Revisions of Physical Geology Laboratory Courses to Increase the Level of Inquiry: Implications for Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grissom, April N.; Czajka, C. Douglas; McConnell, David A.

2015-01-01

The introductory physical geology laboratory courses taught at North Carolina State University aims to promote scientific thinking and learning through the use of scientific inquiry-based activities. A rubric describing five possible levels of inquiry was applied to characterize the laboratory activities in the course. Two rock and mineral…

The Universality of Time Dilation and Space Contraction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daly, Lisa N.; Horton, George K.

1994-01-01

Describes the extended general physics course taught at Rutgers University. The course presents to students at the high school algebra level the topic of analyzing a particular thought experiment that yields the time dilation formula and subsequently space contraction, velocity addition, and other 20th-century physics concepts. (MVL)

Problem based learning approaches to the technology education of physical therapy students.

PubMed

Castro-Sánchez, Adelaida M; Aguilar-Ferrándiz, María Encarnación M E; Matarán-Peñarrocha, Guillermo A Ga; Iglesias-Alonso, Alberto A; Fernández-Fernández, Maria Jesus M J; Moreno-Lorenzo, Carmen C

2012-01-01

Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is a whole-curriculum concept. This study aimed to compare learning preferences and strategies between physical therapy students taught by PBL and those receiving conventional lectures on massage therapy, trauma physical therapy, and electrotherapy, hydrotherapy, and thermotherapy. This quasi-experimental study included 182 male and female students on physical therapy diploma courses at three universities in Andalusia (Spain). The Canfield Learning Skills Inventory (CLSI) was used to assess learning strategies and the Approaches to Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) to analyze study preferences. At the end of the academic year 2009/10, physical therapy students taught by PBL considered the most important learning strategies to be group work, study organization, relationship of ideas, and academic results. In comparison to conventionally taught counterparts, they considered that PBL reduced lack of purpose, memorizing without relating, the law of minimum effort, and fear of failure. Among these PBL students, the most highly rated study preferences were: organization of course tasks, cordial interaction with the teacher, learning by reading and images, and direct hands-on experience. For these physical therapy students, PBL facilitates learning strategies and study preferences in comparison to conventional teaching.

Transforming Common-Sense Beliefs into Newtonian Thinking through Just-in-Time Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Formica, Sarah P.; Easley, Jessica L.; Spraker, Mark C.

2010-01-01

To determine whether teaching an introductory physics course with a traditional lecture style or with Just-in-Time teaching (a student-centered, interactive-engagement style) will help students to better understand Newtonian concepts, such as Newton's Third Law, 222 students in introductory physics courses taught by traditional lecture styles and…

From Gene to Protein: A 3-Week Intensive Course in Molecular Biology for Physical Scientists

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nadeau, Jay L.

2009-01-01

This article describes a 3-week intensive molecular biology methods course based upon fluorescent proteins, which is successfully taught at the McGill University to advanced undergraduates and graduates in physics, chemical engineering, biomedical engineering, and medicine. No previous knowledge of biological terminology or methods is expected, so…

Delivering a lab experience to students in remote road-less locations in Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spencer, Vanessa; Solie, Daniel

2010-02-01

Bush Physics is a pilot physics course offered by the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Taught both as a distance delivery course for rural students and as a traditional course to students in Fairbanks, it is designed to prepare rural (predominantly Alaska Native) students for success in STEM programs. While the lecture portion is successfully distance-delivered using teleconference, delivering the laboratory portion effectively has been more challenging. Bush Physics has been taught twice previously to a total of 24 students who otherwise would not have had access to physics instruction. Methods utilized to help distance education students complete the laboratory credit include mailing equipment kits, emailing pictures and video descriptions, travel to certain villages to do experiments during weekends and utilizing on-site mentors. Past results and feedback have improved the laboratory section for spring 2010. We plan to use testing and student surveys to begin to quantify improvement in student mathematical ability and reasoning. )

Gender Differences in Both Force Concept Inventory and Introductory Physics Performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Docktor, Jennifer; Heller, Kenneth

2008-10-01

We present data from a decade of introductory calculus-based physics courses for science and engineering students at the University of Minnesota taught using cooperative group problem solving. The data include 40 classes with more than 5500 students taught by 22 different professors. The average normalized gain for males is 0.4 for these large classes that emphasized problem solving. Female students made up approximately 20% of these classes. We present relationships between pre and post Force Concept Inventory (FCI) scores, course grades, and final exam scores for females and males. We compare our results with previous studies from Harvard [2] and the University of Colorado [3,4]. Our data show there is a significant gender gap in pre-test FCI scores that persists post-instruction although there is essentially no gender difference in course performance as determined by course grade.

Additional evidence of far transfer of scientific reasoning skills acquired in a CLASP reformed physics course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Potter, Wendell H.; Lynch, Robert B.

2013-01-01

The introductory physics course taken by biological science majors at UC Davis, Physics 7, was radically reformed 16 years ago in order to explicitly emphasize the development of scientific reasoning skills in all elements of the course. We have previously seen evidence of increased performance on the biological and physical science portions of the MCAT exam, in a rigorous systemic physiology course, and higher graduating GPAs for students who took Physics 7 rather than a traditionally taught introductory physics course. We report here on the increased performance by a group of biological-science majors in a general chemistry course who took the first quarter of Physics 7 prior to beginning the chemistry course sequence compared to a similar group who began taking physics after completing the first two quarters of general chemistry.

A course treating ethical issues in physics.

PubMed

Thomsen, Marshall

2007-03-01

A course focusing on ethical issues in physics has been taught to undergraduate students at Eastern Michigan University since 1988. The course covers both responsible conduct of research and ethical issues associated with how physicists interact with the rest of society. Since most undergraduate physics majors will not have a career in academia, it is important that a course such as this address issues that will be relevant to physicists in a wide range of job situations. There is a wealth of published work that can be drawn on for reading assignments.

Integrator element as a promoter of active learning in engineering teaching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oliveira, Paulo C.; Oliveira, Cristina G.

2014-03-01

In this paper, we present a teaching proposal used in an Introductory Physics course to civil engineering students from Porto's Engineering Institute/Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto (ISEP). The proposal was born from the need to change students' perception and motivation for learning physics. It consists in the use of an integrator element, called the physics elevator project. This integrator element allows us to use, in a single project, all the content taught in the course and uses several active learning strategies. In this paper, we analyse this project as: (i) a clarifying element of the contents covered in the course; (ii) a promoter element of motivation and active participation in class and finally and (iii) a link between the contents covered in the course and the 'real world'. The data were collected by a questionnaire and interviews to students. From the data collected, it seems that the integrator element improves students' motivation towards physics and develops several skills that they consider to be important to their professional future. It also acts as a clarifying element and makes the connection between the physics that is taught and the 'real world'.

Web-Based Instruction in Physics Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wijekumar, V.

1998-05-01

The World Wide Web will be utilized to deliver instructional materials in physics courses in two cases. In one case, a set of physics courses will be entirely taught using WWW for high school science and mathematics teachers in the physics certification program. In the other case, the WWW will be used to enhance the linkage between the laboratory courses in medical physics, human physiology and clinical nursing courses for nursing students. This project links three departments in two colleges to enhance a project known as Integrated Computer System across the Health Science Curriculum. Partial support for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation's Division od Undergraduate Education through grant DUE # 9650793.

A Physics Course for Non-Physical Science Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cottle, Paul D.

1997-11-01

A two semester introductory physics sequence exclusively for undergraduates and graduate students in science education who were not seeking certification in physics was taught at Florida State for the first time in 1996-97. The course emphasized building understanding in both qualitative and quantitative aspects of physics through group learning approaches to laboratories and written problem assignments, assessments which required detailed written explanations, and frequent interactions between the instructor and individual students. This talk will briefly outline the structure of the course and some of the more interesting observations made by the group of science education graduate students and faculty who evaluated aspects of the course.

Developing and validating a conceptual survey to assess introductory physics students’ understanding of magnetism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jing; Singh, Chandralekha

2017-03-01

Development of validated physics surveys on various topics is important for investigating the extent to which students master those concepts after traditional instruction and for assessing innovative curricula and pedagogies that can improve student understanding significantly. Here, we discuss the development and validation of a conceptual multiple-choice survey related to magnetism suitable for introductory physics courses. The survey was developed taking into account common students’ difficulties with magnetism concepts covered in introductory physics courses found in our investigation and the incorrect choices to the multiple-choice questions were designed based upon those common student difficulties. After the development and validation of the survey, it was administered to introductory physics students in various classes in paper-pencil format before and after traditional lecture-based instruction in relevant concepts. We compared the performance of students on the survey in the algebra-based and calculus-based introductory physics courses before and after traditional lecture-based instruction in relevant magnetism concepts. We discuss the common difficulties of introductory physics students with magnetism concepts we found via the survey. We also administered the survey to upper-level undergraduates majoring in physics and PhD students to benchmark the survey and compared their performance with those of traditionally taught introductory physics students for whom the survey is intended. A comparison with the base line data on the validated magnetism survey from traditionally taught introductory physics courses and upper-level undergraduate and PhD students discussed in this paper can help instructors assess the effectiveness of curricula and pedagogies which is especially designed to help students integrate conceptual and quantitative understanding and develop a good grasp of the concepts. In particular, if introductory physics students’ average performance in a class is significantly better than those of students in traditionally taught courses described here (and particularly when it is comparable to that of physics PhD students’ average performance discussed here), the curriculum or pedagogy used in that introductory class can be deemed effective. Moreover, we discuss the use of the survey to investigate gender differences in student performance.

