, Geophysics, and History of Cosmology.)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Selkirk College
Selkirk College continues to run most of its usual complement of
physics courses, including algebra-based and calculus-based first year
courses (PHYS 102, 103, 104, 105), second-year engineering statics and
dynamics (PHYS 200 and 201), second-year modern physics (PHYS 210:
Relativity & Quanta), as well as an ever-popular introductory astronomy
course with a laboratory component for non-science majors (ASTR 102).
Our second-year course on electricity & magnetism (PHYS 202) was not
offered this past year, and probably will not run next year, due to a
shortage of qualified students. I did have 9 students in PHYS 210 last
semester; that’s a good number for Selkirk. We have no eliminated or
new courses in physics or astronomy.
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SFU Physics
1. Enrollment continues to climb across the university, including in physics.
2. Budgets continue to shrink. It is unlikely that that we will be able to hire more than two or
three sessional instructors per term over the course of the next academic year. Once again, we
will not be able to run our Teaching Apprenticeship program.
3. During the International Year of Astronomy we ran a very successful Starry Nights program
that saw more than 2000 participants.
4. Enrolment in our Breadth courses for non-science majors (PHYS 190 Introduction to
Astronomy & PHYS 192 Logarithm and Blues) is stable at around 150 each.
5. No curriculum changes are anticipated for the coming year.
6. Our search for a more appropriate textbook for PHYS 101/102 (‘Physics for the Life
Sciences’ stream) continues. We examined Martin Zinke-Allmang’s “Physics for the Life
Sciences” (Nelson) and Jay Newman’s “Physics of the Life Sciences” (Springer) very
carefully, but in the end rejected both. We will go back to using Giancoli’s “College Physics”
for 2010/11. Note this course has a 100-level biology corequisite.
7. At our Surrey campus we have always delivered our first-year calculus-based stream in an 8
unit studio format (PHYS 140/141) equivalent to PHYS 120/121/131. Next year we will offer
a 6 unit studio-based version of PHYS 101/102 that will be equivalent to the regular lecturebased version of the course. Students requiring a first-year lab component will still need to
take PHYS 130.
8. Retention of first year students continues to be an issue. We have now run a non-credit ‘early
intervention’ program in parallel with first-year courses for three years. We plan to continue
with this program, but fiscal constraints will force us to concentrate on PHYS 100 rather than
all first-year courses.
9. We are concerned about the articulation of PHYS 100. Our course is intended to be a Physics
12 equivalent, but an increasing number of students are trying to take the course for an easy
credit. The problem is confounded by a technical issue with the university’s registration
system, which is admitting students with Physics 12. At the moment we have to deal with this
problem by hand.
10. Textbooks
PHYS 100 Introduction to Physics
Knight – College Physics (Custom Ed.)
PHYS 101/102 Physics for Life Sciences
Giancoli – College Physics
PHYS 120/121 Standard Physics
Knight – For Scientists and Engineers
PHYS 125/126 Advanced Stream
Halliday, Resnick & Krane – Physics, Taylor,
Wheeler – Spacetime Physics, and Moore – Six Ideas
that Shaped Physics
PHYS 140/141 Studio Physics
Cummings et al. – Understanding Physics
PHYS 190 Intro to Astronomy
Chaisson/McMillan – A Beginner’s Guide
PHYS 192 Logarithm and Blues
Hall – Musical Acoustics
PHYS 211 Mechanics
Taylor – Classical Mechanics
PHYS 221 E&M for Engineers (terminal)
Ulabi – Electromagnetics for Engineers
PHYS 231 & 233 Laboratories
