Analysing the physics learning environment of visually impaired students in high schools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toenders, Frank G. C.; de Putter-Smits, Lesley G. A.; Sanders, Wendy T. M.; den Brok, Perry

2017-07-01

Although visually impaired students attend regular high school, their enrolment in advanced science classes is dramatically low. In our research we evaluated the physics learning environment of a blind high school student in a regular Dutch high school. For visually impaired students to grasp physics concepts, time and additional materials to support the learning process are key. Time for teachers to develop teaching methods for such students is scarce. Suggestions for changes to the learning environment and of materials used are given.

Advancing Successful Physics Majors - The Physics First Year Seminar Experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deibel, Jason; Petkie, Douglas

In 2012, the Wright State University physics curriculum introduced a new year-long seminar course required for all new physics majors. The goal of this course is to improve student retention and success via building a community of physics majors and provide them with the skills, mindset, and advising necessary to successfully complete a degree and transition to the next part of their careers. This new course sequence assembles a new cohort of majors annually. To prepare each cohort, students engage in a variety of activities that span from student success skills to more specific physics content while building an entrepreneurial mindset. Students participate in activities including study skills, career night, course planning, campus services, and a department social function. More importantly, students gain exposure to programming, literature searches, data analysis, technical writing, elevator pitches, and experimental design via hands-on projects. This includes the students proposing, designing, and conducting their own experiments. Preliminary evidence indicates increased retention, student success, and an enhanced sense of community among physics undergraduate students, The overall number of majors and students eventually completing their physics degrees has nearly tripled. Associate Professor, Department of Physics.

Why Do Students Drop Advanced Mathematics?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Horn, Ilana

2004-01-01

Students, especially black, Latino and Native American youth and students of low socio-economic status drop out of advanced mathematics. Teachers must coordinate their expectations, their knowledge of students and their teaching practices in order to stop struggling students from dropping out of advanced math classes.

Factors Influencing Singapore Students' Choice of Physics as a Tertiary Field of Study: A Rasch Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oon, Pey-Tee; Subramaniam, R.

2013-01-01

Asian students often perform well in international science and mathematics assessments. Their attitude toward technical subjects, such as physics, remains curious for many. The present study examines Singapore school students' views on various aspects of physics according to whether they intend to choose physics as an advanced field of study. A…

Physics students' approaches to learning and cognitive processes in solving physics problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bouchard, Josee

This study examined traditional instruction and problem-based learning (PBL) approaches to teaching and the extent to which they foster the development of desirable cognitive processes, including metacognition, critical thinking, physical intuition, and problem solving among undergraduate physics students. The study also examined students' approaches to learning and their perceived role as physics students. The research took place in the context of advanced courses of electromagnetism at a Canadian research university. The cognitive science, expertise, physics and science education, instructional psychology, and discourse processes literature provided the framework and background to conceptualize and structure this study. A within-stage mixed-model design was used and a number of instruments, including a survey, observation grids, and problem sets were developed specifically for this study. A special one-week long problem-based learning (PBL) intervention was also designed. Interviews with the instructors participating in the study provided complementary data. Findings include evidence that students in general engage in metacognitive processes in the organization of their personal study time. However, this potential, including the development of other cognitive processes, might not be stimulated as much as it could in the traditional lecture instructional context. The PBL approach was deemed as more empowering for the students. An unexpected finding came from the realisation that a simple exposure to a structured exercise of problem-solving (pre-test) was sufficient to produce superior planning and solving strategies on a second exposure (post-test) even for the students who had not been exposed to any special treatment. Maturation was ruled out as a potential threat to the validity of this finding. Another promising finding appears to be that the problem-based learning (PBL) intervention tends to foster the development of cognitive competencies, particularly

Terrella for Advanced Undergraduate Physics Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reardon, Jim; Endrizzi, Douglass; Forest, Cary; Oliva, Steven

2017-10-01

A terrella has been in use in the Advanced Laboratory for undergraduates in the Physics Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since spring 2016. Our terrella is a permanent magnet on a pedestal which may be biased in various ways. In the vacuum region B <= 200 gauss; for typical operation p10-4 Torr. Plasma may be created by thermionic emission from a filament or by an S-band magnetron. Students are guided through diagnosis of the terrella plasma using spectroscopy and swept Langmuir probes. A suite of supporting experiments has been developed to introduce basic plasma phenomena, such as the Child-Langmuir law. University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The efficacy of self-directed modules for clinical learning: advanced competencies in entry-level physical therapy education.

PubMed

Peck, Kirk; Paschal, Karen; Black, Lisa; Nelson, Kelly

2014-01-01

Prior to graduation, students often express an interest to advance clinical and professional skills in teaching, research, administration, and various niche practice areas. The acquisition of advanced education in selected areas of practice is believed to improve employment opportunities, accelerate career advancement including eligibility for professional certifications, and contribute to personal satisfaction in the profession. The purpose of this paper is to (1) describe an innovative model of education, the Directed Practice Experience (DPE) elective, that incorporates a student-initiated learning process designed to achieve student-identified professional goals, and (2) report the outcomes for graduates who have completed the DPE in an entry-level program in physical therapy education. Students who met select criteria were eligible to complete a DPE. Applicants designed a 4- to 6-week clinical education experience consisting of stated rationale for personal and professional growth, examples of leadership and service, and self-directed objectives that are beyond entry-level expectations as measured by the revised Physical Therapist Clinical Performance Instrument, version 2006. Twenty-six students have completed DPEs since 2005. Fifty percent resulted in new academic partnerships. At least 25% of graduates now serve as clinical instructors for the entry-level program. Those who participated in DPEs have also completed post-graduate residencies, attained ABPTS Board certifications, authored peer-reviewed publications, and taught in both PT and residency programs. The DPE model allows qualified students to acquire advanced personal skills and knowledge prior to graduation in areas of professional practice that exceed entry-level expectations. The model is applicable to all CAPTE accredited physical therapy education programs and is especially beneficial for academic programs desiring to form new community partnerships for student clinical education.

Innovative experimental particle physics through technological advances: Past, present and future

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cheung, Harry W.K.; /Fermilab

This mini-course gives an introduction to the techniques used in experimental particle physics with an emphasis on the impact of technological advances. The basic detector types and particle accelerator facilities will be briefly covered with examples of their use and with comparisons. The mini-course ends with what can be expected in the near future from current technology advances. The mini-course is intended for graduate students and post-docs and as an introduction to experimental techniques for theorists.

Evaluation of an advanced physical diagnosis course using consumer preferences methods: the nominal group technique.

PubMed

Coker, Joshua; Castiglioni, Analia; Kraemer, Ryan R; Massie, F Stanford; Morris, Jason L; Rodriguez, Martin; Russell, Stephen W; Shaneyfelt, Terrance; Willett, Lisa L; Estrada, Carlos A

2014-03-01

Current evaluation tools of medical school courses are limited by the scope of questions asked and may not fully engage the student to think on areas to improve. The authors sought to explore whether a technique to study consumer preferences would elicit specific and prioritized information for course evaluation from medical students. Using the nominal group technique (4 sessions), 12 senior medical students prioritized and weighed expectations and topics learned in a 100-hour advanced physical diagnosis course (4-week course; February 2012). Students weighted their top 3 responses (top = 3, middle = 2 and bottom = 1). Before the course, 12 students identified 23 topics they expected to learn; the top 3 were review sensitivity/specificity and high-yield techniques (percentage of total weight, 18.5%), improving diagnosis (13.8%) and reinforce usual and less well-known techniques (13.8%). After the course, students generated 22 topics learned; the top 3 were practice and reinforce advanced maneuvers (25.4%), gaining confidence (22.5%) and learn the evidence (16.9%). The authors observed no differences in the priority of responses before and after the course (P = 0.07). In a physical diagnosis course, medical students elicited specific and prioritized information using the nominal group technique. The course met student expectations regarding education of the evidence-based physical examination, building skills and confidence on the proper techniques and maneuvers and experiential learning. The novel use for curriculum evaluation may be used to evaluate other courses-especially comprehensive and multicomponent courses.

Changes in Attitudes of P.S.S.C. Physics Students: A Second Look

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gardner, P. L.

1973-01-01

Reports data which provide a partial replication of an earlier study of changes in attitudes of Physical Science Study Committee (PSSC) physics students. Data from the present research failed to support earlier findings. Several reasons for the discrepancies are advanced. (JR)

Introductory Physics Students' Physics and Mathematics Epistemologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scanlon, Erin M.

The purpose of this three study dissertation is to investigate why students are enrolled in introductory physics courses experience difficulties in being successful; one possible source of their difficulties is related to their epistemology. In order to investigate students' epistemologies about mathematics and physics, students were observed solving physics problems in groups during a laboratory course (study 1) and while solving physics and mathematics problems individually during office-hour sessions (study 2). The Epistemological Resources theoretical framework was employed (Hammer & Elby, 2002). Using emergent and a priori epistemological resource operationalizations (Jones, 2015), 25 distinct epistemological resources were identified in study 1. Differences in physics epistemological resource usage between students of varying academic background (as measured by their number of previously completed mathematics and science classes were identified. By employing an external (Jones, 2015) and internal (Scanlon, 2016) a priori epistemological resource coding scheme, a total of 17 distinct epistemological resources were identified in study 2. The data were sampled to compare the mathematics and physics epistemological resource usage of participants with consistent and inconsistent sign usage in an energy conservation physics problem in order to provide a meaningful context for discussion. Participants of the same sign usage group employed epistemological resources similarly. Conversely, participants in different groups had significantly different physics epistemological resource usage patterns. Finally, student epistemological resource usage patterns from the first two studies were compared to course outcomes in order to determine implications for practice (study 3). Educators must be aware of and address the epistemological underpinnings of students' difficulties in introductory physics courses.

Online Options for Math-Advanced Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wessling, Suki

2012-01-01

Once upon a time, a student well advanced past grade level in math would have had few choices. Advanced students would invariably outpace the skills of their elementary teachers, and due to age wouldn't have options such as going to the middle school or community college for classes. Soon thereafter, students would enter middle school only to find…

Advanced physical assessment skills: implementation of a module.

PubMed

Aldridge-Bent, Sharon

2011-02-01

This article aims to explore and examine advanced physical assessment skills and the role of the district nurse. It will particularly highlight district nurses' perceptions of how they may implement skills learnt on a new module introduced into the Community Health Care Nursing degree at a university in London. Physical assessment skills have traditionally been viewed as part of a doctor's role; however, with the advancement of nursing roles, it is argued that it has become a key nursing skill. As Government policy continues to expect health professionals to keep patients in the community who have complex health and social care needs, the role of the district nurse presents as 'best placed' to take on this challenge (Department of Health (DH), 2005a; 2005b). Evaluation of the district nurses' perceptions of their practice is shared here, highlighting some of the challenges that they face. The article will address the complexity of developing a curriculum in response to the DH initiatives and the importance of listening to students on courses.

Short Animation Movies as Advance Organizers in Physics Teaching: A Preliminary Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koscianski, Andre; Ribeiro, Rafael Joao; da Silva, Sani Carvalho Rutz

2012-01-01

Background: Advance organizers are instructional materials that help students use previous knowledge to make links with new information. Short animation movies are a possible format and are well suited for physics, as they can portray dynamic phenomena and represent abstract concepts. Purpose: The study aimed to determine guidelines for the…

High school students' perceptions of physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Checkley, Doug

There are far fewer high school students enrolled in physics than in chemistry or biology courses within the province of Alberta (Alberta Education, 2007). Students are also completing the highest level math course in larger numbers than those taking physics. It appears that a fear of physics exists within students in our province; this fear seems to be related to a level of difficulty the students associate with physics. Many students either opt to not take physics or enter the course with the expectation of failure. In this study I explored the impact of physics' reputation upon a group of students who chose not to take physics. In addition, I attempted to determine whether the perception of the difficulty of high school physics is accurate. This was done by investigating the perceptions of several students who took physics. I surveyed students from one high school in a small urban school district using group interviews. The students were in grades 10 to 12 and divided into groups of Science 10, Physics 20 and Physics 30 students. The students were interviewed to gain a deeper understanding of what perceptions they have about physics and why they may have them, hoping to identify factors that affect their academic decision to take or not take physics classes. For the students interviewed, I found that the biggest influence on their decisions to take or not take physics was related to their future aspirations. The students were also heavily influenced by their perceptions of physics. The students who took physics claimed that physics was not as difficult as they had believed it to be and they reported that it was interesting, enjoyable and relevant. Those students who had chosen to not take physics perceived it would be difficult, irrelevant and boring. Therefore, a major difference of perception exists between the students who took physics and those that did not.

Feminist Physics Education: Deconstructed Physics and Students' Multiple Subjectivities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jammula, Diane Crenshaw

Physics is one of the least diverse sciences; in the U.S. in 2010, only 21% of bachelors degrees in physics were awarded to women, 2.5% to African Americans, and 4% to Hispanic Americans (AIP, 2012). Though physics education reform efforts supporting interactive engagement have doubled students' learning gains (Hake, 1998), gender and race gaps persist (Brewe et al., 2010; Kost, Pollock, & Finkelstein, 2009). When students' subjectivities align with presentations of physics, they are more likely to develop positive physics identities (Hughes, 2001). However, both traditional and reformed physics classrooms may present physics singularly as abstract, elite, and rational (Carlone, 2004). Drawing from feminist science, I argue that binaries including abstract / concrete, elite / accessible, and rational / emotional are hierarchal and gendered, raced and classed. The words on the left define conventional physics and are associated with middle class white masculinity, while the words on the right are associated with femininity or other, and are often missing or delegitimized in physics education, as are females and minorities. To conceptualize a feminist physics education, I deconstructed these binaries by including the words on the right as part of doing physics. I do not imply that women and men think differently, but that broadening notions of physics may allow a wider range of students to connect with the discipline. I used this conceptual framework to modify a popular reformed physics curriculum called Modeling Instruction (Hestenes, 1987). I taught this curriculum at an urban public college in an introductory physics course for non-science majors. Twenty-three students of diverse gender, race, ethnic, immigrant and class backgrounds enrolled. I conducted an ethnography of the classroom to learn how students negotiate their subjectivities to affiliate with or alienate from their perceptions of physics, and to understand how classroom experiences exacerbate or

Short animation movies as advance organizers in physics teaching: a preliminary study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koscianski, André; João Ribeiro, Rafael; Carvalho Rutz da Silva, Sani

2012-11-01

Background : Advance organizers are instructional materials that help students use previous knowledge to make links with new information. Short animation movies are a possible format and are well suited for physics, as they can portray dynamic phenomena and represent abstract concepts. Purpose : The study aimed to determine guidelines for the construction of an instructional short animation movie, with the role of an advance organizer. A film was created in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the approach, making part of a physics lesson and concerning the subject 'moment of a force'. Sample : The study took place in a Brazilian school in the city of Arapoti, in the south region of the country. Thirty-eight students participated, having an average age of 16 and following the third year of high school. Design and methods : Criteria drawn from a literature review directed the construction of the movie and the lesson. Data were collected using pre- and post-tests; registers of oral comments were also done during the class. The post-test included open-ended questions, allowing students to write remarks concerning the lesson and the animation. Conclusions : The article describes steps and guidelines to orient the process of designing an animation movie with the role of advance organizer. Data indicated that the movie facilitated the construction of links between pre-existent knowledge and the new information presented in the lesson. The proposed methodology can be considered a valid framework to derive similar approaches.

Outcomes of a service teaching module on ODEs for physics students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hyland, Diarmaid; van Kampen, Paul; Nolan, Brien C.

2018-07-01

This paper reports on the first part of a multiphase research project that seeks to identify and address the difficulties encountered by physics students when studying differential equations. Differential equations are used extensively by undergraduate physics students, particularly in the advanced modules of their degree. It is, therefore, necessary that students develop conceptual understanding of differential equations in addition to procedural skills. We have investigated the difficulties encountered by third-year students at Dublin City University in an introductory differential equations module. We developed a survey to identify these difficulties and administered it to students who had recently completed the module. We found that students' mathematical ability in relation to procedural competence is an issue in their study of differential equations, but not as severe an issue as their conceptual understanding. Mathematical competence alone is insufficient if we expect our students to be able to recognize the need for differential equations in a physical context and to be able to set up, solve and interpret the solutions of such equations. We discuss the implications of these results for the next stages of the research project.

Student Blogging about Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniels, Karen E.

2010-09-01

In traditional introductory physics classes, there is often limited opportunity for students to contribute their own ideas, interests, and experiences as they engage with the subject matter. This situation is exacerbated in university lecture-format classes, where students may not feel comfortable speaking during class. In the last few years, Internet blogs have become a decentralized format for diarists, independent journalists, and opinion makers to both post entries and allow commentary from their readers. Below, I will describe some techniques for using student blogging about physics to engage students from two different classroom environments: a calculus-based introductory mechanics class for scientists and engineers, and an honors seminar for first-year students. These assignments required them to make their own connections between classroom knowledge and situations where it might find applications. A second goal of including blogging in the introductory physics course was to induce students to write about the physics content of the class in a more substantive way than was previously part of the class.

Lipid membranes and single ion channel recording for the advanced physics laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klapper, Yvonne; Nienhaus, Karin; Röcker, Carlheinz; Ulrich Nienhaus, G.

2014-05-01

We present an easy-to-handle, low-cost, and reliable setup to study various physical phenomena on a nanometer-thin lipid bilayer using the so-called black lipid membrane technique. The apparatus allows us to precisely measure optical and electrical properties of free-standing lipid membranes, to study the formation of single ion channels, and to gain detailed information on the ion conduction properties of these channels using statistical physics and autocorrelation analysis. The experiments are well suited as part of an advanced physics or biophysics laboratory course; they interconnect physics, chemistry, and biology and will be appealing to students of the natural sciences who are interested in quantitative experimentation.

The Use of Textbooks for Advanced-Level GCE Courses in Physics, Chemistry and Biology by Sixth-Form Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newton, D. P.

1984-01-01

A survey of sixth-form students to determine the level of A-level textbook use in physics, chemistry, and biology in English schools found that texts are used primarily after the lesson, at the student's discretion, and with great variations between students. Biology texts were used most, and physics texts used least. (MBR)

How Gender and Reformed Introductory Physics Impacts Student Success in Advanced Physics Courses and Continuation in the Physics Major

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodriguez, Idaykis; Potvin, Geoff; Kramer, Laird H.

2016-01-01

Active-learning approaches to teaching introductory physics have been found to improve student learning and affective gains on short-term outcomes [S. Freeman et al., "Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 111," 8410 (2014)]; however, whether or not the benefits of active learning impact women to the same degree as men has been a point of…

Zimbabwean Female Participation in Physics: Factors of Identity Formation Considered as Contributing to Developing an Orientation to Physics by Female Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gudyanga, Anna

2016-01-01

The study investigated the Zimbabwean female participation in physics, with special emphasis on the factors of identity formation considered as contributing to developing an orientation to physics by female students. The main study from which this paper was taken explored the influence of identity formation on the Zimbabwean Advanced Level…

Introductory Physics Students' Physics and Mathematics Epistemologies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scanlon, Erin M.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this three study dissertation is to investigate why students are enrolled in introductory physics courses experience difficulties in being successful; one possible source of their difficulties is related to their epistemology. In order to investigate students' epistemologies about mathematics and physics, students were observed…

Where the girls aren't: High school girls and advanced placement physics enrollment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barton, Susan O'brien

During the high school years, when many students first have some choice in course selection, research indicates that girls choose to enroll in more math and science courses, take more advanced placement courses, and take more honors courses in English, biology, chemistry, mathematics, and foreign languages than ever before. Yet, not only are boys more likely to take all of the three core science courses (biology, chemistry, and physics), boys enroll in advanced placement physics approximately three times as often as do girls. This study examines the perceptions, attitudes, and aspirations of thirty high school girls enrolled in senior-level science electives in an attempt to understand their high school science course choices, and what factors were influencing them. This is a qualitative investigation employing constructivist grounded theory methods. There are two main contributions of this study. First, it presents a new conceptual and analytical framework to investigate the problem of why some high school girls do not enroll in physics coursework. This framework is grounded in the data and is comprised of three existing feminist perspectives along the liberal/radical continuum of feminist thought. Second, this study illuminates a complex set of reasons why participants avoided high school physics (particularly advanced placement physics) coursework. These reasons emerged as three broad categories related to: (a) a lack of connectedness with physics curriculum and instruction; (b) prior negative experiences with physics and math classroom climates; and (c) future academic goals and career aspirations. Taken together, the findings of this study indicate that the problem of high school girls and physics enrollment---particularly advanced placement physics enrollment---is a problem that cannot be evaluated or considered from one perspective.

Advanced Multi-Physics (AMP)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Philip, Bobby

2012-06-01

The Advanced Multi-Physics (AMP) code, in its present form, will allow a user to build a multi-physics application code for existing mechanics and diffusion operators and extend them with user-defined material models and new physics operators. There are examples that demonstrate mechanics, thermo-mechanics, coupled diffusion, and mechanical contact. The AMP code is designed to leverage a variety of mathematical solvers (PETSc, Trilinos, SUNDIALS, and AMP solvers) and mesh databases (LibMesh and AMP) in a consistent interchangeable approach.

Educating Scientifically - Advances in Physics Education Research

ScienceCinema

Finkelstein, Noah [University of Colorado, Colorado, USA

2017-12-09

It is now fairly well documented that traditionally taught, large-scale introductory physics courses fail to teach our students the basics. In fact, often these same courses have been found to teach students things we do not want. Building on a tradition of research in physics, the physics education research community has been researching the effects of educational practice and reforms at the undergraduate level for many decades. From these efforts and those within the fields of education, cognitive science, and psychology we have learned a great deal about student learning and environments that support learning for an increasingly diverse population of students in the physics classroom. This talk will introduce some of the ideas from physics education research, discuss a variety of effective classroom practices/ surrounding educational structures, and begin to examine why these do (and do not) work. I will present both a survey of physics education research and some of the exciting theoretical and experimental developments emerging from the University of Colorado.

Advances in Medical Physics: 2010.

PubMed

2011-07-01

Advances in Medical Physics: 2010., Wolbarst Anthony B., Karellas Andrew, Krupinski Elizabeth A., Hendee William R., Medical Physics Publishing, Madison, WI, 2010, 368 pp (hardcover). Price: $140.00. ISBN: 978-1-93052-450-7. © 2011 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Advanced Undergraduate and Early Graduate Physics Students' Misconception about Solar Wind Flow: Evidence of Students' Difficulties in Distinguishing Paradigms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gross, Nicholas A.; Lopez, Ramon E.

2009-01-01

Anecdotal evidence has suggested that advanced undergraduate students confuse the spiral structure of the interplanetary magnetic field with the flow of the solar wind. Though it is a small study, this paper documents this misconception and begins to investigate the underlying issues behind it. We present evidence that the traditional presentation…

The Effect of Student Collaboration in Solving Physics Problems Using an Online Interactive Response System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balta, Nuri; Awedh, Mohammad Hamza

2017-01-01

Advanced technology helps educational institutes to improve student learning performance and outcomes. In this study, our aim is to measure and assess student engagement and collaborative learning in engineering classes when using online technology in solving physics problems. The interactive response system used in this study is a collaborative…

Advanced practice nursing students' knowledge, self-efficacy, and attitudes related to depression in older adults: teaching holistic depression care.

PubMed

Delaney, Colleen; Barrere, Cynthia

2012-01-01

The aim of this study was to examine the knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy of advanced practice nursing students toward depression in older adults. Findings suggest that advanced practice nursing students are interested in caring for the whole person and desired more information on the physical and emotional-spiritual needs of older patients with depression. Suggestions for holistic nursing depression care education are presented.

Physical Activity in Advanced Age: Physical Activity, Function, and Mortality in Advanced Age: A Longitudinal Follow Up (LiLACS NZ).

PubMed

Mace Firebaugh, Casey; Moyes, Simon; Jatrana, Santosh; Rolleston, Anna; Kerse, Ngaire

2018-01-18

The relationship between physical activity, function, and mortality is not established in advanced age. Physical activity, function, and mortality were followed in a cohort of Māori and non-Māori adults living in advanced age for a period of six years. Generalised Linear regression models were used to analyse the association between physical activity and NEADL while Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, and Cox-proportional hazard models were used to assess the association between the physical activity and mortality. The Hazard Ratio for mortality for those in the least active physical activity quartile was 4.1 for Māori and 1.8 for non- Māori compared to the most active physical activity quartile. There was an inverse relationship between physical activity and mortality, with lower hazard ratios for mortality at all levels of physical activity. Higher levels of physical activity were associated with lower mortality and higher functional status in advanced aged adults.

Adapting Advanced Inorganic Chemistry Lecture and Laboratory Instruction for a Legally Blind Student

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miecznikowski, John R.; Guberman-Pfeffer, Matthew J.; Butrick, Elizabeth E.; Colangelo, Julie A.; Donaruma, Cristine E.

2015-01-01

In this article, the strategies and techniques used to successfully teach advanced inorganic chemistry, in the lecture and laboratory, to a legally blind student are described. At Fairfield University, these separate courses, which have a physical chemistry corequisite or a prerequisite, are taught for junior and senior chemistry and biochemistry…

Educating Scientifically - Advances in Physics Education Research

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Finkelstein, Noah

It is now fairly well documented that traditionally taught, large-scale introductory physics courses fail to teach our students the basics. In fact, often these same courses have been found to teach students things we do not want. Building on a tradition of research in physics, the physics education research community has been researching the effects of educational practice and reforms at the undergraduate level for many decades. From these efforts and those within the fields of education, cognitive science, and psychology we have learned a great deal about student learning and environments that support learning for an increasingly diverse populationmore » of students in the physics classroom. This talk will introduce some of the ideas from physics education research, discuss a variety of effective classroom practices/ surrounding educational structures, and begin to examine why these do (and do not) work. I will present both a survey of physics education research and some of the exciting theoretical and experimental developments emerging from the University of Colorado.« less

Using Computer-Assisted Argumentation Mapping to develop effective argumentation skills in high school advanced placement physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heglund, Brian

Educators recognize the importance of reasoning ability for development of critical thinking skills, conceptual change, metacognition, and participation in 21st century society. There is a recognized need for students to improve their skills of argumentation, however, argumentation is not explicitly taught outside logic and philosophy---subjects that are not part of the K-12 curriculum. One potential way of supporting the development of argumentation skills in the K-12 context is through incorporating Computer-Assisted Argument Mapping to evaluate arguments. This quasi-experimental study tested the effects of such argument mapping software and was informed by the following two research questions: 1. To what extent does the collaborative use of Computer-Assisted Argumentation Mapping to evaluate competing theories influence the critical thinking skill of argument evaluation, metacognitive awareness, and conceptual knowledge acquisition in high school Advanced Placement physics, compared to the more traditional method of text tables that does not employ Computer-Assisted Argumentation Mapping? 2. What are the student perceptions of the pros and cons of argument evaluation in the high school Advanced Placement physics environment? This study examined changes in critical thinking skills, including argumentation evaluation skills, as well as metacognitive awareness and conceptual knowledge, in two groups: a treatment group using Computer-Assisted Argumentation Mapping to evaluate physics arguments, and a comparison group using text tables to evaluate physics arguments. Quantitative and qualitative methods for collecting and analyzing data were used to answer the research questions. Quantitative data indicated no significant difference between the experimental groups, and qualitative data suggested students perceived pros and cons of argument evaluation in the high school Advanced Placement physics environment, such as self-reported sense of improvement in argument

Back pain in physically inactive students compared to physical education students with a high and average level of physical activity studying in Poland.

PubMed

Kędra, Agnieszka; Kolwicz-Gańko, Aleksandra; Kędra, Przemysław; Bochenek, Anna; Czaprowski, Dariusz

2017-11-28

The aim of the study was (1) to characterise back pain in physically inactive students as well as in trained (with a high level of physical activity) and untrained (with an average level of physical activity) physical education (PE) students and (2) to find out whether there exist differences regarding the declared incidence of back pain (within the last 12 months) between physically inactive students and PE students as well as between trained (with a high level of physical activity) and untrained (with an average level of physical activity) PE students. The study included 1321 1st-, 2nd- and 3rd-year students (full-time bachelor degree course) of Physical Education, Physiotherapy, Pedagogy as well as Tourism and Recreation from 4 universities in Poland. A questionnaire prepared by the authors was applied as a research tool. The 10-point Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was used to assess pain intensity. Prior to the study, the reliability of the questionnaire was assessed by conducting it on the group of 20 participants twice with a shorter interval. No significant differences between the results obtained in the two surveys were revealed (p < 0.05). In the group of 1311 study participants, 927 (70.7%) respondents declared having experienced back pain within the last 12 months. Physically inactive students declared back pain frequency similar to the frequency declared by their counterparts studying physical education (p > 0.05). Back pain was more common in the group of trained students than among untrained individuals (p < 0.05). Back pain was mainly located in the lumbar spine. A frequent occurrence of back pain (70.7%) was noted in the examined groups of students. The percentage of students declaring back pain increased in the course of studies (p < 0.05) and, according to the students' declarations, it was located mainly in the lumbar spine. No significant differences regarding the incidence of back pain were found between physically inactive

Racial Differences in Mathematics Test Scores for Advanced Mathematics Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Minor, Elizabeth Covay

2016-01-01

Research on achievement gaps has found that achievement gaps are larger for students who take advanced mathematics courses compared to students who do not. Focusing on the advanced mathematics student achievement gap, this study found that African American advanced mathematics students have significantly lower test scores and are less likely to be…

Content Coverage and Students' Achievements in Secondary School Physics: The Delta State Example of Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abamba, Emmanuel Ikechuku

2012-01-01

The consistent poor achievement of students in physics tests and in science generally is one problem attracting researchers because of the danger it poses to the nation's technological advancement. This work focused on the effect of content thought on students' achievement. Two research questions were put forward which led to the formulation of…

Using Recent Planetary Science Data to Develop Advanced Undergraduate Physics and Astronomy Activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steckloff, Jordan; Lindell, Rebecca

2016-10-01

Teaching science by having students manipulate real data is a popular trend in astronomy and planetary science education. However, many existing activities simply couple this data with traditional "cookbook" style verification labs. As with most topics within science, this instructional technique does not enhance the average students' understanding of the phenomena being studied. Here we present a methodology for developing "science by doing" activities that incorporate the latest discoveries in planetary science with up-to-date constructivist pedagogy to teach advanced concepts in Physics and Astronomy. In our methodology, students are first guided to understand, analyze, and plot real raw scientific data; develop and test physical and computational models to understand and interpret the data; finally use their models to make predictions about the topic being studied and test it with real data.To date, two activities have been developed according to this methodology: Understanding Asteroids through their Light Curves (hereafter "Asteroid Activity"), and Understanding Exoplanetary Systems through Simple Harmonic Motion (hereafter "Exoplanet Activity"). The Asteroid Activity allows students to explore light curves available on the Asteroid Light Curve Database (ALCDB) to discover general properties of asteroids, including their internal structure, strength, and mechanism of asteroid moon formation. The Exoplanet Activity allows students to investigate the masses and semi-major axes of exoplanets in a system by comparing the radial velocity motion of their host star to that of a coupled simple harmonic oscillator. Students then explore how noncircular orbits lead to deviations from simple harmonic motion. These activities will be field tested during the Fall 2016 semester in an advanced undergraduate mechanics and astronomy courses at a large Midwestern STEM-focused university. We will present the development methodologies for these activities, description of the

Transforming Introductory Physics for Life Scientists: Researching the consequences for students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turpen, Chandra

2011-10-01

In response to policy documents calling for dramatic changes in pre-medical and biology education [1-3], the physics and biology education research groups at the University of Maryland are rethinking how to teach physics to life science majors. As an interdisciplinary team, we are drastically reconsidering the physics topics relevant for these courses. We are designing new in-class tasks to engage students in using physical principles to explain aspects of biological phenomena where the physical principles are of consequence to the biological systems. We will present examples of such tasks as well as preliminary data on how students engage in these tasks. Lastly, we will share some barriers encountered in pursuing meaningful interdisciplinary education.[4pt] Co-authors: Edward F. Redish and Julia Svaboda [4pt] [1] National Research Council, Bio2010: Transforming Undergraduate Education for Future Research Biologists (NAP, 2003).[0pt] [2] AAMC-HHMI committee, Scientific Foundations for Future Physicians (AAMC, 2009).[0pt] [3] American Association for the Advancement of Science, Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education: A Call to Action (AAAS, 2009).

Becoming Animated When Teaching Physics, Crafts and Drama Together: A Multidisciplinary Course for Student-Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kallunki, Veera; Karppinen, Seija; Komulainen, Kauko

2017-01-01

This article examines a physics course for pre-service primary teachers in which physics, crafts and drama were taught together by connecting the standpoints of crafts and drama. The study was carried out by three university educators from these disciplines during an advanced optional course for student-teachers at the University of Helsinki in…

Students' Attitudes toward Introductory Physics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demirci, Neset

2004-01-01

The problem examined in this study deals with students' attitude toward physics among the freshmen and sophomore students who were taking first introductory physics course. In the study there were 176 students, and they were chosen sample of convenience from Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Florida. 125 subjects were male students, and…

Learning style and teaching method preferences of Saudi students of physical therapy

PubMed Central

Al Maghraby, Mohamed A.; Alshami, Ali M.

