ALOP 2007 Workshop in São Paulo, Brazil
Use of Interactive Technology
to Promote Active Learning in Physics
Priscilla W. Laws
Research Professor of Physics
Dickinson College, USA
Activity Based Physics
Combining Physics Education
Research (PER) with computer
tools to enhance learning in
introductory courses
ABP Group*

Pat Cooney

Maxine Willis

Karen Cummings

John Garrett

Priscilla Laws

David Jackson

David Sokoloff

Scott Franklin

E.F. Redish

Kerry Browne

Ron Thornton

Bob Teese
* Supported off and on since 1986 by :
National Science Foundation (USA)
U.S. Department of Education (FIPSE)
The Charles A. Dana Foundation
ABP Group Activities

Curriculum development

Apparatus Design

Computer Hardware & Software Design

Physics Education Research

Dissemination
Activity Based Learning Environment




Students construct knowledge from their own
observations and peer discussions
Students are challenged to compare predictions
(based on their beliefs) to their own observations
Students change their beliefs when confronted
by differences between their initial beliefs and
their own observations and experiments
Instructor is a guide rather than an authority
Using Computers
Computer-Assisted Data Acquisition
Hardware (CADA)
Interface to
USB Port on
Computer
Motion
Detector
Temperature
Sensor
Force Sensor
* Vernier Software & Technology (www.vernier.com)
** PASCO scientific (www. pasco.com)
Computer-Assisted Data Acquisition
Software
Collect Data from one or moreInterface
sensors
in “real
to
USB Port on
time”







Position
Sound waves
Motion
Detector
Temperature
Magnetic Field
Pressure
Temperature
Sensor
Current and
Voltage
And many more
Computer

Insert a video and
analyze positions on
each frame
Force Sensor
* Vernier Software & Technology (www.vernier.com)
** PASCO scientific (www. pasco.com)
An Example of CADA
The Ultrasonic Motion Detector
Computer Assisted Data Acquisition &
Analysis Tools (CADAA)
Learning Kinematics with an ultrasonic Motion Detector first
by walking and then by observing the motions of low
friction carts with attached fans
Computer Assisted Data Acquisition &
Analysis Tools (CADAA)
Learning Kinematics with an ultrasonic Motion Detector first
by walking and then by observing the motions of low
friction carts with attached fans
Open Kinematics.cmbl file
Video Capture & Analysis Software
Capture Software:
LoggerPro or VideoPoint Capture
Demonstration of LoggerPro Video
Tools
1. Capture
2. Analysis
Open Movie Capture and Analysis
Why Newton’s Laws Are Hard to
Teach

the 1st law is unbelievable

the 2nd law is incomprehensible

the 3rd law is mere religious incantation
–Jon Ogborn
How Students Use Computer Tools
to Understand Newton’s Law
Newton’s First Law
Computer Software

Use the LoggerPro Software with either:

A motion detector or

Video capture and analysis
Box on carpet
Cart on Track
Verifying Newton’s 1st Law by
Inductive Reason and Experiments
Newton’s Second Law
Relate Force and Acceleration by
Using a Motion Detector & Force
Sensor
Wireless Force & Acceleration Sensor
Computer Assisted Data Acquisition
& Analysis Tools (CADAA)
Newton’s Second Law using a Force Sensor
& Motion Detector (or Accelerometer)
Open Fvs.A.cmbl
Newton’s Third Law
Computer Assisted Data Acquisition
& Analysis Tools (CADAA)
Verify Newton’s Third Law using Remote Force
Sensors
Open Car-Truck_Synch2.mov
Open Run2_CarTruckData&Photos.cmbl
Our Philosophy of Computer Use

Flexible tools to explore and model the real
world through direct investigation

Transferable computer skills

Not used as a tutorial device

Simulations only used if real experience is
inaccessible
Evaluating Student Learning
Conceptual Evaluations

The Force Motion Concept Evaluation (FMCE)

The Heat and Temperature Concept Evaluation (HTCE)

The Light and Optics Concept Evaluation (LOCE)

The Electric Circuits Concept Evaluation (ECCE)

The Mathematical Modeling Concept Evaluation (MMCE)

The Vector Evaluation Test (VET)
http://physics.dickinson.edu/~wp_web/wp_resour
ces/wp_assessment.html
The Force & Motion Conceptual
Evaluation (FMCE)
Results of Pre & Post Testing using
Activity Based Physics Curricula
Traditional Instruction FMCE Results
Force & Motion Conceptual Evaluation
100
% Students Giving
Newtonian Answers
90
80
University of Oregon ‘89- ‘ 90
N = 240 students
70
60
Pre Test
Post Test
50
40
30
20
10
0
Natural
Language
Graphical
Evaluation
Coin Toss
Cart on Ramp
RealTime Physics FMCE Results
University of Oregon
% Students Giving Newtonian
Answers
Pre Test NC (N = 240, '89-'91)
After RTP Labs NC & C (N = 630, '92-'94)
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Natural
Language
Graphical
Evaluation
Coin Toss
Cart on Ramp
Very New Products
1. LabQuest (Vernier Software & Technology
2. Classroom Spectrometry
3. The $100 USD Computer:
One Laptop Per Child (OLPC)
Vernier Software &
Technology
www.vernier.com
• A hand held device
• Screen can be seen
outdoors
• Compatable with 30 or
more Vernier Sensors
• Data can be collected and
analyzed immediately
• Has 6 sensor inputs
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
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Screen can be seen
outdoors
Use as interface
with a computer
Transfer Data to a
computer or
memory stick
Beer’s Law: Absorbance vs.
Concentration for NiSO4
OLPC Under Development by
Former MIT Media Lab Faculty
Specifications

LCD and Black & White displays at 200dpi
(900x1200)

Microphone & 3 USB Connectors

Video Camera

Wireless communication

Runs 6 v. Battery (NiMH)
Graphic Interface