Guidelines for Undergraduate Exercise Physiology in a Physical Education Teacher Education Program. Guidance Document

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Association for Sport and Physical Education, 2006

2006-01-01

A course in Exercise Physiology is a common requirement among undergraduate students preparing for a career in physical education, adult fitness, or athletic training. Often, such courses are taught to an assortment of students from a variety of disciplines (Van Donselaar & Leslie, 1990) with an emphasis on physiological principles applied to…

College Students' Opinions of Engaging Approaches in a Physical Science Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonzalez-Espada, Wilson

2009-01-01

Physical science courses have historically been taught from a variety of perspectives or emphases. In many cases, the instructor decides on the perspective and textbook for nonscience majors, so students rarely have a voice in the decision. This top-down approach and a potential gap between what instructors and students expect from a general…

Physics for Occupational Therapy Majors Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh Aurora, Tarlok

1998-03-01

In Spring 1996, a one semester course - "Survey of Physics" - was taught for students majoring in Occupational Therapy (O. T.), in contrast to the two semester physics sequence for all other health science majors. The course was designed to expose the students to the concept of physics, develop problem solving skills and to emphasize the importance of physics to O.T. In developing the course content, students' preparedness in mathematics and the perceived future applications of physics in O. T. was taken in to consideration, and steps were taken to remedy the deficiencies in students' background. The course was comprised of lecture, laboratory, and considerable self study due to the time constraints, and these will be described.

Developing and Implementing an Interdisciplinary Origins Course at a State University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Keith; Totten, Iris

2009-01-01

A truly interdisciplinary course was successfully developed and taught that presented an overview of the historical sciences with an emphasis on the nature of scientific inquiry and its relationship to other ways of knowing. The course included contributions from faculty in physics, biology, geology, philosophy, and English. (Contains 2 figures.)

Design of a Food Chemistry-Themed Course for Nonscience Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bell, Patrice

2014-01-01

The physical science curriculum design at Georgia Gwinnett College requires a theme-based course (lecture and group work, and laboratory) for nonscience majors. Increased student engagement is anticipated when science topics are taught in the context of a topic of which students can select during course registration. This paper presents the course…

The Analysis of the 5th Grade Students' Attitudes and Self-Efficacy for Physical Education Course in Terms of Demographic Characteristics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aydogan, Hayri

2017-01-01

The aim of the study is to analyze the 5th grade students' attitudes and self-efficacy for the physical education course that they have come across for the first time which is taught by physical education and sports teachers. Law No. 6287 was issued by the Turkish Grand National Assembly National Education Culture Youth and Sports Commission on…

100% Online College Physics at Chemeketa Community College

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jensen, Erik L.

2006-12-01

Chemeketa Community College has offered college physics in an entirely online format since fall term of 2005. This poster will provide information on the format of the course including the student lab kits. This poster will also provide data on the success of the course as quantified by recruitment, retention, and performance of students. This data from online students will be presented alongside data from students in the same course taught simultaneously in a traditional format.

A few ideas for teaching environmental physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Forinash, Kyle

2016-11-01

Unlike a typical university physics course there is no standardised syllabus for environmental physics. The topics covered also range beyond what is normally part of the physics curriculum, requiring the instructor to become knowledgeable about fields outside of physics. Some of these issues are complex and, unlike the laws of physics, change rapidly over time. This paper, based on 15 years experience teaching undergraduate environmental physics courses, both for non-science students and for students with strong backgrounds in the sciences, attempts to present a reasonable range of concepts and educational resources which could be included in an environmental physics course or added to an existing physics course as motivation for learning traditional physics concepts. An additional goal is to warn the reader of pitfalls they may encounter in trying to include material with which they may not be familiar. The approach is different from environmental courses taught in the social sciences in that the focus of an environmental physics course is on physical constraints to environmental solutions rather than limitations imposed by culture or politics.

Guide for Teaching Chemistry-Physics Combined 1-2, 3-4 (PSSC - CHEMS).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Millstone, H. George

This guide is written for a combined physics-chemistry course taught over a two-year period. The subject matter contains the major ideas in Chemical Education Materials Study (CHEMS) Chemistry and Physical Science Study Committee (PSSC) Physics. The guide includes discussion of text references, laboratory experiments, films, testing and evaluation…

Developing Online Graduate Coursework in Adapted Physical Education Utilizing Andragogy Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sato, Takahiro; Haegele, Justin Anthony; Foot, Rachel

2017-01-01

Graduate adapted physical education (APE) courses have typically been taught using face-to-face formats where the instructor and learners physically meet in a classroom and engage in discussions and experiential exercises. However, because in-service physical educators have time demands associated with teaching, coaching, and family commitments,…

Science Serves Society.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sneed, G. C.

This book discusses how some of the topics taught in a conventional physics course have been used to solve interesting technical problems in industry, medicine, agriculture, transportation, and other areas of society. The topics include heat, optics, magnetism and electricity, nuclear physics, and sound. (MLH)

Peer Instruction in introductory physics: A method to bring about positive changes in students' attitudes and beliefs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Ping; Ding, Lin; Mazur, Eric

2017-06-01

This paper analyzes pre-post matched gains in the epistemological views of science students taking the introductory physics course at Beijing Normal University (BNU) in China. In this study we examined the attitudes and beliefs of science majors (n =441 ) in four classes, one taught using traditional (lecture) teaching methods, and the other three taught with Peer Instruction (PI). In two of the PI classes, student peer groups were constantly changing throughout the semester, while in the other PI class student groups remained fixed for the duration of the semester. The results of the pre- and post-test using the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey showed that students in traditional lecture settings became significantly more novicelike in their beliefs about physics and learning physics over the course of a semester, a result consistent with what was reported in the literature. However, all three of the classes taught using the PI method improved student attitudes and beliefs about physics and learning physics. In the PI class with fixed peer groups, students exhibited a greater positive shift in attitudes and beliefs than in the other PI class with changing peer groups. The study also looked at gender differences in student learning attitudes. Gender results revealed that female science majors in the PI classes achieved a greater positive shift in attitudes and beliefs after instruction than did male students.

Effectiveness of a mining simulation cooperative learning activity on the cognitive and affective achievement of students in a lower division physical geology course: A confluent approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tolhurst, Jeffrey Wayne

Most students enrolled in lower division physical geology courses are non-majors and tend to finish the course with little appreciation of what it is geologists really do. They may also be expected to analyze, synthesize, and apply knowledge from previous laboratory experiences with little or no instruction and/or practice in utilizing the critical thinking skills necessary to do so. This study sought to answer two research questions: (1) do physical geology students enrolled in a course designed around a mining simulation activity perform better cognitively than students who are taught the same curriculum in the traditional fashion; and (2) do students enrolled in the course gain a greater appreciation of physical geology and the work that geologists do. Eighty students enrolled in the course at Columbia College, Sonora, California over a two year period. During the first year, thirty-one students were taught the traditional physical geology curriculum. During the second year, forty-nine students were taught the traditional curriculum up until week nine, then they were taught a cooperative learning mining simulation activity for three weeks. A static group, split plot, repeated measures design was used. Pre- and post-tests were administered to students in both the control and treatment groups. The cognitive assessment instrument was validated by content area experts in the University of South Carolina Geological Sciences Department. Students were given raw lithologic, gravimetric, topographic, and environmental data with which to construct maps and perform an overlay analysis. They were tested on the cognitive reasoning and spatial analysis they used to make decisions about where to test drill for valuable metallic ores. The affective instrument used a six point Likert scale to assess students' perceived enjoyment, interest, and importance of the material. Gains scores analysis of cognitive achievement data showed a mean of 2.43 for the control group and 4.47 for the treatment group, statistically significantly different at the alpha = 0.05 level (p = 0.0038). Gains scores for the affective data indicated no statistically significant differences between the treatment and control groups. The simulation seems to make a difference in terms of students' intellectual performance, but not in terms of their attitudinal perceptions of the course. Results support the hypothesis that cognitive achievement is improved by a cooperative learning mining simulation activity. One implication might include adapting and implementing the model in lower division physical geology courses. Another would be to develop similar activities for other lower division, non-majors earth science courses (i.e. environmental geology, astronomy, meteorology, oceanography, etc.) that could improve students' subject matter knowledge. Additionally, the research supports shifting the locus of control from the instructor to students as well as the use of the principles of active learning, cooperative learning, and confluent education in the science classroom.