2013-01-01

Context: To the researchers’ knowledge, there are no published studies that have investigated the learning styles and preferred teaching methods of physical therapy students in Saudi Arabia. Aim: The study was conducted to determine the learning styles and preferred teaching methods of Saudi physical therapy students. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional study design. Materials and Methods: Fifty-three Saudis studying physical therapy (21 males and 32 females) participated in the study. The principal researcher gave an introductory lecture to explain the different learning styles and common teaching methods. Upon completion of the lecture, questionnaires were distributed, and were collected on completion. Statistical Analysis Used: Percentages were calculated for the learning styles and teaching methods. Pearson’s correlations were performed to investigate the relationship between them. Results: More than 45 (85%) of the students rated hands-on training as the most preferred teaching method. Approximately 30 (57%) students rated the following teaching methods as the most preferred methods: “Advanced organizers,” “demonstrations,” and “multimedia activities.” Although 31 (59%) students rated the concrete-sequential learning style the most preferred, these students demonstrated mixed styles on the other style dimensions: Abstract-sequential, abstract-random, and concrete-random. Conclusions: The predominant concrete-sequential learning style is consistent with the most preferred teaching method (hands-on training). The high percentage of physical therapy students whose responses were indicative of mixed learning styles suggests that they can accommodate multiple teaching methods. It is recommended that educators consider the diverse learning styles of the students and utilize a variety of teaching methods in order to promote an optimal learning environment for the students. PMID:24672278

Students' Views on Physical Development and Physical Self-Concept in Adventure-Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gehris, Jeffrey; Kress, Jeff; Swalm, Ricky

2010-01-01

This study investigated 10th-grade students' views concerning the physical effects of an adventure-physical education curriculum and the potential of such a curriculum to enhance components of a multidimensional model of physical self-concept. Semistructured interviews were used to obtain students' views and participant observations were conducted…

Advanced Propulsion Physics Lab: Eagleworks Investigations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scogin, Tyler

2014-01-01

Eagleworks Laboratory is an advanced propulsions physics laboratory with two primary investigations currently underway. The first is a Quantum Vacuum Plasma Thruster (QVPT or Q-thrusters), an advanced electric propulsion technology in the development and demonstration phase. The second investigation is in Warp Field Interferometry (WFI). This is an investigation of Dr. Harold "Sonny" White's theoretical physics models for warp field equations using optical experiments in the Electro Optical laboratory (EOL) at Johnson Space Center. These investigations are pursuing technology necessary to enable human exploration of the solar system and beyond.

Student-patient communication during physical examination.

PubMed

Cleland, Jennifer; de la Croix, Anne; Cotton, Philip; Coull, Sharon; Skelton, John

2013-04-01

Communication during the physical examination has been understudied. Explicit, evidence-based guidance is not available as to the most effective content or process of communication while performing physical examination, or indeed how to teach this to medical students. The objective of this exploratory study was to explore how medical students communicate with patients when performing a physical examination in the absence of formal teaching on how to communicate in this situation. We recorded 15 senior UK medical students as they performed physical examinations with real patients in general practice situations. The transcriptions were analysed for linguistic functions to identify the use of different categories of utterances. Student utterances fell into four categories: minimising language; using positive evaluative language; repeating the patient; and stating intentions or explanations and requesting consent. Students would often preface an explanation or action by phrases showing 'togetherness', by using 'we' rather than 'you'. They also used linguistic 'hedges' to minimise the impact of an utterance. Senior medical students speak very little during the physical examination. When they do, they use a taxonomy of utterances that reflects those reported in doctor-patient interactions. Identifying how medical students communicate when carrying out the physical examination is the first step in planning how to best teach specific communication skills. Further work is needed to identify how best to explore communication during physical examination, and how this is taught and learned. © Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2013.

All Students Need Advanced Mathematics. Math Works

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Achieve, Inc., 2013

2013-01-01

This fact sheet explains that to thrive in today's world, all students will need to graduate with very strong math skills. That can only mean one thing: advanced math courses are now essential math courses. Highlights of this paper include: (1) Advanced math equals college success; (2) Advanced math equals career opportunity; and (3) Advanced math…

Student Questionnaire. [Harvard Project Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Welch, Wayne W.; Ahlgren, Andrew

This 60-item questionnaire was designed to gather general background information from students who had used the Harvard Project Physics curriculum. The instrument includes three 20-item subscales: (1) attitude toward physics, (2) career interest, and (3) student characteristics. Items are multiple choice (5 options), and the introductory material…

Audiovisual Physics Reports: Students' Video Production as a Strategy for the Didactic Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pereira, Marcus Vinicius; de Souza Barros, Susana; de Rezende Filho, Luiz Augusto C.; de A. Fauth, Leduc Hermeto

2012-01-01

Constant technological advancement has facilitated access to digital cameras and cell phones. Involving students in a video production project can work as a motivating aspect to make them active and reflective in their learning, intellectually engaged in a recursive process. This project was implemented in high school level physics laboratory…

Influence of High School Physical Education on University Student's Physical Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kimball, Jessica; Jenkins, Jayne; Wallhead, Tristan

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to use the Lifelong Physical Activity (LLPA) framework to examine the influence of high school physical education (PE) on university students' level of physical activity (PA). Participants included 365 undergraduate students from the Rocky Mountain West of the USA enrolled in a university physical activity course.…

Grounded Learning Experience: Helping Students Learn Physics through Visuo-Haptic Priming and Instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Shih-Chieh Douglas

In this dissertation, I investigate the effects of a grounded learning experience on college students' mental models of physics systems. The grounded learning experience consisted of a priming stage and an instruction stage, and within each stage, one of two different types of visuo-haptic representation was applied: visuo-gestural simulation (visual modality and gestures) and visuo-haptic simulation (visual modality, gestures, and somatosensory information). A pilot study involving N = 23 college students examined how using different types of visuo-haptic representation in instruction affected people's mental model construction for physics systems. Participants' abilities to construct mental models were operationalized through their pretest-to-posttest gain scores for a basic physics system and their performance on a transfer task involving an advanced physics system. Findings from this pilot study revealed that, while both simulations significantly improved participants' mental modal construction for physics systems, visuo-haptic simulation was significantly better than visuo-gestural simulation. In addition, clinical interviews suggested that participants' mental model construction for physics systems benefited from receiving visuo-haptic simulation in a tutorial prior to the instruction stage. A dissertation study involving N = 96 college students examined how types of visuo-haptic representation in different applications support participants' mental model construction for physics systems. Participant's abilities to construct mental models were again operationalized through their pretest-to-posttest gain scores for a basic physics system and their performance on a transfer task involving an advanced physics system. Participants' physics misconceptions were also measured before and after the grounded learning experience. Findings from this dissertation study not only revealed that visuo-haptic simulation was significantly more effective in promoting mental model

Opportunities for Regenerative Rehabilitation and Advanced Technologies in Physical Therapy: Perspective From Academia.

PubMed

Norland, Ryan; Muchnick, Matthew; Harmon, Zachary; Chin, Tiffany; Kakar, Rumit Singh

2016-04-01

As rehabilitation specialists, physical therapists must continue to stay current with advances in technologies to provide appropriate rehabilitation protocols, improve patient outcomes, and be the preferred clinician of choice. To accomplish this vision, the physical therapy profession must begin to develop a culture of lifelong learning at the early stages of education and clinical training in order to embrace cutting-edge advancements such as stem cell therapies, tissue engineering, and robotics, to name a few. The purposes of this article are: (1) to provide a current perspective on faculty and graduate student awareness of regenerative rehabilitation concepts and (2) to advocate for increased integration of these emerging technologies within the doctor of physical therapy (DPT) curriculum. An online survey was designed to gauge awareness of principles in regenerative rehabilitation and to determine whether the topic was included and assessed in doctoral curricula. The survey yielded 1,006 responses from 82 DPT programs nationwide and indicated a disconnect in familiarity with the term "regenerative rehabilitation" and awareness of the inclusion of this material in the curriculum. To resolve this disconnect, the framework of the curriculum can be used to integrate new material via guest lecturers, interdisciplinary partnerships, and research opportunities. Successfully mentoring a generation of clinicians and rehabilitation scientists who incorporate new medical knowledge and technology into their own clinical and research practice depends greatly on sharing the responsibility among graduate students, professors, the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), and DPT programs. Creating an interdisciplinary culture and integrating regenerative medicine and rehabilitation concepts into the curriculum will cultivate individuals who will be advocates for interprofessional behaviors and will ensure that the profession meets the goals stated in APTA Vision 2020. �

Factors Influencing Singapore Students' Choice of Physics as a Tertiary Field of Study: A Rasch analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oon, Pey-Tee; Subramaniam, R.

2013-01-01

Asian students often perform well in international science and mathematics assessments. Their attitude toward technical subjects, such as physics, remains curious for many. The present study examines Singapore school students' views on various aspects of physics according to whether they intend to choose physics as an advanced field of study. A sample of 1076 physics students, from 16 secondary schools and junior colleges, participated in this study. The students were categorized as physics choosers or non-choosers according to their indicated intention, as sought in the survey, to study or not to study physics as a major subject at university after their leaving level examinations. Rasch-anchored analysis was employed to interpret the results; the use of Rasch analysis has helped to overcome significantly the psychometric limitations inherent in the treatment of Likert scale type of data using traditional analysis. As expected, the image of physics as a difficult subject surfaced in the samples used in our study. The students recognized unequivocally the utilitarian value of physics: physics is said to enhance career options and is necessary for technological progress to occur in a country. They also showed high interest in school physics-this is so even for students who are not keen to study physics in the future, a finding which is at variance with other studies reported from Western countries. School physics is seen to be relevant, and physics teachers are viewed as being able to foster students' interest in physics. Laboratory work, enrichment activities, and physics textbooks were reported to be important in order to encourage students to like physics. Though the physics choosers showed greater intention in physics, they were generally not inclined to pursue physics-related careers after graduation. Parents and peers at school, on the other hand, are perceived to display unenthusiastic attitudes toward physics. Possible reasons for these are discussed along

Preparing physics students for careers outside of academia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Redmond, Kendra; Czujko, Roman; Sauncy, Toni

2014-03-01

Most undergraduate physics programs focus on preparing students for physics graduate school, but in reality around 40% of physics bachelor's degree recipients go directly into the workforce. In response to calls for more STEM workers and a desire to see more students of all ambitions benefit from a physics education, the American Institute of Physics has been exploring how physics departments can better prepare their students to enter the STEM workforce after the bachelor's degree, and how students can better prepare themselves to enter the STEM workforce. This poster will include results from this NSF-funded Career Pathways Project, including an overview of common features of departments that successfully prepare students to enter the workforce and a career toolbox we have created for physics students. Work supported by NSF award 1011829.

Free Radical Addition Polymerization Kinetics without Steady-State Approximations: A Numerical Analysis for the Polymer, Physical, or Advanced Organic Chemistry Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iler, H. Darrell; Brown, Amber; Landis, Amanda; Schimke, Greg; Peters, George

2014-01-01

A numerical analysis of the free radical addition polymerization system is described that provides those teaching polymer, physical, or advanced organic chemistry courses the opportunity to introduce students to numerical methods in the context of a simple but mathematically stiff chemical kinetic system. Numerical analysis can lead students to an…

Teaching Physics to Premedical Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schantz, Hans

1997-04-01

The MCAT exam (taken by students seeking entry to medical school) is drastically different from the standard university course test. The MCAT emphasizes reading and analytic skills far more than quantitative analysis, even on the sections that test physics. I describe these differences, and outline an introductory physics curriculum focused to the special needs of pre-medical students.

Effects of California community college students' gender, self-efficacy, and attitudes and beliefs toward physics on conceptual understanding of Newtonian mechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Said, Asma

Despite the advances made in various fields, women are still considered as minorities in the fields of science and mathematics. There is a gender gap regarding women's participation and achievement in physics. Self-efficacy and attitudes and beliefs toward physics have been identified as predictors of students' performance on conceptual surveys in physics courses. The present study, which used two-way analysis of variance and multiple linear regression analyses at a community college in California, revealed there is no gender gap in achievement between male and female students in physics courses. Furthermore, there is an achievement gap between students who are enrolled in algebra-based and calculus-based physics courses. The findings indicate that attitudes and beliefs scores can be used as predictors of students' performance on conceptual surveys in physics courses. However, scores of self-efficacy cannot be used as predictors of students' performance on conceptual surveys in physics courses.

Physical activity patterns in American high school students. Results from the 1990 Youth Risk Behavior Survey.

PubMed

Heath, G W; Pratt, M; Warren, C W; Kann, L

1994-11-01

To assess by self-reported participation in vigorous physical activity, the quantity and quality of school physical education, team sports, and television watching among 11,631 American high school students. Of all students in grades 9 through 12, 37% reported engaging in 20 minutes of vigorous physical activity three or more times per week. Participation in vigorous physical activity was higher among boys than girls (P < .01) and higher among white students than among those of other races and ethnic groups (P < .01). Overall, 43.7% of boys and 52% of girls reported that they were not enrolled in physical education classes. Of the students who reported attending physical education class during the past 2 weeks, 33.2% reported exercising 20 minutes or more in physical education class three to five times per week. In contrast, rates of participation in varsity and junior varsity sports remained constant across grade levels, but participation in recreational physical activity programs showed a lesser magnitude and also decreased with advancing grade. More than 70% of students reported spending at least 1 hour watching television each school day, and more than 35% reported watching television 3 hours or more each school day. Participation in vigorous physical activity and physical education class time devoted to physical activity are substantially below the goals set in Healthy People 2000. As students move toward graduation, we observed disturbing declines in participation in community recreation programs and overall vigorous activity. Students appear to spend considerably more time watching television than participating in physical activity. Public health efforts should focus on increasing the physical activity levels of our youth to enhance their current well-being and to reduce the risks of future chronic disease.

Student-Centered Physical Education on a Shoestring Budget

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Treadwell, Sheri M.

2013-01-01

Nationwide, only 56% of students attended physical education class on one or more days per week, and only 33% of students attended physical education daily in 2009. Physical educators have the responsibility to create positive experiences in physical education, as well as to develop physical skills and feelings of self-efficacy in their students.…

Health-related physical fitness and physical activity in elementary school students.

PubMed

Chen, Weiyun; Hammond-Bennett, Austin; Hypnar, Andrew; Mason, Steve

2018-01-30

This study examined associations between students' physical fitness and physical activity (PA), as well as what specific physical fitness components were more significant correlates to being physically active in different settings for boys and girls. A total of 265 fifth-grade students with an average age of 11 voluntarily participated in this study. The students' physical fitness was assessed using four FitnessGram tests, including Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER), curl-up, push-up, and trunk lift tests. The students' daily PA was assessed in various settings using a daily PA log for 7 days. Data was analyzed with descriptive statistics, univariate analyses, and multiple R-squared liner regression methods. Performance on the four physical fitness tests was significantly associated with the PA minutes spent in physical education (PE) class and recess for the total sample and for girls, but not for boys. Performance on the four fitness tests was significantly linked to participation in sports/dances outside school and the total weekly PA minutes for the total sample, boys, and girls. Further, boys and girls who were the most physically fit spent significantly more time engaging in sports/dances and had greater total weekly PA than boys and girls who were not physically fit. In addition, the physically fit girls were more physically active in recess than girls who were not physically fit. Overall, students' performance on the four physical fitness tests was significantly associated with them being physically active during PE and in recess and engaging in sports/dances, as well as with their total weekly PA minutes, but not with their participation in non-organized physical play outside school. ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT03015337 , registered date: 1/09/2017, as "retrospectively registered".

Refined Characterization of Student Perspectives on Quantum Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baily, Charles; Finkelstein, Noah D.

2010-01-01

The perspectives of introductory classical physics students can often negatively influence how those students later interpret quantum phenomena when taking an introductory course in modern physics. A detailed exploration of student perspectives on the interpretation of quantum physics is needed, both to characterize student understanding of…

Motivating Students To Read Physics Content.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sprague, Marsha M.; Cotturone, Jennifer

2003-01-01

Describes effective projects that made students effectively read scientific materials in the physics content area. Suggests using trade books in science to enhance student learning of basic physics concepts and comprehension of technical reading matter. (KHR)

Partners in Physics with Colorado School of Mines' Society of Physics Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moore, Shirley; Stilwell, Matthew; Boerner, Zach

2011-04-01

The Colorado School of Mines (CSM) Society of Physics Students (SPS) revitalized in 2008 and has since blown up with outreach activity, incorporating all age levels into our programs. In Spring 2010, CSM SPS launched a new program called Partners in Physics. Students from Golden High School came to CSM where they had a college-level lesson on standing waves and their applications. These students then joined volunteers from CSM in teaching local elementary school students about standing waves beginning with a science show. The CSM and high school students then helped the children to build make-and-take demonstrations incorporating waves. This year, rockets are the theme for Partners in Physics and we began with demonstrations with local middle school students. In Spring 2011, CSM SPS will be teaching elementary school students about projectile motion and model rockets along with these middle school students. Colorado School of Mines Department of Physics

Students' views about the nature of experimental physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilcox, Bethany R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2017-12-01

The physics community explores and explains the physical world through a blend of theoretical and experimental studies. The future of physics as a discipline depends on training of students in both the theoretical and experimental aspects of the field. However, while student learning within lecture courses has been the subject of extensive research, lab courses remain relatively under-studied. In particular, there is little, if any, data available that address the effectiveness of physics lab courses at encouraging students to recognize the nature and importance of experimental physics within the discipline as a whole. To address this gap, we present the first large-scale, national study (Ninstitutions=75 and Nstudents=7167 ) of undergraduate physics lab courses through analysis of students' responses to a research-validated assessment designed to investigate students' beliefs about the nature of experimental physics. We find that students often enter and leave physics lab courses with ideas about experimental physics as practiced in their courses that are inconsistent with the views of practicing experimental physicists, and this trend holds at both the introductory and upper-division levels. Despite this inconsistency, we find that both introductory and upper-division students are able to accurately predict the expertlike response even in cases where their views about experimentation in their lab courses disagree. These finding have implications for the recruitment, retention, and adequate preparation of students in physics.

Barriers to Physical Activity on University Student

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jajat; Sultoni, K.; Suherman, A.

2017-03-01

The purpose of the research is to analyze the factors that become barriers to physical activity in university students based on physical activity level. An internet-based survey was conducted. The participants were 158 University students from Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia. Barriers to Physical Activity Quiz (BPAQ) were used to assessed the factors that become barriers to physical activity in university students. IPAQ (short form) were used to assessed physical activity level. The results show there was no differences BPAQ based on IPAQ level. But when analyzed further based on seven factors barriers there are differences in factors “social influence and lack of willpower” based IPAQ level. Based on this it was concluded that the “influence from other and lack of willpower” an inhibiting factor on students to perform physical activity.

Advances in Solid State Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kramer, Bernhard

The present volume 45 of Advances in Solid-State Physics contains the written versions of selected invited lectures from the spring meeting of the Arbeitskreis Festkörperphysik of the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft in the World Year of Physics 2005, the Einstein Year, which was held from 4 - 11 March 2005 in Berlin, Germany. Many topical talks given at the numerous symposia are included. Most of these were organized collaboratively by several of the divisions of the Arbeitskreis. The book presents, to some extent, the status of the field of solid-state physics in 2005 not only in Germany but also internationally.

The Advanced Interdisciplinary Research Laboratory: A Student Team Approach to the Fourth-Year Research Thesis Project Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piunno, Paul A. E.; Boyd, Cleo; Barzda, Virginijus; Gradinaru, Claudiu C.; Krull, Ulrich J.; Stefanovic, Sasa; Stewart, Bryan

2014-01-01

The advanced interdisciplinary research laboratory (AIRLab) represents a novel, effective, and motivational course designed from the interdisciplinary research interests of chemistry, physics, biology, and education development faculty members as an alternative to the independent thesis project experience. Student teams are assembled to work…

Physical Activity Participation and Nutrition and Physical Activity Knowledge in University Dance Students.

PubMed

Hanna, Katherine; Hanley, Anne; Huddy, Avril; McDonald, Michael; Willer, Fiona

2017-03-01

To assess participation in physical activity and knowledge of general nutrition and current public health messages about the health benefits of physical activity in university dance students, and to investigate differences between first-year and later-year students and between students in dance and dance performance course groups. This cross-sectional study recruited 67 participants from dance undergraduate degrees in a university in Australia. Nutrition knowledge was assessed using the General Nutrition Knowledge Questionnaire. Physical activity participation and awareness of its benefits were assessed using the Active Australia Survey. Results indicate low nutrition knowledge among dance students, with 47% and 52% of responses correct in dance and dance performance students, respectively. Nutrition knowledge did not vary between students in first or later years. Self-reported participation in moderate and vigorous physical activity varied substantially and met or exceeded recommendations based upon duration and frequency for 98% of participants. However, awareness of physical activity messages varied, with dance students more likely to disagree about the level of activity needed for health benefits. Dance students report varying levels of physical activity that usually met or exceeded recommendations; however, knowledge of general nutrition and physical activity benefits was low. Improved knowledge could contribute to changes in behavior that improve health status in this population.

The roots of physics students' motivations: Fear and integrity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Dusen, Ben

Too often, physics students are beset by feelings of failure and isolation rather than experiencing the creative joys of discovery that physics has to offer. This dissertation research was founded on the desire of a teacher to make physics class exciting and motivating to his students. This work explores how various aspects of learning environments interact with student motivation. This work uses qualitative and quantitative methods to explore how students are motivated to engage in physics and how they feel about themselves while engaging in physics. The collection of four studies in this dissertation culminates in a sociocultural perspective on motivation and identity. This perspective uses two extremes of how students experience physics as a lens for understanding motivation: fear and self-preservation versus integrity and self-expression. Rather than viewing motivation as a property of the student, or viewing students as inherently interested or disinterested in physics, the theoretical perspective on motivation and identity helps examine features of the learning environments that determine how students' experience themselves through physics class. This perspective highlights the importance of feeling a sense of belonging in the context of physics and the power that teachers have in shaping students' motivation through the construction of their classroom learning environments. Findings demonstrate how different ways that students experience themselves in physics class impact their performance and interest in physics. This dissertation concludes with a set of design principles that can foster integration and integrity among students in physics learning environments.

Advancing the Relationship between Business School Ranking and Student Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elbeck, Matt

2009-01-01

This commentary advances a positive relationship between a business school's ranking in the popular press and student learning by advocating market-oriented measures of student learning. A framework for student learning is based on the Assurance of Learning mandated by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International,…

2015 Final Reports from the Los Alamos National Laboratory Computational Physics Student Summer Workshop

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Runnels, Scott Robert; Caldwell, Wendy; Brown, Barton Jed

The two primary purposes of LANL’s Computational Physics Student Summer Workshop are (1) To educate graduate and exceptional undergraduate students in the challenges and applications of computational physics of interest to LANL, and (2) Entice their interest toward those challenges. Computational physics is emerging as a discipline in its own right, combining expertise in mathematics, physics, and computer science. The mathematical aspects focus on numerical methods for solving equations on the computer as well as developing test problems with analytical solutions. The physics aspects are very broad, ranging from low-temperature material modeling to extremely high temperature plasma physics, radiation transportmore » and neutron transport. The computer science issues are concerned with matching numerical algorithms to emerging architectures and maintaining the quality of extremely large codes built to perform multi-physics calculations. Although graduate programs associated with computational physics are emerging, it is apparent that the pool of U.S. citizens in this multi-disciplinary field is relatively small and is typically not focused on the aspects that are of primary interest to LANL. Furthermore, more structured foundations for LANL interaction with universities in computational physics is needed; historically interactions rely heavily on individuals’ personalities and personal contacts. Thus a tertiary purpose of the Summer Workshop is to build an educational network of LANL researchers, university professors, and emerging students to advance the field and LANL’s involvement in it. This report includes both the background for the program and the reports from the students.« less

Students' views about the nature of experimental physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilcox, Bethany

2017-04-01

The physics community explores and explains the physical world through a blend of theoretical and experimental studies. The future of physics as a discipline depends on training of students in both the theoretical and experimental aspects of the field. However, while student learning within lecture courses has been the subject of extensive research, lab courses remain relatively under-studied. In particular, there is little, if any, data available that addresses the effectiveness of physics lab courses at encouraging students to recognize the nature and importance of experimental physics within the discipline as a whole. To address this gap, we present the first large-scale, national study (Ninstitutions = 71 and Nstudents = 7167) of undergraduate physics lab courses through analysis of students' responses to a research-validated assessment designed to investigate students' beliefs about the nature of experimental physics. We find that students often enter and leave physics lab courses with ideas about experimental physics that are inconsistent with the views of practicing experimental physicists, and this trend holds at both the introductory and upper-division levels. Despite this inconsistency, we find that both introductory and upper-division students are able to accurately predict the expert-like response even in cases where their personal views disagree. These finding have implications for the recruitment, retention, and adequate preparation of students in physics. This work was funded by the NSF-IUSE Grant No. DUE-1432204 and NSF Grant No. PHY-1125844.

Improving student learning and views of physics in a large enrollment introductory physics class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salehzadeh Einabad, Omid

Introductory physics courses often serve as gatekeepers for many scientific and engineering programs and, increasingly, colleges are relying on large, lecture formats for these courses. Many students, however, leave having learned very little physics and with poor views of the subject. In interactive engagement (IE), classroom activities encourage students to engage with each other and with physics concepts and to be actively involved in their own learning. These methods have been shown to be effective in introductory physics classes with small group recitations. This study examined student learning and views of physics in a large enrollment course that included IE methods with no separate, small-group recitations. In this study, a large, lecture-based course included activities that had students explaining their reasoning both verbally and in writing, revise their ideas about physics concepts, and apply their reasoning to various problems. The questions addressed were: (a) What do students learn about physics concepts and how does student learning in this course compare to that reported in the literature for students in a traditional course?, (b) Do students' views of physics change and how do students' views of physics compare to that reported in the literature for students in a traditional course?, and (c) Which of the instructional strategies contribute to student learning in this course? Data included: pre-post administration of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), classroom exams during the term, pre-post administration of the Colorado Learning Attitudes About Science Survey (CLASS), and student work, interviews, and open-ended surveys. The average normalized gain (=0.32) on the FCI falls within the medium-gain range as reported in the physics education literature, even though the average pre-test score was very low (30%) and this was the instructor's first implementation of IE methods. Students' views of physics remained relatively unchanged by instruction

Problem-Based Learning in Physics: The Power of Students Teaching Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duch, Barbara J.

1996-01-01

Describes an honors general physics course designed to demonstrate to students that physics is vital to their understanding of physiology, medicine, the human body, rehabilitation, and other health fields. Presents evidence that indicates that active group learning and connections to real-world applications help students learn physics and apply…

Students' Physical Growth: Developmental Framework, Physical Dimension.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Patterson, Donna; And Others

Alberta Education's position on the physical growth of students is presented in this paper, which focuses on children's physical growth in the areas of perceptual, structural, and motor development. Each area is first discussed in terms of three age groups: the child from infancy to preschool, the elementary child, and the adolescent. Concluding…

Gender Differences in the High School and Affective Experiences of Introductory College Physics Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hazari, Zahra; Sadler, Philip M.; Tai, Robert H.

2008-10-01

The disparity in persistence between males and females studying physics has been a topic of concern to physics educators for decades. Overall, while female students perform as well as or better than male students, they continue to lag considerably in terms of persistence. The most significant drop in females studying physics occurs between high school and college.2 Since most female physicists report that they became attracted to physics and decided to study it further while in high school, according to the International Study of Women in Physics,3 it is problematic that high school is also the stage at which females begin to opt out at much higher rates than males. Although half of the students taking one year of physics in high school are female, females are less likely than males to take a second or Advanced Placement (AP) physics course.4 In addition, the percentage of females taking the first physics course in college usually falls between 30% and 40%. In other words, although you may see gender parity in a first high school physics course, this parity does not usually persist to the next level of physics course. In addition, even if there is parity in a high school physics course, it does not mean that males and females experience the course in the same way. It is this difference in experience that may help to explain the drop in persistence of females.

[The evaluation of physical development of students].

PubMed

2012-01-01

The article demonstrates that physical health of university students is conditioned by the aggregate of morpho-functional indices and depends on the development of physical qualities of students. The evaluation of mass/height indicators of female students demonstrates the increase of total body size and weakness of body build. The testing of physical readiness testified the ambiguity of high-speed and high-speed/power qualities and results of stamina evaluation.

Characteristics of the General Physics student population.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hunt, Gary L.

2006-12-01

Are pre-medical students different than the other students in a General physics class? They often appear to be different, based on how often they seek help from the instructor or how nervous they are about 2 points on a lab report. But are these students different in a measurable characteristic? The purpose of this study is to better understand the characteristics of the students in the introductory physics classes. This is the first step toward improving the instruction. By better understanding the students the classroom, the organization and pedagogy can be adjusted to optimize student learning. The characteristics to be investigated during this study are: · student epistemological structure, · student attitudes, · science course preparation prior to this course, · study techniques used, · physics concepts gained during the class · performance in the class. The data will be analyzed to investigate differences between groups. The groups investigated will be major, gender, and traditional/nontraditional students.

Student Blogging about Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daniels, Karen E.

2010-01-01

In traditional introductory physics classes, there is often limited opportunity for students to contribute their own ideas, interests, and experiences as they engage with the subject matter. This situation is exacerbated in university lecture-format classes, where students may not feel comfortable speaking during class. In the last few years,…

Understanding Female Students' Physics Identity Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hazari, Zahra

2017-01-01

While the gender gap in physics participation is a known problem, practical strategies that may improve the situation are not well understood. As physics education researchers, we draw on evidence to help inform us of what may or may not be working. To this end, physics identity has proven to be a useful framework for understanding and predicting participation in physics. Drawing on data from national surveys of college students, case studies in physics classes, and surveys of undergraduate women in physics, we identify strategies that are predictive of female students' physics identity development from their high school and undergraduate physics experiences. These findings will be discussed as well as future directions for using this research to increase the recruitment of women to physics-related careers. NSF Grant # 1431846.

Physical Education Students' Ownership, Empowerment, and Satisfaction With PE and Physical Activity.

PubMed

Moore, E Whitney G; Fry, Mary D

2017-12-01

Individuals experiencing a highly caring, task-involving, and low ego-involving exercise climate have reported greater ownership in exercise class and empowerment to exercise in general. This study examined the relationship between ownership and empowerment in exercise, with 2 context-specific outcomes, satisfaction with physical education (PE) and physical activity, respectively. Given the mission of PE to foster individuals' lifelong physical activity habit, the perceptions of high school students were collected for this study. Ownership in exercise was hypothesized to be significantly, positively correlated with students reporting satisfaction in PE more than their satisfaction in physical activity, whereas empowerment in exercise was hypothesized to be more strongly, positively correlated with students' physical activity satisfaction. A second purpose of this study was to test the measurement quality of the updated Empowerment in Exercise Scale (EES; now 13 items). High school students (N = 502, 43% female) in a Midwestern U.S. school district completed a survey. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the internal measurement structure of the EES (λ = .62-.91; McDonald's omega = .89) across student gender (strong invariance). Additionally, the structural equation modeling analysis revealed only 1 parameter moderated by the students' gender (latent mean of ownership). The hypotheses were supported, such that ownership in exercise was more strongly correlated with PE satisfaction (r = .87) and empowerment in exercise had a stronger correlation with physical activity satisfaction (r = .92). These results support the beneficial effect a satisfying experience in PE can have on students' satisfaction with physical activity outside of school.

Relationships between physical education students' motivational profiles, enjoyment, state anxiety, and self-reported physical activity.

PubMed

Yli-Piipari, Sami; Watt, Anthony; Jaakkola, Timo; Liukkonen, Jarmo; Nurmi, Jari-Erik

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyze motivational profiles based on the self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan, 2000) and how these profiles are related to physical education students' enjoyment, state anxiety, and physical activity. The participants, 429 sixth grade students (girls = 216; boys = 213) completed SMS, Sport Enjoyment Scale, PESAS, and Physical Activity Scale. Cluster analyses identified two motivational profiles: 1) the "High motivation profile", in which the students had high intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and low levels of amotivation, and 2) the "Low motivation profile", in which the students had low intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and low levels of amotivation. The students in the first cluster enjoyed physical education more and were physically more active. The results revealed that students may be motivated towards physical education lessons both intrinsically and extrinsically, and still experience enjoyment in physical education. Key pointsTWO MOTIVATIONAL PROFILES WERE REVEALED: 1) the "High motivation profile", in which the students had high intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and low levels of amotivation, and 2) the "Low motivation profile", in which the students had low intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and low levels of amotivation.The students in the first profile enjoyed physical education more and were physically more active than the students in the second profile.Moreover, the representatives of the "High motivation profile "experienced greater anxiety toward physical education than the representatives of the "Low motivation profile"These findings raised an interesting question whether students engaging in physical education benefit more from the presence of both self-determined and non-self-determined forms of motivation, or are the benefits higher if students are primarily self-determined?

2016 Final Reports from the Los Alamos National Laboratory Computational Physics Student Summer Workshop

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Runnels, Scott Robert; Bachrach, Harrison Ian; Carlson, Nils

The two primary purposes of LANL’s Computational Physics Student Summer Workshop are (1) To educate graduate and exceptional undergraduate students in the challenges and applications of computational physics of interest to LANL, and (2) Entice their interest toward those challenges. Computational physics is emerging as a discipline in its own right, combining expertise in mathematics, physics, and computer science. The mathematical aspects focus on numerical methods for solving equations on the computer as well as developing test problems with analytical solutions. The physics aspects are very broad, ranging from low-temperature material modeling to extremely high temperature plasma physics, radiation transportmore » and neutron transport. The computer science issues are concerned with matching numerical algorithms to emerging architectures and maintaining the quality of extremely large codes built to perform multi-physics calculations. Although graduate programs associated with computational physics are emerging, it is apparent that the pool of U.S. citizens in this multi-disciplinary field is relatively small and is typically not focused on the aspects that are of primary interest to LANL. Furthermore, more structured foundations for LANL interaction with universities in computational physics is needed; historically interactions rely heavily on individuals’ personalities and personal contacts. Thus a tertiary purpose of the Summer Workshop is to build an educational network of LANL researchers, university professors, and emerging students to advance the field and LANL’s involvement in it.« less

Relations between the school physical environment and school social capital with student physical activity levels.

