Physics Education Research Group
Presentation for the
External Review of
the Department of Physics
March 4, 2005
PER?
• Physics Education Research (PER) is
– an interdisciplinary research field bringing together
physics and education
– PER “puts the scientists back in science education research”
• Started ~1980.
• There are currently ~50 physics departments
with PER specialists.
– ~25-30 give graduate degrees
• Strong recent growth
– APS statement of support (1999)
– New publication venues
• PER Section of Am. J. Phys. (since 1999)
• New on-line section of Phys. Rev. (begins 2005)
• UMd started a PER group in 1993.
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Some Leading PER Groups (alpha order)
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Arizona State (2)
University of Arizona (2)
(N=# of tenure line
University of Colorado (2*)
faculty in physics
Harvard University (1*)
University of Illinois (1)
doing PER)
Kansas State University (2)
* Indicates
University of Maine (2)
part time PER
University of Maryland (1.5)
University of Massachusetts (2)
North Carolina State University (2)
Ohio State (1)
University of Washington (3)
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PERG Staff
• Faculty
– Joe Redish – Prof. (Physics — since 1970, PER since 1993)
– David Hammer – Assoc. Prof. (Physics, C&I — since 1998)
– Emily van Zee — Assoc. Prof. (C&I — since 1995)*
• Research Faculty
– Andy Elby – Research Assistant Professor (Physics)
– Rachel Scherr – Assistant Research Professor (Physics)
• Visiting Faculty
– Saalih Allie (Physics, University of Capetown)
* Leaving at the end of this term and will not be replaced
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PERG
• Graduate Students
C&I
Physics
Tim McCaskey 
Paul Gresser
Ray Hodges
Rosemary Russ  *
Tom Bing 
Renee-Michelle
Goertzen 
March 4, 2005
Paul Hutchinson*
Matty Lau
* = work in both departments
 = awarded grad fellowships
= won award as best
first year student
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UMd PERG Alumni:Where are they now?
Postdocs
David May (‘02-’04)
Laura Lising (‘01-’03)
Rachel Scherr (‘01-’04)
Beth Hufnagel (‘00-’02)
Apriel Hodari (‘00-’02)
Andy Elby (‘98-’03)
Richard Steinberg (‘’95-’98)
U. of Maryland, System (PD VIP-K16)
Asst. Prof., Towson U.
U. of Maryland
Asst. Prof., Anne Arundel CC
CNA Corp.
U. of Maryland
Assoc. Prof., CCNY
Grad Students (Physics PhDs)
Leslie Atkins (‘04)
Jonathan Tuminaro (‘04)
Rebecca Lippmann (‘03)
Lei Bao (‘99)
Mel Sabella (‘99)
Michael Wittmann (‘98)
Jeff Saul (‘98)
March 4, 2005
Postdoc, Psych & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth
Law Firm
Asst. Prof., Uppsala U., Sweden
Asst. Prof., Ohio State U.
Asst. Prof., Chicago State U.
Asst. Prof., U. of Maine
Asst. Prof., U. of Central Fl.
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PERG
• Main Funding
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NSF/RTL
NSF/RTL
FIPSE
NSF/ROLE
NSF/ESI
NSF/CCLI
NSF/ROLE
Student Expectations ($405K, ‘94 -’98)
Quantum for Engineers ($305K, ‘97 -’00)
Practical QM ($230K, ‘97-’00)
Learning to Learn Science ($1044K, ‘00 -’05)
Case Studies in Inquiry ($1023K, ‘00 -’04)
Epistemological Tutorials ($400K, ‘04 -’06)
New Conceptualization ($800K, ‘05 -’08)
• Other Grants
– NSF
– NSF, NASA
Spencer
Conference Funding ($140K, ‘96, ‘03)
Miscellaneous ($730K, ’95 -’07)
• Total funding:
– ~$5.1M over 15 years
– $175K / tenure fac / year (projecting to ‘08).
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PERG
• Awards and Recognition
– Redish
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APS Fellow, 1983
AAAS Fellow, 1991
Robert A. Millikan Award – AAPT, 1998
Faculty of the Year Award, Panhellenic and Greek
Societies, University of Maryland, 2001
• Guy and Rebecca Forman Award, Vanderbilt U., 1996
• Glover Medal Award, Dickinson College, 1991
• (other before 1990)
– Hammer
• NAE Spencer Postdoctoral Fellow, 1992-94
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PERG
• National Committees and Advisory Boards
– Redish
• Committee on Education, APS (Chair)
• Committee on Education, AIP
• NSF Committee of Visitors, Physics
• NSF Committee of Visitors, Research on Learning
• Executive Committee, Forum on Education, APS
• Bonner Prize Committee, APS (Chair)
• Nuclear Science Advisory Committee
• Few-Body Topical Group, APS (Chair)
– Hammer
• Committee on Research, AAPT
• AERA Program Co-Chair
• National Research Council, panelist and consultant
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Contributions to Community
• Conference Organization
– ICUPE ‘96
– Fermi School ‘03
• Publication Venues
– AJP PER Section (creator and editor)
– New on-line review article series (in progress)
• Materials Development
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Activity-Based Physics Tutorials (Wiley)
Quantum Tutorials (Wiley, to be published)
Case Studies Guide to Inquiry for Teachers (in progress)
Epistemological Tutorials (in progress)
• “Spreading the Word”
– >100 invited talks and colloquia in past 5 years
– “Teaching Physics” — published by Wiley, available on web
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Contributions to Department
• TA training
– Run 1.5 days of training for incoming TAs
– Run weekly fall term TA training session for new TAs
• Mentoring of new faculty
• Materials
– “Thinking Problems” available on web
– “Peer Instruction Problems” available on web
• Implementing New Research-Based Tutorials
and Labs in Algebra-Based Physics
• Teaching interviews for faculty candidates
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Main Areas of Research and Contributions
• Student Expectations and Epistemologies
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“The answer is not the only thing the student can get wrong.”
Identified roles in student success and difficulties
Developed Maryland Physics Expectations Survey (MPEX)
Documented deleterious effects of traditional instruction
UMd leads in small-N and large-N research
• Student Conceptual Learning
– Identified, categorized, and documented student difficulties
with physics of mechanical waves
– Randomized quantitative study of student conceptual gains
from traditional and reform instruction
• Development of New Instructional Strategies
– Large-lecture methods for addressing student epistemologies
– Intuition refinement methods
• Theoretical Developments
– “Resource” based model of student epistemologies
– General research on resource-based models of cognition
– Research and development on instructional diagnoses
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Constraints, Limitations, and Needs
• Redish is 63.
– Need to hire and mentor a replacement
– full time in physics — Hammer is 51%
• Research Space
– PER grad students share space with TAs
– No permanent space available for interviews
or videotaping of student groupwork.
– Quality of existing space is poor.
• Clerical Support
– NSF discourages hiring clerical staff
– Department provides good support structures,
but faculty level personnel still spend
considerable time on administrivia.
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