SETI: A good introductory physics topic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hobson, Art

1997-04-01

If America is to achieve the science literacy that is essential to industrialized democracy, all students must study such topics as scientific methodology, pseudoscience, ozone depletion, and global warming. My large-enrollment liberal-arts physics course covers the great principles of physics along with several such philosophical and societal topics. It is easy to include the interdisciplinary context of physics in courses for non-scientists, because these courses are flexible, conceptual, and taught to students whose interests span a broad range. Students find these topics relevant and fascinating, leading to large enrollments by non-scientists even in courses labeled ''physics.'' I will discuss my approach to teaching the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence (SETI), a topic with lots of good physics and with connections to scientific methodology and pseudoscience. A textbook for this kind of course has been published, Physics: Concepts and Connections (Prentice-Hall, 1995).

Teaching the Conceptual History of Physics to Physics Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garik, Peter; Garbayo, Luciana; Benétreau-Dupin, Yann; Winrich, Charles; Duffy, Andrew; Gross, Nicholas; Jariwala, Manher

2015-01-01

For nearly a decade we have taught the history and philosophy of science as part of courses aimed at the professional development of physics teachers. The focus of the history of science instruction is on the stages in the development of the concepts and theories of physics. For this instruction, we designed activities to help the teachers…

Studio Physics at the Colorado School of Mines: A model for iterative development and assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohl, Patrick; Kuo, Vincent

2009-05-01

The Colorado School of Mines (CSM) has taught its first-semester introductory physics course using a hybrid lecture/Studio Physics format for several years. Based on this previous success, over the past 18 months we have converted the second semester of our traditional calculus-based introductory physics course (Physics II) to a Studio Physics format. In this talk, we describe the recent history of the Physics II course and of Studio at Mines, discuss the PER-based improvements that we are implementing, and characterize our progress via several metrics, including pre/post Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM) scores, Colorado Learning About Science Survey scores (CLASS), failure rates, and exam scores. We also report on recent attempts to involve students in the department's Senior Design program with our course. Our ultimate goal is to construct one possible model for a practical and successful transition from a lecture course to a Studio (or Studio-like) course.

Influence of Sport Education on Group Cohesion in University Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jenkins, Jayne M.; Alderman, Brandon L.

2011-01-01

The Sport Education ("SE") curricular model incorporated within university physical education Basic Instruction Program (BIP) may increase group cohesion. This study's purpose was to identify student perceptions of a BIP course taught within "SE," and investigate group cohesion in differing activity content. Participants…

Graded Course of Study, Science (K-12).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Euclid City Schools, OH.

This course of study specifies the science skills and concepts that are to be taught in the various grades of the Euclid (Ohio) City Schools. Included are instructional objectives for the life, physical, and earth sciences for grades K to 6, suggested field trips and planetarium schedules (by elementary grade levels), and scope and sequence charts…

Polarization of Physics on Global Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alinea, Allan L.; Naylor, Wade

2015-01-01

Since October 2010, the Chemistry-Biology Combined Major Program, an international course taught in English at Osaka University, has been teaching small classes (no more than 20 in size). We present data from the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) given to first-year classical mechanics students (N = 47 students over three years) pre and post score,…

The Effect of Co-Teaching on Student Achievement in Ninth Grade Physical Science Classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

LaFever, Karen M.

Co-teaching is a method that is increasing within schools across the US as educators strive to leave no child behind. It is a costly method, having two paid instructors in one classroom, with an average of 24 students shared between them. If it significantly increases the achievement of all students, it is well worth the costs involved. However, few studies have analyzed the effectiveness of this method on student achievement. This research follows the academic accomplishments of students in a ninth grade physical science course. Nine sections of the course "Force and Motion" were taught with a single teacher, and two additional sections were co-taught, one led by a science-certified and special educator, and another co-taught by two science certified teachers. Subgroup achievement performance was analyzed to determine whether significant differences exist between students with or without IEPs, as well as other factors such as free and reduced lunch status or gender. The results show significance with the presence of a co-teacher, while there is minimal effect size of co-teaching in this study for students with IEPs. The benefactors in these ninth grade co-taught classes were the students without IEPs, an unintended result of co-teaching.

Teaching physics as a service subject

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lowe, T. L.; Hayes, M.

1986-07-01

At South Glamorgan Institute of Higher Education physics is taught over a wide range of courses. In addition to the more conventional courses found in science, technology and education faculties there is a physics input into areas such as beauty therapy, applied biology, catering, chiropody, dental technology, environmental health, food technology, hairdressing, human-movement studies, industrial design, applied life sciences, marine technology, medical laboratory science, physiological measurement, nursing and speech therapy. Due to the fundamental differences in emphasis required when teaching physics as a 'minor' subject on these types of courses, and since the authors have no courses which lead to a 'major' physics qualification, it is necessary to develop a rational strategy for teaching physics as a 'service' subject. If this is not achieved then staff satisfaction and student interest are likely to suffer. They describe their strategy.

Use of Analogy in Learning Physics: The Role of Representations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Podolefsky, Noah S.; Finkelstein, Naoh D.

2006-01-01

Previous studies have demonstrated that analogies can promote student learning in physics and can be productively taught to students to support their learning, under certain conditions. We build on these studies to explore the use of analogy by students in a large introductory college physics course. In the first large-scale study of its kind, we…

Studio optics: Adapting interactive engagement pedagogy to upper-division physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sorensen, Christopher M.; McBride, Dyan L.; Rebello, N. Sanjay

2011-03-01

The use of interactive engagement strategies to improve learning in introductory physics is not new, but have not been used as often for upper-division physics courses. We describe the development and implementation of a Studio Optics course for upper-division physics majors at Kansas State University. The course adapts a three-stage Karplus learning cycle and other elements to foster an environment that promotes learning through an integration of lecture, laboratories, and problem solving. Some of the instructional materials are described. We discuss the evaluation of the course using data collected from student interviews, a conceptual survey, an attitudinal survey, and the instructor's reflections. Overall, students responded positively to the new format and showed modest gains in learning. The instructor's experiences compared favorably with the traditional course that he had taught in the past.

Whole Class Laboratories: More Examples

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kouh, Minjoon

2016-01-01

Typically, introductory physics courses are taught with a combination of lectures and laboratories in which students have opportunities to discover the natural laws through hands-on activities in small groups. This article reports the use of Google Drive, a free online document-sharing tool, in physics laboratories for pooling experimental data…

High-Productivity Computing in Computational Physics Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tel-Zur, Guy

2011-03-01

We describe the development of a new course in Computational Physics at the Ben-Gurion University. This elective course for 3rd year undergraduates and MSc. students is being taught during one semester. Computational Physics is by now well accepted as the Third Pillar of Science. This paper's claim is that modern Computational Physics education should deal also with High-Productivity Computing. The traditional approach of teaching Computational Physics emphasizes ``Correctness'' and then ``Accuracy'' and we add also ``Performance.'' Along with topics in Mathematical Methods and case studies in Physics the course deals a significant amount of time with ``Mini-Courses'' in topics such as: High-Throughput Computing - Condor, Parallel Programming - MPI and OpenMP, How to build a Beowulf, Visualization and Grid and Cloud Computing. The course does not intend to teach neither new physics nor new mathematics but it is focused on an integrated approach for solving problems starting from the physics problem, the corresponding mathematical solution, the numerical scheme, writing an efficient computer code and finally analysis and visualization.

The Teaching of Astronomy in Mauritius

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heeralall-Issur, Nalini

In this presentation we describe the present teaching of Astronomy in Mauritius. At present Astronomy is taught mostly at University level as electives (Astrophysics I & II) within our BSc Physics course or the MSc Physics with Astrophysics Specialisation Option. However there are limitations due to both facilities available & staff resources at the higher level. At the lower level very few secondary school students are exposed to (taught) astronomy and even among well educated adults many ignore very basic knowledge of Astronomy. We finally discuss some realistic suggestions for improving the teaching of Astronomy at all levels in Mauritius.

Men and Women in Society: A Duality of Vision.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bullock, Anice; Telschow, Ruth L.

At Tomball College, in Texas, an interdisciplinary course in gender issues was developed to examine the psychological and social realities of gender roles. The course was team taught by a psychologist and a sociologist and met twice a week for 80 minutes per session. The class covered the general areas of gender history; physical and cognitive…

Teaching Anthropology as Science at the Junior High School Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Decanay, Al, Jr.

1977-01-01

Describes an elective anthropology course of eighth grade students taught in 1974-75 and 1975-76. The course was offered as part of the science rather than social studies program, and emphasized physical anthropology and archaeology with laboratory and field methods. The content was within the grasp of motivated average and above average eighth…

Personalized Introductory Courses: A Longitudinal Study. OASIS Research Report No. 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hedges, Larry V.

This study investigated the long term effects of the Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) method at the University of California, San Diego. Groups of 139 and 137 undergraduate students took three physics courses taught by either the PSI method or the lecture/discussion method. Students from these groups were compared in two subsequent…

How Much Have They Retained? Making Unseen Concepts Seen in a Freshman Electromagnetism Course at MIT

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dori, Yehudit Judy; Hult, Erin; Breslow, Lori; Belcher, John W.