PubMed

Button, Brenton; Trites, Stephen; Janssen, Ian

2013-12-17

The physical and social environments at schools are related to students' moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels. The purpose of this study was to explore the interactive effects of the school physical environment and school social capital on the MVPA of students while at school. Data from 18,875 grade 6-10 students from 331 schools who participated in the 2009/10 Canadian Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children survey were analyzed using multi-level regression. Students answered questions on the amount of time they spend in MVPA at school and on their school's social capital. Administrator reports were used to create a physical activity related physical environment score. The school physical environment score was positively associated with student MVPA at school (β = 0.040, p < .005). The association between the school social capital and MVPA was also positive (β = 0.074, p < .001). The difference in physical environments equated to about 20 minutes/week of MVPA for students attending schools with the lowest number of physical environment features and about 40 minutes/week for students attending schools with the lowest school social capital scores by comparison to students attending schools with the highest scores. The findings suggest that school social capital may be a more important factor in increasing students MVPA than the school physical environment. The results of this study may help inform interventions aimed at increasing student physical activity levels.

Situated Self-efficacy in Introductory Physics Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Henderson, Rachel; DeVore, Seth; Michaluk, Lynnette; Stewart, John

2017-01-01

Within the general university environment, students' perceived self-efficacy has been widely studied and findings suggest it plays a role in student success. The current research adapted a self-efficacy survey, from the ``Self-Efficacy for Learning Performance'' subscale of the Motivated Learning Strategies Questionnaire and administered it to the introductory, calculus-based physics classes (N=1005) over the fall 2015 and spring 2016 semesters. This assessment measured students' self-efficacy in domains including the physics class, other science and mathematics classes, and their intended future career. The effect of gender was explored with the only significant gender difference (p < . 001) existing within the physics domain. A hierarchical linear regression analysis indicated that this gender difference was not explained by a student's performance which was measured by test average. However, a mediation analysis showed that students' overall academic self-efficacy, measured by their math and science self-efficacy, acts as a mediator for the effect of test average on self-efficacy towards the physics class domain. This mediation effect was significant for both female (p < . 01) and male students (p < . 001) however, it was more pronounced for male students.

Replicating effective pedagogical approaches from introductory physics to improve student learning of quantum mechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sayer, Ryan Thomas

Upper-level undergraduate students entering a quantum mechanics (QM) course are in many ways similar to students entering an introductory physics course. Numerous studies have investigated the difficulties that novices face in introductory physics as well as the pedagogical approaches that are effective in helping them overcome those difficulties. My research focuses on replicating effective approaches and instructional strategies used in introductory physics courses to help advanced students in an upper-level QM course. I have investigated the use of Just-in-time Teaching (JiTT) and peer discussion involving clicker questions in an upper-level quantum mechanics course. The JiTT approach including peer discussions was effective in helping students overcome their difficulties and improve their understanding of QM concepts. Learning tools, such as a Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorial (QuILT) based on the Doubleslit Experiment (DSE) which I helped develop, have been successful in helping upper-level undergraduate students improve their understanding of QM. Many students have also demonstrated the ability to transfer knowledge from a QuILT based on the Mach-Zehnder interferometer while working on the DSE QuILT. In addition, I have been involved in implementing research-based activities during our semester-long professional development course for teaching assistants (TAs). In one intervention, TAs were asked to grade student solutions to introductory physics problems first using their choice of method, then again using a rubric designed to promote effective problem-solving approaches, then once more at the end of the semester using their choice of method. This intervention found that many TAs have ingrained beliefs about the purposes of grading which include placing the burden of proof on the instructor as well as a belief that grading cannot serve as a formative assessment. I also compared TAs grading practices and considerations when grading student solutions to QM

The Seventh Annual National Conference of Black Physics Students

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Crawley, Gerard M.

1993-01-01

The National Conference of Black Physics Students began in 1986 when several Black physics graduate students at MIT and Harvard decided to address the 'pipeline problem' of African Americans in physics by organizing a conference for Black physics undergraduates. The goals of the conference were: (1) to develop a network within the Black physics community, (2) to make Black students in physics, particularly at graduate level, aware of academic and professional opportunities and (3) to bring important issues and developments in the field to the attention of these students. We are pleased to announce the Seventh Annual National Conference of Black Physics Students held February 12 and 13, 1993 served the largest population of students so far. The largest conference previous to this one hosted 150 students. We registered and prepared for 240 students with 210 actually attenting. We received so many qualified abstracts for technical talks by students that instead of NCBPS's tradition of 3-4 student presentations, we ran 4 parallel sessions in different rooms with 4-5 presentations in each room. In response to comments from previous conferences, the program contained 3 workshop/discussion sessions. The topics for the interactive discussion workshops were: 'Getting Ready for Graduate School,' 'How to Succeed in Graduate School,' and 'Issues Facing Black Scientists.'

The Influence of Physical Education on Physical Activity Levels of Urban Elementary Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dauenhauer, Brian D.; Keating, Xiaofen D.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of physical education in shaping physical activity patterns. Seventy-one Hispanic and African American elementary students participated in the study. Students attended one 30- and one 60-min physical education class weekly. Pedometer steps were used to estimate physical activity. Data suggest that…

Gender Differences in College Students' Perceptions of Same-Sex Sexual Harassment: The Influence of Physical Attractiveness and Attitudes toward Lesbians and Gay Men

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Castillo, Yenys; Muscarella, Frank; Szuchman, Lenore T.

2011-01-01

This study examined college students' perceptions of same-sex harassment as a function of the observer's gender, the initiator's physical attractiveness, and observers' attitudes toward lesbians and gay men. Ninety-six college students read a scenario portraying a professor's sexual advances toward a student. The Perception of Harassment…

An Analysis of Middle School Students Physical Education Physical Activity Preferences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Grant; Hannon, James C.

2008-01-01

The idea of providing student's choice over curricular offerings in physical education has gained a considerable amount of attention in recent years. The purpose of this study was to determine which physical education activities middle school students would like to have included in the yearly curriculum and if there were differences in responses…

Do as I do: exercise habits of physical therapists, physical therapist assistants, and student physical therapists.

PubMed

Chevan, Julia; Haskvitz, Esther M

2010-05-01

Physical therapy practitioners are among the many health care professionals who can counsel their patients to address the public health care concern of physical inactivity. Health care providers who are physically active themselves are more likely to counsel patients on the benefits of activity. The purposes of this study were: (1) to examine the leisure-time physical activity habits of physical therapists, physical therapist assistants, and student physical therapists in the United States using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and American College of Sports Medicine (CDC-ACSM) recommendations and (2) to compare these habits with those of the general population and other health care professionals. A cross-sectional survey design was used. There were 2 data sources. A random sample of American Physical Therapy Association members completed an online survey that included questions about physical activity habits worded in same manner as the leisure-time activities section of the 2005 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The final study sample comprised 1,238 participants: 923 physical therapists, 210 student physical therapists, and 105 physical therapist assistants. The 2005 NHIS public use data files were the source for the same information about the general US population and for a subset of health care professionals. Rates of participation in vigorous and moderate physical activity were analyzed. Physical therapists, physical therapist assistants, and student physical therapists exercised at higher rates than adults and health-diagnosing professionals in the 2005 NHIS. Limitations The study may be limited by sampling and response bias. This study identified that physical therapists, physical therapist assistants, and student physical therapists are meeting CDC-ACSM physical activity guidelines at higher rates than the US adult population and health-diagnosing professionals. These rates exceed the physical activity targets set for adults in Healthy

Relations between the school physical environment and school social capital with student physical activity levels

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background The physical and social environments at schools are related to students’ moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels. The purpose of this study was to explore the interactive effects of the school physical environment and school social capital on the MVPA of students while at school. Methods Data from 18,875 grade 6–10 students from 331 schools who participated in the 2009/10 Canadian Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children survey were analyzed using multi-level regression. Students answered questions on the amount of time they spend in MVPA at school and on their school’s social capital. Administrator reports were used to create a physical activity related physical environment score. Results The school physical environment score was positively associated with student MVPA at school (β = 0.040, p < .005). The association between the school social capital and MVPA was also positive (β = 0.074, p < .001). The difference in physical environments equated to about 20 minutes/week of MVPA for students attending schools with the lowest number of physical environment features and about 40 minutes/week for students attending schools with the lowest school social capital scores by comparison to students attending schools with the highest scores. Conclusions The findings suggest that school social capital may be a more important factor in increasing students MVPA than the school physical environment. The results of this study may help inform interventions aimed at increasing student physical activity levels. PMID:24341628

Malaysian Students' Motivation towards Physics Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saleh, Salmiza

2014-01-01

The purpose of this survey study was to examine the level of Malaysian students' motivation with regards to the learning of Physics at the secondary school level, and its influencing factors. The study was carried out on 337 Form Four students who took Physics as a subject, from six schools in a northern state of Malaysia--three from urban areas,…

Hispanic Student Performance on Advanced Placement Exams: A Multiyear, National Investigation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jara, Teresa Dianne

2013-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze the Advanced Placement exams that Hispanic students complete and to compare their overall performance with the performance of White students from 2000 to 2012. A second purpose was to determine which Advanced Placement exams were the most difficult exams for Hispanic students and which Advanced…

Autonomy and the Student Experience in Introductory Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, Nicholas Ron

The role of autonomy in the student experience in a large-enrollment undergraduate introductory physics course was studied from a Self-Determination Theory perspective with two studies. Study I, a correlational study, investigated whether certain aspects of the student experience correlated with how autonomy supportive (vs. controlling) students perceived their instructors to be. An autonomy supportive instructor acknowledges students' perspectives, feelings, and perceptions and provides students with information and opportunities for choice, while minimizing external pressures. It was found that the degree to which students perceived their instructors as autonomy supportive was positively correlated with student interest and enjoyment in learning physics (beta=0.31***) and negatively correlated with student anxiety about taking physics (beta=-0.23**). It was also positively correlated with how autonomous (vs. controlled) students' reasons for studying physics became over the duration of the course (i.e., studying physics more because they wanted to vs. had to; beta=0.24***). This change in autonomous reasons for studying physics was in turn positively correlated with student performance in the course (beta=0.17*). Additionally, the degree to which students perceived their instructors as autonomy supportive was directly correlated with performance for those students entering the course with relatively autonomous reasons for studying physics (beta=0.25**). In summary, students who perceived their instructors as more autonomy supportive tended to have a more favorable experience in the course. If greater autonomy support was in fact the cause of a more favorable student experience, as suggested by Self-determination Theory and experimental studies in other contexts, these results would have implications for instruction and instructor professional development in similar contexts. I discuss these implications. Study II, an experimental study, investigated the effect

An Analysis of Metaphors Used by High School Students to Describe Physics, Physics Lesson and Physics Teacher

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Çetin, Ali

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to describe high school students' "physics", physics lesson" and "physics teacher" conceptions by using metaphors. 313 students participated in the study from different high school types in Siirt, Turkey. A metaphorical perception form constructed by researcher was individually conducted,…

Physics in advanced GNVQ Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sang, D.

1995-07-01

GNVQ Science is a vocational qualification for students in England, with a demand equivalent to traditional GCE A-levels. This article looks at the approach adopted by GNVQ to physics, and discusses the way in which appropriate teaching resources have been developed by the Nuffield Science in Practice project.

[THE COMPARISON BETWEEN FOOD HABITS AND PHYSICAL CONDITION AMONG PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND OTHER UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS].

PubMed

Valdes-Badilla, Pablo; Godoy-Cumillaf, Andrés; Herrera-Valenzuela, Tomás; Durán-Agüero, Samuel

2015-08-01

college students show a great susceptibility to acquire inadequate habits during their university studies, which they could maintain along their life. compare the dietary habits and physical fitness among physical education students and other university careers at the same university and campus. the sample included 343 students, mainly men (70%), 212 students from the career of Physical Education (PE) and 131 students of other careers (OC) of the Universidad Autónoma de Chile, Temuco campus. A validated survey about eating habits and physical fitness tests were applied to each student. in comparison with the students from other careers, the men of PE have a lower frequency of consumption of dairy, vegetables, alcohol (p < 0.05) and women of PE have higher frequency of consumption of homemade food, biscuits and sweet snacks (p < 0.05). Regarding the physical fitness, PE students obtained the best performance as was expected. no major differences were observed among the eating habits of students PE and OC from the same university, while physical fitness is consistent with the greater stimulus that the PE students receive in their academic training, which would serve as a excuse to consume more sugary drinks, junk food, cookies and sweet snacks. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

The effect of physical activity homework on physical activity among college students.

PubMed

Claxton, David; Wells, Gayle M

2009-03-01

This study examined the effect of using physical activity homework on physical activity levels of college students. Students in randomly assigned sections of a university health course were assigned 30 minutes of physical activity homework 3 days a week or no homework for 12 weeks. Participants completed self-reports of physical activity before the homework intervention and again at the conclusion of the 12 weeks of physical activity homework. Participants in all course sections reported significant increases in the number of days per week of moderate and vigorous physical activity. Participants in homework sections additionally showed significant increases in the days they engaged in muscular strength/endurance training and activities to manage weight. Participants in sections without homework showed a significant increase in the number of days engaged in flexibility training. Comparison of gain scores showed statistically significant increases by the homework group in the days they participated in activities designed to manage weight. Physical activity homework was deemed to be an effective method of increasing college students' levels of physical activity.

Student Voice: Student Choice and Participation in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

El-Sherif, Jennifer L.

2014-01-01

Secondary students frequently disengage from participating in physical education and physical activity. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends 60 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity per day, as well as muscle and bone strengthening activities on three or more days a week for children (CDC, n.d.). Physical education may be…

Physics for Allied Health Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goldick, Howard

2000-04-01

In this paper I will describe two courses that I have been teaching for the past 6 years to physical therapy and occupational therapy students Emphasis will be paced on those points that distinguish these courses from others with which I am familiar. I will discuss the syllabus: homework, exams, labs and the final grade. I will also present a topic outline of the courses showing how examples are drawn from the human body to illustrate the physics concept under discussion and to stimulate the students's interest in the material. The following basic concepts of physics will be covered (each with human body examples): vectors, components, statics, conservation of energy, efficiency, change of state, heat transfer, electric charge, electric field, voltage and capacitance.

An Introduction to Atmospheric Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrews, David G.

2000-09-01

This advanced undergraduate textbook clearly details how physics can be used to understand many important aspects of atmospheric behavior. Coverage presents a broad overview of atmospheric physics, including atmospheric thermodynamics, radiative transfer, atmospheric fluid dynamics and elementary atmospheric chemistry. Armed with an understanding of these topics, the interested student will be able to grasp the essential physics behind issues of current concern, such as the enhanced greenhouse effect and associated questions of climate change, the Antarctic ozone hole and global ozone depletion, as well as more familiar processes such as the formation of raindrops and the development of weather systems. This introductory textbook is ideal for advanced undergraduates studying atmospheric physics as part of physics, meteorology or environmental science courses. It will also be useful for graduate students studying atmospheric physics for the first time and for students of applied mathematics, physical chemistry and engineering who have an interest in the atmosphere.

Learning Styles of Physical Therapy and Physical Therapy Assistant Students in Accredited Physical Therapy Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lowdermilk, Margaret; Lampley, Jim; Tweed, Stephanie

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the learning styles of Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students and associate degree Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) students and identify any association between their learning styles and examine the association between gender and age by learning style. Participants included 337 DPT and PTA students…

Advanced computations in plasma physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, W. M.

2002-05-01

Scientific simulation in tandem with theory and experiment is an essential tool for understanding complex plasma behavior. In this paper we review recent progress and future directions for advanced simulations in magnetically confined plasmas with illustrative examples chosen from magnetic confinement research areas such as microturbulence, magnetohydrodynamics, magnetic reconnection, and others. Significant recent progress has been made in both particle and fluid simulations of fine-scale turbulence and large-scale dynamics, giving increasingly good agreement between experimental observations and computational modeling. This was made possible by innovative advances in analytic and computational methods for developing reduced descriptions of physics phenomena spanning widely disparate temporal and spatial scales together with access to powerful new computational resources. In particular, the fusion energy science community has made excellent progress in developing advanced codes for which computer run-time and problem size scale well with the number of processors on massively parallel machines (MPP's). A good example is the effective usage of the full power of multi-teraflop (multi-trillion floating point computations per second) MPP's to produce three-dimensional, general geometry, nonlinear particle simulations which have accelerated progress in understanding the nature of turbulence self-regulation by zonal flows. It should be emphasized that these calculations, which typically utilized billions of particles for thousands of time-steps, would not have been possible without access to powerful present generation MPP computers and the associated diagnostic and visualization capabilities. In general, results from advanced simulations provide great encouragement for being able to include increasingly realistic dynamics to enable deeper physics insights into plasmas in both natural and laboratory environments. The associated scientific excitement should serve to

Advanced Computation in Plasma Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, William

2001-10-01

Scientific simulation in tandem with theory and experiment is an essential tool for understanding complex plasma behavior. This talk will review recent progress and future directions for advanced simulations in magnetically-confined plasmas with illustrative examples chosen from areas such as microturbulence, magnetohydrodynamics, magnetic reconnection, and others. Significant recent progress has been made in both particle and fluid simulations of fine-scale turbulence and large-scale dynamics, giving increasingly good agreement between experimental observations and computational modeling. This was made possible by innovative advances in analytic and computational methods for developing reduced descriptions of physics phenomena spanning widely disparate temporal and spatial scales together with access to powerful new computational resources. In particular, the fusion energy science community has made excellent progress in developing advanced codes for which computer run-time and problem size scale well with the number of processors on massively parallel machines (MPP's). A good example is the effective usage of the full power of multi-teraflop MPP's to produce 3-dimensional, general geometry, nonlinear particle simulations which have accelerated progress in understanding the nature of turbulence self-regulation by zonal flows. It should be emphasized that these calculations, which typically utilized billions of particles for tens of thousands time-steps, would not have been possible without access to powerful present generation MPP computers and the associated diagnostic and visualization capabilities. In general, results from advanced simulations provide great encouragement for being able to include increasingly realistic dynamics to enable deeper physics insights into plasmas in both natural and laboratory environments. The associated scientific excitement should serve to stimulate improved cross-cutting collaborations with other fields and also to help attract

The Student as a Physical Being

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hubble, Jayne; and others

1969-01-01

The Study of Student Development at Kansas State University includes a physiological phase. Observations suggest importance of interaction of physical and social-psychological aspects of student development. (Author/CJ)

Content of Curriculum in Physical Education Teacher Education: Expectations of Undergraduate Physical Education Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spittle, Michael; Spittle, Sharna

2016-01-01

This study explored the perceptions of university physical education students of the importance of physical education curriculum content areas and how those perceptions related to the reasons for course choice and motivation. Physical education degree students (n = 188) completed measures of their perceptions of physical education content areas,…

Speaking Activities for the Advanced College-Bound Student.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henderson, Don

Three activities for developing speaking skills of advanced English as second language students are presented. Impromptu speaking, extemporaneous speaking, and debate activities are designed to train students to organize concepts, develop spontaneous oral skills, and enhance confidence and clarity of thought. Impromptu speaking develops…

Teachers' and Students' Perceptions of Effective Physics Teacher Characteristics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korur, Fikret; Eryilmaz, Ali

2012-01-01

Problem Statement: What do teachers and students in Turkey perceive as the common characteristics of effective physics teachers? Purpose of Study: The first aim was to investigate the common characteristics of effective physics teachers by asking students and teachers about the effects of teacher characteristics on student physics achievement and…

Teaching Advance Care Planning to Medical Students with a Computer-Based Decision Aid

PubMed Central

Levi, Benjamin H.

2013-01-01

Discussing end-of-life decisions with cancer patients is a crucial skill for physicians. This article reports findings from a pilot study evaluating the effectiveness of a computer-based decision aid for teaching medical students about advance care planning. Second-year medical students at a single medical school were randomized to use a standard advance directive or a computer-based decision aid to help patients with advance care planning. Students' knowledge, skills, and satisfaction were measured by self-report; their performance was rated by patients. 121/133 (91%) of students participated. The Decision-Aid Group (n=60) outperformed the Standard Group (n=61) in terms of students´ knowledge (p<0.01), confidence in helping patients with advance care planning (p<0.01), knowledge of what matters to patients (p=0.05), and satisfaction with their learning experience (p<0.01). Likewise, patients in the Decision Aid Group were more satisfied with the advance care planning method (p<0.01) and with several aspects of student performance. Use of a computer-based decision aid may be an effective way to teach medical students how to discuss advance care planning with cancer patients. PMID:20632222

University Students' Attitudes toward Physical Education Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Fengjuan; Chen, Junjun; Baker, Miles

2014-01-01

While there have been many studies into students' attitudes toward Physical Education at the school level, far fewer studies have been conducted at the university level, especially in China. This study explored 949 students' attitudes toward their university Physical Education experiences in four Chinese universities. An intercorrelated model of…

Physics gains attraction?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2000-01-01

A recent report from the American Institute of Physics has indicated that high school enrolments in physics in the USA have reached their highest level since World War II. Figures for the last decade show an increase in the proportion of high school students taking physics from 20 to 28% (800Â 000 students now), according to Physics Today (October 1999, p 68). The report, Maintaining Momentum: High School Physics for a New Millennium , was based on a 1997 survey of high school physics teachers, the fourth such since the mid-1980s. One conclusion drawn by the report's authors was that a broader range of physics courses is now offered, with increased popularity of `conceptual' physics courses using little algebra or trigonometry over the last ten years. The proportion of students with the strongest maths abilities now taking advanced placement or second-year physics has doubled since 1987. In addition the physics appeal has been noted among high school girls, where the percentage taking physics has risen from 39 to 47% in the ten years to 1997. These female students do not, however, seem to extend their studies into advanced placements or even into teaching physics (women constitute just a quarter of high school teachers of the subject). Sadly the good news is outweighed by the fact that physics still registers the lowest enrolments of all the high school sciences - about half those in chemistry for example. Indeed only around 1% of high school students have taken two years of physics before they graduate, which represents a much lower proportion than in many European and Asian countries. The full report can be viewed at the AIP's statistics division's homepage: www.aip.org/statistics/trends/hstrends.htm whilst summaries of the document are available free from the AIP, Education and Employment Statistics Division, One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740, USA.

Examining issues of underrepresented minority students in introductory physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watkins, Jessica Ellen

In this dissertation we examine several issues related to the retention of under-represented minority students in physics and science. In the first section, we show that in calculus-based introductory physics courses, the gender gap on the FCI is diminished through the use of interactive techniques, but in lower-level introductory courses, the gap persists, similar to reports published at other institutions. We find that under-represented racial minorities perform similar to their peers with comparable academic preparation on conceptual surveys, but their average exam grades and course grades are lower. We also examine student persistence in science majors; finding a significant relationship between pedagogy in an introductory physics course and persistence in science. In the second section, we look at student end-of-semester evaluations and find that female students rate interactive teaching methods a full point lower than their male peers. Looking more deeply at student interview data, we find that female students report more social issues related to the discussions in class and both male and female students cite feeling pressure to obtain the correct answer to clicker questions. Finally, we take a look an often-cited claim for gender differences in STEM participation: cognitive differences explain achievement differences in physics. We examine specifically the role of mental rotations in physics achievement and problem-solving, viewing mental rotations as a tool that students can use on physics problems. We first look at student survey results for lower-level introductory students, finding a low, but significant correlation between performance on a mental rotations test and performance in introductory physics courses. In contrast, we did not find a significant relationship for students in the upper-level introductory course. We also examine student problem-solving interviews to investigate the role of mental rotations on introductory problems.

Student Teachers' Attitudes about Basic Physics Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yesilyurt, Mustafa

2004-01-01

In this study an attitude questionnaire was developed and applied to identify student teachers' interests and attitudes for basic physics laboratory. In physics laboratory practices run by a higher education institution a new attitude questionnaire was developed and applied twice in two terms by researchers to increase student teachers' success…

Assessment of physical inactivity and perceived barriers to physical activity among health college students, south-western Saudi Arabia.

PubMed

Awadalla, N J; Aboelyazed, A E; Hassanein, M A; Khalil, S N; Aftab, R; Gaballa, I I; Mahfouz, A A

2014-10-20

Physical inactivity is a public health problem in Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study was carried out to evaluate the pattern of physical activity, predictors of physical inactivity and perceived barriers to physical activity among health college students in King Khalid University. A total of 1257 students (426 males and 831 females) were recruited. The Arabic short form of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire was used. Overall, 58.0% of the students were physically inactive. Only 13.4% of the students performed vigorous physical activity, 14.8% moderate-intensity physical activity and 29.9% walking activities which met World Health Organization criteria of health-enhancing physical activities. The prevalence of inactive leisure time was 47.5%. The independent predictors of physical inactivity were non-membership of sports clubs and being a medical student. The top reported barrier to physical activity among inactive students was time limitations (51.3%). Overcoming perceived barriers may increase physical activity among students.

Underachievement in Gifted Students: A Case Study of Three College Physics Students in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tsai, Kuei-Fang; Fu, Guopeng

2016-01-01

This case study provides an explanatory account on the underachievement of three gifted students studying physics in a Taiwanese university. The students' physics underachievement was diagnosed by Sato's student-problem analysis chart. These students were invited to complete a questionnaire and a follow-up interview in order to (1) understand the…

Active Learning in the Physics Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naron, Carol

Many students enter physics classes filled with misconceptions about physics concepts. Students tend to retain these misconceptions into their adult lives, even after physics instruction. Constructivist researchers have found that students gain understanding through their experiences. Researchers have also found that active learning practices increase conceptual understanding of introductory physics students. This project study sought to examine whether incorporating active learning practices in an advanced placement physics classroom increased conceptual understanding as measured by the force concept inventory (FCI). Physics students at the study site were given the FCI as both a pre- and posttest. Test data were analyzed using two different methods---a repeated-measures t test and the Hake gain method. The results of this research project showed that test score gains were statistically significant, as measured by the t test. The Hake gain results indicated a low (22.5%) gain for the class. The resulting project was a curriculum plan for teaching the mechanics portion of Advanced Placement (AP) physics B as well as several active learning classroom practices supported by the research. This project will allow AP physics teachers an opportunity to improve their curricular practices. Locally, the results of this project study showed that research participants gained understanding of physics concepts. Social change may occur as teachers implement active learning strategies, thus creating improved student understanding of physics concepts.

Tobacco abuse and physical activity among medical students

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Objective This lifestyle is mainly determined during childhood and connected with poor public prophylactic health policy. The aim of this study was to estimate physical activity and level of tobacco abuse, as well as knowledge about health behaviours, among medical students. Methods Questionnaires were completed by Polish (243) and foreign medical students (80). Results It was stated that about 20% of the students smoked cigarettes. Female students from Norway took up smoking significantly more often than other participants, whereas there were more smokers among those from Poland. There was a significantly larger percentage of smoking males from Norway than among male Polish students. The same students presented a low level of physical activity. The smallest level of physical activity was characteristic of the Polish women. Conclusion This situation requires an intensification of activities aimed at supporting pro-health lifestyles and the elimination of unfavourable effects, especially among medical students. PMID:20156733

A comparative study of middle school and high school students' views about physics and learning physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ding, Lin

2013-01-01

Previous studies of student epistemological beliefs about physics and learning physics focused on college and post-college students in Western countries. However, little is known about early-grade students in Asian countries. This paper reports Chinese middle and high school students' views about the nature of physics and learning physics, measured by the Colorado Learning Attitudes Survey about Science (CLASS). Two variables—school level and gender—are examined for a series of comparative analyses. Results show that although middle school students received fewer years of education in physics, they demonstrated more expert-like conceptions about this subject matter than high school students. Also, male students in general exhibited more expert-like views than their female counterparts. While such a gender difference remained constant across both middle and high schools, for the most part it was a small-size difference.

Hybrid Physical Vapor Deposition Instrument for Advanced Functional Multilayers and Materials

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-04-27

Hybrid Physical Vapor Deposition Instrument for Advanced Functional Multilayers and Materials PI Maria received support to construct a physical... vapor deposition (PVD) system that combines electron beam (e- beam) evaporation, magnetron sputtering, pulsed laser ablation, and ion-assisted deposition ...peer-reviewed journals: Number of Papers published in non peer-reviewed journals: Final Report: Hybrid Physical Vapor Deposition Instrument for Advanced

Expectancy beliefs and perceived values of Chinese college students in physical education and physical activity.

PubMed

Chen, Ang; Liu, Xinlan

2008-03-01

The expectancy-value theory postulates that motivation relies on individuals' beliefs of success, perceived Attainment, Intrinsic Interest, and Utility values and Cost. This study examined Chinese college students' expectancy-value motivation in relation to physical education and self-initiated physical activity. A random sample of 368 Chinese university students responded to questionnaires on perceived expectancy beliefs, perceived values, and cost in terms of their experiences in mandatory physical education programs and in self-initiated after-school physical activity. They reported their choice decisions for continuing physical education. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, X2, logistic and linear regressions. The physical education curriculum was perceived as a major cost to motivation. Motivated by the Intrinsic Interest and Utility value, most students chose to continue to take physical education. Self-initiated after-school physical activity was motivated by the Attainment value only. No association was found between self-initiated physical activity and Liking or Disliking of physical education. Motivation for physical education and for self-initiated physical activity derived from different perceived values. The Attainment value motivates the students for self-initiated physical activity, whereas Intrinsic Interest and Utility values motivate them to choose to continue physical education.

Listening Instruction and Practice for Advanced ESL Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Godfrey, Dennis

This paper attempts to enact Rivers' (1971 and 1972) urgings to base ESL listening instruction on both psychological and linguistic findings and contends that advanced ESL students' listening needs call for improvement in processing spoken English discourse. Psychological data on memory span is cited to demonstrate that advanced ESL students…

Adventures from Justin's Life: Engaging Your Physics Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ridgley, James A.; Herron, Sherry S.

2018-03-01

Many teachers have had students ask the proverbial question, "When will I ever use this in my life?" In the sciences, especially physics, teachers seem to battle this torrent of indifference continually. Although many areas of our students' lives can distract them from their academic pursuits, we as teachers must be introspective in order to prevent our teaching style from becoming one of our students' potential distractions. For example, a problem source with teaching physics may be an inability to successfully pique students' interest in our lessons. According to Barrett, student engagement is critical in order for learning to occur. Student engagement is so crucially important that researchers from across the globe attempt to assist teachers in the careful construction of pedagogical "hooks" whereby they can actively engage their students. A student who is not academically engaged may find little use for what is presented and may be bored stiff during the lesson. Regardless of your theoretical perspectives on learning, constructivists to traditionalists alike have no excuse to be boring, and therefore should engage their students before presenting physics concepts.

Instructors' Support of Student Autonomy in an Introductory Physics Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, Nicholas; Webb, David

2014-12-01

The role of autonomy in the student experience in a large-enrollment undergraduate introductory physics course was studied from a self-determination theory perspective. A correlational study investigated whether certain aspects of the student experience correlated with how autonomy supportive (versus controlling) students perceived their instructors to be. An autonomy-supportive instructor acknowledges students' perspectives and feelings and provides students with information and opportunities for choice while minimizing external pressures (e.g., incentives or deadlines). It was found that the degree to which students perceived their instructors as autonomy supportive was positively correlated with student interest and enjoyment in learning physics (β =0.31***) and negatively correlated with student anxiety about taking physics (β =-0.23**). It was also positively correlated with how autonomous (versus controlled) students' reasons for studying physics became over the duration of the course (i.e., studying physics more because they wanted to versus had to; β =0.24***). This change in autonomous reasons for studying physics was in turn positively correlated with student performance in the course (β =0.17*). Additionally, the degree to which students perceived their instructors as autonomy supportive was directly correlated with performance for those students entering the course with relatively autonomous reasons for studying physics (β =0.25**). In summary, students who perceived their instructors as more autonomy supportive tended to have a more favorable motivational, affective, and performance experience in the course. The findings of the present study are consistent with experimental studies in other contexts that argue for autonomy-supportive instructor behaviors as the cause of a more favorable student experience.

Qualitative investigation of students' views about experimental physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Dehui; Zwickl, Benjamin M.; Wilcox, Bethany R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2017-12-01

This study examines students' reasoning surrounding seemingly contradictory Likert-scale responses within five items in the Colorado Learning Attitudes About Science Survey for Experimental Physics (E-CLASS). We administered the E-CLASS with embedded open-ended prompts, which asked students to provide explanations after making a Likert-scale selection. The quantitative scores on those items showed that our sample of the 216 students enrolled in first year and beyond first year physics courses demonstrated the same trends as previous national data. A qualitative analysis of students' open-ended responses was used to examine common reasoning patterns related to particular Likert-scale responses. When explaining responses to items regarding the role of experiments in confirming known results and also contributing to the growth of scientific knowledge, a common reasoning pattern suggested that confirming known results in a classroom experiment can help with understanding concepts. Thus, physics experiments contribute to students' personal scientific knowledge growth, while also confirming widely known results. Many students agreed that having correct formatting and making well-reasoned conclusions are the main goal for communicating experimental results. Students who focused on sections and formatting emphasized how it enables clear and efficient communication. However, very few students discussed the link between well-reasoned conclusions and effective scientific communication. Lastly, many students argued it was possible to complete experiments without understanding equations and physics concepts. The most common justification was that they could simply follow instructions to finish the lab without understanding. The findings suggest several implications for teaching physics laboratory courses, for example, incorporating some lab activities with outcomes that are unknown to the students might have a significant impact on students' understanding of experiments as an

What We Could Tell Advanced Student Writers about Audience.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ewald, Helen Rothschild

1991-01-01

Explores what advanced student writers could be told about audience based on current principles of reading theory. Discusses reasons why teachers may not want to introduce students to these reading-based concepts of audience. (RS)

Physical education resources, class management, and student physical activity levels: a structure-process-outcome approach to evaluating physical education effectiveness.

