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Understanding Educational Reforms:
Impacts of Physics Education Research
Steven Pollock
Dep’t of Physics, CU Boulder
COLTT 2014
Physics Education Research at CU
Boulder
Postdocs/ Scientists:
Faculty:
Stephanie Chasteen
Karina Hensberry
Katie Hinko
Emily Moore*
Ariel Paul
Qing Ryan
Joel Corbo
Daniel Reinholtz
Melissa Dancy
Michael Dubson
Noah Finkelstein
Heather Lewandowski
Valerie Otero
Robert Parson
Kathy Perkins
Steven Pollock
Carl Wieman*
Teachers / Partners /
Staff:
Shelly Belleau, John Blanco
Kathy Dessau, Jackie Elser
Kate Kidder, Sam Reid
Trish Loeblein, Chris Malley
Susan M. Nicholson-Dykstra
Oliver Nix, Jon Olson
Sara Severance
Grad Students:
Funded by:
National Science Foundation
William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
American Association of Physics
Teachers
Physics Teacher Education Coalition
American Institute of Physics
American Physical Society
National Math & Science Initiative
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Ian Her Many Horses
Mike Ross
Enrique Suarez
Ben Van Dusen
Bethany Wilcox
Simone Hyater-Adams
Rosemary Wulf
Jessica Hoy
+recent grads (4 PhD)
+ many participating
faculty and LAs
Outline / Framing
• Brief overview of why, what, and how of PER
– Building on a base
– Theoretical models & educational practices
• Impacts
–
–
–
–
Introductory physics (results, replicability)
Longitudinal study
K12 teacher recruitment and prep
Upper division
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What is your primary scholarly identity?
A) STM (Science, Technology, Math)
B) Engineering
C) Humanities
D) Fine Arts
E) Other…. (or more than one)
What is Physics Education Research?
Studies by physicists of:
What is Physics Education Research?
Studies by physicists of:
• How do students learn?
What is Physics Education Research?
Studies by physicists of:
• How do students learn?
• How do we know they’re learning?
What is Physics Education Research?
Studies by physicists of:
• How do students learn?
• How do we know they’re learning?
• How do we help them learn?
What is Physics Education Research?
Studies by physicists of:
• How do students learn?
• How do we know they’re learning?
• How do we help them learn?
Theory
What is Physics Education Research?
Studies by physicists of:
• How do students learn?
• How do we know they’re learning?
• How do we help them learn?
Theory
Experiment
What is Physics Education Research?
Studies by physicists of:
• How do students learn?
• How do we know they’re learning?
• How do we help them learn?
Theory
Experiment
Application
Sample question
How hard was that question?
(For CU algebra-based students)
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
Very easy
Easy
Moderate/Difficult
Very difficult
How could I know this?
Force Concept Inventory Learning gains
Fraction of Courses
0.6
traditional lecture
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0.08 0.14 0.20 0.26 0.32 0.38 0.44 0.50 0.56 0.62 0.68
Less Learning
<g>
More Learning
R. Hake, ”…A six-thousand-student survey…” AJP 66, 64-74 (‘98).
Force Concept Inventory (FCI)
Learning gains
Fraction of Courses
0.6
0.5
0.4
traditional lecture
Students are learning
~ ¼ of what they didn’t
already know!
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0.08 0.14 0.20 0.26 0.32 0.38 0.44 0.50 0.56 0.62 0.68
Less Learning
<g>
More Learning
R. Hake, ”…A six-thousand-student survey…” AJP 66, 64-74 (‘98).
Built in to our classes?
2000 years ago
Today
Conventional model of teaching and learning:
“transmitting knowledge”
=> lecture (efficient!)
FCI Learning gains
traditional lecture interactive engagement
Fraction of Courses
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0.08
0.14
0.20
0.26
0.32
Less Learning
0.38
<g>
0.44
0.50
0.56
More Learning
R. Hake, ”…A six-thousand-student survey…” AJP 66, 64-74 (‘98).
0.62
0.68
FCI/FMCE Learning gains
traditional lecture interactive engagement
Fraction of Courses
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
CU for last 18 semesters
0.2
0.1
0
0.08
0.14
0.20
0.26
0.32
Less Learning
0.38
<g>
S. Pollock and N. Finkelstein,
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 4, 010110 (2008)
0.44
0.50
0.56
More Learning
0.62
0.68
FCI/FMCE Learning gains
traditional lecture interactive engagement
Fraction of Courses
0.6
0.5
Clickers in lecture,
Traditional Recitation
at CU
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0.08
0.14
0.20
0.26
0.32
Less Learning
0.38
<g>
S. Pollock and N. Finkelstein,
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 4, 010110 (2008)
0.44
0.50
0.56
More Learning
0.62
0.68
FCI/FMCE Learning gains
traditional lecture interactive engagement
Fraction of Courses
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
With Tutorials and LAs
0.2
0.1
0
0.08
0.14
0.20
0.26
0.32
Less Learning
0.38
<g>
S. Pollock and N. Finkelstein,
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 4, 010110 (2008)
0.44
0.50
0.56
More Learning
0.62
0.68
Suppose you could improve
student performance on such measures
(like the FCI) – should you?
A)
B)
C)
D)
Of course. And, at any cost!
Sure – if the cost is low enough*
It really should be up to departments
It really should be up to individual
faculty
E) I don’t fit in any of these bins!!