2007-01-01

The introductory freshmen electromagnetism course at MIT has been taught since 2000 using a studio physics format entitled TEAL--Technology Enabled Active Learning. TEAL has created a collaborative, hands-on environment where students carry out desktop experiments, submit web-based assignments, and have access to a host of visualizations and…

Apples vs. Oranges: Comparison of Student Performance in a MOOC vs. a Brick-and-Mortar Class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dubson, Michael

In the fall of 2013, my colleagues and I taught the calculus-based introductory physics course to 800 tuition-paying students at the University of Colorado at Boulder. At the same time we taught a free massive open online version of the same course (MOOC), through Coursera.com. The initial enrollment in the MOOC was 10,000 students, of whom 255 completed the course. Students in both courses received identical lectures with identical embedded clicker questions, identical homework assignments, and identical timed exams. We present data on participation rates and exam performance for the two groups. We find that the MOOC is like a drug targeted at a very specific population. When it works, it works well, but it works for very few students. This MOOC worked well for older, well-educated students, who already had a good understanding of Newtonian mechanics.

Do evidence-based active-engagement courses reduce the gender gap in introductory physics?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karim, Nafis I.; Maries, Alexandru; Singh, Chandralekha

2018-03-01

Prior research suggests that using evidence-based pedagogies can not only improve learning for all students, it can also reduce the gender gap. We describe the impact of physics education research-based pedagogical techniques in flipped and active-engagement non-flipped courses on the gender gap observed with validated conceptual surveys. We compare male and female students’ performance in courses which make significant use of evidence-based active-engagement (EBAE) strategies with courses that primarily use lecture-based (LB) instruction. All courses had large enrolment and often had more than 100 students. The analysis of data for validated conceptual surveys presented here includes data from two-semester sequences of algebra-based and calculus-based introductory physics courses. The conceptual surveys used to assess student learning in the first and second semester courses were the force concept inventory and the conceptual survey of electricity and magnetism, respectively. In the research discussed here, the performance of male and female students in EBAE courses at a particular level is compared with LB courses in two situations: (I) the same instructor taught two courses, one of which was an EBAE course and the other an LB course, while the homework, recitations and final exams were kept the same; (II) student performance in all of the EBAE courses taught by different instructors was averaged and compared with LB courses of the same type also averaged over different instructors. In all cases, on conceptual surveys we find that students in courses which make significant use of active-engagement strategies, on average, outperformed students in courses of the same type using primarily lecture-based instruction even though there was no statistically significant difference on the pre-test before instruction. However, the gender gap persisted even in courses using EBAE methods. We also discuss correlations between the performance of male and female students on the validated conceptual surveys and the final exam, which had a heavy weight on quantitative problem solving.

Effectiveness of different tutorial recitation teaching methods and its implications for TA training

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Endorf, Robert

2008-04-01

We present results from a comparative study of student understanding for students who attended recitation classes that used different teaching methods. The purpose of the study was to evaluate which teaching methods would be the most effective for recitation classes associated with large lectures in introductory physics courses. Student volunteers from our introductory calculus-based physics course at the University of Cincinnati attended a special recitation class that was taught using one of four different teaching methods. A total of 272 students were divided into approximately equal groups for each method. Students in each class were taught the same topic, ``Changes in Energy and Momentum,'' from ``Tutorials in Introductory Physics'' by Lillian McDermott, Peter Shaffer and the Physics Education Group at the University of Washington. The different teaching methods varied in the amount of student and teacher engagement. Student understanding was evaluated through pretests and posttests. Our results demonstrate the importance of the instructor's role in teaching recitation classes. The most effective teaching method was for students working in cooperative learning groups with the instructors questioning the groups using Socratic dialogue. In addition, we investigated student preferences of modes of instruction through an open-ended survey. Our results provide guidance and evidence for the teaching methods which should be emphasized in training course instructors.

Momentum and Kinetic Energy: Confusable Concepts in Secondary School Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryce, T. G. K.; MacMillan, K.

2009-01-01

Researchers and practitioners alike express concerns about the conceptual difficulties associated with the concepts of momentum and kinetic energy currently taught in school physics. This article presents an in-depth analysis of the treatment given to them in 44 published textbooks written for UK secondary school certificate courses. This is set…

Teaching Electrostatics and Entropy in Introductory Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reeves, Mark

Entropy changes underlie the physics that dominates biological interactions. Indeed, introductory biology courses often begin with an exploration of the qualities of water that are important to living systems. However, one idea that is not explicitly addressed in most introductory physics or biology courses is important contribution of the entropy in driving fundamental biological processes towards equilibrium. I will present material developed to teach electrostatic screening in solutions and the function of nerve cells where entropic effects act to counterbalance electrostatic attraction. These ideas are taught in an introductory, calculus-based physics course to biomedical engineers using SCALEUP pedagogy. Results of student mastering of complex problems that cross disciplinary boundaries between biology and physics, as well as the challenges that they face in learning this material will be presented.

An Innovative Course in Technical Communication and More

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cranor, Maria B.; Price, Richard H.

2004-05-01

Several studies have shown that otherwise well-prepared physics undergraduates do not develop writing and speaking skills sufficient to the demands of graduate school or the technical workplace. To rectify this, we have developed and taught, for five semesters, a very successful course for junior and senior physics majors. Students improve their writing and speaking skills through technical projects and through a reading list which includes modules on scientific practice and ethics, pseudo science, management, and workplace collaboration. We present here an overview of this course, and discuss the pros and cons of introducing a useful, yet unusual and highly labor-intensive (for teachers and for students) class into the traditional physics curriculum.

Teaching introductory undergraduate physics using commercial video games

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohanty, Soumya D.; Cantu, Sergio

2011-09-01

Commercial video games are increasingly using sophisticated physics simulations to create a more immersive experience for players. This also makes them a powerful tool for engaging students in learning physics. We provide some examples to show how commercial off-the-shelf games can be used to teach specific topics in introductory undergraduate physics. The examples are selected from a course taught predominantly through the medium of commercial video games.

The Earth System Course at the University of Oklahoma: Science and Pedagogy Aimed at Pre-service Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Postawko, S.; Soreghan, M.; Marek, E.

2005-12-01

Traditionally, education majors at the University of Oklahoma took either Introduction to Physical Geology or Introduction to Meteorology to fulfill their physical sciences requirement. Science education majors were required to take both courses. These courses are large-enrollment lecture type courses, with required lab sections taught by graduate teaching assistants. Beginning in 1997, faculty from the Colleges of Education and Geosciences at the University of Oklahoma began working together to provide effective earth science education for pre-service teachers. The first step in this collaboration was the development of a new course on The Earth System that focuses on Earth as a whole rather than on the more narrow focus of either the geology or meteorology courses. The new course, which was taught for the first time in the Spring of 2001, covers a number of major themes related to Earth Science, including the Carbon Cycle, Earth Materials, Plate Tectonics, Atmosphere and Oceans. The particular concepts within each theme were chosen based on two criteria: 1) alignment with content advocated by national (NSES) and state (Priority Academic Student Skills-PASS) standards; and 2) they are amenable to a learning cycle pedagogical approach. Besides an interdisciplinary approach to the content, the new course features pedagogical innovations. In lieu of independent laboratory and lecture times, we scheduled two class periods of longer duration, so that active learning, involving hands-on activities and experiments were possible throughout each class period. The activities modeled the learning-cycle approach with an exploration, concept invention, and an expansion phase (Marek and Cavallo, 1997). Therefore, the pre-service teachers experienced the learning cycle in practice prior to learning the theory in their upper division "methods" course. In the first 3 years that the course was taught, students were given surveys early in the semester and at the end of the semester. The surveys aimed to both assess the students' learning and retention (compared to students in the more traditional Introductory Geology course, who were given similar surveys), and solicit the students' opinions of the inquiry-based learning approach compared to more traditional lecture/lab classroom teaching methods.

RealTime Physics: Active learning laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thornton, Ronald K.; Sokoloff, David R.

1997-03-01

Our research shows that student learning of physics concepts in introductory physics courses is enhanced by the use of special guided discovery laboratory curricula which embody the results of educational research and which are supported by the use of the Tools for Scientific Thinking microcomputer-based laboratory (MBL) tools. In this paper we first describe the general characteristics of the research-based RealTime Physics laboratory curricula developed for use in introductory physics classes in colleges, universities and high schools. We then describe RealTime Physics Mechanics in detail. Finally we examine student learning of dynamics in traditional physics courses and in courses using RealTime Physics Mechanics, primarily by the use of correlated questions on the Force and Motion Conceptual Evaluation. We present considerable evidence that students who use the new laboratory curricula demonstrate significantly improved learning and retention of dynamics concepts compared to students taught by traditional methods.

A 'bootstrapped' Teaching/Learning Procedure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Odusina Odusote, Olusogo

1998-04-01

Erasing preconceived antiphysics ideas by nonscience/nonmajor physics students have elicited diverse teaching methods. Introductory general physics courses at college level have been taught by a 'bootstrap' approach. A concise treatment of the syllabus by the teacher in about 1/2 of the course duration, with brief exercises and examples. Students are then introduced to real life situations - toys, home appliances, sports, disasters, etc, and the embedded physics concepts discussed. Usually this generates a feeling of deja vu, which elicits desire for more. Each application usually encompasses topics in a broad range of the syllabus. The other half of the course is used by students to work individually/groups on assigned and graded home-works and essays, with guidance from the lecture notes and the teacher/supervisor. An end of course examination shows increase in the success rate.