PubMed

Bevans, Katherine B; Fitzpatrick, Leslie-Anne; Sanchez, Betty M; Riley, Anne W; Forrest, Christopher

2010-12-01

This study was conducted to empirically evaluate specific human, curricular, and material resources that maximize student opportunities for physical activity during physical education (PE) class time. A structure-process-outcome model was proposed to identify the resources that influence the frequency of PE and intensity of physical activity during PE. The proportion of class time devoted to management was evaluated as a potential mediator of the relations between resource availability and student activity levels. Data for this cross-sectional study were collected from interviews conducted with 46 physical educators and the systematic observation of 184 PE sessions in 34 schools. Regression analyses were conducted to test for the main effects of resource availability and the mediating role of class management. Students who attended schools with a low student-to-physical educator ratio had more PE time and engaged in higher levels of physical activity during class time. Access to adequate PE equipment and facilities was positively associated with student activity levels. The availability of a greater number of physical educators per student was found to impact student activity levels by reducing the amount of session time devoted to class management. The identification of structure and process predictors of student activity levels in PE will support the allocation of resources and encourage instructional practices that best support increased student activity levels in the most cost-effective way possible. Implications for PE policies and programs are discussed. © 2010, American School Health Association.

Advanced quantitative measurement methodology in physics education research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jing

The ultimate goal of physics education research (PER) is to develop a theoretical framework to understand and improve the learning process. In this journey of discovery, assessment serves as our headlamp and alpenstock. It sometimes detects signals in student mental structures, and sometimes presents the difference between expert understanding and novice understanding. Quantitative assessment is an important area in PER. Developing research-based effective assessment instruments and making meaningful inferences based on these instruments have always been important goals of the PER community. Quantitative studies are often conducted to provide bases for test development and result interpretation. Statistics are frequently used in quantitative studies. The selection of statistical methods and interpretation of the results obtained by these methods shall be connected to the education background. In this connecting process, the issues of educational models are often raised. Many widely used statistical methods do not make assumptions on the mental structure of subjects, nor do they provide explanations tailored to the educational audience. There are also other methods that consider the mental structure and are tailored to provide strong connections between statistics and education. These methods often involve model assumption and parameter estimation, and are complicated mathematically. The dissertation provides a practical view of some advanced quantitative assessment methods. The common feature of these methods is that they all make educational/psychological model assumptions beyond the minimum mathematical model. The purpose of the study is to provide a comparison between these advanced methods and the pure mathematical methods. The comparison is based on the performance of the two types of methods under physics education settings. In particular, the comparison uses both physics content assessments and scientific ability assessments. The dissertation includes three

Physics Contests for High School Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fox, Doug; Nelson, Jim

1983-01-01

Describes how the Ontario Section of the American Association of Physics Teachers started a "Grade Eleven Prize Physics Contest" to generate interest in physics and recognize outstanding students. Also describes outcomes of contests, adaptation of the contest by Southeastern Pennsylvania Section, and suggestions for others wanting to…

Behaviour of mathematics and physics students in solving problem of Vector-Physics context

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sardi; Rizal, M.; Mansyur, J.

2018-04-01

This research aimed to describe behaviors of mathematics and physics students in solving problem of the vector concept in physics context. The subjects of the research were students who enrolled in Mathematics Education Study Program and Physics Education Study Program of FKIP Universitas Tadulako. The selected participants were students who received the highest score in vector fundamental concept test in each study program. The data were collected through thinking-aloud activity followed by an interview. The steps of data analysis included data reduction, display, and conclusion drawing. The credibility of the data was tested using a triangulation method. Based on the data analysis, it can be concluded that the two groups of students did not show fundamental differences in problem-solving behavior, especially in the steps of understanding the problem (identifying, collecting and analyzing facts and information), planning (looking for alternative strategies) and conducting the alternative strategy. The two groups were differ only in the evaluation aspect. In contrast to Physics students who evaluated their answer, mathematics students did not conducted an evaluation activity on their work. However, the difference was not caused by the differences in background knowledge.

A phenomenological analysis of the essence of the science education experience as perceived by female high school physics and advanced chemistry students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Papadimitriou, Michael

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the essential elements of the current science education experience as constructed by twelve female high school physics and advanced chemistry students. The expressed desired outcome was a description of the phenomenon from a participant point of view. Student recollections and interpretations of experiences were assessed for a twelve-week period. Data sources were student journals, autobiographies, interviews, focus group interviews and researcher observations. In addition, each participant completed the Test of Science Related Attitudes (Fraser, 1981) in order to create attitude profiles for triangulation with other data. While a wide range of aspects of the science education experience emerged, results showed that female students describe and interpret their science education experiences on the basis of actual interest in science, early science experiences, perception of ability, self-confidence, teacher attributes, parental and peer interaction, societal expectations, the nature of science, and gender. Of these factors, specifically, interest and curiosity, societal influence, the nature of science, lack of in-school experiences, the desire to help others, and general parent support were most impacting upon experience and the desire to continue science study. Moreover, the interaction of these factors is relevant. Very simply, early experiences are crucial to interest development. In general, parents can enhance this interest by providing science-related experiences. In the absence of early in-school experiences (i.e., which the participants reported), these out-of-school experiences become crucial. More importantly, quality instruction and parent and peer support are needed to foster science interest and to overcome the powerfully negative influence of society, the discriminatory nature of science, and the lack of experiences.

How Do Education Students Learn Physics?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mistades, Voltaire Mallari

2011-01-01

Research in physics education has identified students' attitudes and beliefs that contribute to higher gains in learning. The study investigated the extent of change in education majors' attitudes, beliefs and cognitive expectations after going through an introductory physics course. Using the MPEX (Maryland Physics Expectations) Survey and the…

Introductory physics in biological context: An approach to improve introductory physics for life science students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crouch, Catherine H.; Heller, Kenneth

2014-05-01

We describe restructuring the introductory physics for life science students (IPLS) course to better support these students in using physics to understand their chosen fields. Our courses teach physics using biologically rich contexts. Specifically, we use examples in which fundamental physics contributes significantly to understanding a biological system to make explicit the value of physics to the life sciences. This requires selecting the course content to reflect the topics most relevant to biology while maintaining the fundamental disciplinary structure of physics. In addition to stressing the importance of the fundamental principles of physics, an important goal is developing students' quantitative and problem solving skills. Our guiding pedagogical framework is the cognitive apprenticeship model, in which learning occurs most effectively when students can articulate why what they are learning matters to them. In this article, we describe our courses, summarize initial assessment data, and identify needs for future research.

Students' Epistemologies about Experimental Physics: Validating the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey for Experimental Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilcox, Bethany R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2016-01-01

Student learning in instructional physics labs represents a growing area of research that includes investigations of students' beliefs and expectations about the nature of experimental physics. To directly probe students' epistemologies about experimental physics and support broader lab transformation efforts at the University of Colorado Boulder…

Physics By Inquiry: Addressing Student Learning and Attitude

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadaghiani, Homeyra R.

2008-10-01

In the last decade, the results of Physics Education Research and research-based instructional materials have been disseminated from traditional research universities to a wide variety of colleges and universities. Nevertheless, the ways in which different institutions implement these materials depend on their students and the institutional context. Even with the widespread use of these curriculums, the research documenting the effectiveness of these materials with different student populations is scarce. This paper describes the challenges associated with implementing Physics by Inquiry at California State Polytechnic University Pomona and confirms its effectiveness in promoting student conceptual knowledge of physics. However, despite the positive effect on student learning, the evidence suggests that the students did not appreciate the self-discovery aspect of the inquiry approach and characterized the learning process as difficult and unpleasant.

Influence of a health-related physical fitness model on students' physical activity, perceived competence, and enjoyment.

PubMed

Fu, You; Gao, Zan; Hannon, James; Shultz, Barry; Newton, Maria; Sibthorp, Jim

2013-12-01

This study was designed to explore the effects of a health-related physical fitness physical education model on students' physical activity, perceived competence, and enjoyment. 61 students (25 boys, 36 girls; M age = 12.6 yr., SD = 0.6) were assigned to two groups (health-related physical fitness physical education group, and traditional physical education group), and participated in one 50-min. weekly basketball class for 6 wk. Students' in-class physical activity was assessed using NL-1000 pedometers. The physical subscale of the Perceived Competence Scale for Children was employed to assess perceived competence, and children's enjoyment was measured using the Sport Enjoyment Scale. The findings suggest that students in the intervention group increased their perceived competence, enjoyment, and physical activity over a 6-wk. intervention, while the comparison group simply increased physical activity over time. Children in the intervention group had significantly greater enjoyment.

Physical activity in advanced cancer patients: a systematic review protocol.

PubMed

Lowe, Sonya S; Tan, Maria; Faily, Joan; Watanabe, Sharon M; Courneya, Kerry S

2016-03-11

Progressive, incurable cancer is associated with increased fatigue, increased muscle weakness, and reduced physical functioning, all of which negatively impact quality of life. Physical activity has demonstrated benefits on cancer-related fatigue and physical functioning in early-stage cancer patients; however, its impact on these outcomes in end-stage cancer has not been established. The aim of this systematic review is to determine the potential benefits, harms, and effects of physical activity interventions on quality of life outcomes in advanced cancer patients. A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature on physical activity in advanced cancer patients will be undertaken. Empirical quantitative studies will be considered for inclusion if they present interventional or observational data on physical activity in advanced cancer patients. Searches will be conducted in the following electronic databases: CINAHL; CIRRIE Database of International Rehabilitation Research; Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR); Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE); Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL); EMBASE; MEDLINE; PEDro: the Physiotherapy Evidence Database; PQDT; PsycInfo; PubMed; REHABDATA; Scopus; SPORTDiscus; and Web of Science, to identify relevant studies of interest. Additional strategies to identify relevant studies will include citation searches and evaluation of reference lists of included articles. Titles, abstracts, and keywords of identified studies from the search strategies will be screened for inclusion criteria. Two independent reviewers will conduct quality appraisal using the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies (EPHPP) and the Cochrane risk of bias tool. A descriptive summary of included studies will describe the study designs, participant and activity characteristics, and objective and patient-reported outcomes. This systematic review will summarize the current

Student satisfaction in interactive engagement-based physics classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaffney, Jon D. H.; Gaffney, Amy L. Housley

2016-12-01

Interactive engagement-based (IE) physics classes have the potential to invigorate and motivate students, but students may resist or oppose the pedagogy. Understanding the major influences on student satisfaction is a key to successful implementation of such courses. In this study, we note that one of the major differences between IE and traditional physics classes lies in the interpersonal relationships between the instructor and students. Therefore, we introduce the interpersonal communication constructs of instructor credibility and facework as possible frameworks for understanding how instructors and students navigate the new space of interactions. By interpreting survey data (N =161 respondents in eight sections of an IE introductory algebra-based physics course), we found both frameworks to be useful in explaining variance in student ratings of their satisfaction in the course, although we are unable to distinguish at this point whether instructor credibility acts as a mediating variable between facework and course satisfaction.

Prevalence of Physical Disability and Accommodation Needs among Students in Physical Therapy Education Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hinman, Martha R.; Peterson, Cathryn A.; Gibbs, Karen A.

2015-01-01

Most research on graduate students with disabilities (SWDs) has focused on medical education. The purposes of this study were to: (1) estimate the prevalence of students with physical disabilities (SWPDs) in physical therapy programs, (2) identify common types of physical disabilities, (3) document the types of accommodations requested by SWPDs,…

Exploring Woman University Physics Students "Doing Gender" and "Doing Physics"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Danielsson, Anna T.

2012-01-01

This article explores what it can mean to be a woman physics student. A case study approach is used to explore how five women who are studying physics at a Swedish university simultaneously negotiate their doing of physics and their doing of gender. By conceptualising both gender and learning as aspects of identity formation, the analysis of the…

Advanced Computing Tools and Models for Accelerator Physics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ryne, Robert; Ryne, Robert D.

2008-06-11

This paper is based on a transcript of my EPAC'08 presentation on advanced computing tools for accelerator physics. Following an introduction I present several examples, provide a history of the development of beam dynamics capabilities, and conclude with thoughts on the future of large scale computing in accelerator physics.

Advanced Placement Economics. Macroeconomics: Student Activities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morton, John S.

This book is designed to help advanced placement students better understand macroeconomic concepts through various activities. The book contains 6 units with 64 activities, sample multiple-choice questions, sample short essay questions, and sample long essay questions. The units are entitled: (1) "Basic Economic Concepts"; (2) "Measuring Economic…

[Situation analysis of physical fitness among Chinese Han students in 2014].

PubMed

Song, Y; Lei, Y T; Hu, P J; Zhang, B; Ma, J

2018-06-18

To analyze the situation of physical fitness among Chinese Han students in 2014, so as to develop the guideline of physical activity regarding to the targeted students and to provide bases for the improvements of students' physical fitness. Subjects were from 2014 Chinese National Surveys on Students' Constitution and Health (CNSSCH). In this survey, 212 401 Han students aged 7-18 years participated and the measurement of physical fitness completed. The qualified rates of indicators regarding to physical fitness were evaluated based on "National Students Constitutional Health Standards" (2014 revised edition). Logistic regression was used to assess the association between the indicators of pull ups (boys) and endurance run (boys and girls) and influencing factors. In 2014, among the boys, the qualified rates of pull ups and endurance run were 18.7% and 76.6% respectively, while the qualified rate of endurance run was 80.6% among the girls. These two indicators were the weak items of physical fitness among the Chinese Han students. There was regional difference in the qualified rates of physical fitness, and the students in Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces had higher qualified rates. Logistic regression showed that the urban students (OR=0.67), the students with malnutrition (OR=0.76), overweight (OR=0.32) or obesity (OR=0.12) were less likely to be qualified to pull ups; the students who had physical activity more than 1 h per day (OR=1.31) was more likely to be qualified to pull ups. The influencing factors of endurance run showed the similar pattern, in addition, the students with enough physical education (PE) were more likely to be qualified to endurance run, while the students with "Squeeze" or "no" PE class were less likely to be qualified to endurance run. The pull ups and endurance run have become the weak items of the physical fitness among primary and secondary school students in our national and provincial levels. Based on ensuring physical exercise time

Teacher Feedback and Interactions in Physical Education: Effects of Student Gender and Physical Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nicaise, Virginie; Cogerino, Genevieve; Fairclough, Stuart; Bois, Julien; Davis, Kathryn

2007-01-01

Previous research conducted in both classroom and physical education (PE) settings has examined the impact of student gender on teacher-student interactions. The purpose of this study was to extend this line of research by analysing the influence of student gender and different types of physical activity on the frequency and nature of teacher…

Learning about a Level Physics Students' Understandings of Particle Physics Using Concept Mapping

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gourlay, H.

2017-01-01

This paper describes a small-scale piece of research using concept mapping to elicit A level students' understandings of particle physics. Fifty-nine year 12 (16- and 17 year-old) students from two London schools participated. The exercise took place during school physics lessons. Students were instructed how to make a concept map and were…

Harnessing Students' Interest in Physics with Their Own Video Games

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Like, Christopher

2011-04-01

Many physics teachers assign projects where students are asked to measure real-world motion. One purpose of this student-centered activity is to cultivate the relevance of physics in their lives. Typical project topics may include measuring the speed of a student's fastball and calculating how much reaction time batters are given. Another student may find the trajectory of her dive off the blocks at the pool and its effect on race time. Leaving the experimental design to the student's imagination allows for a variety of proposals ranging from stopwatches to highly technical video analysis. The past few years have shown an increase in students' eagerness to tackle the physics behind the motion of virtual characters and phenomena in their own video games. This paper puts forth a method of analyzing the physics behind bringing the games students are playing for enjoyment into the physics classroom.

Personality types and student performance in an introductory physics course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harlow, Jason J. B.; Harrison, David M.; Justason, Michael; Meyertholen, Andrew; Wilson, Brian

2017-12-01

We measured the personality type of the students in a large introductory physics course of mostly life science students using the True Colors instrument. We found large correlations of personality type with performance on the precourse Force Concept Inventory (FCI), both term tests, the postcourse FCI, and the final examination. We also saw correlations with the normalized gain on the FCI. The personality profile of the students in this course is very different from the profile of the physics faculty and graduate students, and also very different from the profile of students taking the introductory physics course intended for physics majors and specialists.

Student Perceived Motivational Climate, Enjoyment, and Physical Activity in Middle School Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Christine E.; Erwin, Heather E.; Kipp, Lindsay; Beighle, Aaron

2017-01-01

We used achievement goal theory to examine students' physical activity (PA) motivation and physical education (PE) enjoyment. Purposes included: 1) determine whether schools with different pedagogical approaches varied in student perceptions of mastery and performance climate dimensions, enjoyment, and PA; 2) examine gender and grade differences…

Physical Science Rocks! Outreach for Elementary Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKone, Kevin

2010-01-01

Students at Copiah-Lincoln Community College (Co-Lin) have been hesitant to take courses in the physical sciences, mostly because of a lack of exposure to them in K-12 or a bad experience in this area. The college is addressing this need by exposing students to the physical sciences early on in their education. The science division at Co-Lin has…

Experiences that influence a student's choice on majoring in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dobbin, Donya Rae

Currently the production of college graduates with science and engineering degrees is insufficient to fill the increasing number of jobs requiring these skills. This study focuses on physics majors with an in-depth examination of student transitions from high school to college. Many different areas of influence could affect a student's decision to major in physics. The first phase of this study addresses all of the potential areas of influence identified from the literature. The goal was to identify common influences that might be used to increase students' interest in majoring in physics. Subjects (N=35) from the first phase were recruited from physics majors at diverse Michigan colleges and universities. The second phase of this study explored, in more depth, important areas of influence identified in the first phase of the study. Subjects (N=94) from the second phase were recruited from diverse colleges and universities in Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio. The interviews were also conducted via email. Approximately half of the students in the study decided to major in physics while still in high school. Their reasons relate to many of the areas of influence. For example, high school physics teachers were cited as a strong influence in many students' decisions to major in physics. Influential physics teachers were described as being helpful, encouraging and interesting. The teachers also need to be their students' number one cheerleader and not their number one critic. Some areas of influence were found to be different for males vs. females. A high percentage of all physics majors had influential adults with careers in physical or biological science fields. This percentage was even larger for female physics majors. Female students also showed a greater initial interest in astronomy than the male students. Thus, high school and college physics teachers should seek to expose students to science-related careers and adults with these careers. Astronomy is also an

How can we help students appreciate physics education?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Jia-Ling; Zaki, Eman; Schmidt, Jason; Woolston, Don

2004-03-01

Helping students appreciate physics education is a formidable task, considering that many students struggle to pass introductory physics courses. Numerous efforts have been made for this undertaking because it is an important step leading to successful learning. In an out-of-classroom academic program, the Supplemental Instruction (SI) Program, we have used the approach, INSPIRE (inquiry, network, skillfulness, perseverance, intuition, reasoning, and effort), to help more students value their experiences in these courses. The method basically includes key elements outlined by experts in physics education [1]. Student responses have been encouraging. Having undergraduates as facilitators in the program is advantageous in promoting principles of physics education. Their training emphasizes tenacity, resourcefulness, understanding, support, and teamwork, i.e. TRUST. We present the organization and focus of the SI Program, and discuss how these improve learning atmosphere and facilitate learning. [1] Edward F. Redish et al, Am J. Phys. 66(3), March 1998.

Refraction law and Fermat principle: a project using the ant colony optimization algorithm for undergraduate students in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vuong, Q. L.; Rigaut, C.; Gossuin, Y.

2018-07-01

A programming project for undergraduate students in physics is proposed in this work. Its goal is to check the Snell–Descartes law of refraction using the Fermat principle and the ant colony optimization algorithm. The project involves basic mathematics and physics and is adapted to students with basic programming skills. More advanced tools can be used (but are not mandatory) as parallelization or object-oriented programming, which makes the project also suitable for more experienced students. We propose two tests to validate the program. Our algorithm is able to find solutions which are close to the theoretical predictions. Two quantities are defined to study its convergence and the quality of the solutions. It is also shown that the choice of the values of the simulation parameters is important to efficiently obtain precise results.

Understanding Physical Education Doctoral Students' Perspectives of Socialization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richards, K. Andrew R.; McLoughlin, Gabriella M.; Ivy, Victoria Nicole; Gaudreault, Karen Lux

2017-01-01

Purpose: Despite an abundance of research on doctoral student socialization in higher education, little attention has been paid to physical education doctoral students. This study sought to understand physical education doctoral students' perceptions of their socialization as preparation for faculty roles. Method: Participants included 32 physical…

Research and career opportunities in the geophysical sciences for physics students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nyblade, Andrew

2008-10-01

The field of geophysics involves using most branches of physics to investigate the physical structure and process that characterize the solid and fluid parts of our planet. Major advances in geophysics have come about from physicists crossing disciplinary boundaries and using their skills and knowledge to address first-order problems about the nature and structure of our planet and how the planet has changed over time. Indeed, some of the largest scientific breakthroughs in geophysics have come from physicists. As a way to introduce students to the field of geophysics and to provide them with information about research and career opportunities in geophysics, this talk will focus on one area of geophysics, seismology. This is an area of geophysics that has not only been instrumental in advancing our understanding of solid Earth structure and processes, but one that also has an applied side used for oil, gas and mineral exploration, as well as for environmental work. Examples of research projects involving seismic wave propagation and tomographic imaging will be presented, along the short descriptions of career opportunities in industry, government and academic institutions. In collaboration with Solomon Bililign, North Carolina A&T State University.

College Students' Perceptions of Wellness and Physical Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Klepfer, Shaley DePolo

2013-01-01

College students are increasingly less physically active. Investigation into this problem is important because individuals develop lifelong habits during the college time period. College students' perceptions regarding physical activity and overall wellness are important factors in creating positive change toward healthier lifestyle habits. Based…

Metaphoric Perception of Gifted Students about Physical Education Course and Physical Education Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yilmaz, Aynur; Esenturk, Oguz Kaan; Demir, Gonul Tekkursun; Ilhan, Ekrem Levent

2017-01-01

It is to determine the perception of the gifted students who participate to "Science and Art Center" about "Physical Education Course" and "Physical Education Teachers" via metaphors. The working group of the research consists of 48 students who participate Science and Art Center in 2014-2015 school years. Among the…

Interprofessional Peer Teaching of Pharmacy and Physical Therapy Students.

PubMed

Sadowski, Cheryl A; Li, Johnson Ching-hong; Pasay, Darren; Jones, C Allyson

2015-12-25

To evaluate an interprofessional peer-teaching activity during which physical therapy students instructed undergraduate pharmacy students on 3 ambulatory devices (canes, crutches, walkers). The pre/post evaluation of 2 pharmacy undergraduate classes included 220 students, 110 per year. After pharmacy students completed a 10-point, knowledge-based pretest, they participated in a hands-on activity with physical therapy students teaching them about sizing, use, and safety of canes, crutches, and walkers. A 10-point posttest was completed immediately afterward. The mean difference of pre/post scores was 3.5 (SD 1.9) for the peer-led teaching, and 3.8 (SD 2.2) for the peer learning group. Students had positive responses regarding the learning exercise and recommended further peer teaching. The peer-learning activity involving physical therapy students teaching pharmacy students was an effective method of improving knowledge and skills regarding basic ambulatory devices.

Interprofessional Peer Teaching of Pharmacy and Physical Therapy Students

PubMed Central

Sadowski, Cheryl A.; Li, Johnson Ching-hong; Pasay, Darren

2015-01-01

Objective. To evaluate an interprofessional peer-teaching activity during which physical therapy students instructed undergraduate pharmacy students on 3 ambulatory devices (canes, crutches, walkers). Design. The pre/post evaluation of 2 pharmacy undergraduate classes included 220 students, 110 per year. After pharmacy students completed a 10-point, knowledge-based pretest, they participated in a hands-on activity with physical therapy students teaching them about sizing, use, and safety of canes, crutches, and walkers. A 10-point posttest was completed immediately afterward. Assessment. The mean difference of pre/post scores was 3.5 (SD 1.9) for the peer-led teaching, and 3.8 (SD 2.2) for the peer learning group. Students had positive responses regarding the learning exercise and recommended further peer teaching. Conclusion. The peer-learning activity involving physical therapy students teaching pharmacy students was an effective method of improving knowledge and skills regarding basic ambulatory devices. PMID:26889067

The Importance of High School Physics Teachers for Female Students' Physics Identity and Persistence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hazari, Zahra; Brewe, Eric; Goertzen, Renee Michelle; Hodapp, Theodore

2017-02-01

Given the historic and continued underrepresentation of women in physics, it is important to understand the role that high school physics might play in attracting female students to physics careers. Drawing on data from over 900 female undergraduates in physics, we examine when these women became interested in physics careers and different sources of recognition (important for physics identity development) that may have affected their choices at certain time points. The results provide optimism since many of these female students, even those not previously intending science careers, began to intend physics careers in high school and recognition from high school physics teachers had a significant effect on predicting these intentions.

ADAPTED PHYSICAL EDUCATION, PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION FOR EXCEPTIONAL STUDENTS. SECOND EDITION.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DANIELS, ARTHUR S.; DAVIES, EVELYN A.

THIS BOOK HAS THREE PURPOSES--(1) TO SHOW HOW PHYSICAL EDUCATION ACTIVITIES MAY BE ADAPTED FOR EXCEPTIONAL STUDENTS AT ALL LEVELS OF SCHOOL, (2) TO SERVE AS A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO PHYSICAL EDUCATION PERSONNEL WHO WISH TO WORK FOR FULL DEVELOPMENT OF EACH STUDENT, AND (3) TO SERVE AS A TEXT FOR STUDENTS IN TRAINING, TEACHERS, AND THERAPISTS. PART ONE…

Engaging Students In Modeling Instruction for Introductory Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brewe, Eric

2016-05-01

Teaching introductory physics is arguably one of the most important things that a physics department does. It is the primary way that students from other science disciplines engage with physics and it is the introduction to physics for majors. Modeling instruction is an active learning strategy for introductory physics built on the premise that science proceeds through the iterative process of model construction, development, deployment, and revision. We describe the role that participating in authentic modeling has in learning and then explore how students engage in this process in the classroom. In this presentation, we provide a theoretical background on models and modeling and describe how these theoretical elements are enacted in the introductory university physics classroom. We provide both quantitative and video data to link the development of a conceptual model to the design of the learning environment and to student outcomes. This work is supported in part by DUE #1140706.

Students' Views About Potentially Offering Physics Courses Online

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramlo, Susan E.

2016-06-01

Nationally, many public universities have started to move into the online course and program market that is most often associated with for-profit institutions of higher education. Administrators in public universities make statements regarding benefits to students' desire for flexibility and profit margins related to online courses. But do students attending a large public university want to take courses online especially science courses perceived to be difficult such as freshmen-level physics courses? This study took place at a large, public, Midwestern university and involved students enrolled in the first semester of a face-to-face, flipped physics course for engineering technology majors. Statements were collected from comments about online courses made by the university's administration and students in the course. Twenty students sorted 45 statements. Two student views emerged with one rejecting online courses in general and the other primarily rejecting online math, science, and technology courses, including physics. Students' descriptions of their previous online course experiences were used to inform the analyses and to assist in describing the two views that emerged in conjunction with the distinguishing statements. Consensus among the two views is also discussed. Overall, the results indicate a potential divergence between student views and what university administrators believe students want.

The Vocabulary of Physics and Its Impact on Student Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Itza-Ortiz, Salomon F.; Rebello, N. Sanjay; Zollman, Dean A.

The everyday meaning and usage of several words can differ significantly from their meaning and usage in physics. Examining these differences, and how students respond to them, may shed some light on students' physical learning difficulties. We surveyed (N=154) students in a conceptual physics course on their use of some words, "force", "momentum"…

Promoting Physical Activity through Student Life and Academics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDaniel, Tyler; Melton, Bridget F.; Langdon, Jody

2014-01-01

Objective: A physical activity passport (PAP) was developed to increase student's physical activity through the collaboration of student life and academics. The purpose was to measure the effectiveness of the PAP. Design: The research design used was a quantitative, descriptive, quasi-experimental design with experimental and control groups.…

Student Motivation in Physical Education: Breaking down Barriers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mowling, Claire M.; Brock, Sheri J.; Eiler, Kim K.; Rudisill, Mary E.

2004-01-01

A fundamental characteristic of a successful physical education program is that the students are interested and motivated to learn the intended objectives. Unfortunately, in many cases, students begin losing interest in physical education as they progress through school. In order to better understand this phenomenon, the authors explored the…

Patterns of Clinical Reasoning in Physical Therapist Students.

PubMed

Gilliland, Sarah; Wainwright, Susan Flannery

2017-05-01

Clinical reasoning is a complex, nonlinear problem-solving process that is influenced by models of practice. The development of physical therapists' clinical reasoning abilities is a crucial yet underresearched aspect of entry-level (professional) physical therapist education. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the types of clinical reasoning strategies physical therapist students engage in during a patient encounter. A qualitative descriptive case study design involving within and across case analysis was used. Eight second-year, professional physical therapist students from 2 different programs completed an evaluation and initial intervention for a standardized patient followed by a retrospective think-aloud interview to explicate their reasoning processes. Participants' clinical reasoning strategies were examined using a 2-stage qualitative method of thematic analysis. Participants demonstrated consistent signs of development of physical therapy-specific reasoning processes, yet varied in their approach to the case and use of reflection. Participants who gave greater attention to patient education and empowerment also demonstrated greater use of reflection-in-action during the patient encounter. One negative case illustrates the variability in the rate at which students may develop these abilities. Participants demonstrated development toward physical therapist--specific clinical reasoning, yet demonstrated qualitatively different approaches to the patient encounter. Multiple factors, including the use of reflection-in-action, may enable students to develop greater flexibility in their reasoning processes. © 2017 American Physical Therapy Association

Assessing Student Achievement in Physical Education for Teacher Evaluation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mercier, Kevin; Doolittle, Sarah

2013-01-01

While many teachers continue to ignore the practice of assessing student achievement in physical education, recent federal pressures to include student assessment data in teacher evaluation systems has shown that assessment of student outcomes is here to stay. Though there is a strong tradition of assessing teacher practice in physical education,…

How Students Use Physics to Reason about Calculus Tasks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marrongelle, Karen A.

2004-01-01

The present research study investigates how undergraduate students in an integrated calculus and physics class use physics to help them solve calculus problems. Using Zandieh's (2000) framework for analyzing student understanding of derivative as a starting point, this study adds detail to her "paradigmatic physical" context and begins to address…

Reaching More Students Through Thinking in Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coletta, Vincent P.

2017-02-01

Thinking in Physics (TIP) is a new curriculum that is more effective than commonly used interactive engagement methods for students who have the greatest difficulty learning physics. Research has shown a correlation between learning in physics and other factors, including scientific reasoning ability. The TIP curriculum addresses those factors. Features of the curriculum and evidence of its effectiveness are described. The most recent version of the TIP curriculum has greatly reduced a substantial gender gap that previously existed. More details and sample materials are provided in Thinking in Physics, a book intended for instructors of introductory physics, published in 2014 by Pearson as part of its Educational Innovation series. Additional materials, both for students and instructors, are provided on the website http://thinkinginphysics.com. Both the book and the website are free.

Student Perspectives of Grading in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhu, Xihe

2015-01-01

Recent state and federal legislations on educational accountability push evaluation and grading to the frontline. This study examined students' perspectives of grading in physical education. The participants included students (N = 39) from two middle schools. Data were collected through observation, student profile grading sheets and interviews.…

Blending Technology and Face-to-Face: Advanced Students' Choices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trinder, Ruth

2016-01-01

It has been suggested that current research in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) should seek to understand the conditions and circumstances that govern students' use of technology (Steel & Levy, 2013). This paper attempts to identify critical factors accounting for student choices, first, by investigating advanced learners' reported…

Pedagogical Content of National Physical Behavior of Kazakh People

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lesbekova, Ryskul; Nassiyev, Yermek; ?itpanbet, Amanshol; Nassiyev, Yeldar

2016-01-01

Physical education significantly contributes to students' well-being; therefore, it is an instructional priority for California schools and an integral part of our students' educational experience. High-quality physical education instruction contributes to good health, develops fundamental and advanced motor skills, improves students'…

Students' Views about the Nature of Experimental Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilcox, Bethany R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2017-01-01

The physics community explores and explains the physical world through a blend of theoretical and experimental studies. The future of physics as a discipline depends on training of students in both the theoretical and experimental aspects of the field. However, while student learning within lecture courses has been the subject of extensive…

High School Students' Approaches to Learning Physics with Relationship to Epistemic Views on Physics and Conceptions of Learning Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chiou, Guo-Li; Lee, Min-Hsien; Tsai, Chin-Chung

2013-01-01

Background and purpose: Knowing how students learn physics is a central goal of physics education. The major purpose of this study is to examine the strength of the predictive power of students' epistemic views and conceptions of learning in terms of their approaches to learning in physics. Sample, design and method: A total of 279 Taiwanese high…

Students' Changing Attitudes and Aspirations Towards Physics During Secondary School

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sheldrake, Richard; Mujtaba, Tamjid; Reiss, Michael J.