Taylor – Error Analysis
PHYS 255 Vibrations and Waves
King – Vibration and Waves
PHYS 321/421 E&M
Griffiths – Introduction to Electrodynamics
PHYS 285 Special Relativity and QM
Tipler and Llewellyn – Modern Physics
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Thompson Rivers University
Enrolment for 2009-2010 (# of students writing Final exams)
Fall Semester
ASTR 114 – The Solar System:
107
PHYS 110 – Fundamentals of Physics 1:
109
PHYS 115 – Mechanics and Waves:
87
PHYS 151 – Applied Physics 1:
29
PHYS 158 – Physics for Respiratory Therapists:
69
Winter Semester
ASTR 115 – Stars and Galaxies:
95
PHYS 101 – Physics for Future Leaders:
28
Phys 120 – Fundamentals of Physics 2:
95
PHYS 125 – Thermodynamics, Electricity and Magnetism:
70
PHYS 161 – Applied Physics 2:
29
Texts
ASTR 114/115 - Voyages to the Planets, Voyages to the Stars and Galaxies, 3rd ed (Fraknoi,
Morrison & Wolff
PHYS 110/120 -College Physics, Serway & Vuille, 8th ed
PHYS 115/PHYS 125: Physics for Scientists & Engineers (7 ed.) - Serway & Jewett
PHYS 158- Physics for the Health Sciences (3 ed.) - Nave & Nave
New course
PHYS 101 - Physics for Future Leaders
Calendar Description: Physics for Future Leaders focuses on key concepts in physics,
emphasizing understanding rather than mathematics. Physics is introduced in the context of
current events. Topics vary but may include terrorism and explosions, energy and environmental
change, earthquakes and tsunamis, radioactivity and medicine, satellites and gravity. Other
topics may be covered according to student interest and these may include: quantum physics and
teleportation, relativity and cosmology.
Prerequisite: No prior physics or math required. Open to students in all degree programs.
English as a second language students must have completed ESL Level 3 or higher.
Phys 101: Physics for Future Leaders
This course is based on a course given at UC Berkley (Physics for future presidents). The course
is aimed at primarily arts students, but does contain some very practical and interesting physics
that, as the title suggests, should be understood by any future leader. Topics covered include:
energy, radiation, nuclear power, nuclear weapons, waves (earthquakes, tsunamis), light (flavors
and their uses), greenhouse effect and climate change. The course was evaluated in 4 parts:
"surprise" quizzes, weekly summaries (articles in leading papers and public journals are
summarized in 350 words or less. intended audience is a political leader), 2 midterms (multiple
choice, short answer, essay) and one final.
There were a few surprises for me in this course. First the enrollment was quite good - 35
students. However, attendance was really poor...there was a core set of 10-15 students, but the
rest really only attended the tests. There literally were people at the last two tests who I did not
recognize at all. This was certainly a new experience for me, but apparently is not uncommon
amongst arts classes. The second surprise was the poor results on the multiple choice exams and
surprise quizzes. I was prepared for "readers" and students who were quite happy memorizing
things, but that was definitely not the case. Also they did not seem to be able to digest a broad
range of topics. For example on the first midterm the essay topic was a choice of two, and was
quite poorly done. On the second midterm I gave them the topics before hand, and then allowed
them to choose on the test and the results were better. For the final I allowed them to choose the
topic and write it at the exam, expecting a 400-500 word essay. The writing and content was far
superior in the last two tests.
Next time around is this fall and I am working to make class participation worth more and make it
more interesting, and seemingly worth their while.