Teaching Sustainability in Introductory Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coffey, David

Guiding students to a better understanding of sustainability is a key part of a modern undergraduate education. Since 2014, Warren Wilson College has incorporated a sustainability component into our introductory physics courses. Students perform energy audits and abatement plans for a business or building. In the process, students strengthen their competency with basic physics concepts including energy, power, units, and conservation of energy but also gain an appreciation of the complexity of sustainability as well as the need for quantitative understanding. These courses are taught to mostly undergraduate science majors. The challenges and opportunities of incorporating such a broad and personalized educational component will be discussed.

Peers as Teachers in Physical Education Hip Hop Classes in Finnish High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nurmi, Anna-Maria; Kokkonen, Marja

2015-01-01

In this case study, theoretically rooted in peer-assisted learning (PAL), ten female high school students, acting as peer teachers, taught hip hop dance in a voluntary physical education course. The data, derived from questionnaires and interviews with the peer teachers, were analysed using content analysis. The results showed that the peer…

A Classroom Note on: Modeling Functions with the TI-83/84 Calculator

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lubowsky, Jack

2011-01-01

In Pre-Calculus courses, students are taught the composition and combination of functions to model physical applications. However, when combining two or more functions into a single more complicated one, students may lose sight of the physical picture which they are attempting to model. A block diagram, or flow chart, in which each block…

Use of Bratwurst Sausage as a Model Cadaver in Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences Lab Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sidebottom, David

2015-09-01

The general physics course that is taught in most departments as a service course for pre-med or pre-health students is undergoing a large shift in course content to better appeal to this group of learners. This revision also extends to the laboratory component, where more emphasis is being placed on teaching physics through biological examples. Here, two undergraduate-level lab experiments, one dealing with buoyancy and the other with heat transfer, are described. The two labs were designed specifically to appeal to pre-med students taking introductory physics, and their novelty arises from the use of a bratwurst sausage as a miniature model cadaver. Results suggest that the sausage provides a suitable approximation to the mass density and thermal properties of the human body.

A Lab-Based, Lecture-Free General Physics Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneider, Mark B.

1997-04-01

The past four years have seen the development of a discovery style, lecture-free, lab-based General Physics course at Grinnell College. Similar in spirit to Priscilla Laws' Workshop Physics (P. Laws, Physics Today, Dec. 1991, p. 24.), this course is a calculus- based, two-semester sequence, which is offered in parallel with more conventional lecture sections, allowing students choice of pedagogical styles. This new course is taught without a text, allowing a somewhat atypical ordering of topics and the early inclusion of a modern introduction to quantum and statistical mechanics. A complete set of laboratory materials was developed at Grinnell for this course, with activities considerably different in most cases than Laws' activities. A quick overview of the pedagogical style and topics covered will be given, and then several specific activities will be described in greater detail. The course has been shown to be a popular and viable alternative to the more conventional sections for majors and non-majors; ongoing efforts to assess the course will be described, especially those that make comparisons between this course and more conventional sections.

Addressing the United States Navy Need for Software Engineering Education

DTIC Science & Technology

1999-09-01

taught in MA 1996 (5 - 0). Precalculus review, complex numbers and algebra, complex plane, DeMovire’s Theorem, matrix algebra, LU decomposition...This course was designed for the METOC and Combat Systems curricula. PREREQUISITE: Precalculus mathematics. MA1996 MATHEMATICS FOR SCIENTISTS AND...description for MAI995 (5 - 0). This course was designed for the METOC and Combat Systems curricula. PREREQUISITE: Precalculus mathematics. PHYSICS/SYSTEMS

Computational Physics in a Nutshell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schillaci, Michael

2001-11-01

Too often students of science are expected to ``pick-up'' what they need to know about the Art of Science. A description of the two-semester Computational Physics course being taught by the author offers a remedy to this situation. The course teaches students the three pillars of modern scientific research: Problem Solving, Programming, and Presentation. Using FORTRAN, LaTeXe, MAPLE V, HTML, and JAVA, students learn the fundamentals of algorithm development, how to implement classes and packages written by others, how to produce publication quality graphics and documents and how to publish them on the world-wide-web. The course content is outlined and project examples are offered.

Space physics education via examples in the undergraduate physics curriculum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martin, R.; Holland, D. L.

2011-12-01

The field of space physics is rich with examples of basic physics and analysis techniques, yet it is rarely seen in physics courses or textbooks. As space physicists in an undergraduate physics department we like to use research to inform teaching, and we find that students respond well to examples from magnetospheric science. While we integrate examples into general education courses as well, this talk will focus on physics major courses. Space physics examples are typically selected to illustrate a particular concept or method taught in the course. Four examples will be discussed, from an introductory electricity and magnetism course, a mechanics/nonlinear dynamics course, a computational physics course, and a plasma physics course. Space physics provides examples of many concepts from introductory E&M, including the application of Faraday's law to terrestrial magnetic storm effects and the use of the basic motion of charged particles as a springboard to discussion of the inner magnetosphere and the aurora. In the mechanics and nonlinear dynamics courses, the motion of charged particles in a magnetotail current sheet magnetic field is treated as a Newtonian dynamical system, illustrating the Poincaré surface-of-section technique, the partitioning of phase space, and the KAM theorem. Neural network time series analysis of AE data is used as an example in the computational physics course. Finally, among several examples, current sheet particle dynamics is utilized in the plasma physics course to illustrate the notion of adiabatic/guiding center motion and the breakdown of the adiabatic approximation. We will present short descriptions of our pedagogy and student assignments in this "backdoor" method of space physics education.

Teaching Critical Thinking: Sense-Making, Explanations, Language, and Habits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maloney, David

2015-10-01

The conjunction of three events has encouraged me to devote significant time to thinking about the pedagogical framework in my introductory courses. The three events were: doing a workshop addressing the Advanced Placement restructuring of the Physics B course with a stronger focus on critical thinking, finding out that TPT was planning an issue about the "science and art" of teaching, and dealing with a course that I haven't taught in about a decade, where the students behaved very differently from students in the same course in the past.

Peer Instruction in Introductory Physics: A Method to Bring about Positive Changes in Students' Attitudes and Beliefs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Ping; Ding, Lin; Mazur, Eric

2017-01-01

This paper analyzes pre-post matched gains in the epistemological views of science students taking the introductory physics course at Beijing Normal University (BNU) in China. In this study we examined the attitudes and beliefs of science majors (n = 441) in four classes, one taught using traditional (lecture) teaching methods, and the other three…

Development and Calibration of a Concept Inventory to Measure Introductory College Astronomy and Physics Students' Understanding of Newtonian Gravity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williamson, Kathryn Elizabeth

2013-01-01

The topic of Newtonian gravity offers a unique vantage point from which to investigate and encourage conceptual change because it is something with which everyone has daily experience, and because it is taught in two courses that reach a wide variety of students--introductory-level college astronomy ("Astro 101") and physics ("Phys…

Student Self-Efficacy in Introductory Project-Based Learning Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pleiss, Geoffrey; Zastavker, Yevgeniya V.

2012-02-01

This study investigates first-year engineering students' self-efficacy in two introductory Project-Based Learning (PjBL) courses -- Physics (Mechanics) Laboratory and Engineering Design -- taught at a small technical institution. Twelve students participated in semi-structured open-ended interviews about their experiences in both courses. Analysis was performed using grounded theory. Results indicate that students had lower self-efficacy in Physics Lab than in Engineering Design. In Physics Lab, students reported high levels of faculty-supported scaffolding related to final project deliverables, which in turn established perceptions of an outcome-based course emphasis. Conversely, in Engineering Design, students observed high levels of scaffolding related to the intermediate project deliverables, highlighting process-centered aspects of the course. Our analyses indicate that this difference in student perceptions of course emphases -- resulting from the differences in scaffolding -- is a primary factor for the discrepancy in self-efficacy between Physics Lab and Engineering Design. Future work will examine how other variables (e.g., academic background, perception of community, gender) affect students' self-efficacy and perception of scaffolding in these PjBL courses.

Adjusting a biochemistry course for physical education majors: A case study.

PubMed

da Costa, Caetano; Torres, Bayardo B

2004-03-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze the events responsible for curricular characteristics that lead to positive outcomes in university teaching using a biochemistry course taught to physical education students as a model. The research was carried out as a case study, supported by questionnaires, classroom observation, document analysis, and interviews. The overall analyses of obtained data were validated by means of triangulation protocols, which proved the following reasons for the course achievements: 1) teaching staff deeply committed to the course; 2) contents adaptation to students' careers; 3) gradual adjustment of the teaching strategies and evaluation tools; 4) valorization of formative evaluation; and 5) providing a suitable affective milieu. Copyright © 2004 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Evolving Impressions: Undergraduate Perceptions of Graduate Teaching Assistants and Faculty Members over a Semester

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kendall, K. Denise; Schussler, Elisabeth E.