2017-11-01

Many countries desire more students to study science subjects, although relatively few students decide to study non-compulsory physics at upper-secondary school and at university. To gain insight into students' intentions to study non-compulsory physics, a longitudinal sample (covering 2258 students across 88 secondary schools in England) was surveyed in year 8 (age 12/13) and again in year 10 (age 14/15). Predictive modelling highlighted that perceived advice, perceived utility of physics, interest in physics, self-concept beliefs (students' subjective beliefs of their current abilities and performance) and home support specifically orientated to physics were key predictors of students' intentions. Latent-transition analysis via Markov models revealed clusters of students, given these factors at years 8 and 10. Students' intentions varied across the clusters, and at year 10 even varied when accounting for the students' underlying attitudes and beliefs, highlighting that considering clusters offered additional explanatory power and insight. Regardless of whether three-cluster, four-cluster, or five-cluster models were considered, the majority of students remained in the same cluster over time; for those who transitioned clusters, more students changed clusters reflecting an increase in attitudes than changed clusters reflecting a decrease. Students in the cluster with the most positive attitudes were most likely to remain within that cluster, while students in clusters with less positive attitudes were more likely to change clusters. Overall, the cluster profiles highlighted that students' attitudes and beliefs may be more closely related than previously assumed, but that changes in their attitudes and beliefs were indeed possible.

Advances in physical activity monitoring and lifestyle interventions in obesity: a review.

PubMed

Bonomi, A G; Westerterp, K R

2012-02-01

Obesity represents a strong risk factor for developing chronic diseases. Strategies for disease prevention often promote lifestyle changes encouraging participation in physical activity. However, determining what amount of physical activity is necessary for achieving specific health benefits has been hampered by the lack of accurate instruments for monitoring physical activity and the related physiological outcomes. This review aims at presenting recent advances in activity-monitoring technology and their application to support interventions for health promotion. Activity monitors have evolved from step counters and measuring devices of physical activity duration and intensity to more advanced systems providing quantitative and qualitative information on the individuals' activity behavior. Correspondingly, methods to predict activity-related energy expenditure using bodily acceleration and subjects characteristics have advanced from linear regression to innovative algorithms capable of determining physical activity types and the related metabolic costs. These novel techniques can monitor modes of sedentary behavior as well as the engagement in specific activity types that helps to evaluate the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions. In conclusion, advances in activity monitoring have the potential to support the design of response-dependent physical activity recommendations that are needed to generate effective and personalized lifestyle interventions for health promotion.

Physics Education for Blind Students: The Teachers' Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferreira, Amauri; Dickman, Adriana

2008-03-01

We discuss the challenge high school teachers face when teaching physics to the blind. Using the oral history method, we interview physics teachers who have dealt with the inclusion of blind students in regular classrooms. Based on our study, we find that the performance of these students varies, depending on the studied subject. The narrative makes clear the teachers' lack of preparation to deal with inclusion, and their search for alternative methods to improve blind students' learning.

Student-Centred Learning and Disciplinary Enculturation: An Exploration through Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sin, Cristina

2015-01-01

This study argues that student-centred methods in the teaching of physics can be beneficial for students' enculturation into the discipline and into a physicist's profession. Interviews conducted with academics and students from six master degrees in physics in three different European countries suggest that student-driven classroom activities,…

Physical education "in all sorts of corners": student activists transgressing formal physical education curricular boundaries.

PubMed

Enright, Eimear; O'Sullivan, Mary

2012-06-01

The data for this paper were generated during a 3-year; participatory action research project, with 41 female coresearchers and activists ages 15-19 years old, within and beyond the walls of a secondary school. The two questions we sought to answer were (a) what happens when we engage with students to challenge formal physical education curricular boundaries and connect with students' physical culture; and (b) what are the benefits and the challenges associated with engaging in this sort of practical activism? The findings suggest that a boundary-crossing approach to physical education can facilitate students in finding their own meanings in physical education and physical activity. Supporting boundary-crossing practices is, however; a time- and thought-intensive pedagogical design, which will be challenging for many physical education teachers.

A Physics Show Performed by Students for Kids: From Mechanics to Elementary Particle Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dreiner, Herbi K.

2008-09-01

Physics students spend the early part of their training attending physics and mathematics lectures, solving problem sets, and experimenting in laboratory courses. The program is typically intensive and fairly rigid. They have little opportunity to follow their own curiosity or apply their knowledge. There have been many attempts to address this deficiency, specifically through outreach activities.1-23 For example, since 1984 Clint Sprott (University of Wisconsin) hosts a physics show entitled "The Wonders of Physics!" Dressed up as a circus director and assisted by students, Professor Sprott presents entertaining and educating experiments to a regularly packed auditorium of all age groups.5 This was in turn inspired by the "Chemistry is Fun" presentations of Basam Shakhashiri (University of Wisconsin), where the students are also involved.6

High school physics enrollments by socioeconomic status and type of class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

White, Susan C.

2016-01-01

Since September, we have been examining the relationship between high school physics enrollments by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. We have seen that the number of seniors and the number of physics teachers is roughly evenly divided into each type of school: those where students are typically better off economically than their peers at other schools in the area, those where students' economic status is typical for the area, and those where students are worse off. We have seen that even though the number of seniors and the number of physics teachers is roughly equal, the number of students taking physics is not. As we see in the figure, the enrollments in various types of physics classes are not equivalent either. While the total number of students taking Physics First or conceptual physics is about the same, the number of students in advanced classes—honors, AP, or second-year physics—is heavily skewed toward the better off schools. It is hard to know the direction of any cause and effect, but it is clear the students attending better off schools are more likely to take physics and are more likely to take more advanced physics classes in high school.

Audiovisual physics reports: students' video production as a strategy for the didactic laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vinicius Pereira, Marcus; de Souza Barros, Susana; de Rezende Filho, Luiz Augusto C.; Fauth, Leduc Hermeto de A.

2012-01-01

Constant technological advancement has facilitated access to digital cameras and cell phones. Involving students in a video production project can work as a motivating aspect to make them active and reflective in their learning, intellectually engaged in a recursive process. This project was implemented in high school level physics laboratory classes resulting in 22 videos which are considered as audiovisual reports and analysed under two components: theoretical and experimental. This kind of project allows the students to spontaneously use features such as music, pictures, dramatization, animations, etc, even when the didactic laboratory may not be the place where aesthetic and cultural dimensions are generally developed. This could be due to the fact that digital media are more legitimately used as cultural tools than as teaching strategies.

To Advance and Diffuse the Knowledge of Physics...

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lustig, Harry

1999-10-01

: On May 20th,1899, thirty-six physicists founded the American Physical Society. A hundred years later, 11,239 scientists - the Society had by then 41,786 members, - gathered to mark both a century of physics and the Centennial of the Society. Selected tales from the author's comprehensive account of how the APS came about and developed and how it pusued its mission - the advancement and diffusion of the knowledge of physics - through its meetings, journals, and pulic activities, will be the subject of this talk.

Assessing Student Understanding of Physical Hydrology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castillo, A. J.; Marshall, J.; Cardenas, M. B.

2012-12-01

Our objective is to characterize and assess upper division and graduate student thinking by developing and testing an assessment tool for a physical hydrology class. The class' learning goals are: (1) Quantitative process-based understanding of hydrologic processes, (2) Experience with different methods in hydrology, (3) Learning, problem solving, communication skills. These goals were translated into two measurable tasks asked of students in a questionnaire: (1) Describe the significant processes in the hydrological cycle and (2) Describe laws governing these processes. A third question below assessed the students' ability to apply their knowledge: You have been hired as a consultant by __ to (1) assess how urbanization and the current drought have affected a local spring and (2) predict what the effects will be in the future if the drought continues. What information would you need to gather? What measurements would you make? What analyses would you perform? Student and expert responses to the questions were then used to develop a rubric to score responses. Using the rubric, 3 researchers independently blind-coded the full set of pre and post artifacts, resulting in 89% inter-rater agreement on the pre-tests and 83% agreement on the post-tests. We present student scores to illustrate the use of the rubric and to characterize student thinking prior to and following a traditional course. Most students interpreted Q1 in terms of physical processes affecting the water cycle, the primary organizing framework for hydrology, as intended. On the pre-test, one student scored 0, indicating no response, on this question. Twenty students scored 1, indicating rudimentary understanding, 2 students scored a 2, indicating a basic understanding, and no student scored a 3. Student scores on this question improved on the post-test. On the 22 post-tests that were blind scored, 11 students demonstrated some recognition of concepts, 9 students showed a basic understanding, and 2

Physical Education Lesson Content and Teacher Style and Elementary Students' Motivation and Physical Activity Levels

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erwin, Heather E.; Stellino, Megan Babkes; Beets, Michael W.; Beighle, Aaron; Johnson, Christine E.

2013-01-01

Obesity levels among American children are increasing at an alarming rate, due in part to a lack of regular physical activity (PA). Physical education (PE) is one way to facilitate student PA. The overarching PA goal for physical educators is 50% PA for students. Self-determination theory suggests that PA levels in PE and a variety of other…

Students' objectively measured physical activity levels and engagement as a function of between-class and between-student differences in motivation toward physical education.

PubMed

Aelterman, Nathalie; Vansteenkiste, Maarten; Van Keer, Hilde; Van den Berghe, Lynn; De Meyer, Jotie; Haerens, Leen

2012-08-01

Despite evidence for the utility of self-determination theory in physical education, few studies used objective indicators of physical activity and mapped out between-class, relative to between-student, differences in physical activity. This study investigated whether moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and rated collective engagement in physical education were associated with autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and amotivation at the between-class and between-student levels. Participants were 739 pupils (46.3% boys, Mage = 14.36 ±1.94) from 46 secondary school classes in Flanders (Belgium). Multilevel analyses indicated that 37% and 63% of the variance in MVPA was explained by between-student and between-class differences, respectively. Students' personal autonomous motivation related positively to MVPA. Average autonomous class motivation was positively related to between-class variation in MVPA and collective engagement. Average controlled class motivation and average class amotivation were negatively associated with collective engagement. The findings are discussed in light of self-determination theory's emphasis on quality of motivation.

Community Travel for Physically Impaired Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Millet Learning Center, Saginaw, MI.

The community travel program for physically impaired children at the Millet Learning Center (Saginaw, Michigan) blends skills from two professions: orientation and mobility, and physical therapy. Program goals include enabling students to overcome travel fears, to learn travel skills, to learn to make adaptations necessary for successful travel,…

Academic Self-Perceptions of Ability and Course Planning among Academically Advanced Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rudasill, Kathleen Moritz; Callahan, Carolyn M.

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the contribution of gender to the academic self-perceptions of ability and related coursework plans for high school and college across academically advanced students. Participants were academically advanced students (N = 447) from grades 5 to 12. Findings revealed that (a) girls' self-perceptions of ability…

Ego Network Analysis of Upper Division Physics Student Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brewe, Eric

2017-01-01

We present the analysis of student networks derived from a survey of upper division physics students. Ego networks focus on the connections that center on one person (the ego). The ego networks in this talk come from a survey that is part of an overall project focused on understanding student retention and persistence. The theory underlying this work is that social and academic integration are essential components to supporting students continued enrollment and ultimately graduation. This work uses network analysis as a way to investigate the role of social and academic interactions in retention and persistence decisions. We focus on student interactions with peers, on mentoring interactions with physics department faculty, and on engagement in physics groups and how they influence persistence. Our results, which are preliminary, will help frame the ongoing research project and identify ways in which departments can support students. This work supported by NSF grant #PHY 1344247.

Exploration of the attitudes of nursing students to peer physical examination and physical examination of patients.

PubMed

Wearn, Andy M; Bhoopatkar, Harsh; Mathew, Thomas K; Stewart, Lisa

2013-08-01

The use of peer physical examination (PPE) in early clinical skills has been studied amongst medical students. The majority of students are comfortable with using peer physical examination, when sensitive areas are excluded. Students' attitudes are related to their personal characteristics: gender, age, religious faith, and ethnicity. There is no data on nursing students' attitudes to peer physical examination. Identify and explore: Dual cohort, cross-sectional, anonymous survey. Three-year undergraduate nursing programme, skills centre and service clinical learning. All first and third year nursing students were asked to complete a modified Examining Fellow Students questionnaire at the end of 2008. The questionnaire asked students to indicate which of 12 body areas they would not be willing to examine/have examined by a peer of the same/opposite gender. This study also asked students which of the 12 body areas they felt uncomfortable examining on patients. The response rate was 76% (128/168). The students were predominantly female (93% female; 7% male). Most students were comfortable with examining non-sensitive body regions of peers (78.2%-100% willing) and patients (92.3-100% willing). Male gender was significantly associated with willingness to examine and be examined by peers (p=0.001); Asian students were significantly less willing to engage in peer physical examination with opposite gender (p<0.007). Year 3 students were significantly more comfortable than Year 1 in examining patients of either gender (p<0.001). In spite of the male gender findings, this predominantly female population expresses similar attitudes to the gender-balanced medical student studies - high acceptability for non-sensitive areas. The role of characteristics and attitudes to peer physical examination shows similarities and differences to other studies. Student characteristics were not related to patient examination attitudes. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Students' Motivation, Physical Activity Levels, & Health-Related Physical Fitness in Middle School Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gao, Zan; Newton, Maria; Carson, Russell L.

2008-01-01

This study examines the predictive utility of students' motivation (self-efficacy and task values) to their physical activity levels and health-related physical fitness (cardiovascular fitness and muscular strength/endurance) in middle school fitness activity classes. Participants (N = 305) responded to questionnaires assessing their self-efficacy…

Vector Knowledge of Beginning Physics Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knight, Randall D.

1995-01-01

Presents the Vector Knowledge Test that was designed to see if beginning physics students possess the minimal basic knowledge of vectors that will allow them to proceed with a study of Newtonian mechanics. Concludes that only one-third of the students in a calculus-based introductory course at California Polytechnic had sufficient vector…

Helping Students with Problems: What Physical Educators Can Do.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, C. J.; Nelson, Barbara

1985-01-01

Children often have trouble finding effective ways to deal with daily stress. Physical educators work in an environment where they can observe and study their students. Suggestions are offered for physical education teachers dealing with students with problems. (DF)

Physics Literacy for All Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hobson, Art

2010-03-01

Physics teachers must broaden their focus from physics for scientists to physics for all. The reason, as the American Association for the Advancement of Science puts it, is: ``Without a scientifically literate population, the outlook for a better world is not promising.'' Physics for all (including the first course for scientists) should be conceptual, not technical. It should describe the universe as we understand it today, including special and general relativity, quantum physics, modern cosmology, the standard model, and quantum fields. Many science writers have shown this is possible. It should include physics-related social topics such as global warming and nuclear weapons, because citizens need to vote on these issues. Above all, it should emphasize the scientific process and the difference between science and nonsense. Science is based not on beliefs but rather on evidence and reason. We should constantly ask ``How do we know?'' and ``What is the evidence?''

Benchmarking the Physical Therapist Academic Environment to Understand the Student Experience.

PubMed

Shields, Richard K; Dudley-Javoroski, Shauna; Sass, Kelly J; Becker, Marcie

2018-04-19

Identifying excellence in physical therapist academic environments is complicated by the lack of nationally available benchmarking data. The objective of this study was to compare a physical therapist academic environment to another health care profession (medicine) academic environment using the Association of American Medical Colleges Graduation Questionnaire (GQ) survey. The design consisted of longitudinal benchmarking. Between 2009 and 2017, the GQ was administered to graduates of a physical therapist education program (Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science, Carver College of Medicine, The University of Iowa [PTRS]). Their ratings of the educational environment were compared to nationwide data for a peer health care profession (medicine) educational environment. Benchmarking to the GQ capitalizes on a large, psychometrically validated database of academic domains that may be broadly applicable to health care education. The GQ captures critical information about the student experience (eg, faculty professionalism, burnout, student mistreatment) that can be used to characterize the educational environment. This study hypothesized that the ratings provided by 9 consecutive cohorts of PTRS students (n = 316) would reveal educational environment differences from academic medical education. PTRS students reported significantly higher ratings of the educational emotional climate and student-faculty interactions than medical students. PTRS and medical students did not differ on ratings of empathy and tolerance for ambiguity. PTRS students reported significantly lower ratings of burnout than medical students. PTRS students descriptively reported observing greater faculty professionalism and experiencing less mistreatment than medical students. The generalizability of these findings to other physical therapist education environments has not been established. Selected elements of the GQ survey revealed differences in the educational environments

In the physics class: university physics students' enactment of class and gender in the context of laboratory work

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Danielsson, Anna T.

2014-06-01

This article explores how the doing of social class and gender can intersect with the learning of science, through case studies of two male, working-class university students' constitutions of identities as physics students. In doing so, I challenge the taken-for-granted notion that male physics students have an unproblematic relation to their chosen discipline, and nuance the picture of how working-class students relate to higher education by the explicit focus on one disciplinary culture. Working from the perspective of situated learning theory, the interviews with the two male students were analysed for how they negotiated the practice of the physics student laboratory and their own classed and gendered participation in this practice. By drawing on the heterogeneity of the practice of physics the two students were able to use the practical and technological aspects of physics as a gateway into the discipline. However, this is not to say that their participation in physics was completely frictionless. The students were both engaged in a continuous negotiation of how skills they had learned to value in the background may or may not be compatible with the ones they perceived to be valued in the university physicist community.

Physical Activity among Ethnically Diverse College Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suminski, Richard R.; Petosa, Rick; Utter, Alan C.; Zhang, James J.

2002-01-01

Compared physical activity patterns among Asian, African, white, and Hispanic, American college students. Self-report data indicated that nearly half of the sample did not engage in vigorous physical activity, and 16.7 percent were inactive. Weight-training, youthful physical activity, and television viewing accounted for a significant portion of…

Reaching More Students through Thinking in Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coletta, Vincent P.

2017-01-01

Thinking in Physics (TIP) is a new curriculum that is more effective than commonly used interactive engagement methods for students who have the greatest difficulty learning physics. Research has shown a correlation between learning in physics and other factors, including scientific reasoning ability. The TIP curriculum addresses those factors.…

[Students' physical activity: an analysis according to Pender's health promotion model].

PubMed

Guedes, Nirla Gomes; Moreira, Rafaella Pessoa; Cavalcante, Tahissa Frota; de Araujo, Thelma Leite; Ximenes, Lorena Barbosa

2009-12-01

The objective of this study was to describe the everyday physical activity habits of students and analyze the practice of physical activity and its determinants, based on the first component of Pender's health promotion model. This cross-sectional study was performed from 2004 to 2005 with 79 students in a public school in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil. Data collection was performed by interviews and physical examinations. The data were analyzed according to the referred theoretical model. Most students (n=60) were physically active. Proportionally, adolescents were the most active (80.4%). Those with a sedentary lifestyle had higher rates for overweight and obesity (21.1%). Many students practiced outdoor physical activities, which did not require any physical structure and good financial conditions. The results show that it is possible to associate the first component of Pender's health promotion model with the everyday lives of students in terms of the physical activity practice.

Physical Activity among Community College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Sarah J.; Sturts, Jill R.; Ross, Craig M.

2015-01-01

This exploratory study provides insight into the perceived physical activity levels of students attending a Midwestern 2-year community college. Over 60% of respondents were classified as overweight or obese based on a BMI measurement. The majority of respondents were not participating regularly in physical activity to gain any health benefits,…

Physics learning identity of a successful student: A plot twist

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Sissi L.; Demaree, Dedra

2013-01-01

Classroom interactions provide learning opportunities for understanding others and developing agency in a community of learners. Student learning identities were measured using a survey instrument targeting physics learning self-efficacy, expectations of classroom roles, and attitude toward social learning as components of physics learning identity. From a selection of students who scored relatively high or low on the survey sub scales, an academically successful student in an introductory physics course using an active engagement curriculum was selected to examine identity development. Findings indicate he didn't develop a sense of agency, nor did he feel a need to alter his participation, although there were ample opportunities to do so in the learning community. These results suggest that being a successful physics student in the traditional sense doesn't necessarily mean the student is successful at adopting meta-goals which are the non-content course goals of learning to think like a physicist. This student was prompted to engage meaningfully but didn't feel it was required for success which suggests that structural alignment is required to motivate students to achieve meta-goals.

Investigating Students' Reflective Thinking in the Introductory Physics Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boudreaux, Andrew

2010-10-01

Over the past 30 years, physics education research has guided the development of instructional strategies that can significantly enhance students' functional understanding of concepts in introductory physics. Recently, attention has shifted to instructional goals that, while widely shared by teachers of physics, are often more implicit than explicit in our courses. These goals involve the expectations and attitudes that students have about what it means to learn and understand physics, together with the behaviors and actions students think they should engage in to accomplish this learning. Research has shown that these ``hidden'' elements of the curriculum are remarkably resistant to instruction. In fact, traditional physics courses tend to produce movement away from expert-like behaviors. At Western Washington University, we are exploring ways of promoting metacognition, an aspect of the hidden curriculum that involves the conscious monitoring of one's own thinking and learning. We have found that making this reflective thinking an explicit part of the course may not be enough: adequate framing and scaffolding may be necessary for students to meaningfully engage in metacognition. We have thus taken the basic approach of developing metacognition, like conceptual understanding, through guided inquiry. During our teaching experiments, we have collected written and video data, with twin goals of guiding iterative modifications to the instruction as well as contributing to the knowledge base about student metacognition in introductory physics. This talk will provide examples of metacognition activities from course assignments and labs, and will present written data to assess the effectiveness of instruction and to illustrate specific modes of students' reflective thinking.

Individual and Instructional Determinants of Student Engagement in Physical Education

PubMed Central

Bevans, Katherine; Fitzpatrick, Leslie-Anne; Sanchez, Betty; Forrest, Christopher B.

2012-01-01

This study was conducted to identify student characteristics and instructional factors that impact student engagement in physical education (PE). Data were derived from the systematic observation of 124 sessions taught by 31 physical educators and the administration of health and PE engagement questionnaires to 2,018 students in grades 5–8. Physical activity was directly affected by student engagement and perceived competence in PE and indirectly affected by students’ body image through its association with PE engagement. Multilevel analyses revealed that the proportion of class time devoted to game play was negatively associated with student engagement in PE. Although less frequently used during PE sessions, skill practice was positively associated with student engagement and inactive instruction was negatively associated with student engagement. These effects were particularly pronounced among students with poor competence beliefs. Implications for PE instructional practice and future research are presented. PMID:22844176

Physics First: Impact of course sequencing on the attitudes of female students toward science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Connor, Linda Miller

This study was causal-comparative research to determine if there is any relationship between course sequencing and female students' attitudes toward science and their intent to participate in advanced level science courses or pursue science related careers. Physics First promotes the reversal of the traditional sequencing of high school science courses (biology, chemistry and physics) to physics, chemistry and biology or a two or three year integrated European science approach. Physics as a first year high school course of study necessitates changing the course approach to a more conceptual approach and less mathematical and theoretical. Eleventh grade students from two suburban Chicago high schools comprised the sample. The two schools were judged to be extremely similar in their demographic make-up as reported in the 2002 Illinois School Report Card. The notable difference between the schools being the science course sequence recommended for average and above average students. The sample responded to a scanable questionnaire consisting of demographic data and the Test of Science Related Attitudes (TOSRA). TOSRA is a seventy item Likert Scale instrument that addresses attitudes in seven domains; social implications of science, normality of scientists, attitude toward inquiry, adoption of scientific attitudes, enjoyment of science lessons, leisure interest in science, and career interest in science. Values from 1-50 are obtained for each domain with no overall attitude value assigned. The research found that girls in general had significantly more positive attitudes toward science in all seven of the measured domains and the females from the traditional approach were more positive than the females from the Physics First approach. Girls from the traditional approach also reported intent to take high-level (AP) science courses in their senior year at a significantly higher rate than did the girls in Physics First. Neither science approach showed any significance in

A curricular frame for physics education: Development, comparison with students' interests, and impact on students' achievement and self-concept

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Häussler, Peter; Hoffmann, Lore

2000-11-01

This article presents three interlinked studies aimed at: (1) developing a curricular frame for physics education; (2) assessing the students' interest in the contents, contexts, and activities that are suggested by that curricular frame; and (3) developing a curriculum that is in line with that frame and measuring its cognitive and emotional effects on students. The curricular frame was developed by adopting the Delphi technique and drawing on the expertise of 73 persons selected according to specified selection criteria. Interest data of some 8000 students and information of the presently taught physics curriculum were sampled longitudinally as well as cross-sectionally in various German Länder (states) by questionnaire. The third study comprised 23 experimental and 7 control classes. As a result of the comparison between the features of the curricular frame, the interest structure of students, and the current physics curriculum, there is a remarkable congruency between students' interest in physics and the kind of physics education identified in the Delphi study as being relevant. However, there is a considerable discrepancy between students' interest and the kind of physics instruction practiced in the physics classroom. Regression analysis revealed that students' interest in physics as a school subject is hardly related to their interest in physics, but mainly to the students' self-esteem of being good achievers. The data strongly suggest physics be taught so that students have a chance to develop a positive physics-related self-concept and to link physics with situations they encounter outside the classroom. A curriculum based on these principles proved superior compared to a traditional curriculum.

Phenomenographic Study of Students' Problem Solving Approaches in Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walsh, Laura N.; Howard, Robert G.; Bowe, Brian

2007-01-01

This paper describes ongoing research investigating student approaches to quantitative and qualitative problem solving in physics. This empirical study was conducted using a phenomenographic approach to analyze data from individual semistructured problem solving interviews with 22 introductory college physics students. The main result of the study…

The dynamics of variability in introductory physics students' thinking: Examples from kinematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frank, Brian W.

Physics education research has long emphasized the need for physics instruction to address students' existing intuitions about the physical world as an integral part of learning physics. Researchers, however, have not reached a consensus-view concerning the nature of this intuitive knowledge or the specific role that it does (or might) play in physics learning. While many early characterizations of student misconceptions cast students' intuitive thinking as largely static, unitary in structure, and counter-productive for the purpose of learning correct physics, much of contemporary research supports a conceptualization of intuitive thought as dynamic, manifold in structure, and generative in the development of expertise. This dissertation contributes to ongoing inquiry into the nature of students' intuitive thought and its role in learning physics through the pursuit of dynamic systems characterizations of student reasoning, with a particular focus on how students settle into and shift among multiple patterns of reasoning about motion. In one thread of this research, simple experimental designs are used to demonstrate how individual students can be predictably biased toward and away from different ways of thinking about the same physical situation when specific parameters of questions posed to students are varied. I qualitatively model students' thinking in terms of the activations and interactions among fine-grained intuitive knowledge and static features of the context. In a second thread of this research, case studies of more dynamic shifts in students' conceptual reasoning are developed from videos of student discussions during collaborative classroom activities. These show multiple local stabilities of students' thinking as well, with evidence of group-level dynamics shifting on the time scale of minutes. This work contributes to existing research paradigms that aim to characterize student thinking in physics education in two important ways: (1) through the

An epistemic framing analysis of upper level physics students' use of mathematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bing, Thomas Joseph

Mathematics is central to a professional physicist's work and, by extension, to a physics student's studies. It provides a language for abstraction, definition, computation, and connection to physical reality. This power of mathematics in physics is also the source of many of the difficulties it presents students. Simply put, many different activities could all be described as "using math in physics". Expertise entails a complicated coordination of these various activities. This work examines the many different kinds of thinking that are all facets of the use of mathematics in physics. It uses an epistemological lens, one that looks at the type of explanation a student presently sees as appropriate, to analyze the mathematical thinking of upper level physics undergraduates. Sometimes a student will turn to a detailed calculation to produce or justify an answer. Other times a physical argument is explicitly connected to the mathematics at hand. Still other times quoting a definition is seen as sufficient, and so on. Local coherencies evolve in students' thought around these various types of mathematical justifications. We use the cognitive process of framing to model students' navigation of these various facets of math use in physics. We first demonstrate several common framings observed in our students' mathematical thought and give several examples of each. Armed with this analysis tool, we then give several examples of how this framing analysis can be used to address a research question. We consider what effects, if any, a powerful symbolic calculator has on students' thinking. We also consider how to characterize growing expertise among physics students. Framing offers a lens for analysis that is a natural fit for these sample research questions. To active physics education researchers, the framing analysis presented in this dissertation can provide a useful tool for addressing other research questions. To physics teachers, we present this analysis so that it

Individual and Instructional Determinants of Student Engagement in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bevans, Katherine; Fitzpatrick, Leslie-Anne; Sanchez, Betty; Forrest, Christopher B.

2010-01-01

This study was conducted to identify student characteristics and instructional factors that impact student engagement in physical education (PE). Data were derived from the systematic observation of 124 sessions taught by 31 physical educators and the administration of health and PE engagement questionnaires to 2,018 students in grades 5-8.…

Physics of the Atmosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caballero, Rodrigo

2014-11-01

With the increasing attention paid to climate change, there is ever-growing interest in atmospheric physics and the processes by which the atmosphere affects Earth's energy balance. This self-contained text, written for advanced undergraduate and graduate students in physics or meteorology, assumes no prior knowledge apart from basic mechanics and calculus and contains material for a complete course. Augmented with worked examples, the text considers all aspects of atmospheric physics except dynamics, including moist thermodynamics, cloud microphysics, atmospheric radiation and remote sensing, and will be an invaluable resource for students and researchers.

Student Perceptions of a Conceptual Physical Education Activity Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jenkins, Jayne M.; Jenkins, Patience; Collums, Ashley; Werhonig, Gary

2006-01-01

Conceptual physical education (CPE) courses are typically included in university course work to provide students knowledge and skills to engage in physical activity for life. The purpose of this study was to identify CPE course characteristics that contributed to positive and negative student perceptions. Participants included 157 undergraduates…

Are Fourth-Year Medical Students Effective Teachers of the Physical Examination to First-Year Medical Students?

PubMed Central

Haist, Steven A; Wilson, John F; Fosson, Sue E; Brigham, Nancy L

1997-01-01

OBJECTIVE To determine if fourth-year medical students are as effective as faculty in teaching the physical examination to first-year medical students. DESIGN Stratified randomization of the first-year students. SETTING A public medical school. PARTICIPANTS All 100 first-year medical students in one medical school class were randomly assigned (controlling for gender) to either a faculty or a fourth-year student preceptor for the Physical Examination Module. MAIN RESULTS The first-year students of faculty preceptors scored no differently on the written examination than the students of the fourth-year medical student preceptors (82.8% vs 80.3%, p = .09) and no differently on a standardized patient practical examination (95.5% vs 95.4%, p = .92). Also, the first-year students rated the two groups of preceptors similarly on an evaluation form, with faculty rated higher on six items and the student preceptors rated higher on six items (all p > .10). The fourth-year student preceptors rated the experience favorably. CONCLUSIONS Fourth-year medical students were as successful as faculty in teaching first-year medical students the physical examination as measured by first-year student’s performances on objective measures and ratings of teaching effectiveness.

Graduate Students' Practicum Experiences Instructing Students with Severe and Profound Disabilities in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sato, Takahiro; Haegele, Justin A.

2017-01-01

Students with disabilities are more likely than ever to be educated in physical education classes with their typically developing peers. Because of this, it is essential for all educational personnel, including physical educators, to have proper teacher education to help meet the unique needs of these students. Currently, the research base is…

Experiencing Philosophy: Engaging Students in Advanced Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blenkinsop, Sean; Beeman, Chris

2012-01-01

In this paper, we will argue, predominantly using examples tested in the crucible of our own teaching, that there is a place for experiential education in the teaching of advanced theoretical ideas. As experiential educators trained as philosophers of education and working in faculties of education, we regularly encounter students with little or…

High School Physics Students' Personal Epistemologies and School Science Practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alpaslan, Muhammet Mustafa; Yalvac, Bugrahan; Loving, Cathleen

2017-11-01

This case study explores students' physics-related personal epistemologies in school science practices. The school science practices of nine eleventh grade students in a physics class were audio-taped over 6 weeks. The students were also interviewed to find out their ideas on the nature of scientific knowledge after each activity. Analysis of transcripts yielded several epistemological resources that students activated in their school science practice. The findings show that there is inconsistency between students' definitions of scientific theories and their epistemological judgments. Analysis revealed that students used several epistemological resources to decide on the accuracy of their data including accuracy via following the right procedure and accuracy via what the others find. Traditional, formulation-based, physics instruction might have led students to activate naive epistemological resources that prevent them to participate in the practice of science in ways that are more meaningful. Implications for future studies are presented.

The Scanning Electron Microscope As An Accelerator For The Undergraduate Advanced Physics Laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peterson, Randolph S.; Berggren, Karl K.; Mondol, Mark

2011-06-01

Few universities or colleges have an accelerator for use with advanced physics laboratories, but many of these institutions have a scanning electron microscope (SEM) on site, often in the biology department. As an accelerator for the undergraduate, advanced physics laboratory, the SEM is an excellent substitute for an ion accelerator. Although there are no nuclear physics experiments that can be performed with a typical 30 kV SEM, there is an opportunity for experimental work on accelerator physics, atomic physics, electron-solid interactions, and the basics of modern e-beam lithography.

International Physics Summer Camp for High School Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pope, Damian T.; Korsunsky, B.