Thanks
Mark
Mark Paetkau
Dept. of Physics
Thompson Rivers University
Kamloops, BC
First-Year Labs
PHYS 110
PHYS 120
1) Measurement & Uncertainty
1) Interference Phenomena
2) Graphs & Pendulum
2) Refraction in Prisms (F)
3) The Lab Report & Air Track (F)
3) Thin Lenses and Mirrors
4) Vector Addition of Forces
4) Electrostatics
5) Collisions in 2-D
5) Direct Current Circuits
6) Buoyancy
6) Capacitors
7) Specific Heat (F)
7) Magnetic Field in a Solenoid (F)
8) Hooke's Law (F)
8) Deflection Tube
9) Standing Waves in a String
9) Hydrogen Spectrum (F)
+ Lab Exam
10) Radioactive Count Rate and Mean Range
+ Lab Exam
PHYS 115
PHYS 125
1) The Lab Report (F)
0) Uncertainties and Graphing (Ephy 1250)
2) Graphs
1) DC Circuits
3) Thin Lenses and Mirrors
2) AC Waveforms
4) Interference
3) Electric Field Mapping
5) Hooke’s Law (F)
4) Deflection Tube
6) Standing Waves on a String
5) Magnetic Field in a Solenoid (F)
7) Sound Waves
6) Coefficient of Linear Expansion (F)
8) Trajectory (F)
7) The Ideal Gas Law
9) Collisions in 2-D
8) Specific Heat of a Metal (F)
+ lab exam
9) The Heat Engine
+ lab exam
PHYS 151
1) Graph
PHYS 161
1) Ultimate Strength
2 ) Acceleration in 1-D
2) Stress versus Strain
3) Friction
3) Deflection of a Beam
4) Concurrent Forces
4) Pressure at a Depth in a Liquid and Buoyancy
5) Loaded Beam
5) Fluid Flow in a Straight Pipe
6) Centroids
6) Specific Heat
7) Simple Machines
7) Coefficient of Linear Expansion
8) Pin Jointed Structures
8) Vibration of a Cantilevered Beam
9) DC Circuits
9) Standing Waves in a String
10) DC Circuits cont’d
10) Snell’s Law of Refraction
11) AC Circuits
11) Mirrors and Lenses
PHYS 158
1)
Experimental Error (F)
2)
Boyle’s Law and Absolute Zero
3)
Buoyancy + Pressure at a Depth
4)
Fluid Flow (F)
5)
Pitot Tube
6) Bernoulli’s Equation (F)
7)
Electricity 1
8)
Electricity 2
9)
Wheatstone Bridge
10)
+ Lab exam
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Trinity Western University
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Our Fall 2009 astronomy course (stellar and galactic astronomy, Phys 215), targeted to
the general student, was successful. I will try off-campus observing sessions next time,
but transportation issues might be a challenge.
We graduated four physics students this year, with minors or concentrations; three plan to
go into high-school teaching (after a year in TWU’s new B.Ed. program), and one into
aviation.
We had ten students in our alternate-year mechanics course (Physics 220), and four in our
alternate-year optics course (Physics 360). Three of these are heading into engineering,
three are in chemistry, three are staying for a physics minor or concentration, and one is
heading to UBC (or SFU?) physics.
Enrolment in our first-year calculus-based physics sequence was about normal: 48 & 38,
with two students failing each semester.
Our differential equations sequence Math 321 (3-credit) + Math/Phys 322 (3-credit),
offered alternate years, has been collapsed to Math/Phys 321 (4-credit) due to reductions
in math staffing, and offered only every three years.
We have hired our first NSERC USRA student, and are thankful for library, computing,
office, and community support from SFU for the student and his supervisor (me).
UBC – Okanagan
For PHYS 112 (algebra-based), the stable enrolment in 09/10 was 251 (vs. 186 the previous
year), and for the follow-on course PHYS 122 it was 209.
For PHYS 111 (calculus-based), the stable enrolment in 09/10 was 179 (vs 160 the previous
year), and for the follow-on course PHYS 102 it was 107.
For ASTR 11x (all versions of 1st-semester Astronomy), the stable enrolment
in 09/10 was 128 (vs. 91 the previous year), and for the follow-on courses ASTR 12x it was 76.
Second-year enrolments for 09/10 varied by course from 9 to 29 (averaging 16). No
curriculum changes are planned at the 2nd-yr level for the upcoming year.
Upper-level enrolments for 09/10 varied by course from 3 to 21 (averaging 11).
Curriculum developments at the upper-division level:
(a) A new 400-level course in Solid State Physics is planned to be introduced
in 10/11.
(b) A 300-level course in Stellar Astrophysics course is now to be formally included in the
Calendar. This course had been taught provisionally as a Special Topics course.
Graduation statistics: There are three Physics Major students expected to graduate this spring (no
Honours or Minor graduates this year). Next year looks more promising, with at least three
students presently intending to undertake Honours thesis work.
Graduate students: There are three students currently enrolled in the
Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies program.