2013-01-01

Undergraduate experiences in lower-division science courses are important factors in student retention in science majors. These courses often include a lecture taught by faculty, supplemented by smaller sections, such as discussions and laboratories, taught by graduate teaching assistants (GTAs). Given that portions of these courses are taught by…

Transforming common-sense beliefs into Newtonian thinking through Just-In-Time Teaching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Formica, Sarah P.; Easley, Jessica L.; Spraker, Mark C.

2010-07-01

To determine whether teaching an introductory physics course with a traditional lecture style or with Just-in-Time teaching (a student-centered, interactive-engagement style) will help students to better understand Newtonian concepts, such as Newton’s Third Law, 222 students in introductory physics courses taught by traditional lecture styles and Just-in-Time teaching at North Georgia College & State University over the span of five semesters were examined using the Force Concept Inventory as a pretest and a post-test. Overall, the gains favor the Just-in-Time teaching method with a 37.6%±2.0% gain compared to the 17.9%±2.5% seen in traditional lecture classes. When analyzing only those gains pertaining to the Newton’s Third Law questions, the results again favor the Just-in-Time teaching method with a gain of 50.8%±4.1% while the traditional lecture classes only saw a gain of 6.6%±5.2% . We also employed a new method of analysis which was a BIT Coding method created to quickly identify students’ understanding of Newton’s Third Law questions. This study shows that students in courses that are taught using the Just-in-Time teaching strategy better understand Newton’s Third Law after instruction than do students in traditional lecture courses.

The Teaching of Psychology on Health Professional Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Upton, Dominic; Mansell, Hayley

2008-01-01

Psychology is taught on a range of vocational courses including such training for professions as nurses, medics, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, and other health care professionals. However, what is uncertain is what psychology is taught, who it is taught by and how it is taught. This project aims to address these unresolved questions…

Physics and Religion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Finegold, Leonard; Thomson-Hohl, Timothy; Tyagi, Som

2010-02-01

Aspects of religion with science/religion have been covered in the pages of Physics Today and Physics News. They reflect wide student interest in these topics. For a decade, two physicists and a campus minister have taught a writing-intensive course ``Issues in Science and Religion'' Physics/Sociology 137. Here we outline our course (open to all students), to encourage others contemplating similar courses. Many students escape an exposure to the basics of science, and so we capture them. We discuss inter alia relativity and uncertainties (both quantum and classical, which fascinate students), including their controversial relationships with religion. One of us (LF), as a biophysicist, was asked to cover evolution, which topic has proved to be rather popular: Various scientific organizations have publicly defended evolution against intelligent design and creationism. To keep the quality of the course, we have restricted enrollment. Here we discuss only the science/physics part of the course. Visiting speakers (covering the gamut from religious to non-religious) have included a Vatican astronomer, a Sloan survey cosmologist, the director of SETI, a neuropsychologist, a sociologist, historians of science and theologians. )

Early resident-to-resident physics education in diagnostic radiology.

PubMed

Kansagra, Akash P

2014-01-01

The revised ABR board certification process has updated the method by which diagnostic radiology residents are evaluated for competency in clinical radiologic physics. In this work, the author reports the successful design and implementation of a resident-taught physics course consisting of 5 weekly, hour-long lectures intended for incoming first-year radiology residents in their first month of training. To the author's knowledge, this is the first description of a course designed to provide a very early framework for ongoing physics education throughout residency without increasing the didactic burden on faculty members. Twenty-six first-year residents spanning 2 academic years took the course and reported subjective improvement in their knowledge (90%) and interest (75%) in imaging physics and a high level of satisfaction with the use of senior residents as physics educators. Based on the success of this course and the minimal resources required for implementation, this work may serve as a blueprint for other radiology residency programs seeking to develop revised physics curricula. Copyright © 2014 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Distance Learning Courses and Master of Arts in Physics Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lindgren, Richard; Thornton, Stephen

2006-11-01

More than twenty distance learning courses in physics have been taken by hundreds of High School Physics Teachers over the past 7 years. The success of these courses helped initiate our 30 credit Master of Arts in Physics Education degree program. We have graduated 28 teachers over the last 6 years and expect 13 more to graduate in 2006. The candidates earn 14 credits in residence at the University of Virginia and 16 credits online. This allows teachers to matriculate, while earning more than half the credits at home. Presently, there are over 50 Master degree candidates. Three of the five online courses utilize CD-ROMS with edited lectures of live Physics courses taught at the University of Virginia by Physics Professors recognized for their teaching. Homework and examinations are submitted using WebAssign. Local high school teachers and administrators proctor the examinations. General communication and pedagogical feedback on homework assignments and exams are submitted through Blackboard as well as email. Screen captured video shots of physics demonstrations are widely used in the audio chat room to facilitate discussion and also used on examinations. We will discuss the changes of our distance-learning model based on what has worked (or not) and new technology.

Initial experience with a calculus-based IPLS course at Vanderbilt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hutson, M. Shane; Rericha, Erin C.

2014-03-01

By implementing research results from the PER community, we have designed a new calculus-based IPLS course and began teaching two sections of this course in Fall 2013, both taught by biological physicists. This course differs from Vanderbilt's other introductory physics offerings in two major ways. First, it seeks to implement PER-based active learning strategies including just-in-time teaching, peer instruction and context-rich problems. The latter are specifically designed within biomedical contexts. Second, the course content has been chosen to closely align with the core competencies delineated in the HHMI-AAMC report Scientific Foundations for Future Physicians. We provide students with a very explicit accounting (in the syllabus) of how this course will contribute to 5 of the 8 SFFP-competencies and 21 of its 37 learning objectives. Throughout the course and associated labs, we make repeated, explicit and hopefully authentic connections between physics and the life sciences. The chosen text reinforces our approach through well-developed biomedical applications of physics concepts. We will report what we've seen work and not work in our first implementation of an IPLS course and detail results regarding student learning and student attitudes towards physics.

Science and Cooking: Motivating the Study of Freshman Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weitz, David

2011-03-01

This talk will describe a course offered to Harvard undergraduates as a general education science course, meant to intrduce freshman-level science for non-science majors. The course was a collaboration between world-class chefs and science professors. The chefs introduced concepts of cooking and the professors used these to motivate scientific concepts. The lectures were designed to provide a coherent introduction to freshman physics, primarily through soft matter science. The lectures were supplemented by a lab experiments, designed by a team of very talented graduate students and post docs, that supplemented the science taught in lecture. The course was very successful in motivating non-science students to learn, and even enjoy, basic science concepts. This course depended on contributions from Michael Brenner, Otger Campas, Amy Rowat and a team of talented graduate student teaching fellows.

Documenting the conversion from traditional to Studio Physics formats at the Colorado School of Mines: Process and early results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohl, Patrick B.; Kuo, H. Vincent; Ruskell, Todd G.

2008-10-01

The Colorado School of Mines (CSM) has taught its first-semester introductory physics course using a hybrid lecture/Studio Physics format for several years. Over the past year we have converted the second semester of our calculus-based introductory physics course (Physics II) to a Studio Physics format, starting from a traditional lecture-based format. In this paper, we document the early stages of this conversion in order to better understand which features succeed and which do not, and in order to develop a model for switching to Studio that keeps the time and resource investment manageable. We describe the recent history of the Physics II course and of Studio at Mines, discuss the PER-based improvements that we are implementing, and characterize our progress via several metrics, including pre/post Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM) scores, Colorado Learning About Science Survey scores (CLASS), solicited student comments, failure rates, and exam scores.

Using clickers in nonmajors- and majors-level biology courses: student opinion, learning, and long-term retention of course material.

PubMed

Crossgrove, Kirsten; Curran, Kristen L

2008-01-01

Student response systems (clickers) are viewed positively by students and instructors in numerous studies. Evidence that clickers enhance student learning is more variable. After becoming comfortable with the technology during fall 2005-spring 2006, we compared student opinion and student achievement in two different courses taught with clickers in fall 2006. One course was an introductory biology class for nonmajors, and the other course was a 200 level genetics class for biology majors. Students in both courses had positive opinions of the clickers, although we observed some interesting differences between the two groups of students. Student performance was significantly higher on exam questions covering material taught with clickers, although the differences were more dramatic for the nonmajors biology course than the genetics course. We also compared retention of information 4 mo after the course ended, and we saw increased retention of material taught with clickers for the nonmajors course, but not for the genetics course. We discuss the implications of our results in light of differences in how the two courses were taught and differences between science majors and nonmajors.

Teaching Quantum Mechanics through Project-based Learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duda, Gintaras; Ward, Kristina

2014-03-01

Project/Problem-based learning (PBL) is an active area of research within the physics education research (PER) community, however, work done to date has focused on introductory courses. This talk will explore research on upper division quantum mechanics, a junior/senior level course at Creighton University, which was taught using PBL pedagogy with no in-class lectures. Course time was primarily spent on lecture tutorials and projects, which included alpha decay of Uranium, neutrino oscillations, and FTIR spectroscopy of HCl. This talk will explore: 1. student learning in light of the new pedagogy and embedded meta-cognitive self-monitoring exercises, 2. the effect of the PBL curriculum on student attitudes, motivation, and students' epistemologies, and 3. the use of explicit written reflections within a physics course to probe student understanding.