2006-12-01

Each year for the past three years, Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, has staged an annual physics summer camp for high school students worldwide. Known as the International Summer School for Young Physicists (ISSYP), it attracts students from all corners of the globe and this year had attendees from 15 countries and 5 continents. The camp is aimed at motivated students around the age of 16 and is a two-week immersion into the exciting world of cutting-edge physics today. It covers topics such as dark matter, superstring theory and quantum computers, and exposes attendees to some of the very latest research results. It includes lectures, tutorials, laboratory visits and small-group projects and, in addition to teaching new material, strives to give students a deeper appreciation of the true nature of science. Throughout, attendees have a great deal of interaction with the institute's scientists. This presentation will give an overview of the camp including the material taught within it, its impact on students and the goals of the program. More information about the camp can be found at: http://www.youngphysicists.ca

Toward understanding writing to learn in physics: Investigating student writing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demaree, Dedra

It is received wisdom that writing in a discipline helps students learn the discipline, and millions of dollars have been committed at many universities to supporting such writing. We show that evidence for effectiveness is anecdotal, and that little data-based material informs these prejudices. This thesis begins the process of scientific study of writing in the discipline, in specific, in physics, and creates means to judge whether such writing is effective. The studies culminating in this thesis are an aggressive start to addressing these complex questions. Writing is often promoted as an activity that, when put into classrooms in specific disciplines, not only helps students learn to write in the methods of that discipline but also helps students learn content knowledge. Students at the Ohio State University are being asked to write more in introductory courses, and the Engineering schools want their students to have more writing skills for the job market. Combined with the desire of many educators to have students be able to explain the course content knowledge clearly, it would seem that writing activities would be important and useful in physics courses. However, the question of whether writing helps learning or whether students learn writing within a non-English classroom helps learning in the discipline are open to debate, and data are needed before such claims can be made. This thesis presents several studies aimed at understanding the correlation of writing and content, and tracking and characterizing student writing behaviors to see how they are impacted by writing in physics courses. It consists of four parts: summer and autumn 2005 focus on writing in introductory physics labs with and without explicit instruction, while winter and spring 2006 focus on tracking and analyzing student writing and revising behavior in Physics by Inquiry (PbI). With these related projects, we establish three main results. First, there is a need for quantitative studies of

Harnessing Students' Interest in Physics with Their Own Video Games

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Like, Christopher

2011-01-01

Many physics teachers assign projects where students are asked to measure real-world motion. One purpose of this student-centered activity is to cultivate the relevance of physics in their lives. Typical project topics may include measuring the speed of a student's fastball and calculating how much reaction time batters are given. Another student…

Physical education Teachers' and public health Nurses' perception of Norwegian high school Students' participation in physical education - a focus group study.

PubMed

Abildsnes, Eirik; Stea, Tonje H; Berntsen, Sveinung; Omfjord, Christina S; Rohde, Gudrun

2015-12-24

High quality physical education programs in high schools may facilitate adoption of sustainable healthy living among adolescents. Public health nurses often meet students who avoid taking part in physical education programs. We aimed to explore physical education teachers' and public health nurses' perceptions of high school students' attitudes towards physical education, and to explore physical education teachers' thoughts about how to facilitate and promote students' participation in class. Prior to an initiative from physical education teachers, introducing a new physical education model in two high schools in the South of Norway, we conducted focus groups with 6 physical education teachers and 8 public health nurses. After implementation of the new model, we conducted two additional focus group interviews with 10 physical education teachers. In analyses we used Systematic Text Condensation and an editing analysis style. In general, the students were experienced as engaged and appreciating physical education lessons. Those who seldom attended often strived with other subjects in school as well, had mental health problems, or were characterized as outsiders in several arenas. Some students were reported to be reluctant to expose their bodies in showers after class, and students who seldom attended physical education class frequently visited the school health services. Although the majority of students were engaged in class, several of the students lacked knowledge about physical fitness and motoric skills to be able to master daily activities. The participants related the students' competence and attitude towards participation in physical education class to previous experiences in junior high school, to the competence of physical education teachers, and to possibility for students to influence the content of physical education programs. The participants suggested that high school students' attitudes towards participation in physical education is heterogeneous

An analysis of predictors of enrollment and successful achievement for girls in high school Advanced Placement physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Depalma, Darlene M.

A problem within science education in the United States persists. U.S students rank lower in science than most other students from participating countries on international tests of achievement (National Center for Education Statistics, 2003). In addition, U.S. students overall enrollment rate in high school Advanced Placement (AP) physics is still low compared to other academic domains, especially for females. This problem is the background for the purpose of this study. This investigation examined cognitive and motivational variables thought to play a part in the under-representation of females in AP physics. Cognitive variables consisted of mathematics, reading, and science knowledge, as measured by scores on the 10th and 11th grade Florida Comprehensive Assessment Tests (FCAT). The motivational factors of attitude, stereotypical views toward science, self-efficacy, and epistemological beliefs were measured by a questionnaire developed with questions taken from previously proven reliable and valid instruments. A general survey regarding participation in extracurricular activities was also included. The sample included 12th grade students from two high schools located in Seminole County, Florida. Of the 106 participants, 20 girls and 27 boys were enrolled in AP physics, and 39 girls and 20 boys were enrolled in other elective science courses. Differences between males and females enrolled in AP physics were examined, as well as differences between females enrolled in AP physics and females that chose not to participate in AP physics, in order to determine predictors that apply exclusively to female enrollment in high school AP physics and predictors of an anticipated science related college major. Data were first analyzed by Exploratory Factor Analysis, followed by Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), independent t-tests, univariate analysis, and logistic regression analysis. One overall theme that emerged from this research was findings that refute the ideas that

Physics in Context--A Means to Encourage Student Interest in Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waltner, Christine; Wiesner, Hartmut; Rachel, Alexander

2007-01-01

Physics instruction that is student oriented will generate a long-term individual interest and therefore a lifelong openness to science. Phenomena of nature are part of the fields of interest which provide context leading to greater student interest. In this paper we present the locomotion of fish and sperm in a way which can be used to teach in…

Misconceptions in Physics amongst Nigerian Secondary School Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ivowi, U. M. O.

1984-01-01

Results obtained from a test administered to form five Nigerian students (aged 15-17) indicate that misconceptions in physics appear to be widespread among these students in roughly the same way as among South African students. Possible causes of these misconceptions are outlined and discussed. (JN)

Four-Year Follow-Up on Physics Students. A Preliminary Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, Fletcher G.

A follow-up study was made, in 1972, for 3,150 students who enrolled in a physics course during the 1967-68 experimental year of Project Physics (PP). An eight-page questionnaire was mailed to the students. The questionnaire included one section on students' biographical information, two sections of items identical to those of 1967-68 devices, and…

The Under-Utilization and Problems Associated with the Advanced Placement Program of Adult High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barham, Mary Ann

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the low participation rate among high school students 18 years of age or older in Advanced Placement courses. The subjects in this study were 129 Advanced Placement Students and 129 non-Advanced Placement high school students 18 years of age or older in five high schools in two Louisiana parishes.…

Student and Preceptor Advancement in a Dedicated Education Site: Innovation in Clinical Education for Advanced Practice Nurses.

PubMed

Hall, Katherine C; Diffenderfer, Sandy K; Stidham, April; Mullins, Christine M

2018-04-19

In the 1990s, dedicated education units transformed undergraduate preceptorships, but graduate preceptorships remain static. The dyadic nurse practitioner preceptorship model supports an environment where faculty, students, and preceptors may overlook nuances that affect the teaching-learning process. This article describes an innovative clinical education model, Student and Preceptor Advancement in a Dedicated Education Site, designed to improve preceptorships for advanced practice nurses. The focus is on adaptations made to facilitate use in advanced practice nursing programs.This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives License 4.0 (CCBY-NC-ND), where it is permissible to download and share the work provided it is properly cited. The work cannot be changed in any way or used commercially without permission from the journal.

Student evaluations of their physics teachers: Evaluative bias and its relationship to classroom pedagogy and students' career aspirations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Potvin, Geoff

2013-04-01

Using data collected from a nationally-representative sample of college students, the evaluation of high school physics teachers by their students is examined. Confirming earlier work, student evaluations (of both male and female students) exhibit bias with respect to the gender of their teacher. Pedagogical practices that impact student evaluations are explored, but these factors do not change the gender bias effect. We also consider how this evaluative bias is affected by students' career intentions. Grouping students according to their career intentions (e.g. physics majors, engineering majors, and health/medical science majors) shows that physics and engineering majors exhibit this bias to the same extent as the general population, but health/medical science majors exhibit a bias with nearly twice the size as average. The implications of this research for our understanding of physics culture regarding stereotypes and students' gendered expectations of teacher behavior is discussed.

Motivating students to read the textbook before class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pepper, Rachel E.

2016-11-01

Many faculty in STEM courses assign textbook reading in advance of lecture, yet evidence shows few students actually read the textbook. Those students that do read often do so only after the material has been presented in class. Preparing for class by reading the textbook beforehand improves student learning and is particularly critical for classes that employ active engagement strategies. Here I present strategies I have used to successfully motivate my students to read the textbook before class in physics classes ranging from introductory algebra-based physics to advanced courses for physics majors. In the introductory course, I used pre-class reading quizzes, a common strategy that has been shown effective in previous studies, but one that is somewhat time-consuming to implement. In my more advanced courses I used reading reflections, which required considerably less time. While it was typical for less than 25% of students to read the textbook before I implemented reading quizzes or reflections, after implementing these strategies 70-90% of students reported reading the textbook before class most of the time. Students also report finding both the readings themselves and the quizzes and reflections valuable for their learning.

Physics graduate students' perceptions of the value of teaching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verley, Jim D.

An exploratory study was undertaken to examine the perceptions of physics graduate students regarding teaching and their institutional and departmental support for their teaching efforts. A Likert survey was developed and distributed to 249 physics graduate students at four Rocky Mountain institutions of higher education. The survey was distributed through individual physics department email lists to prevent spam and virus blockers from removing the survey email. Of those 249 receiving the survey 132 students responded (53%) and of those responding 50% gave written comments about their perceptions of the value of teaching. Two of the institutions surveyed have some level of formal teaching development and assistance programming available to the graduate students and two had no formal programs in place either departmentally or institutionally. Both quantitative and qualitative analysis was utilized to examine the survey questions, demographic information and an open-ended question regarding the students' personal perceptions of teaching. Results of the survey analysis indicate that this group of physics graduate students perceive and place a high value on the importance of teaching. The results of the study also indicate that while there was high awareness by the student population of formal programs to aid in their teaching efforts, it did not translate into a high value placed on teaching by the institutions or departments from the student perspective. Students at those institutions that maintain formal programs for teaching development and support, while aware of those programs, often perceive departmental support for their teaching efforts to be lacking and feel unable to accommodate a personal interest in teaching because of a departmental focus on research. The students attending the institution with no formal institutional or departmental programs for teaching had the highest perceived value on its departmental teaching and support for teaching compared to

Learning Content, Physics Self-Efficacy, and Female Students' Physics Course-Taking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhu, Zheng

2007-01-01

A review of literature reveals that self-efficacy (SE) has been shown as a successful predictor of students' course-taking. Many factors have been reported to have influences on physics self-efficacy (PSE), but most of them are contextual variables. This article suggests that learning content is also an influencing factor. Physics learning content…

The Importance of High School Physics Teachers for Female Students' Physics Identity and Persistence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hazari, Zahra; Brewe, Eric; Goertzen, Renee Michelle; Hodapp, Theodore

2017-01-01

Given the historic and continued underrepresentation of women in physics, it is important to understand the role that high school physics might play in attracting female students to physics careers. Drawing on data from over 900 female undergraduates in physics, we examine when these women became interested in physics careers and different sources…

Teachers' Understanding of Students' Attitudes and Values toward Physical Activity in Physical Education Dropout Rates and Adolescent Obesity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Landolfi, Emilio

2014-01-01

Structured interviews were used to explore 10th grade teachers' understanding of students' attitudes and values toward physical education and physical activity as a variable in students' probability of dropping physical education and adolescent obesity. When asked how school-based physical education could help combat the problem of students…

Are you a ``physics person''? Understanding students' experiences, identities, and beliefs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Potvin, Geoff

2015-03-01

For several years, there has been much attention paid to the dearth of women in physics. Discussion has centered on various explanatory frameworks as to why women do not pursue physics in college as a career and on their persistence in such pursuits. In this talk, I will summarize efforts by our group to investigate recruitment and persistence issues for women in high school and undergraduate physics. Viewed through the lens of identity, we have repeatedly seen the importance of high school students' beliefs about the recognition they receive as a ``physics person'' to their identity development (especially so for women) and, ultimately, their physics-related career choices. Separately, we have studied the ways in which students evaluate their male and female physics teachers, which is an avenue to unravel students' beliefs and (possible) gender biases towards competency in physics. We have found statistically significant and replicable bias (in repeated independent measurements) against female physics teachers, exhibited by both male and female students. Lastly, I will report on a series of interventions that we have implemented in introductory college physics classrooms as attempts to positively affect women's attitudes towards physics, and their physics identities specifically. NSF Grant No. 1036617.

Personal health behaviors and role-modeling attitudes of physical therapists and physical therapist students: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Black, Beth; Marcoux, Beth C; Stiller, Christine; Qu, Xianggui; Gellish, Ronald

2012-11-01

Physical therapists have been encouraged to engage in health promotion practice. Health professionals who engage in healthy behaviors themselves are more apt to recommend those behaviors, and patients are more motivated to change their behaviors when their health care provider is a credible role model. The purpose of this study was to describe the health behaviors and role-modeling attitudes of physical therapists and physical therapist students. This study was a descriptive cross-sectional survey. A national sample of 405 physical therapists and 329 physical therapist students participated in the survey. Participants' attitudes toward role modeling and behaviors related to physical activity, fruit and vegetable consumption, abstention from smoking, and maintenance of a healthy weight were measured. Wilcoxon rank sum tests were used to examine differences in attitudes and behaviors between physical therapists and physical therapist students. A majority of the participants reported that they engage in regular physical activity (80.8%), eat fruits and vegetables (60.3%), do not smoke (99.4%), and maintain a healthy weight (78.7%). Although there were no differences in behaviors, physical therapist students were more likely to believe that role modeling is a powerful teaching tool, physical therapist professionals should "practice what they preach," physical activity is a desirable behavior, and physical therapist professionals should be role models for nonsmoking and maintaining a healthy weight. Limitations of this study include the potential for response bias and social desirability bias. Physical therapists and physical therapist students engage in health-promoting behaviors at similarly high rates but differ in role-modeling attitudes.

Advanced Course Enrollment and Performance among English Learner Students in Washington State. REL 2017-187

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Havala; Bisht, Biraj; Motamedi, Jason Greenberg

2016-01-01

Taking advanced high school courses (for example, honors, Advanced Placement, and dual-credit courses that offer college credits in high school) can help prepare students for postsecondary education and careers. English learner students, however, face unique obstacles to taking advanced courses because they must divide their time between acquiring…

Secondary School Students' Physical Activity Participation across Physical Education Classes: The Expectancy-Value Theory Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gråstén, Arto; Watt, Anthony; Hagger, Martin; Jaakkola, Timo; Liukkonen, Jarmo

2015-01-01

The primary purpose of this study was to analyze the link between students' expectancy beliefs, subjective task values, out-of-school activity, and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) participation across secondary school physical education (PE) classes. The sample comprised 96 students (58 girls, 38 boys; Mage = 15.03, SD = 0.94) from…

Identity development in upper-level physics students: transitions in and out of physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Irving, Paul

2016-03-01

In this era of unprecedented attention from the White House and Congress, the STEM community must rise to the challenge of recruiting and retaining students to achieve the mandate of producing one million additional college graduates with degrees in STEM. However, the number of students choosing to pursue and persist with physics as a degree has had a stagnated growth rate when compared to other STEM fields, and some institutions are experiencing dramatic shifts in the demographics of the students entering their programs. The development of a subject-specific identity is a strong influence on students' persistence in a discipline and is a productive lens from which to understand the stagnated growth rate of physics majors and how to support a shift in student demographics. In this presentation, ongoing research is presented that aims to understand identity development in STEM with a focus on the transition from physics student to physicist. Community development and exposure to authentic practice are established as crucial factors that contribute to the development of a professional identity. How these findings can be implemented into course design is discussed with an outline of the P3 learning environment. The P3 learning environment blends the regular focus of reform-based teaching practices on deep conceptual understanding with a focus on students obtaining understanding through engagement with authentic scientific practices. By establishing and studying learning environments similar to P3 we can further explore the development of subject-specific identity while also developing effective teaching practices.

Multi-representation ability of students on the problem solving physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Theasy, Y.; Wiyanto; Sujarwata

2018-03-01

Accuracy in representing knowledge possessed by students will show how the level of student understanding. The multi-representation ability of students on the problem solving of physics has been done through qualitative method of grounded theory model and implemented on physics education student of Unnes academic year 2016/2017. Multiforms of representation used are verbal (V), images/diagrams (D), graph (G), and mathematically (M). High and low category students have an accurate use of graphical representation (G) of 83% and 77.78%, and medium category has accurate use of image representation (D) equal to 66%.

Attitude towards Physics Lessons and Physical Experiments of the High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaya, Hasan; Boyuk, Ugur

2011-01-01

In order that students can develop researching, questioning, critical thinking, problem solving and decision making skills, so that they become lifelong learning individuals, they should be improved regarding their knowledge, understanding and attitude towards natural sciences. Attitudes towards physics lessons and physical experiments of high…

A New Curriculum for Physics Graduate Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griesshammer, Harald W.

2012-03-01

Effective Fall 2008, GW Physics implemented a new graduate curriculum, addressing nation-wide problems: (1) wide gap between 50-year-old curricula and the proficiencies expected to start research; (2) high attrition rates and long times to degree; (3) limited resources in small departments to cover all topics deemed essential. The new curriculum: (1) extends each course to 4 hours weekly for better in-depth coverage and cautious additions; (2) decreases the number of core-courses per semester to 2, with less ``parallel-processing'' of only loosely correlated lectures; (3) increases synergies by stricter logical ordering and synchronisation of courses; (4) frees faculty to regularly offer advanced courses; (5) integrates examples tied to ongoing research in our department; (6) integrates computational methods into core-lectures; (7) encourages focusing on concepts and ``meta-cognitive skills'' in studio-like settings. The new curriculum and qualifying exam, its rationale and assessment criteria will be discussed. This concept is tailored to the needs of small departments with only a few research fields and a close student-teacher relationship.

Newsletter: Council on Physics in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Foster, Howard

1972-01-01

Explains the need to encourage minority students to choose physics as the field for advanced work. Institutes were organized during summer, enrolling minority students to enrich their backgrounds. Results have been encouraging and more extensive planning is underway. (PS)

Physical Activity Patterns and Psychological Correlates of Physical Activity among Singaporean Primary, Secondary, and Junior College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, C. K. John; Koh, K. T.; Biddle, Stuart J. H.; Liu, W. C.; Chye, Stefanie

2011-01-01

The purpose of this research was to examine physical activity patterns and psychological correlates of physical activity among primary, secondary, and junior college students in Singapore. A sample of 3,333 school students aged 10 to 18 years took part in the study. Results showed that the younger students had significantly higher physical…

Application of experiential learning model using simple physical kit to increase attitude toward physics student senior high school in fluid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johari, A. H.; Muslim

2018-05-01

Experiential learning model using simple physics kit has been implemented to get a picture of improving attitude toward physics senior high school students on Fluid. This study aims to obtain a description of the increase attitudes toward physics senior high school students. The research method used was quasi experiment with non-equivalent pretest -posttest control group design. Two class of tenth grade were involved in this research 28, 26 students respectively experiment class and control class. Increased Attitude toward physics of senior high school students is calculated using an attitude scale consisting of 18 questions. Based on the experimental class test average of 86.5% with the criteria of almost all students there is an increase and in the control class of 53.75% with the criteria of half students. This result shows that the influence of experiential learning model using simple physics kit can improve attitude toward physics compared to experiential learning without using simple physics kit.

New instrument for measuring student beliefs about physics and learning physics: The Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adams, W. K.; Perkins, K. K.; Podolefsky, N. S.; Dubson, M.; Finkelstein, N. D.; Wieman, C. E.

2006-06-01

The Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) is a new instrument designed to measure student beliefs about physics and about learning physics. This instrument extends previous work by probing additional aspects of student beliefs and by using wording suitable for students in a wide variety of physics courses. The CLASS has been validated using interviews, reliability studies, and extensive statistical analyses of responses from over 5000 students. In addition, a new methodology for determining useful and statistically robust categories of student beliefs has been developed. This paper serves as the foundation for an extensive study of how student beliefs impact and are impacted by their educational experiences. For example, this survey measures the following: that most teaching practices cause substantial drops in student scores; that a student’s likelihood of becoming a physics major correlates with their “Personal Interest” score; and that, for a majority of student populations, women’s scores in some categories, including “Personal Interest” and “Real World Connections,” are significantly different from men’s scores.

Development of Physics Attitude Scale (PAS): An Instrument to Measure Students' Attitudes toward Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaur, Daisy; Zhao, Yi

2017-01-01

The present study is focused on the detailed description of Physics Attitude Scale (PAS) to measure students' attitudes toward physics. The development of this new instrument involved extensive interviews with both the experts as well as the students. This was followed by expert reviews and pilot testing of the instrument. The duly revised draft…

Effectiveness of School-Initiated Physical Activity Program on Secondary School Students' Physical Activity Participation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gråstén, Arto; Yli-Piipari, Sami; Watt, Anthony; Jaakkola, Timo; Liukkonen, Jarmo

2015-01-01

Background: The promotion of physical activity and health has become a universal challenge. The Sotkamo Physical Activity as Civil Skill Program was implemented to increase students' physical activity by promoting supportive psychological and physical school environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the…

Attitudes of physical therapist students toward physical therapist assistants before and after full-time clinical internships.

PubMed

Cavallo, Cheryl L; Richter, Randy R

2004-01-01

Development of attitudes of physical therapists (PTs) toward physical therapist assistants (PTAs) begins during their professional education, and attitudes are influenced further by clinical experiences. The purpose of this study was to understand attitudes of student PTs toward PTAs. We surveyed 66 clinical intern students enrolled in an entry-level master of physical therapy program. PT students received the same survey before and after their full-time clinical internship. Eleven Likert scale items were used to assess students' attitudes toward PTAs in the areas of competence, financial remuneration, and job security. One item was designed to determine whether PT students' level of contact with PTAs influenced attitudes. A random sample of 13 (20.9%) students who returned surveys were asked to participate in a telephone interview designed to enrich the quantitative data. After item analysis, five of the scale items were eliminated from the analyses due to poor internal consistency. Cronbach's alpha of the remaining six scale items was 0.75. Survey results reveal that PT students maintain an overall positive attitude toward PTAs before and after full-time clinical internship. Qualitative interview data support this finding. Students' attitudes in specific areas of PTA competence were negative and positive, however. The negative attitude may have been based on the students' beliefs that PTAs are not competent to perform physical therapy in situations that are changing or unpredictable. Positive attitudes may have been reflective of the students' beliefs that PTAs are competent to implement established plans of care. Student ranking of four professional issues showed a significant difference before and after full-time clinical internships.

Causal modeling of secondary science students' intentions to enroll in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crawley, Frank E.; Black, Carolyn B.

The purpose of this study was to explore the utility of the theory of planned behavior model developed by social psychologists for understanding and predicting the behavioral intentions of secondary science students regarding enrolling in physics. In particular, the study used a three-stage causal model to investigate the links from external variables to behavioral, normative, and control beliefs; from beliefs to attitudes, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control; and from attitudes, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control to behavioral intentions. The causal modeling method was employed to verify the underlying causes of secondary science students' interest in enrolling physics as predicted in the theory of planned behavior. Data were collected from secondary science students (N = 264) residing in a central Texas city who were enrolled in earth science (8th grade), biology (9th grade), physical science (10th grade), or chemistry (11th grade) courses. Cause-and-effect relationships were analyzed using path analysis to test the direct effects of model variables specified in the theory of planned behavior. Results of this study indicated that students' intention to enroll in a high school physics course was determined by their attitude toward enrollment and their degree of perceived behavioral control. Attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control were, in turn, formed as a result of specific beliefs that students held about enrolling in physics. Grade level and career goals were found to be instrumental in shaping students' attitude. Immediate family members were identified as major referents in the social support system for enrolling in physics. Course and extracurricular conflicts and the fear of failure were shown to be the primary beliefs obstructing students' perception of control over physics enrollment. Specific recommendations are offered to researchers and practitioners for strengthening secondary school students

Characterizing Student Experiences in Physics Competitions: The Power of Emotions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moll, Rachel F.; Nashon, S.; Anderson, D.

2006-12-01

Low enrolment and motivation are key issues in physics education and recently the affective dimension of learning is being studied for evidence of its influence on student attitudes towards physics. Physics Olympics competitions are a novel context for stimulating intense emotional experiences. In this study, one team of students and their teacher were interviewed and observed prior to and during the event to characterize their emotions and determine the connections between their experiences and learning and attitudes/motivation towards physics. Results showed that certain types of events stimulated strong emotions of frustration and ownership, and that students’ attitudes were that physics is fun, diverse and relevant. Analysis of these themes indicated that the nature of emotions generated was connected to their attitudes towards physics. This finding points to the potential and value of informal and novel contexts in creating strong positive emotions, which have a strong influence on student attitudes towards physics.

Physical activity and mental well-being in student nurses.

PubMed

Hawker, Clare L

2012-04-01

There is strong evidence that suggests physical activity can enhance mental well-being. However, this relationship has not been widely investigated in student nurses. A cross-sectional study was conducted to examine the relationship between physical activity and mental well-being in undergraduate student nurses (n=215). Physical activity was measured using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Other outcomes included self-esteem, anxiety, depression, life satisfaction, outcome expectations and self-efficacy. Almost, a quarter (23.8%) of the total sample, were meeting the Department of Health's physical activity guideline. Mean body mass index (BMI) was 25.0 with 40% being in the overweight to morbidly obese category. Self-esteem was significantly positively correlated with total physical activity (r=0.16, p=0.038) and moderate intensity activity (r=0.17, p=0.021). No other significant relationships were found between anxiety, depression and satisfaction with life and physical activity. Outcome expectations for exercise and self-efficacy were significantly positively correlated with moderate (r=0.17, p=0.019) and vigorous (r=0.28, p=0.000) intensity activity and total physical activity (r=0.29, p=0.000). BMI was significantly positively correlated with age (r=0.242, p=0.001), significantly negatively correlated with self-efficacy for exercise (r=0.257, p=0.000) and satisfaction with life (r=-0.144, p=0.041). Regression analysis showed that low self efficacy for exercise and increasing age were significant predictors of BMI with a small effect size r(2)=0.126, adjusted r(2)=0.112. BMI and physical activity variables collectively explained only 2% of the variance for anxiety, 4% for depression, 5% for self esteem and 6% for satisfaction with life. BMI was a significant predictor of satisfaction with life (Beta=-0.171, p=0.027). Participation in physical activity may be influential in improving mental well-being in student nurses. Promoting physical

A Framework for Understanding Physics Students' Computational Modeling Practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lunk, Brandon Robert

With the growing push to include computational modeling in the physics classroom, we are faced with the need to better understand students' computational modeling practices. While existing research on programming comprehension explores how novices and experts generate programming algorithms, little of this discusses how domain content knowledge, and physics knowledge in particular, can influence students' programming practices. In an effort to better understand this issue, I have developed a framework for modeling these practices based on a resource stance towards student knowledge. A resource framework models knowledge as the activation of vast networks of elements called "resources." Much like neurons in the brain, resources that become active can trigger cascading events of activation throughout the broader network. This model emphasizes the connectivity between knowledge elements and provides a description of students' knowledge base. Together with resources resources, the concepts of "epistemic games" and "frames" provide a means for addressing the interaction between content knowledge and practices. Although this framework has generally been limited to describing conceptual and mathematical understanding, it also provides a means for addressing students' programming practices. In this dissertation, I will demonstrate this facet of a resource framework as well as fill in an important missing piece: a set of epistemic games that can describe students' computational modeling strategies. The development of this theoretical framework emerged from the analysis of video data of students generating computational models during the laboratory component of a Matter & Interactions: Modern Mechanics course. Student participants across two semesters were recorded as they worked in groups to fix pre-written computational models that were initially missing key lines of code. Analysis of this video data showed that the students' programming practices were highly influenced by

Experiences of Advanced High School Students in Synchronous Online Recitations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayer, Greg; Lingle, Jeremy; Usselman, Marion

2017-01-01

The question of how to best design an online course that promotes student-centred learning is an area of ongoing research. This mixed-methods study focused on a section of advanced high school students, in college-level mathematics courses, that used a synchronous online environment mediated over web-conferencing software, and whether the…

"Why Do I Slog through the Physics?" Understanding High School Students' Difficulties in Learning Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ekici, Erhan

2016-01-01

The aim of this study is to develop a valid and reliable instrument to assess why physics courses are perceived as one of the most difficult courses among high school students and to investigate the reasons why students have difficulty in learning physics through this scale. This study includes the development and validation studies of the…

Biological Physics major as a means to stimulate an undergraduate physics program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaeger, Herbert; Eid, Khalid; Yarrison-Rice, Jan

2013-03-01

In an effort to stress the cross-disciplinary nature of modern physics we added a Biological Physics major. Drawing from coursework in physics, biology, chemistry, mathematics, and related disciplines, it combines a broad curriculum with physical and mathematical rigor in preparation for careers in biophysics, medical physics, and biomedical engineering. Biological Physics offers a new path of studies to a large pool of life science students. We hope to grow our physics majors from 70-80 to more than 100 students and boost our graduation rate from the mid-teens to the mid-twenties. The new major brought about a revision of our sophomore curriculum to make room for modern topics without sidelining fundamentals. As a result, we split our 1-semester long Contemporary Physics course (4 cr hrs) into a year-long sequence Contemporary Physics Foundations and Contemporary Physics Frontiers (both 3 cr hrs). Foundations starts with relativity, then focuses on 4 quantum mechanics topics: wells, spin 1/2, oscillators, and hydrogen. Throughout the course applications are woven in whenever the opportunity arises, e.g. magnetism and NMR with spin 1/2. The following semester Frontiers explores scientific principles and technological advances that make quantum science and resulting technologies different from the large scale. Frontiers covers enabling techniques from atomic, molecular, condensed matter, and particle physics, as well as advances in nanotechnology, quantum optics, and biophysics.

Students' epistemological beliefs, expectations, and learning physics: An international comparison

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Sapna; Ahluwalia, P. K.; Sharma, S. K.

2013-06-01

It has been established by physics education researchers that there is a correlation between the learner’s behavior, their epistemological beliefs with which they come to the classrooms, and their success in a course. This study of Indian students and teachers explores expectations and beliefs in learning physics at the secondary and tertiary levels by making use of the Maryland Physics Expectation (MPEX) survey, which has been tested for both its validity and its reliability. The MPEX was administered to a sample of 265 Indian students at three different levels of study: (i) XII standard (high school), (ii) undergraduate (Bachelor of Science), and (iii) master’s degree (Master of Science in Physics, MS). In India, a pre-post instruction difference between the attitudes of class XII, undergraduate, and master’s students is observed with favorable improvement in master’s students as compared to deterioration in both class XII and undergraduate students. A comparison of these results with those reported in similar studies conducted in four other countries (U.S., Turkey, Philippines, and Thailand) indicates that there is a difference between the U.S. students and those of the other three countries and also between U.S. experts and Indian teachers. In all countries (U.S., India, Turkey, Thailand, and Philippines) the basic trend of expectation from pre to post test remained the same—there was a deterioration observed in all levels of students. Indian MS students were an exception. A significant difference was observed in the expectations of U.S. experts and Indian teachers. The score of favorable views of Indian class XII and undergraduate students was observed to be less than U.S. students in many clusters. No significant difference was found between Indian male and female students’ expectations at any level of study. This study shows that most Indian students have nowhere near an expert’s expectations even after instruction, which might affect their

The relationship of certified flight instructors' emotional intelligence levels on flight student advancement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hokeness, Mark Merrill

Aviation researchers estimate airline companies will require nearly 500,000 pilots in the next 20 years. The role of a Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) is to move student pilots to professional pilots with training typically conducted in one-on-one student and instructor sessions. The knowledge of aviation, professionalism as a teacher, and the CFI’s interpersonal skills can directly affect the successes and advancement of a student pilot. A new and emerging assessment of people skills is known as emotional intelligence (EI). The EI of the CFI can and will affect a flight students’ learning experiences. With knowledge of emotional intelligence and its effect on flight training, student pilot dropouts from aviation may be reduced, thus helping to ensure an adequate supply of pilots. Without pilots, the growth of the commercial aviation industry will be restricted. This mixed method research study established the correlation between a CFI’s measured EI levels and the advancement of flight students. The elements contributing to a CFI’s EI level were not found to be teaching or flight-related experiences, suggesting other life factors are drawn upon by the CFI and are reflected in their emotional intelligence levels presented to flight students. Students respond positively to CFIs with higher levels of emotional intelligence. Awareness of EI skills by both the CFI and flight student contribute to flight student successes and advancement.

The Student-Centered Classroom Made Real: Transforming Student Presentations in an Advanced Course on Technical German

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rarick, Damon O.

2010-01-01

This article describes how the author has successfully combined polling with more traditional instructional strategies to enhance student presentation skills in an advanced course teaching technical German. By helping students select and prepare topics, anticipate questions and engage the audience, instructors can eliminate some of the root causes…

Barriers of physical assessment skills among nursing students in Arab Peninsula

PubMed Central

Alamri, Majed Sulaiman; Almazan, Joseph U.