UBC (Vancouver)
Our enrollment numbers in our 1st year were up by about 100 students for 2009/10. The following are the numbers for Physics 100 (807), Physics 101 (1745), Physics 102 (705), Physics 107 (94), Physics 108 (86), Physics 153 (799), Physics 170 (937), Astro 101 (149), Astro 102 (153). Our non-­‐Science Astronomy courses were down from the high levels of 2006/8-­‐-­‐ Astro 310 (350), Astro 311 (357). We will graduate 21 students in our various Honours Physics/Astro specializations, 17 students in Honours Biophysics and 25 students in Majors Physics & Astronomy. We will also have about 50 graduates in Engineering Physics. Our new Studio Laboratory classrooms for 1st year ( 100/101/102/109 ) were used for the 1st time in 2009/10 and the students and faculty were both very pleased with the new format. We switched to Mastering Engineering for our Physics 170 on-­‐line homework/tutoring system and we were generally much happier with this product compared to “course compass”. We continued to use Mastering Physics in most of our 1st year courses for which we typically assign 4% of the overall grade. We also use clickers in most 1st year courses – for about 4% of the course grade ( partly on participation and partly on correctness ). We also conducted a short “learning experiment” in two sections of our Physics 153 Electricity & Magnetism course. In one section the students received the traditional lectures along with clicker questions. In the transformed section the students were asked to complete an online pre-­‐reading quiz and then they performed in-­‐class activities during the 2 lecture periods –there were no formal lectures. An important ingredient in the transformed section was the fact that students were able to work in small groups; this was a highly interactive environment and the students were able to have meaningful discussions with each other because most of them had already read the material in the textbook. In the 3rd lecture period the students in both sections were given a short quiz based on the material covered ( Electromagnetic Waves ). The results were substantially better for the transformed section which employed the pre-­‐reading quizzes and the group classroom activities (~70% versus ~40% ). UFV (University of the Fraser Valley)
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This year, we had 10 graduates: 1 Honours, 7 Majors and 2 Minors, up from last year’s 8.
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Enrolments in our introductory courses dropped significantly (from about 100 to about 65).
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Enrolments were up in first year, not only in our main-stream Phys 111/112 courses (281
students to 306) but also in our algebra-based service courses (Phys 101/105, 71 up to 84),
designed mainly for Biology students. Our Astronomy courses were up a bit as well (56 to
65).
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Second and higher years mostly flat (around 15 students in each of 3 second-year courses,
and an average of 11 in each of the ten 300+ sections.)
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We have revamped our 2nd year E&M course, splitting it into separate courses: a lecture-only
E&M (still called Phys 222), and a lecture/lab Electronics/Data Analysis course (Phys 232).
Now let’s see how it works out. The next step the department is contemplating is to add a 4th
year E&M course to the existing 3rd year one, and drop the 2nd year. (Which would essentially
just move the material up the ladder.)
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Survey of Medical Physics – Phys 275 (a 1 credit course) planned for Fall 2010 in
conjunction with the BC Cancer Agency in Abbotsford. We hope to add more courses in this
area in the future.
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We are STILL going through a Program Review – it should be over soon, thankfully.
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In wider institutional news, our administration wants to significantly increase their numbers
(and salaries, of course), faculty are loudly arguing over whether or not to introduce a system
of ranks (and if so, what that should look like), and bargaining is going swimmingly.
UNBC
Enrollment numbers
Enrollments have been strong in 2009-2010. We have seen stable or increased enrollments in all first-year and
second-year offerings.
Physics 115 (Phys 12): 2009-2010 65, 2008-2009 63, change: +3% Physics 110/111
(Calculus-based): 2009-2010 142, 2008-2009 99, change: +43% Physics 100/101
(Algebra-based): 2009-2010 186 2008-2009 211, change: +13% Physics 120/121:
Stable (20-30).
Second-year enrollment:enrollment is up 50% from last year, bringing us back to our 2006 level after having a
substantial reduction in 2007 onwards as a result of the temporary closure to admissions to the Physics major.