A community-based, interdisciplinary rehabilitation engineering course.

PubMed

Lundy, Mary; Aceros, Juan

2016-08-01

A novel, community-based course was created through collaboration between the School of Engineering and the Physical Therapy program at the University of North Florida. This course offers a hands-on, interdisciplinary training experience for undergraduate engineering students through team-based design projects where engineering students are partnered with physical therapy students. Students learn the process of design, fabrication and testing of low-tech and high-tech rehabilitation technology for children with disabilities, and are exposed to a clinical experience under the guidance of licensed therapists. This course was taught in two consecutive years and pre-test/post-test data evaluating the impact of this interprofessional education experience on the students is presented using the Public Service Motivation Scale, Civic Actions Scale, Civic Attitudes Scale, and the Interprofessional Socialization and Valuing Scale.

Learning and Retention of Quantum Concepts with Different Teaching Methods

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deslauriers, Louis; Wieman, Carl

2011-01-01

We measured mastery and retention of conceptual understanding of quantum mechanics in a modern physics course. This was studied for two equivalent cohorts of students taught with different pedagogical approaches using the Quantum Mechanics Conceptual Survey. We measured the impact of pedagogical approach both on the original conceptual learning…

Preliminary Investigation of Instructor Effects on Gender Gap in Introductory Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kreutzer, Kimberley; Boudreaux, Andrew

2012-01-01

Gender differences in student learning in the introductory, calculus-based electricity and magnetism course were assessed by administering the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism pre- and postcourse. As expected, male students outgained females in traditionally taught sections as well as sections that incorporated interactive engagement…

Fun and Interdisciplinary Daytime Astrophysical Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aroca, S. C.; Schiel, D.; Silva, C. C.

2008-01-01

The present article describes some activities performed with high-school students in the "Solar Physics" course developed in a Brazilian science centre. The topics of chemical composition, temperature and stellar evolution were taught in a room totally dedicated to study of the Sun, a solar room, designed with simple and inexpensive…

A Simple Relativistic Bohr Atom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Terzis, Andreas F.

2008-01-01

A simple concise relativistic modification of the standard Bohr model for hydrogen-like atoms with circular orbits is presented. As the derivation requires basic knowledge of classical and relativistic mechanics, it can be taught in standard courses in modern physics and introductory quantum mechanics. In addition, it can be shown in a class that…

Focus and Folk Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Landers, Dan; Kretchmar, Scott

2008-01-01

In this article, the authors argue that content misalignment is "not" a central problem in the preparation of future physical education teachers. The courses taught in most college curricula are generally relevant for professionals who will be teaching movement skills and exercise routines for enjoyment and healthful living to children. However,…

Lessons learned: A case study of an integrated way of teaching introductory physics to at-risk students at Rutgers University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Etkina, E.; Gibbons, K.; Holton, B. L.; Horton, G. K.

1999-09-01

In order to provide a physics instructional environment in which at-risk students (particularly women and minorities) can successfully learn and enjoy introductory physics, we have introduced Extended General Physics as an option for science, science teaching, and pre-health professions majors at Rutgers University. We have taught the course for the last five years. In this new course, we have used many elements that have been proven to be successful in physics instruction. We have added a new component, the minilab, stressing qualitative experiments performed by the students. By integrating all the elements, and structuring the time the students invest in the course, we have created a successful program for students-at-risk, indeed for all students. Our aim was not only to foster successful mastery of the traditional physics syllabus by the students, but to create a sense of community through the cooperation of students with each other and their instructors. We present a template for implementation of our program elsewhere.

Analysis of the Impact of Introductory Physics on Engineering Students at Texas A&M University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perry, Jonathan; Bassichis, William

Introductory physics forms a major part of the foundational knowledge of engineering majors, independent of discipline and institution. While the content of introductory physics courses is consistent from institution to institution, the manner in which it is taught can vary greatly due to professor, textbook, instructional method, and overall course design. This work attempts to examine variations in student success, as measured by overall academic performance in an engineering major, and matriculation rates, based on the type of introductory physics a student took while enrolled in an engineering degree at Texas A&M University. Specific options for introductory physics at Texas A&M University include two calculus based physics courses, one traditional (UP), and one more mathematically rigorous (DP), transfer credit, and high school (AP or dual) credit. In order to examine the impact of introductory physics on a student's degree progression, data mining analyses are performed on a data set of relatively comprehensive academic records for all students enrolled as an engineering major for a minimum of one academic term. Student data has been collected for years of entering freshman beginning in 1990 and ending in 2010. Correlations will be examined between freshman level courses, including introductory physics, and follow on engineering courses, matriculation rates, and time to graduation.

Course fees and academic ranking: insights from the IMI EMTRAIN on-course® database.

PubMed

Payton, Antony; Dallakian, Pavel; Fitton, Alexander; Payton, Anna; Hardman, Mike; Yuille, Martin

2014-07-01

The Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) funded project on-course® (http://www.on-course.eu/) lists postgraduate biomedical courses in Europe and is comprehensive for all taught and research master's courses. Using on-course®, new insights into education and training in Europe can be delivered; and here we investigate the relationship between master's course fees and university ranking. We hypothesise that higher master's course fees would be associated with higher university ranking. This was indeed the case for research master's courses and for taught master's courses for non-EU students. However, we observed no correlation between taught master's course fees for EU students and university ranking, meaning EU students are paying on average as much for courses at lower ranked universities as they are for courses at higher ranked universities. Crown Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrating numerical computation into the undergraduate education physics curriculum using spreadsheet excel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fauzi, Ahmad

2017-11-01

Numerical computation has many pedagogical advantages: it develops analytical skills and problem-solving skills, helps to learn through visualization, and enhances physics education. Unfortunately, numerical computation is not taught to undergraduate education physics students in Indonesia. Incorporate numerical computation into the undergraduate education physics curriculum presents many challenges. The main challenges are the dense curriculum that makes difficult to put new numerical computation course and most students have no programming experience. In this research, we used case study to review how to integrate numerical computation into undergraduate education physics curriculum. The participants of this research were 54 students of the fourth semester of physics education department. As a result, we concluded that numerical computation could be integrated into undergraduate education physics curriculum using spreadsheet excel combined with another course. The results of this research become complements of the study on how to integrate numerical computation in learning physics using spreadsheet excel.

Using Clickers in Nonmajors- and Majors-Level Biology Courses: Student Opinion, Learning, and Long-Term Retention of Course Material

PubMed Central

Crossgrove, Kirsten

2008-01-01

Student response systems (clickers) are viewed positively by students and instructors in numerous studies. Evidence that clickers enhance student learning is more variable. After becoming comfortable with the technology during fall 2005–spring 2006, we compared student opinion and student achievement in two different courses taught with clickers in fall 2006. One course was an introductory biology class for nonmajors, and the other course was a 200 level genetics class for biology majors. Students in both courses had positive opinions of the clickers, although we observed some interesting differences between the two groups of students. Student performance was significantly higher on exam questions covering material taught with clickers, although the differences were more dramatic for the nonmajors biology course than the genetics course. We also compared retention of information 4 mo after the course ended, and we saw increased retention of material taught with clickers for the nonmajors course, but not for the genetics course. We discuss the implications of our results in light of differences in how the two courses were taught and differences between science majors and nonmajors. PMID:18316817

Correlation between performance in physics and prior mathematics knowledge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hudson, H. T.; Rottmann, Ray M.

The final grade of 1403 students enrolled in the first semester of the introductory, pre-professional physics course has been correlated with performance on a precourse diagnostic test of mathematical skills. The students were from a total of eight different sections taught by six separate instructors over a three year time span. The student population has been separated into two groups, those who completed the course (913 students) and those who dropped (490 students). The drops were assigned a projected final gradebased on performance up to date of withdrawal. The Pearson product-moment correlation for students who completed the course is 0.418 and correlation for the drops is 0.232. Both correlations are significant at the p < 0.001 level. This study suggests that prior mathematical ability is a primary influence on performance in the course, and has a secondary influence on the tendency to drop out of the course.

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…

Teaching Computer-Aided Design of Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer Engineering Equipment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gosman, A. D.; And Others

1979-01-01

Describes a teaching program for fluid mechanics and heat transfer which contains both computer aided learning (CAL) and computer aided design (CAD) components and argues that the understanding of the physical and numerical modeling taught in the CAL course is essential to the proper implementation of CAD. (Author/CMV)

Effectiveness of different tutorial recitation teaching methods and its implications for TA training

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koenig, Kathleen M.; Endorf, Robert J.; Braun, Gregory A.

2007-06-01

We present results from a comparative study of student understanding for students who attended recitation classes that used different teaching methods. Student volunteers from our introductory calculus-based physics course attended a special recitation class that was taught using one of four different teaching methods. A total of 272 students were divided into approximately equal groups for each method. Students in each class were taught the same topic, “Changes in Energy and Momentum,” from Tutorials in Introductory Physics. The different teaching methods varied in the amount of student and teacher engagement. Student understanding was evaluated through pre- and post-tests. Our results demonstrate the importance of the instructor’s role in teaching recitation classes. The most effective teaching method was for students working in cooperative learning groups with the instructors questioning the groups using Socratic dialogue. In addition, we investigated student preferences for modes of instruction through an open-ended survey. Our results provide guidance and evidence for the teaching methods that should be emphasized in training course instructors.