2018-01-01

Objective: There is a growing demand for health-care nursing services in several health care institutions. Understanding barriers to physical assessment among nursing students create a more detailed assessment in the development of quality patient’s care in nursing practice. This study examined the barriers to physical assessment skills among nursing students in a government university in Arab Peninsula. Methods: A cross-sectional research survey design of 206 nursing students using a standardized questionnaire was used. The questionnaire is composed of 7 subscales in evaluating the barriers to physical assessment skills between the classroom and clinical setting. Independent Samples t-test was used in comparing the gender mean of the nursing students about the barriers to physical assessment. Paired t-test was also used in determining the differences between perceived barriers to physical assessment in the classroom and clinical setting. Results: Subscale “reliance on others and technology,” ward culture, “lack of influence on patient care” have significant differences between perceived barriers in physical assessment among classroom settings and clinical setting. Conclusion: Although nursing students were oriented and educated about physical assessment in the nursing curriculum, this is not often practiced in clinical settings. The point that is if nursing students are incorrectly performing the patient assessment, then no amount of critical thinking could lead to better clinical decisions. Continuous exposure and enhancing the quality of planning and promotion of the nursing students could develop necessary skills. In addition, increasing self-confidence is vital to assess the patient’s health status effectively and minimize the barriers to performing the physical assessment. PMID:29896073

Discussing Underrepresentation as a Means to Facilitating Female Students' Physics Identity Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lock, Robynne M.; Hazari, Zahra

2016-01-01

Despite the fact that approximately half of high school physics students are female, only 21% of physics bachelor's degrees are awarded to women. In a previous study, drawn from a national survey of college students in introductory English courses, five factors commonly proposed to positively impact female students' choice of a physical science…

Learning From Where Students Look While Observing Simulated Physical Phenomena

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demaree, Dedra

2005-04-01

The Physics Education Research (PER) Group at the Ohio State University (OSU) has developed Virtual Reality (VR) programs for teaching introductory physics concepts. Winter 2005, the PER group worked with OSU's cognitive science eye-tracking lab to probe what features students look at while using our VR programs. We see distinct differences in the features students fixate on depending upon whether or not they have formally studied the related physics. Students who first make predictions seem to fixate more on the relevant features of the simulation than those who do not, regardless of their level of education. It is known that students sometimes perform an experiment and report results consistent with their misconceptions but inconsistent with the experimental outcome. We see direct evidence of one student holding onto misconceptions despite fixating frequently on the information needed to understand the correct answer. Future studies using these technologies may prove valuable for tackling difficult questions regarding student learning.

Advanced Course Enrollment and Performance in Washington State: Comparing Spanish-Speaking Students with Other Language Minority Students and English-Only Speakers. REL 2017-220

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Havala; Bisht, Biraj; Motamedi, Jason Greenberg

2017-01-01

Students who take advanced courses in high school are more likely to enroll and persist in college. This report describes patterns in advanced coursetaking among three groups of students in Washington state: Spanish-speaking students, other language minority students whose primary or home language is not Spanish, and English-only speakers. This…

Physical culture as the basis of students' healthy lifestyle.

PubMed

Kharissova, N; Kharissova, L; Smirnov, I; Kosibaeva, A; Mindubaeva, F

2015-04-01

The present study aimed at investigation of the relationship between physiological features of cardiorespiratory system of a group of athletes with individually-typological charac-teristics of the organism (age, type of constitution, sports experience, the degree of adaptation) to physical activities on the basis of a comprehensive study of the cardiorespiratory system. The study was conducted on 450 students from 18 to 24 years of age from Kazakhstan, Russia, India, and Pakistan to evaluate the influence of physical culture and sports on the formation of a healthy lifestyle of young people in higher education institutions. The students were divided into groups - the first group - student 18-20 years of age; the second group - students 21-24 years of age; the control group included students of the same age not actively involved in sports (2 lessons of physical training per week). The relationship between physiological features of cardiorespiratory system of athletes and individually-typological characteristics of the organism (age, type of constitution, sports experience, the degree of adaptation) was determined.

Using Advance Organizers to Enhance Students' Motivation in Learning Biology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shihusa, Hudson; Keraro, Fred N.

2009-01-01

This study investigated the effect of using advance organizers on students' motivation to learn biology. The research design used was quasi-experimental design where the non-randomised Solomon Four group was adopted. The focus was on the topic pollution. The sample comprised of 166 form three (third grade in the secondary school cycle) students in…

Exploring student learning profiles in algebra-based studio physics: A person-centered approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pond, Jarrad W. T.; Chini, Jacquelyn J.

2017-06-01

In this study, we explore the strategic self-regulatory and motivational characteristics of students in studio-mode physics courses at three universities with varying student populations and varying levels of success in their studio-mode courses. We survey students using questions compiled from several existing questionnaires designed to measure students' study strategies, attitudes toward and motivations for learning physics, organization of scientific knowledge, experiences outside the classroom, and demographics. Using a person-centered approach, we utilize cluster analysis methods to group students into learning profiles based on their individual responses to better understand the strategies and motives of algebra-based studio physics students. Previous studies have identified five distinct learning profiles across several student populations using similar methods. We present results from first-semester and second-semester studio-mode introductory physics courses across three universities. We identify these five distinct learning profiles found in previous studies to be present within our population of introductory physics students. In addition, we investigate interactions between these learning profiles and student demographics. We find significant interactions between a student's learning profile and their experience with high school physics, major, gender, grade expectation, and institution. Ultimately, we aim to use this method of analysis to take the characteristics of students into account in the investigation of successful strategies for using studio methods of physics instruction within and across institutions.

Probing University Students' Pre-Knowledge in Quantum Physics with QPCS Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asikainen, Mervi A.

2017-01-01

The study investigated the use of Quantum Physics Conceptual Survey (QPCS) in probing student understanding of quantum physics. Altogether 103 Finnish university students responded to QPCS. The mean scores of the student responses were calculated and the test was evaluated using common five indices: Item difficulty index, Item discrimination…

Identifying Taiwanese University Students' Physics Learning Profiles and Their Role in Physics Learning Self-Efficacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Tzung-Jin; Liang, Jyh-Chong; Tsai, Chin-Chung

2015-08-01

The main purposes of this study were to identify Taiwanese university students' physics learning profiles in terms of their critical conceptions of learning physics and to compare their physics learning self-efficacy with the different learning profiles. A total of 250 Taiwanese undergraduates who were majoring in physics participated in this study and were invited to complete two instruments, physics learning profile and physics learning self-efficacy (PLSE). The main results indicated that, first, the two instruments developed in this study had satisfactory validity and reliability. Second, three fundamental physics learning profiles, the reproductive, transitional, and constructive profiles, were characterized based on the cluster analysis. It is also evident that the three learning profiles demonstrated different levels of self-efficacy for the five PLSE dimensions. The students with a reproductive profile tended to possess the lowest PLSE across the five dimensions. The students with a transitional profile may possess higher confidence in higher-order cognitive skills and laboratory activities than those with a reproductive profile. However, only those with a constructive profile, highlighting a comprehensive understanding of physics knowledge/concepts as well as de-emphasizing physics learning as preparing for tests and calculating and practising tutorial problems, possessed stronger PLSE in applying what they learned to real-world contexts as well as in scientifically communicating with others.

Diet and Physical Activity Intervention Strategies for College Students

PubMed Central

Martinez, Yannica Theda S.; Harmon, Brook E.; Bantum, Erin O.; Strayhorn, Shaila

2016-01-01

Objectives To understand perceived barriers of a diverse sample of college students and their suggestions for interventions aimed at healthy eating, cooking, and physical activity. Methods Forty students (33% Asian American, 30% mixed ethnicity) were recruited. Six focus groups were audio-recorded, transcribed, and coded. Coding began with a priori codes, but allowed for additional codes to emerge. Analysis of questionnaires on participants’ dietary and physical activity practices and behaviors provided context for qualitative findings. Results Barriers included time, cost, facility quality, and intimidation. Tailoring towards a college student’s lifestyle, inclusion of hands-on skill building, and online support and resources were suggested strategies. Conclusions Findings provide direction for diet and physical activity interventions and policies aimed at college students. PMID:28480225

TIMSS Advanced 2015 and Advanced Placement Calculus & Physics. A Framework Analysis. Research in Review 2016-1

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lazzaro, Christopher; Jones, Lee; Webb, David C.; Grover, Ryan; Di Giacomo, F. Tony; Marino, Katherine Adele

2016-01-01

This report will determine to what degree the AP Physics 1 and 2 and AP Calculus AB and BC frameworks are aligned with the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) Advanced Physics and Mathematics frameworks. This will enable an exploration of any differences in content coverage and levels of complexity, and will set the stage…

Phys21:Preparing Physics Students for 21st Century Careers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCormack, Elizabeth

2017-04-01

The Phys21: Preparing Physics Students for 21st Century Careersreport was commissioned by the APS and the AAPT and prepared by the Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs (J-TUPP). It addresses the question: What skills and knowledge should the next generation of undergraduate physics majors possess to be well prepared for a diverse set of careers? J-TUPP members were particularly interested to understand better the needs of students who do not plan to pursue academic research careers. The major findings of the report and a summary of the guidelines that were developed for revising the undergraduate curriculum, addressing the needs of an increasingly diverse population of students, providing professional skills development, and enhancing student engagement through high impact teaching practices will be presented.

Developing Quality Physical Education through Student Assessments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisette, Jennifer L.; Placek, Judith H.; Avery, Marybell; Dyson, Ben; Fox, Connie; Franck, Marian; Graber, Kim; Rink, Judith; Zhu, Weimo

2009-01-01

The National Association of Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) is committed to providing teachers with the support and guiding principles for implementing valid assessments. Its goal is for physical educators to utilize PE Metrics to measure student learning based on the national standards. The first PE Metrics text provides teachers with…

Identity Statuses in Upper-Division Physics Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Irving, Paul W.; Sayre, Eleanor C.

2016-01-01

We use the theories of identity statuses and communities of practice to describe three different case studies of students finding their paths through undergraduate physics and developing a physics subject-specific identity. Each case study demonstrates a unique path that reinforces the link between the theories of communities of practice and…

Students' network integration vs. persistence in introductory physics courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zwolak, Justyna; Brewe, Eric

2017-01-01

Society is constantly in flux, which demands the continuous development of our educational system to meet new challenges and impart the appropriate knowledge/skills to students. In order to improve student learning, among other things, the way we are teaching has significantly changed over the past few decades. We are moving away from traditional, lecture-based teaching towards more interactive, engagement-based strategies. A current, major challenge for universities is to increase student retention. While students' academic and social integration into an institution seems to be vital for student retention, research on the effect of interpersonal interactions is rare. I use of network analysis to investigate academic and social experiences of students in and beyond the classroom. In particular, there is a compelling case that transformed physics classes, such as Modeling Instruction (MI), promote persistence by the creation of learning communities that support the integration of students into the university. I will discuss recent results on pattern development in networks of MI students' interactions throughout the semester, as well as the effect of students' position within the network on their persistence in physics.

Characteristics of Selected Anthropometric Foot Indicators in Physically Active Students.

PubMed

Bac, Aneta; Bogacz, Gabriela; Ogrodzka-Ciechanowicz, Katarzyna; Kulis, Aleksandra; Szaporów, Tomasz; Woźniacka, Renata; Radlińska, Natalia

2018-05-01

The aim of this study was to determine the type of medial longitudinal arch (MLA) in students of Krakow universities, investigate the relationship between physical activity and the shaping of the feet, and examine the relationship between hallux valgus angle and the type of footwear chosen most often. The study group consisted of 120 students, of which 56 respondents were students of the University School of Physical Education in Krakow, whereas the remaining 64 respondents were students of the Pedagogical University of Krakow. To evaluate the MLA, a podoscope was used, which allowed us to determine the length and width of the foot, and calculation of the Clarke angle, heel angle γ, and the angle of hallux valgus. All students were also subjected to a measurement of body weight and height. There was a statistically significant relationship between physical activity and the Clarke angle in the group of women studying at the University School of Physical Education. There was no correlation between the hallux valgus angle and the type of footwear chosen most often in the research groups. The most frequently diagnosed type of longitudinal and transverse arch foot in the research group was normal MLA. There was no relationship between physical activity and transverse arch foot in any of the research groups.

Full-participation of students with physical disabilities in science and engineering laboratories.

PubMed

Jeannis, Hervens; Joseph, James; Goldberg, Mary; Seelman, Katherine; Schmeler, Mark; Cooper, Rory A

2018-02-01

To conduct a literature review identifying barriers and facilitators students with physical disabilities (SwD-P) may encounter in science and engineering (S&E) laboratories. Publications were identified from 1991 to 2015 in ERIC, web of science via web of knowledge, CINAHL, SCOPUS, IEEEXplore, engineering village, business source complete and PubMed databases using search terms and synonyms for accommodations, advanced manufacturing, additive manufacturing, assistive technology (AT), barriers, engineering, facilitators, instructor, laboratory, STEM education, science, students with disabilities and technology. Twenty-two of the 233 publications that met the review's inclusion criteria were examined. Barriers and facilitators were grouped based on the international classification of functioning, disability and health framework (ICF). None of the studies directly found barriers or facilitators to SwD-P in science or engineering laboratories within postsecondary environments. The literature is not clear on the issues specifically related to SwD-P. Given these findings, further research (e.g., surveys or interviews) should be conducted to identify more details to obtain more substantial information on the barriers that may prevent SwD-P from fully participating in S&E instructional laboratories. Implications for Rehabilitation Students with disabilities remain underrepresented going into STEM careers. A need exist to help uncover barriers students with disabilities encounter in STEM laboratory. Environments. Accommodations and strategies that facilitate participation in STEM laboratory environments are promising for students with disabilities.

The Correlation between Physical Environment and Student Engagement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carmona-Reyes, Jorge; Wang, Li; Matthews, Lorin; Cook, Mike; Hyde, Truell

2016-10-01

In its second year of an educational research collaboration on the convergence between physical environment, pedagogical methods, student attainment and academic performance, CASPER along with the Region 12 Education Service Center and Huckabee Inc. have completed their initial quantitative study. This project examined the impact of the physical environment on student engagement, employing a flexibility construct and examination of teacher mobility and places of centeredness. Data analysis showed a positive correlation between student engagement and classroom flexibility for two locations having statistically significant differences in flexibility scores. The research is now being extended to examine a laboratory setting (in this case, a complex plasma lab) where the results will be used to enhance student work efficiency while also increasing safety within the lab. Details will be discussed in this presentation. Region 12 and Huckabee funding is gratefully acknowledged.

Integration of students with physical impairment in Canadian university rehabilitation sciences programs.

PubMed

Guitard, Paulette; Duguay, Elise; Thériault, France-Andrée; Sirois, Nathalie Julie; Lajoie, Mélissa

2010-03-01

The purpose of this research was two-fold. First, it sought to determine if Canadian rehabilitation science programs are equipped to admit students with physical impairments and, second, to document the experience of these students. A survey (questionnaire) conducted among all Canadian university rehabilitation science programs (n=34) and interviews with students with physical impairments (n=3) from one university help better delineate this problem. Twenty-three programs completed the survey. Of these, 21 (91%) rehabilitation science programs have admitted students with a variety of physical impairments. Programs have access to their university's Special Service Center to help answer the needs of these students. Strategies have been developed to overcome the difficulties encountered and to meet the programs' requirements. Canadian university rehabilitation science programs seem well equipped to facilitate the integration of individuals with physical impairments. Students report a positive university experience; however, they voice several recommendations to smooth the integration process. Although significant efforts have been made to facilitate the integration process of students with physical limitations, adjustments are still warranted.

Discussing underrepresentation as a means to facilitating female students' physics identity development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lock, Robynne M.; Hazari, Zahra

2016-12-01

Despite the fact that approximately half of high school physics students are female, only 21% of physics bachelor's degrees are awarded to women. In a previous study, drawn from a national survey of college students in introductory English courses, five factors commonly proposed to positively impact female students' choice of a physical science career were tested using multivariate matching methods. The only factor found to have a positive effect was the explicit discussion of the underrepresentation of women in physics. In order to explore this further, a case study of the classes of one teacher reported to discuss the underrepresentation of women was conducted. Two classroom underrepresentation discussions were recorded, students and teacher were interviewed, and relevant student work was collected. Analyzing the case study data using a figured worlds framework, we found that discussing the underrepresentation of women in science explicitly creates an opportunity for students' figured worlds of professional and school science to change, and facilitates challenging their own implicit assumptions about how the world functions. Subsequently, the norms in students' figured worlds may change or become less rigid allowing for a new openness to physics identity development amongst female students.

A new method for teaching physical examination to junior medical students.

PubMed

Sayma, Meelad; Williams, Hywel Rhys

2016-01-01

Teaching effective physical examination is a key component in the education of medical students. Preclinical medical students often have insufficient clinical knowledge to apply to physical examination recall, which may hinder their learning when taught through certain understanding-based models. This pilot project aimed to develop a method to teach physical examination to preclinical medical students using "core clinical cases", overcoming the need for "rote" learning. This project was developed utilizing three cycles of planning, action, and reflection. Thematic analysis of feedback was used to improve this model, and ensure it met student expectations. A model core clinical case developed in this project is described, with gout as the basis for a "foot and ankle" examination. Key limitations and difficulties encountered on implementation of this pilot are discussed for future users, including the difficulty encountered in "content overload". This approach aims to teach junior medical students physical examination through understanding, using a simulated patient environment. Robust research is now required to demonstrate efficacy and repeatability in the physical examination of other systems.

The effects of smoking and physical inactivity on advancing mortality in U.S. adults.

PubMed

Borrell, Luisa N

2014-06-01

The aim of the study was to calculate the rate advancement period (RAP) by which deaths for all-cause and cardiovascular disease (CVD)-specific mortality is advanced by smoking and physical inactivity among U.S. adults aged 18 years or more who participated in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and were followed to December 31, 2006. Mortality status was determined using the underlying cause of death. Cox regression was used to calculate the advanced time of deaths for all-cause and CVD-specific mortality among exposed adults relative to their nonexposed counterparts. Deaths for all-cause and CVD-specific mortality were advanced by 7.9 and 5.1 years among current smoker adults. For physically inactive adults, the RAPs for all-cause and CVD-specific mortality were 4.0 and 2.4 years, respectively. The joint effects of current smoking, physical inactivity, and obesity resulted in early all-cause and CVD-specific deaths of 14.2 and 12.2 years. For current smokers, physically inactive, and overweight adults, the RAPs for all-cause and CVD-specific deaths were 7.9 and 8.9 years, respectively. Our findings suggest that smoking and physical inactivity could significantly advance the time of death associated with all-cause and CVD-specific mortality by at least 2.4 years among U.S. adults. Moreover, the advancement death period for the joint effects of smoking, physical inactivity, and overweight or obesity could be at least 7.9 years. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Tapping the Geoscience Two-Year College Student Reservoir: Factors that Influence Student Transfer Intent and Physical Science Degree Aspirations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wolfe, Benjamin A.

Colleges and universities are facing greater accountability to identify and implement practices that increase the number of two-year college (2YC) students who transfer to four-year institutions (4YC) and complete baccalaureate degrees. This is particularly true for physical science and geoscience disciplines, which have the lowest STEM degree completion rates of students transferring from 2YCs (Wilson, 2014a). A better understanding of how academic engagement experiences contribute to increased 2YC student interest in these disciplines and student intent to transfer is critical in strengthening the transfer pathway for the physical sciences and geosciences. The purpose of this study was to gain understanding of the influence that background characteristics, mathematics preparation, academic experiences (e.g. faculty-student interaction, undergraduate research experiences, and field experiences), and academic advisor engagement have on 2YC student intentions to transfer to a four-year institution (4YC) with physical science or geoscience degree aspirations. Incorporating the conceptual frameworks of student engagement and transfer student capital (Laanan et al., 2010), this study used Astin's (1993; 1999) input-environment-outcomes (I-E-O) model to investigate what factors predict 2YC students' intent to transfer to a 4YC and pursue physical science or geoscience degrees. This study used a quantitative research approach with data collected from 751 student respondents from 24 2YCs. Results from three sequential multiple regression models revealed advisor interaction, speaking with a transfer advisor, and visiting the intended 4YC were significant in increased 2YC student transfer intent. Student-faculty interaction and faculty and academic advisors discussing career opportunities in the physical sciences were significant in leading to increased 2YC student intent to pursue physical science degrees or geoscience degrees. The results also substantiated the

Promoting Physical and Mental Health among College Students: A Needs Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bezyak, Jill; Clark, Alena

2016-01-01

Purpose: To conduct an initial needs assessment of physical and mental health behavior among college students to improve understanding of physical and mental health needs among future helping professionals. Method: A sample of 24 undergraduate students was used to provide a description of mental health, physical activity, and healthy eating…

Developing skills versus reinforcing concepts in physics labs: Insight from a survey of students' beliefs about experimental physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilcox, Bethany R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2017-06-01

Physics laboratory courses have been generally acknowledged as an important component of the undergraduate curriculum, particularly with respect to developing students' interest in, and understanding of, experimental physics. There are a number of possible learning goals for these courses including reinforcing physics concepts, developing laboratory skills, and promoting expertlike beliefs about the nature of experimental physics. However, there is little consensus among instructors and researchers interested in the laboratory learning environment as to the relative importance of these various learning goals. Here, we contribute data to this debate through the analysis of students' responses to the laboratory-focused assessment known as the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey for Experimental Physics (E-CLASS). Using a large, national data set of students' responses, we compare students' E-CLASS performance in classes in which the instructor self-reported focusing on developing skills, reinforcing concepts, or both. As the classification of courses was based on instructor self-report, we also provide additional description of these courses with respect to how often students engage in particular activities in the lab. We find that courses that focus specifically on developing lab skills have more expertlike postinstruction E-CLASS responses than courses that focus either on reinforcing physics concepts or on both goals. Within first-year courses, this effect is larger for women. Moreover, these findings hold when controlling for the variance in postinstruction scores that is associated with preinstruction E-CLASS scores, student major, and student gender.

Teaching physical activities to students with significant disabilities using video modeling.

PubMed

Cannella-Malone, Helen I; Mizrachi, Sharona V; Sabielny, Linsey M; Jimenez, Eliseo D

2013-06-01

The objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness of video modeling on teaching physical activities to three adolescents with significant disabilities. The study implemented a multiple baseline across six physical activities (three per student): jumping rope, scooter board with cones, ladder drill (i.e., feet going in and out), ladder design (i.e., multiple steps), shuttle run, and disc ride. Additional prompt procedures (i.e., verbal, gestural, visual cues, and modeling) were implemented within the study. After the students mastered the physical activities, we tested to see if they would link the skills together (i.e., complete an obstacle course). All three students made progress learning the physical activities, but only one learned them with video modeling alone (i.e., without error correction). Video modeling can be an effective tool for teaching students with significant disabilities various physical activities, though additional prompting procedures may be needed.

Who is the competent physics student? A study of students' positions and social interaction in small-group discussions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Due, Karin

2014-06-01

This article describes a study which explored the social interaction and the reproduction and challenge of gendered discourses in small group discussions in physics. Data for the study consisted of video recordings of eight upper secondary school groups solving physics problems and 15 audiotaped individual interviews with participating students. The analysis was based on gender theory viewing gender both as a process and a discourse. Specifically discursive psychology analysis was used to examine how students position themselves and their peers within discourses of physics and gender. The results of the study reveal how images of physics and of "skilled physics student" were constructed in the context of the interviews. These discourses were reconstructed in the students' discussions and their social interactions within groups. Traditional gendered positions were reconstructed, for example with boys positioned as more competent in physics than girls. These positions were however also resisted and challenged.

Physical Education for Students with Special Needs. Curriculum Support Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mahon, Michael J.

The guide is intended to assist Manitoba physical education teachers in the process of integrating students with disabilities into regular physical education classes. The manual provides an introduction to students with special needs, stresses the need to create an accepting environment, discusses various teaching tips, and highlights resources…

Alternative High School Students' Physical Activity: Role of Self-Efficacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kenyon, Denyelle Baete; Kubik, Martha Y.; Davey, Cynthia; Sirard, John; Fulkerson, Jayne A.

2012-01-01

Objective: To examine physical activity self-efficacy as a mediator of the association between perceived barriers to PA and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among alternative high school (AHS) students. Methods: Students (N = 145) from 6 AHS completed self-report questionnaires. Results: Mediation analyses revealed partial mediation…

Evaluating College Students' Conceptual Knowledge of Modern Physics: Test of Understanding on Concepts of Modern Physics (TUCO-MP)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akarsu, Bayram

2011-01-01

In present paper, we propose a new diagnostic test to measure students' conceptual knowledge of principles of modern physics topics. Over few decades since born of physics education research (PER), many diagnostic instruments that measure students' conceptual understanding of various topics in physics, the earliest tests developed in PER are Force…

High School Physics Students' Personal Epistemologies and School Science Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alpaslan, Muhammet Mustafa; Yalvac, Bugrahan; Loving, Cathleen

2017-01-01

This case study explores students' physics-related personal epistemologies in school science practices. The school science practices of nine eleventh grade students in a physics class were audio-taped over 6 weeks. The students were also interviewed to find out their ideas on the nature of scientific knowledge after each activity. Analysis of…

Barriers to Advanced Placement for Latino Students at the High-School Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Susan A.; Pearsall, Laura D.

2012-01-01

In order to gain a better understanding about Latino student underrepresentation in advanced placement (AP) coursework, this investigation explored the factors that inhibit and/or encourage Latino student enrollment in AP coursework at one suburban public high school in the Western United States. Latino high-school students and their parents…

Possibilities: A framework for modeling students' deductive reasoning in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaffney, Jonathan David Housley

Students often make errors when trying to solve qualitative or conceptual physics problems, and while many successful instructional interventions have been generated to prevent such errors, the process of deduction that students use when solving physics problems has not been thoroughly studied. In an effort to better understand that reasoning process, I have developed a new framework, which is based on the mental models framework in psychology championed by P. N. Johnson-Laird. My new framework models how students search possibility space when thinking about conceptual physics problems and suggests that errors arise from failing to flesh out all possibilities. It further suggests that instructional interventions should focus on making apparent those possibilities, as well as all physical consequences those possibilities would incur. The possibilities framework emerged from the analysis of data from a unique research project specifically invented for the purpose of understanding how students use deductive reasoning. In the selection task, participants were given a physics problem along with three written possible solutions with the goal of identifying which one of the three possible solutions was correct. Each participant was also asked to identify the errors in the incorrect solutions. For the study presented in this dissertation, participants not only performed the selection task individually on four problems, but they were also placed into groups of two or three and asked to discuss with each other the reasoning they used in making their choices and attempt to reach a consensus about which solution was correct. Finally, those groups were asked to work together to perform the selection task on three new problems. The possibilities framework appropriately models the reasoning that students use, and it makes useful predictions about potentially helpful instructional interventions. The study reported in this dissertation emphasizes the useful insight the

Modelling Students' Construction of Energy Models in Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Devi, Roshni; And Others

1996-01-01

Examines students' construction of experimentation models for physics theories in energy storage, transformation, and transfers involving electricity and mechanics. Student problem solving dialogs and artificial intelligence modeling of these processes is analyzed. Construction of models established relations between elements with linear causal…

Success Stories of Undergraduate Retention: A Pathways Study of Graduate Students in Solar and Space Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morrow, C. A.; Stoll, W.; Moldwin, M.; Gross, N. A.

2012-12-01

This presentation describes results from an NSF-funded study of the pathways students in solar and space physics have taken to arrive in graduate school. Our Pathways study has documented results from structured interviews conducted with graduate students attending two, week-long, NSF-sponsored scientific workshops during the summer of 2011. Our research team interviewed 48 solar and space physics students (29 males and 19 females currently in graduate programs at US institutions,) in small group settings regarding what attracted and retained them along their pathways leading to grad school. This presentation addresses what these students revealed about the attributes and influences that supported completion of their undergraduate experience and focused their aspirations toward graduate school. In advance of the interview process, we collected 125 on-line survey responses from students at the two workshops. This 20-item survey included questions about high school and undergraduate education, as well as about research and graduate experience. A subset of the 125 students who completed this on-line survey volunteered to be interviewed. Two types of interview data were collected from the 48 interviewees: 1) written answers to a pre-interview questionnaire; and 2) detailed notes taken by researchers during group interviews. On the pre-interview questionnaire, we posed the question: "How did you come to be a graduate student in your field?" Our findings to date are based on an analysis of responses to this question, cross correlated with the corresponding on-line survey data. Our analysis reveals the importance of early research experiences. About 80% of the students participating in the Pathways study cited formative undergraduate research experiences. Moreover, about 50% of participants reported undergraduate research experiences that were in the field of their current graduate studies. Graduate students interviewed frequently cited a childhood interest in science

Open-ended versus guided laboratory activities:Impact on students' beliefs about experimental physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilcox, Bethany R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2016-12-01

Improving students' understanding of the nature of experimental physics is often an explicit or implicit goal of undergraduate laboratory physics courses. However, lab activities in traditional lab courses are typically characterized by highly structured, guided labs that often do not require or encourage students to engage authentically in the process of experimental physics. Alternatively, open-ended laboratory activities can provide a more authentic learning environment by, for example, allowing students to exercise greater autonomy in what and how physical phenomena are investigated. Engaging in authentic practices may be a critical part of improving students' beliefs around the nature of experimental physics. Here, we investigate the impact of open-ended activities in undergraduate lab courses on students' epistemologies and expectations about the nature of experimental physics, as well as their confidence and affect, as measured by the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey for Experimental Physics (E-CLASS). Using a national data set of student responses to the E-CLASS, we find that the inclusion of some open-ended lab activities in a lab course correlates with more expertlike postinstruction responses relative to courses that include only traditional guided lab activities. This finding holds when examining postinstruction E-CLASS scores while controlling for the variance associated with preinstruction scores, course level, student major, and student gender.

Possibilities: A Framework for Modeling Students' Deductive Reasoning in Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gaffney, Jonathan David Housley

2010-01-01

Students often make errors when trying to solve qualitative or conceptual physics problems, and while many successful instructional interventions have been generated to prevent such errors, the process of deduction that students use when solving physics problems has not been thoroughly studied. In an effort to better understand that reasoning…

Student Use of Energy Concepts from Physics in Chemistry Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nagel, Megan L.; Lindsey, Beth A.

2015-01-01

This paper describes an interdisciplinary investigation of students' usage of ideas about energy from physics in the context of introductory chemistry. We focus on student understanding of the idea that potential energy is a function of distance between interacting objects, a concept relevant to understanding potential energy in both physical and…

Effects of online games on student performance in undergraduate physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadiq, Irfan

The present state of physics teaching and learning is a reflection of the difficulty of the subject matter which has resulted in students' low motivation toward physics as well as lack of meaningful and deeper learning experiences. In light of an overall decline in interest in physics, an investigation of alternate teaching and learning methods and tools was appropriate. The research posed the following question: To what extent do online games about kinematics and two-dimensional motion impact student performance in undergraduate general physics as measured by a unit posttest? Two intact classes of 20 students each were randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group. Only the experimental group received the treatment of using online games. The duration of topics covered in the game content was identical to the lecture on kinematics and two-dimensional motion. Instructors for the experimental group incorporated online games in their regular classroom teaching, whereas those in the control group continued with their previously used curriculum without games. This study was conducted in three weekly sessions. Although students were not selected using random sampling, existing classes were randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group. There were 20 students in the experimental group and 20 students in the control group. The independent samples t test was conducted to compare the means of two independently sampled experimental and control groups. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to determine if the two groups were significantly different with regard to their general physics performance on the posttest while controlling for the pretest scores. Analysis of posttest and pretest scores revealed that game-based learning did not significantly impact student performance.

Undergraduate Students' Perceptions of an Inquiry-Based Physics Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ballone Duran, Lena; McArthur, Julia; van Hook, Stephen

2004-04-01

The purpose of this study was to examine middle childhood students'' perceptions of the learning environment in a reform-based physics course. A lecture-style, introductory physics course was modified into an inquiry-based course designed for preservice middle childhood teachers through the collaborative efforts of faculty in the Colleges of Education and Arts and Sciences. Focus group interviews were conducted to examine students'' perceptions. The results suggested that the students initially felt a level of frustration with a new constructivist experience; however, they were able to embrace the inquiry method and expressed a desire for additional specialized content courses for preservice teachers.

Girls, boys and conceptual physics: How senior secondary students have responded to a conceptual physics course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woolnough, J. A.

1993-12-01

This paper presents an evaluation of the Physics course at Dickson College (ACT). It highlights students' expectations before the course, and their impressions and feelings during the course. This is the second evaluation carried out as part of a long term study of student attitudes before and after the introduction of a more ‘conceptual’ approach to the teaching of physics at this college. Overall, this approach has produced a more positive attitude in all students, but more significantly in girls.

Open-Ended Laboratory Investigations in a High School Physics Course: The Difficulties and Rewards of Implementing Inquiry-Based Learning in a Physics Lab

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Szott, Aaron

2014-01-01

Traditional physics labs at the high school level are often closed-ended. The outcomes are known in advance and students replicate procedures recommended by the teacher. Over the years, I have come to appreciate the great opportunities created by allowing students investigative freedom in physics laboratories. I have realized that a laboratory…

Health status, physical activity, and orthorexia nervosa: A comparison between exercise science students and business students.