We have seen a general increase in enrollment, in particular, in our first-year calculus-based physics courses.
This is most likely a result of recovery in enrollments to the 2006 level, where there was a temporary
suspension to admissions into the physics major in 2007.
Curriculum
There were no changes to the undergraduate Physics curriculum at UNBC in the 2009/2010 academic year.
There was one new course introduced:
PHYS 150-3 Title: Physics for Future Leaders Calendar course description: This course examines the physics
underlying major technological aspects of modern society and issues of global concern. While addressing
themes such as global warming, the energy problem and alternative sources of energy, nuclear power and
nuclear weapons, health and medical technology, pollution of the atmosphere, satellites, telecommunication,
and the internet, this course introduces basic physics topics such as motion and energy, atoms and heat, gravity
and force, electricity and magnetism, light and electromagnetic waves, radioactivity and nuclear reactions,
quantum physics, and relativity. This course requires no scientific or mathematical background and is accessible
to students in any discipline.
Textbook changes from articulation committee website
Physics 100/101 - “College Physics: A strategic approach,” Knight, Jones and Field.
Physics 120/121 - “Astronomy Today,” Chaisson and McMillan. Physics 200 – “An
introduction to thermal physics,” Schroeder.
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University of Victoria (UVic)
1
Total enrolment increased from 2008 but absolute numbers are difficult to assess
because of curriculum changes.
2
Registration for our two semester first year Astronomy course for non science majors
(Astr 120) increased substantially when we split it up: 250 for Astr 120 in 2008 to 406 for
Astr 101(102) in 2009.
3
Registration for our summer offering of first year algebra based Phys 102 also
increased markedly when we rescheduled it from the daytime slot to an evening one: 27 in
2008 to 55 in 2009.
4
Our new waves and modern physics course Phys 130 comes on stream in Spring 2011
to complement our mechanics course Phys 120.
nd
5
Third year Thermodynamics (Phys 317) is scheduled to be moved to 2 year as Phys
217 starting Spring 2012.
Textbooks:
Astr 101/102 non science
Seeds -Foundations of Astronomy
Astr 150 concepts, 250 astrophysics
Astr 255 planetary
Phys 102 general (algebra)
Phys 112 basic, 120 mechanics, 122
engineering mechanics, 125 waves, 216 e&m
220
Phys 215 modern
Freedman and Kaufmann -Universe
Cole and Woolfson -Planetary Science
Serway and Vuille -College Physics
Serway and Jewett -Physics for Scientists and
Engineers
Thornton and Rex -Modern Physics for
Scientists and Engineers
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Vancouver Community College (VCC)
In the last week of August 2008 our only offering of 1st year calculus-based physics was cut as
part of a large number of cuts happening at VCC in 2008. We had students registered in the
course who were left in a difficult position. We still list UT physics as a course at VCC but for
the time being we have been told not to run it by the administration. The rationale from
administration is that UT physics does not serve as a pre-requisite to any other VCC courses or
programs.
We have a new president at VCC and will have strategic planning happening this fall 2010. We
hope to offer UT physics again since there is still strong student interest from inside and outside
the college. It also supplements our other UT science and math courses.
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Vancouver Island University
1. Student numbers were stable in our 1st year. Life sciences courses (P111/P112) bounced
back to historical levels (this year: 120/75; last year: 90/60); calculus based courses
(P121/P122) moved back toward past historical levels (this year: 75/55; last year 49/37),
although unclear if this will really help second year.
2. Second year physics ran, but with continued low numbers: Modern physics (7), E & M
(7), Mechanics (2), Quantum (3). It appears likely that these courses will be cut sooner
or later; hope to use the hours to put on other (more popular?) courses.
3. Second year Electrical Eng transfer was cut as part of the 2010 budget process.
4. Greg Arkos was on leave, so Astronomy ran with sessional instructors. Continuing to run
two 1st year (solar system, stars & galaxies) & two 3rd year (cosmology, history).
Numbers remained good for most of the courses (approx 100 students total). New “Go
To” scope will help a LOT with running observation sessions.
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