PER curricular innovations
ScaleUP Studio
Tutorials in Introductory Physics
Reconceptualize Recitations
• Materials
• Classroom format /
interaction
• Instructional Role
L. McDermott et al, University of Washington
Tutorial vs. Trad'l Recitation
BEMA scores over time
Pre
Pre (PER)
80
BEMA score (%)
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0
2
Fa '04
4
6
8
10
12
Semester
14
16
18
Sp '14
20
BEMA scores over time
Pre
Pre (PER)
Post
Post (PER)
80
BEMA score (%)
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0
2
Fa '04
4
6
8
10
12
Semester
14
16
18
Sp '14
20
1120 BEMA pre/post
20
18
16
14
% of students
TA (pre)
Pre
Post
LA (pre)
TA (post)
LA (post)
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
6
12
18
24
30
36 42 48
Score (%)
NCSU post
55
61
67
73
79
85
NCSU honors
91
97
Longitudinal
Upper division majors’ BEMA scores
After upper div. E&M.
(Only students who took intro without Tutorials)
S. Pollock, 2007 PERC, and Phys. Rev STPER 5 (2009)
Upper-Level Course Transformation
Longitudinal
Upper division majors’ BEMA scores
BLUE: students who took freshman E&M with Tutorials
S. Pollock, 2007 PERC, and Phys. Rev STPER 5 (2009)
Upper-Level Course Transformation
Longitudinal
Upper division majors’ BEMA scores
Grade in course
(3.1 ±.1)
(3.3 ±.1)
(3.2)
(3.0 ±.1)
Yellow: students who had been E&M LAs
S. Pollock, 2007 PERC, and Phys. Rev STPER 5 (2009)
Upper-Level Course Transformation
Model of Course Transformation
Faculty & Staff
Chasteen, Perkins, Beale, Pollock, & Wieman, JCST 40 (4), 70, 2011
Chasteen et al., AJP 80, 923, 2012, PRSTPER 8 020108, 2012
Model of Course Transformation
Establish
learning goals
Faculty & Staff
Chasteen, Perkins, Beale, Pollock, & Wieman, JCST 40 (4), 70, 2011
Chasteen et al., AJP 80, 923, 2012, PRSTPER 8 020108, 2012
Model of Course Transformation
Establish
learning goals
Using Research
& Assessment
Faculty & Staff
Chasteen, Perkins, Beale, Pollock, & Wieman, JCST 40 (4), 70, 2011
Chasteen et al., AJP 80, 923, 2012, PRSTPER 8 020108, 2012
Model of Course Transformation
Establish
learning goals
Using Research
& Assessment
Faculty & Staff
Apply research-based
teaching techniques &
measure progress
Chasteen, Perkins, Beale, Pollock, & Wieman, JCST 40 (4), 70, 2011
Chasteen et al., AJP 80, 923, 2012, PRSTPER 8 020108, 2012
Focus on student understanding
Courtesy M. Dubson
Focus on student understanding
Courtesy M. Dubson
Upper-division conceptual test (CUE) score
distribution
Fraction of classes
traditional lecture
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
0
5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95
Score (as %)
Ntot=540 at 5 Universities
Upper-division conceptual test (CUE) score
distribution
Fraction of classes
traditional lecture
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
interactive engagement
0
5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95
Score (as %)
Ntot=540 at 5 Universities, (18 classes)
Upper-div Clickers at CU
Term
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
11
S F S F S F S F S F S F S F S F
Mech Math I
Mech MathII
EM I
EM II
QM I
QM II
Stat Mech
Solid State
Plasma
Nuclear/HE
Perkins et al, PERC 2009
Upper-div Clickers at CU
Term
04
05
06
07
08
✔
✔
10
11
S F S F S F S F S F S F S F S F
Mech Math I
✔
Mech MathII
EM I
EM II
QM I
QM II
Stat Mech
09
✔
Solid State
Plasma
Nuclear/HE
PER faculty
✔
✔✔
Upper-div Clickers at CU
Term
04
05
06
07
08
✔
✔
10
11
S F S F S F S F S F S F S F S F
Mech Math I
✔
Mech MathII
EM I
EM II
QM I
QM II
Stat Mech
09
✔
Solid State
Plasma
Nuclear/HE
PER faculty
✔
✔✔
✔
✔
✔✔
✔✔✔
✔✔✔✔
✔
✔
✔✔✔✔
✔
✔
✔
✔✔✔
✔
✔✔
✔✔
✔✔✔
✔
✔✔
✔
New 100+ student classroom in Duane physics
Summary
Summary
• We must know our audience.
Summary
• We must know our audience.
• Student attitudes and beliefs
are important
Summary
• We must know our audience.
• Student attitudes and beliefs
are important
• Active learning works!
Summary
• We must know our audience.
• Student attitudes and beliefs
are important
• Active learning works!
• Conceptual understanding
doesn’t come along for free
Summary
• We must know our audience.
• Student attitudes and beliefs
are important
• Active learning works!
• Conceptual understanding
doesn’t come along for free
• It’s about the learning.
Conclusions:
Teaching is an Art
Conclusions:
a science
Teaching is an
Art
Conclusions:
a science
Teaching is an
Art
Teaching and Research
are not separate missions.
Teaching can be improved by scholarly study!
Two-way conversations with students are vital
“Pearls Before Swine” by Stephan Pastis, 2002.
Two-way conversations with students are vital
“Pearls Before Swine” by Stephan Pastis, 2002.
Please visit PER.COLORADO.EDU
Questions?