PubMed

Malmborg, Julia; Bremander, Ann; Olsson, M Charlotte; Bergman, Stefan

2017-02-01

Orthorexia nervosa is described as an exaggerated fixation on healthy food. It is unclear whether students in health-oriented academic programs, highly focused on physical exercise, are more prone to develop orthorexia nervosa than students in other educational areas. The aim was to compare health status, physical activity, and frequency of orthorexia nervosa between university students enrolled in an exercise science program (n = 118) or a business program (n = 89). The students completed the Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), and ORTO-15, which defines orthorexia nervosa as a sensitive and obsessive behavior towards healthy nutrition. The SF-36 showed that exercise science students scored worse than business students regarding bodily pain (72.8 vs. 82.5; p = 0.001), but better regarding general health (83.1 vs. 77.1; p = 0.006). Of 188 students, 144 (76.6%) had an ORTO-15 score indicating orthorexia nervosa, with a higher proportion in exercise science students than in business students (84.5% vs. 65.4%; p = 0.002). Orthorexia nervosa in combination with a high level of physical activity was most often seen in men in exercise science studies and less often in women in business studies (45.1% vs. 8.3%; p < 0.000). A high degree of self-reporting of pain and orthorexia nervosa in exercise science students may cause problems in the future, since they are expected to coach others in healthy living. Our findings may be valuable in the development of health-oriented academic programs and within student healthcare services. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A study of the factors affecting advancement and graduation for engineering students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fletcher, John Thomas

The purpose of this study was, first, to determine whether a set of predictor variables could be identified from pre-enrollment and post-enrollment data that would differentiate students who advance to a major in engineering from non-advancers and, further, to determine if the predictor variables would differentiate students who graduate from the College of Engineering from non-graduates and graduates of other colleges at Auburn University. A second purpose was to determine if the predictor variables would correctly identify male and female students with the same degree of accuracy. The third purpose was to determine if there were significant relationships between the predictor variables studied and grades earned in a set of 15 courses that have enrollments over 100 students and are part of the pre-engineering curriculum. The population for this study was the 868 students who entered the pre-engineering program at Auburn University as freshmen during the Summer and Fall Quarters of 1991. The variables selected to differentiate the different groups were ACT scores, high school grade indices, and first quarter college grade point average. Two sets of classification matrices were developed using analysis and holdout samples that were divided based on sex. With respect to the question about advancement to the professional engineering program, structure coefficients derived from discriminant analysis procedures performed on all the cases combined indicated that first quarter college grade point average, high school math index, ACT math score, and high school science grade index were important predictor variables in classifying students who advanced to the professional engineering program and those who did not. Further, important structure coefficients with respect to graduation with a degree from the College of Engineering were first quarter college grade point average, high school math index, ACT math score, and high school science grade index. The results of this

Improving Physics Texts: Students Speak Out.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guzzetti, Barbara J.; And Others

1995-01-01

Finds that high school physical science students prefer textbooks with expository text that not only gives a correct concept but refutes common incorrect ideas. Finds that writing a comprehensible text is more difficult than the researchers had imagined. (SR)

Supporting students in building interdisciplinary connections across physics and biology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turpen, Chandra

2014-03-01

Our research team has been engaged in the iterative redesign of an Introductory Physics course for Life Science (IPLS) majors to explicitly bridge biology and physics in ways that are authentic to the disciplines. Our interdisciplinary course provides students opportunities to examine how modeling decisions (e.g. knowing when and how to use different concepts, identifying implicit assumptions, making and justifying assumptions) may differ depending on canonical disciplinary aims and interests. Our focus on developing students' interdisciplinary reasoning skills requires 1) shifting course topics to focus on core ideas that span the disciplines, 2) shifting epistemological expectations, and 3) foregrounding typically tacit disciplinary assumptions. In working to build an authentic interdisciplinary course that bridges physics and biology, we pay careful attention to supporting students in constructing these bridges. This course has been shown to have important impacts: a) students seek meaningful connections between the disciplines, b) students perceive relevance and utility of ideas from different disciplines, and c) students reconcile challenging disciplinary ideas. Although our focus has been on building interdisciplinary coherence, we have succeeded in maintaining strong student learning gains on fundamental physics concepts and allowed students to deepen their understanding of challenging concepts in thermodynamics. This presentation will describe the shifts in course content and the modern pedagogical approaches that have been integrated into the course, and provide an overview of key research results from this project. These results may aid physicists in reconsidering how they can meaningfully reach life-science students. This work is supported by NSF-TUES DUE 11-22818, the HHMI NEXUS grant, and a NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (DGE 0750616).

Physics, Dyslexia and Learning: A Collaboration for Disabled Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moskal, Barbara M.; Wright, Lyndsey; Taylor, P. C.

2014-03-01

Researchers have found that children with dyslexia reason differently with respect to language from those who do not have dyslexia. Dyslexic students' brains work differently than do students without dyslexia. Some researchers speculate that these differences provide dyslexic students with an advantage in science. The presentation will describe an outreach activity which developed and delivered instructional modules in physics to students in grades kindergarten through sixth. These modules were tested on thirty students who attended a summer camp designed for students who have been diagnosed with dyslexia. Eighty percent of students who have learning disabilities have dyslexia. Many of the students who attended this camp have experienced repeated failure in the traditional school system, which emphasizes literacy with little attention to science. A number of science and engineering professors collaborated with this camp to build instructional modules that were delivered one hour per day, during two weeks of this five week summer camp (ten hours of hands-on physics instruction). Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected with respect to the impact that this camp had on students' understanding and interests in science. The results of these efforts will be presented.

A Volunteer Basketball Clinic for Children with Disabilities: Professional Development Impact on Student-Athletes and Physical Therapy Students.

PubMed

Altenburger, Peter; Wilson, Anne M

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the change in perceptions of student-athletes, physical therapy students, and parents of children who helped to facilitate an athletic skills camp for children with disabilities. Participants experienced 3 hours of basketball activity yearly. Data were collected for 3 consecutive years from a total of 51 parents, 15 student-athletes, and 22 physical therapy students. Pre- and post-survey data were evaluated by two independent researchers. Common themes were developed for all participant groups and cross-group comparisons were evaluated. Findings indicated a synergistic benefit for student-athletes and physical therapy students derived from their impact and children with disabilities. Perceptual changes in students included a decrease in fear in working with disabled children, an appreciation for the value of having fun, and increased growth in civic identity and desire to volunteer.

The Readiness of High School Students to Pursue First Year Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramnarain, U.; Molefe, P.

2012-01-01

A high failure rate at first year physics is often attributed to the lack of readiness of high school students to pursue such studies. This research explores this issue and reports on the perceptions of five physics lecturers at a South African university on the preparedness of high school students for first year physics. Qualitative data was…

Pima College Students' Knowledge of Selected Basic Physical Science Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iadevaia, David G.

In 1989 a study was conducted at Pima Community College (PCC) to assess students' knowledge of basic physical science concepts. A three-part survey instrument was administered to students in a second semester sociology class, a first semester astronomy class, a second semester Spanish class, and a first semester physics class. The survey…

Teaching Physics with Basketball

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chanpichai, N.; Wattanakasiwich, P.

2010-07-01

Recently, technologies and computer takes important roles in learning and teaching, including physics. Advance in technologies can help us better relating physics taught in the classroom to the real world. In this study, we developed a module on teaching a projectile motion through shooting a basketball. Students learned about physics of projectile motion, and then they took videos of their classmates shooting a basketball by using the high speed camera. Then they analyzed videos by using Tracker, a video analysis and modeling tool. While working with Tracker, students learned about the relationships between three kinematics graphs. Moreover, they learned about a real projectile motion (with an air resistance) through modeling tools. Students' abilities to interpret kinematics graphs were investigated before and after the instruction by using the Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics (TUG-K). The maximum normalized gain or is 0.77, which indicated students' improvement in determining displacement from the velocity-time graph. The minimum is 0.20, which indicated that most students still have difficulties interpreting the change in velocity from the acceleration-time graph. Results from evaluation questionnaires revealed that students also satisfied with the instructions that related physics contents to shooting basketball.

FAMULATUR PLUS - A successful model for improving students' physical examination skills?

PubMed

Jerg, Achim; Öchsner, Wolfgang; Traue, Harald; Jerg-Bretzke, Lucia

2017-01-01

Introduction/Project description: Several studies have revealed insufficient physical examination skills among medical students, both with regard to the completeness of the physical examination and the accuracy of the techniques used. FAMULATUR PLUS was developed in response to these findings. As part of this practice-oriented instructional intervention, physical examination skills should be taught through examination seminars and problem-oriented learning approaches. In order to ensure practical relevance, all courses are integrated into a 30-day clinical traineeship in the surgery or internal medicine department of a hospital (FAMULATUR PLUS). Research question: Does participation in the FAMULATUR PLUS project lead to a more optimistic self-assessment of examination skills and/or improved performance of the physical examination? Methodology: A total of 49 medical students participated in the study. The inclusion criteria were as follows: enrollment in the clinical studies element of their degree program at the University of Ulm and completion of the university course in internal medicine examinations. Based on their personal preferences, students were assigned to either the intervention (surgery/internal medicine; n=24) or the control group (internal medicine; n=25). All students completed a self-assessment of their physical examination skills in the form of a questionnaire. However, practical examination skills were only assessed in the students in the intervention group. These students were asked to carry out a general physical examination of the simulation patient, which was recorded and evaluated in a standardized manner. In both instances, data collection was carried out prior to and after the intervention. Results: The scores arising from the student self-assessment in the intervention (IG) and control groups (CG) improves significantly in the pre-post comparison, with average scores increasing from 3.83 (±0.72; IG) and 3.54 (±0.37; CG) to 1.92 (±0

Identifying Taiwanese University Students' Physics Learning Profiles and Their Role in Physics Learning Self-Efficacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Tzung-Jin; Liang, Jyh-Chong; Tsai, Chin-Chung

2015-01-01

The main purposes of this study were to identify Taiwanese university students' physics learning profiles in terms of their critical conceptions of learning physics and to compare their physics learning self-efficacy with the different learning profiles. A total of 250 Taiwanese undergraduates who were majoring in physics participated in this…

Three-Year Study of Students' Attitudes Toward Physical Education: Grades 4-8.

PubMed

Mercier, Kevin; Donovan, Corinne; Gibbone, Anne; Rozga, Kimberly

2017-09-01

A relationship exists between attitudes toward physical education and future physical activity. The purpose of this study was to examine changes in attitude toward physical education as students progressed from upper elementary school (Grade 4) through middle school (Grade 8). Three cohorts of students (Cohort 1, Grades 4-6, n = 96; Cohort 2, Grades 5-7, n = 71; and Cohort 3, Grades 6-8, n = 73) were each followed for 3 years to examine changes in attitudes toward physical education. After an initial increase from Grade 4 to Grade 5, a significant decrease was observed from Grades 5 to 8 in students' positive attitudes toward physical education, with a faster rate of change for girls than boys. This longitudinal study provides further insights regarding the attitudes of students as they progress from Grade 4 to Grade 8 and expands on previous findings identifying decreasing positive attitudes toward physical education as students age, particularly for girls. The results provide evidence to support targeted interventions.

Poor Physical Performance is Associated with Obesity Among University Students in China.

PubMed

Du, Tianhua; Zhu, Ergang; Jiao, Suhua

2017-05-05

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between physical performance and BMI (body mass index) of university students in China. MATERIAL AND METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional study evaluating the physical performance and BMI of university students. BMI was calculated based on height and weight. Overweight and obesity were defined by the Working Group on Obesity references in China. RESULTS A total of 2313 participants (978 males and 1335 females) were recruited in our study. The mean value of the 50-meter dash and standing long jump in male students was higher than in female students (P<0.05). The overall prevalences of overweight (including obesity) and obesity for male students were 17.9% and 4.2%, respectively, and 5.1% and 0.5%, respectively, for female university students. BMI was weakly positively associated with the 50-meter dash score, but was negatively associated with the score for standing long jump and pull-ups. CONCLUSIONS Our study suggested that overweight and obesity are associated with physical performance of university students, especially in male students. University students should exercise more to improve physical health.

A new method for teaching physical examination to junior medical students

PubMed Central

Sayma, Meelad; Williams, Hywel Rhys

2016-01-01

Introduction Teaching effective physical examination is a key component in the education of medical students. Preclinical medical students often have insufficient clinical knowledge to apply to physical examination recall, which may hinder their learning when taught through certain understanding-based models. This pilot project aimed to develop a method to teach physical examination to preclinical medical students using “core clinical cases”, overcoming the need for “rote” learning. Methods This project was developed utilizing three cycles of planning, action, and reflection. Thematic analysis of feedback was used to improve this model, and ensure it met student expectations. Results and discussion A model core clinical case developed in this project is described, with gout as the basis for a “foot and ankle” examination. Key limitations and difficulties encountered on implementation of this pilot are discussed for future users, including the difficulty encountered in “content overload”. Conclusion This approach aims to teach junior medical students physical examination through understanding, using a simulated patient environment. Robust research is now required to demonstrate efficacy and repeatability in the physical examination of other systems. PMID:26937208

A conceptual physics class where students found meaning in calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hull, Michael M.; Elby, Andrew

2013-01-01

Prior to taking a translated version of the Maryland Open Source Tutorials (OSTs) as a stand-alone course, most students at Tokyo Gakugei University in Japan had experienced physics as memorizing laws and equations to use as computational tools. We might expect this reformed physics class, which emphasizes common sense and conceptual reasoning and rarely invokes equations, to produce students who see a disconnect between equation use and intuitive/conceptual reasoning. Many students at Gakugei, however, somehow learned to integrate mathematics into their "constructivist" epistemologies of physics, even though OSTs do not emphasize this integration. Tadao, for example, came to see that although a common-sense solution to a problem is preferable for explaining to someone who doesn't know physics, solving the problem with a quantitative calculation (that connects to physical meaning) can bring clarity and concreteness to communication between experts. How this integration occurred remains an open question for future research.

[Changes of physical functions among Chinese minority students from 1985 to 2005].

PubMed

Ma, Jun; Zhang, Ji; Wu, Shuang-sheng; Song, Yi; Hu, Pei-jin; Zhang, Bing

2009-10-01

To study the changes of physical functions among minority students in China from 1985 to 2005, to provide evidence for health promotion to the minority students in the country. Using data from the Chinese national survey on students physical fitness and health from 1985 to 2005, we analyzed the physical functions of 15 minority groups from primary and secondary schools, including Mongolian, Hui, Uygur, Zhuang, Korean, Tibetan, Yao, Li, Qiang, Buyi, Dong, Miao, Tu, Salar, Kirgiz, aged 7 - 18 years old. Some of the minority students had the higher levels of physiological functions and athletic ability, but some indicators decreased significantly. In terms of items related to 'speed', most of the minority boys and girls improved, but items related to 'endurance' or'vital capacity', were significantly declining. Part of the minority students had better 'endurance' than students of Han ethnicity in the cities. All the indicators of athletic ability declined in schoolboys and schoolgirls of Korean ethnicity. Kirgiz students were outstanding in vital capacity and speed quality while Uighur students had better physical development and vital capacity, but were poorer in running and jumping, reflecting the weakness of explosive power of lower limbs. On the contrary, Li and Zhuang students had shown a very good quality in running, jumping, male shoulder muscular strength and endurance items, etc. The physical functions and the athletic ability of the minority students in China had the advantages and characteristics, which might be related to their living environment and habits.

Physical activity and health promotion in Italian university students.

PubMed

Teleman, Adele Anna; de Waure, Chiara; Soffiani, Valentina; Poscia, Andrea; Di Pietro, Maria Luisa

2015-01-01

Physical activity, diet plans, the mantainment of a certain Body Mass Index (BMI) and the use of various types of supplementation are common elements in the search for disease prevention, health promotion and well-being. We analyzed the data regarding Italian university students' BMI, dieting behaviour, personal body perception, exercise habits, and use of dietary supplements and of doping substances. 13.7% resulted being underweight, 75.1% was in the normal range, 9.8% was overweight, and 1.4% was obese. 11.0% were on a diet. 25.8% of the students reported never doing any type of physical activity. 0.9% admitted consuming doping substances. The percentage of overweight/obese students increases from 8.8% of the 18-21 year olds to 18.1% of the 25-30 year olds. Similarly, the prevalence of overweight/obesity was 18.5% among male population and 7.5% among the female one. The data deriving from this questionnaire showed that while the majority of university students has a BMI in the normal range, 11.2% of the study population is overweight/obese. Males present a higher risk of being overweight or obese. An important part of the population showed to be sedentary even though data coming from our study are aligned to further evidence. The most important concern arising from the questionnaire is represented by physical inactivity. Indeed, it is necessary to encourage and plan initiatives aimed at promoting physical activity in university students.

The Four-Year Investigation of Physical and Physiological Features of Students in a Physical Education and Sports Department

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ocak, Yucel

2016-01-01

Problem Statement: Student candidates who want to be a Physical Education Teacher in Turkey should take special ability exams of Physical Education and Sports Schools. In this exam, it is required to have a high physical capability apart from a high level of special branch skills. For this reason, the students who pass and start their education at…

Redesigning Physical Geography 101: Bringing Students into the Discussion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tasch, Jeremy; Tasch, Weiwei C.

2016-01-01

This article analyses student-learning outcomes from the redesign of Introduction to Physical Geography 101. Among the purposes of the redesigned course were to enhance student learning by providing rich interactive online content, provide more meaningful instructor-student and peer-peer exchanges, and to promote attitudes that facilitate student…

Cypriot Urban Elementary Students' Attitude toward Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Constantinides, Panos; Silverman, Stephen

2018-01-01

Purpose: This study examined the attitudes of Cypriot elementary school students toward physical education. Fourth, fifth and sixth grade students (N = 763) from six urban Cypriot elementary schools completed an attitude instrument. Methods: Adapting the attitude instrument for Greek-speaking students an extensive two-step pilot study showed the…

Greek Undergraduate Physical Education Students' Basic Computer Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adamakis, Manolis; Zounhia, Katerina

2013-01-01

The purposes of this study were to determine how undergraduate physical education (PE) students feel about their level of competence concerning basic computer skills and to examine possible differences between groups (gender, specialization, high school graduation type, and high school direction). Although many students and educators believe…

Activity Preferences of Middle School Physical Education Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greenwood, Michael; Stillwell, Jim; Byars, Allyn

2001-01-01

Investigated the physical education activity preferences of middle school students who completed a checklist featuring a variety of activities. Overall, middle school boys and girls both differed and agreed on their interests for specific activities. Most students liked basketball, bicycling, roller skating, soccer, swimming, and volleyball but…

Improving Physics Teaching Materials on Sound for Visually Impaired Students in High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Toenders, Frank G. C.; de Putter-Smits, Lesley G. A.; Sanders, Wendy T. M.; den Brok, Perry

2017-01-01

When visually impaired students attend regular high school, additional materials are necessary to help them understand physics concepts. The time for teachers to develop teaching materials for such students is scarce. Visually impaired students in regular high school physics classes often use a braille version of the physics textbook. Previously,…

The relationships between spatial ability, logical thinking, mathematics performance and kinematics graph interpretation skills of 12th grade physics students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bektasli, Behzat

Graphs have a broad use in science classrooms, especially in physics. In physics, kinematics is probably the topic for which graphs are most widely used. The participants in this study were from two different grade-12 physics classrooms, advanced placement and calculus-based physics. The main purpose of this study was to search for the relationships between student spatial ability, logical thinking, mathematical achievement, and kinematics graphs interpretation skills. The Purdue Spatial Visualization Test, the Middle Grades Integrated Process Skills Test (MIPT), and the Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics (TUG-K) were used for quantitative data collection. Classroom observations were made to acquire ideas about classroom environment and instructional techniques. Factor analysis, simple linear correlation, multiple linear regression, and descriptive statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data. Each instrument has two principal components. The selection and calculation of the slope and of the area were the two principal components of TUG-K. MIPT was composed of a component based upon processing text and a second component based upon processing symbolic information. The Purdue Spatial Visualization Test was composed of a component based upon one-step processing and a second component based upon two-step processing of information. Student ability to determine the slope in a kinematics graph was significantly correlated with spatial ability, logical thinking, and mathematics aptitude and achievement. However, student ability to determine the area in a kinematics graph was only significantly correlated with student pre-calculus semester 2 grades. Male students performed significantly better than female students on the slope items of TUG-K. Also, male students performed significantly better than female students on the PSAT mathematics assessment and spatial ability. This study found that students have different levels of spatial ability, logical thinking

Behaviour of medical students in seeking mental and physical health care: exploration and comparison with psychology students.

PubMed

Brimstone, Renee; Thistlethwaite, Jill E; Quirk, Frances

2007-01-01

Doctors are often reluctant to seek health care through the usual channels and tend to self-diagnose and prescribe. Medical students learn attitudes and values from clinician role models and may also adopt behaviour patterns that lead them to seek help for physical and mental health problems from informal sources. This study aimed to explore the behaviour of students in seeking health care for physical and mental health problems, comparing medical with psychology students, and to understand what barriers to conventional routes of seeking health care may affect this. We administered a questionnaire asking for demographic details and responses to 2 vignettes in which a student from the respondent's discipline was experiencing firstly symptoms of a mental health problem and secondly symptoms of a physical health problem. Data were analysed with spss and univariate anovas to examine differences between respondents. A total of 172 students at the psychology and medical schools at James Cook University in Australia participated. We identified a number of barriers affecting student behaviour in seeking help, which included worries about knowing the doctor they could consult at the university health centre or having future dealings with him or her, and cost of treatment. There were differences between the 2 groups of students. There are several barriers for both psychology and medical students to accessing appropriate professional mental health care. Medical students also experience barriers to attaining appropriate physical health care when needed. Psychology and medical students were more likely to seek advice informally from friends and/or family with regard to mental health care.

School physics teacher class management, laboratory practice, student engagement, critical thinking, cooperative learning and use of simulations effects on student performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riaz, Muhammad

The purpose of this study was to examine how simulations in physics class, class management, laboratory practice, student engagement, critical thinking, cooperative learning, and use of simulations predicted the percentage of students achieving a grade point average of B or higher and their academic performance as reported by teachers in secondary school physics classes. The target population consisted of secondary school physics teachers who were members of Science Technology, Engineeering and,Mathematics Teachers of New York City (STEMteachersNYC) and American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA). They used simulations in their physics classes in the 2013 and 2014 school years. Subjects for this study were volunteers. A survey was constructed based on a literature review. Eighty-two physics teachers completed the survey about instructional practice in physics. All respondents were anonymous. Classroom management was the only predictor of the percent of students achieving a grade point average of B or higher in high school physics class. Cooperative learning, use of simulations, and student engagement were predictors of teacher's views of student academic performance in high school physics class. All other variables -- class management, laboratory practice, critical thinking, and teacher self-efficacy -- were not predictors of teacher's views of student academic performance in high school physics class. The implications of these findings were discussed and recommendations for physics teachers to improve student learning were presented.

Students' Physical and Psychological Reactions to Forensic Dissection: Are There Risk Factors?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sergentanis, Theodoros N.; Papadodima, Stavroula A.; Evaggelakos, Christos I.; Mytilinaios, Dimitrios G.; Goutas, Nikolaos D.; Spiliopoulou, Chara A.

2010-01-01

The reactions of students to forensic dissection encompass psychologico-emotional and physical components. This exploratory study aimed to determine risk factors for students' adverse physical and psychological reactions to forensic dissection. All sixth-year medical students (n = 304) attending the compulsory practical course in forensic medicine…

[Depression and stress management in medical students. A comparative study between freshman and advanced medical students].

PubMed

Jurkat, H B; Richter, L; Cramer, M; Vetter, A; Bedau, S; Leweke, F; Milch, W

2011-05-01

International studies have indicated a high prevalence of depression and a lack of coping with stress in medical students. Freshman and advanced medical students were investigated using a specific questionnaire and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) with a response rate of 100%. Of the subjects studied 81.1% did not have any depression, 13.1% slight and 5.8% clinically relevant symptoms of depression. The severity of symptoms was highly associated with subjective appraisal of stressors. Coping skills of first year students significantly influenced the depression symptoms calling for preventative measures even in freshman medical students.

Autonomy and the Student Experience in Introductory Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hall, Nicholas Ron

2013-01-01

The role of autonomy in the student experience in a large-enrollment undergraduate introductory physics course was studied from a Self-Determination Theory perspective with two studies. Study I, a correlational study, investigated whether certain aspects of the student experience correlated with how autonomy supportive (vs. controlling) students…

Describing Physics Student Teachers' Orientations through Lesson Planning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karal, Isik Saliha

2017-01-01

Recent educational reforms realized in teacher education programs (TEPs) and secondary physics syllabus were aimed at placing the learning and teaching approaches in a constructivist framework. For this reason, student teachers in pre-service TEPs are expected to develop orientations adopting student-centred teaching approaches. The purpose of…

Engaging college physics students with photonics research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adams, Rhys; Chen, Lawrence R.

2017-08-01

As educators and researchers in the field of photonics, we find what we do to be very exciting, and sharing this passion and excitement to our university students is natural to us. Via outreach programs and college research funding, a new college and university collaboration has broadened our student audience: photonics is brought into the college classroom and research opportunities are provided to college students. Photonics-themed active learning activities are conducted in the college Waves and Modern Physics class, helping students forge relationships between course content and modern communications technologies. Presentations on photonics research are prepared and presented by the professor and past college student-researchers. The students are then given a full tour of the photonics university laboratories. Furthermore, funds are set aside to give college students a unique opportunity to assist the college professor with experiments during a paid summer research internship.

Tactical Games Model and Its Effects on Student Physical Activity and Gameplay Performance in Secondary Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hodges, Michael; Wicke, Jason; Flores-Marti, Ismael

2018-01-01

Many have examined game-based instructional models, though few have examined the effects of the Tactical Games Model (TGM) on secondary-aged students. Therefore, this study examined the effects TGM has on secondary students' physical activity (PA) and gameplay performance (GPP) in three secondary schools. Physical education teachers (N = 3) were…

Investigating and accounting for physics graduate students' tutorial classroom practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goertzen, Renee Michelle

Physics Education researchers have been working to understanding how students learn physics, which has led to the creation of a body of research-based curricula. It is equally important to study novice instructors, graduate teaching assistants (TAs), who often teach these students. The study of TAs has similarities to how students have been studied: it is important to identify what preconceptions they often enter the classroom with, what resources they may have that they could apply to their physics teaching, and how both the classroom environment and past experiences affect what they are doing in the classroom. Although TAs are responsible for a significant portion of students' instruction at many universities, science TAs and their teaching have not been the focus of any significant amount of study. This dissertation begins to fill this gap by examining physics graduate students who teach discussion sections for introductory courses using tutorials, which are guided worksheets completed by groups of students. While assisting students with their conceptual understanding of physics, TAs are also expected to convey classroom norms of constructing arguments and listening and responding to the reasoning of others. Physics graduate students enter into the role of tutorial TA having relative content expertise but minimal or no pedagogical expertise. This analysis contends that considering the broader influences on TAs can account for TA behavior. Observations from two institutions (University of Colorado, Boulder and University of Maryland, College Park) show that TAs have different valuations (or buy-in) of the tutorials they teach, which have specific, identifiable consequences in the classroom. These differences can be explained by differences in the TAs' different teaching environments. Next, I examine cases of a behavior shared by three TAs, in which they focus on relatively superficial indicators of knowledge. Because the beliefs that underlie their teaching

Medical students' experiences learning intimate physical examination skills: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Dabson, Andra M; Magin, Parker J; Heading, Gaynor; Pond, Dimity

2014-02-28

Intimate physical examination skills are essential skills for any medical graduate to have mastered to an appropriate level for the safety of his or her future patients. Medical schools are entrusted with the complex task of teaching and assessing these skills for their students. The objectives of this study were to explore a range of medical students' experiences of learning intimate physical examination skills and to explore their perceptions of factors which impede or promote the learning of these skills. Individual semi-structured interviews (N = 16) were conducted with medical students in years two to five from the University of Newcastle, as part of a larger research project investigating how medical students develop their attitudes to gender and health. This was a self-selected sample of the entire cohort who were all invited to participate. A thematic analysis of the transcribed data was performed. Students reported differing levels of discomfort with their learning experiences in the area of intimate physical examination and differing beliefs about the helpfulness of these experiences. The factors associated with levels of discomfort and the helpfulness of the experience for learning were: satisfaction with teaching techniques, dealing with an uncomfortable situation and perceived individual characteristics in both the patients and the students. The examination causing the greatest reported discomfort was the female pelvic examination by male students. Student discomfort with the experience of learning intimate physical examination skills may be common and has ongoing repercussions for students and patients. Recommendations are made of ways to modify teaching technique to more closely match students' perceived needs.

Attitudes toward the physical examination: a comparison of U.S. and Dominican medical students.

PubMed

Fagan, Mark J; Lucero, Monica L; Wu, Edward H; Diaz, Joseph A; Reinert, Steven E

2006-01-01

Little information exists regarding whether medical students learning in relatively resource-scarce countries develop greater confidence in their physical examination skills or whether, compared to U.S. medical students, they have more positive attitudes regarding the utility of the physical examination. To compare U.S. And Dominican medical students' attitudes toward the physical examination. We surveyed final-year students at 1 medical school in the United States and 1 in the Dominican Republic regarding self-confidence in and perceived utility of the physical examination. Using 5-point Likert-type scales with response choices ranging from 1 (not at all confident) to 5 (very confident) and 1 (not at all useful) to 5 (very useful), respondents reported their attitudes toward the physical examination overall and toward 14 specific physical examination skills. The survey response rate was 117/164 (71%). Students at the Dominican school, compared to students at the U.S. school, reported significantly greater confidence in their overall physical examination skill (mean response 4.27 vs. 3.79, respectively, p < .001) and more positive views about the utility of the physical examination overall for providing diagnostically useful information (mean response 4.78 vs. 4.42, respectively, p < .001). Results for the specific skills also showed more positive attitudes in the students from the Dominican medical school. Students at a Dominican medical school reported more positive attitudes toward the physical examination than students at a U.S. medical school.

Effectiveness of computer-assisted interactive videodisc instruction in teaching rheumatology to physical and occupational therapy students.

PubMed

Sanford, M K; Hazelwood, S E; Bridges, A J; Cutts, J H; Mitchell, J A; Reid, J C; Sharp, G

1996-01-01

A computer-assisted interactive videodisc instructional program, HP-RHEUM was designed to teach clinical findings in arthritis to occupational and physical therapy students. Using the Rheumatology Image Library videodisc produced by the National Library of Medicine, HP-RHEUM consists of instructional modules which employ advance organizers, examples/nonexamples, summaries, and immediate feedback. To see if HP-RHEUM would be as effective as traditional classroom instruction, control data were collected in 1991 from 52 OT and PT students. Treatment data were collected from 61 students in 1992 when HP-RHEUM entirely replaced lectures. Identical pre- and post-tests consisted of 70 multiple choice questions, with 24 matched to slides. On the slide questions the HP-RHEUM group had significantly higher scores. Otherwise, there was no significant difference in performance between groups. HP-RHEUM provided an independent learning method and enhanced visual comprehension of rheumatologic disease concepts.

Psychological factors related to physical education classes as predictors of students' intention to partake in leisure-time physical activity.

PubMed

Baena-Extremera, Antonio; Granero-Gallegos, Antonio; Ponce-de-León-Elizondo, Ana; Sanz-Arazuri, Eva; Valdemoros-San-Emeterio, María de Los Ángeles; Martínez-Molina, Marina

2016-04-01

In view of the rise in sedentary lifestyle amongst young people, knowledge regarding their intention to partake in physical activity can be decisive when it comes to instilling physical activity habits to improve the current and future health of school students. Therefore, the object of this study was to find a predictive model of the intention to partake in leisure- time physical activity based on motivation, satisfaction and competence. The sample consisted of 347 Spanish, male, high school students and 411 female students aged between 13 and 18 years old. We used a questionnaire made up of the Sport Motivation Scale, Sport Satisfaction Instrument, and the competence factor in the Basic Psychological Needs in Exercise Scale and Intention to Partake in Leisure-Time Physical Activity, all of them adapted to school Physical Education. We carried out confirmatory factor analyses and structural equation models. The intention to partake in leisure-time physical activity was predicted by competence and the latter by satisfaction/fun. Intrinsic motivation was revealed to be the best predictor of satisfaction/fun. Intrinsic motivation should be enhanced in order to predict an intention to partake in physical activity in Physical Education students.

Interactions Between Teacher and Students in a Physical Education Setting Observation of Students' Behaviors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pieron, Maurice; Haan, Jean-Marie

An investigation was made into the dependency of student behaviors on teacher behaviors in a physical education setting. It was assumed that the interaction between students and teachers as well as the time spent in skill-practice play a prominent role in learning. An effort was made to determine if students' behavior profiles differ in male,…

Tap™: The System for Teacher and Student Advancement. What Works Clearinghouse Intervention Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

What Works Clearinghouse, 2015

2015-01-01

"TAP"™: "The System for Teacher and Student Advancement (TAP™)" is an educator effectiveness program that aims to improve student achievement through supports and incentives for teachers. Based on the research, "TAP"™ teachers were found to have no discernible effects on student achievement in science, English…

Advanced Quantitative Measurement Methodology in Physics Education Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Jing

2009-01-01

The ultimate goal of physics education research (PER) is to develop a theoretical framework to understand and improve the learning process. In this journey of discovery, assessment serves as our headlamp and alpenstock. It sometimes detects signals in student mental structures, and sometimes presents the difference between expert understanding and…

The Physics Workbook: A Needed Instructional Device.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brekke, Stewart E.

2003-01-01

Points out the importance of problem solving as a fundamental skill and how students struggle with problem solving in physics courses. Describes a workbook developed as a solution to students' struggles that features simple exercises and advanced problem solving. (Contains 12 references.) (Author/YDS)