Outside the Research Lab; Volume 1: Physics in the arts, architecture and design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holgate, Sharon Ann

2017-02-01

This book is written for students and other interested readers as a look inside the diverse range of applications for physics outside of the scientific research environment. This first volume covers several different areas of the arts and design ranging from stage lighting to sculpting. The author has interviewed experts in each area to explain how physics and technology impact their work. These are all useful examples of how physics encountered in taught courses relates to the real world. Audio files and videos are available within Book information

Tagging and Purifying Proteins to Teach Molecular Biology and Advanced Biochemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roecklein-Canfield, Jennifer A.; Lopilato, Jane

2004-01-01

Two distinct courses, "Molecular Biology" taught by the Biology Department and "Advanced Biochemistry" taught by the Chemistry Department, complement each other and, when taught in a coordinated and integrated way, can enhance student learning and understanding of complex material. "Molecular Biology" is a comprehensive lecture-based course with a…

Flipped Statistics Class Results: Better Performance than Lecture over One Year Later

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winquist, Jennifer R.; Carlson, Keith A.

2014-01-01

In this paper, we compare an introductory statistics course taught using a flipped classroom approach to the same course taught using a traditional lecture based approach. In the lecture course, students listened to lecture, took notes, and completed homework assignments. In the flipped course, students read relatively simple chapters and answered…

Student Perceptions of a Course Taught in Second Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheal, Catheryn

2009-01-01

Catheryn Cheal describes student reactions to a course she and Vagner Whitehead taught in Second Life. The course required students to research a topic about virtual worlds, write a paper, and illustrate their findings by building an environment in Second Life. Negative student responses to the course coupled with the observation that students…

Multiple strategy peer-taught evidence-based medicine course in a poor resource setting.

PubMed

Sabouni, Ammar; Bdaiwi, Yamama; Janoudi, Saad L; Namous, Lubaba O; Turk, Tarek; Alkhatib, Mahmoud; Abbas, Fatima; Yafi, Ruba Zuhri

2017-05-04

Teaching Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) is becoming a priority in the healthcare process. For undergraduates, it has been proved that integrating multiple strategies in teaching EBM yields better results than a single, short-duration strategy. However, there is a lack of evidence on applying EBM educational interventions in developing countries. In this study, we aim to evaluate the effectiveness of a multiple strategy peer-taught online course in improving EBM awareness and skills among medical students in two developing countries, Syria and Egypt. We conducted a prospective study with pre- and post- course assessment of 84 medical students in three universities, using the Berlin questionnaire and a set of self-reported questions which studied the students' EBM knowledge, attitude and competencies. The educational intervention was a peer-taught online course consisting of six sessions (90 min each) presented over six weeks, and integrated with assignments, group discussions, and two workshops. The mean score of pre- and post-course Berlin tests was 3.5 (95% CI: 2.94-4.06) and 5.5 (95% CI: 4.74-6.26) respectively, increasing by 2 marks (95% CI: 1.112-2.888; p-value <0.001), which indicates a statistically significant increase in students' EBM knowledge and skill, similar to a previous expert-taught face to face contact course. Self-reported confidences also increased significantly. However, our course did not have a major effect on students' attitudes toward EBM (1.9-10.8%; p-value: 0.12-0.99). In developing countries, multiple strategy peer-taught online courses may be an effective alternative to face to face expert-taught courses, especially in the short term.

Astronomy stories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berenson, Rhoda

2015-03-01

For many years I have taught physics and astronomy courses to liberal arts students. I have found most of my students to be intelligent and diligent, but not anxious to study science. They typically take the class only because their degree requires a science course. Many arrive having already decided they will not be able to do the math or understand the scientific concepts, and have essentially built a wall between themselves and science. In the 1990s, in an effort to help break down that wall, as part of an NSF-supported course, "The Evolution of the Universe, Earth and Life," I began using creative writing assignments.

Learning by doing at the Colorado School of Mines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Furtak, Thomas E.; Ruskell, Todd G.

2013-03-01

With over 260 majors, the undergraduate physics program at CSM is among the largest in the country. An underlying theme in this success is experiential learning, starting with a studio teaching method in the introductory calculus-based physics courses. After their second year students complete a 6-week full-time summer course devoted to hands-on practical knowledge and skills, including machine shop techniques, high-vacuum technology, applied optics, electronic control systems, and computational tools. This precedes a two-semester laboratory sequence that can be taught at an advanced level because of the students' experience. The required capstone senior course is a year-long open-ended challenge in which students partner with members of the faculty to work on authentic research projects, teaming with grad students or post-docs as contributing members to the department's externally funded scholarship. All of these features are important components of our B.S. degree, Engineering Physics, which is officially accredited by ABET.

Integrating Condensed Matter Physics into a Liberal Arts Physics Curriculum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Collett, Jeffrey

2008-03-01

The emergence of nanoscale science into the popular consciousness presents an opportunity to attract and retain future condensed matter scientists. We inject nanoscale physics into recruiting activities and into the introductory and the core portions of the curriculum. Laboratory involvement and research opportunity play important roles in maintaining student engagement. We use inexpensive scanning tunneling (STM) and atomic force (AFM) microscopes to introduce students to nanoscale structure early in their college careers. Although the physics of tip-surface interactions is sophisticated, the resulting images can be interpreted intuitively. We use the STM in introductory modern physics to explore quantum tunneling and the properties of electrons at surfaces. An interdisciplinary course in nanoscience and nanotechnology course team-taught with chemists looks at nanoscale phenomena in physics, chemistry, and biology. Core quantum and statistical physics courses look at effects of quantum mechanics and quantum statistics in degenerate systems. An upper level solid-state physics course takes up traditional condensed matter topics from a structural perspective by beginning with a study of both elastic and inelastic scattering of x-rays from crystalline solids and liquid crystals. Students encounter reciprocal space concepts through the analysis of laboratory scattering data and by the development of the scattering theory. The course then examines the importance of scattering processes in band structure and in electrical and thermal conduction. A segment of the course is devoted to surface physics and nanostructures where we explore the effects of restricting particles to two-dimensional surfaces, one-dimensional wires, and zero-dimensional quantum dots.

Teaching the Teachers: Physical Science for the Non-Scientific

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michels, D. J.; Pickert, S. M.; Montrose, C. J.; Thompson, J. L.

2004-12-01

The Catholic University of America, in collaboration with the Solar Physics Branch of the Naval Research Laboratory and the Goddard Space Flight Center, has begun development of an experimental, inquiry-driven and standards-referenced physical science course for undergraduate, pre-service K-8 teachers. The course is team-taught by faculty from the University's Departments of Education and Physics and NRL solar physics research personnel. Basic physical science concepts are taught in the context of the Sun and Sun-Earth Connections, through direct observation, web-based solar data, and images and movies from ongoing space missions. The Sun can illuminate, in ways that cannot be duplicated with comparable clarity in the laboratory, the basics of magnetic and gravitational force fields, Newton's Laws, and light and optics. The immediacy of the connection to ongoing space research and live mission data serves as well to inspire student interest and curiosity. Teaching objectives include pedagogical methods, especially hands-on and observational experiences appropriate to the physics content and the K-8 classroom. The CUA Program, called TOPS! (Top Teachers of Physical Science!) has completed its first year of classroom experience; the first few batches of Program graduates should be in K-8 classrooms in time to capitalize on the motivational opportunities offered by the 2007-2008 IHY and IPY. We present data on the attitudinal and scientific progress of fifteen pre-service Early Childhood and Elementary Education majors as they experienced, many for the first time, the marvels of attractive and repulsive forces, live observations of solar system dynamics, access to real-time satellite data and NASA educational resources.

Preliminary investigation of instructor effects on gender gap in introductory physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kreutzer, Kimberley; Boudreaux, Andrew

2012-06-01

Gender differences in student learning in the introductory, calculus-based electricity and magnetism course were assessed by administering the Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism pre- and postcourse. As expected, male students outgained females in traditionally taught sections as well as sections that incorporated interactive engagement (IE) techniques. In two of the IE course sections, however, the gains of female students were comparable to those of male students. Classroom observations of the course sections involved were made over an extended period. In this paper, we characterize the observed instructor-student interactions using a framework from educational psychology referred to as wise schooling. Results suggest that instructor practices affect differential learning, and that wise schooling techniques may constitute an effective strategy for promoting gender equity in the physics classroom.

Active Problem Solving and Applied Research Methods in a Graduate Course on Numerical Methods

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maase, Eric L.; High, Karen A.

2008-01-01

"Chemical Engineering Modeling" is a first-semester graduate course traditionally taught in a lecture format at Oklahoma State University. The course as taught by the author for the past seven years focuses on numerical and mathematical methods as necessary skills for incoming graduate students. Recent changes to the course have included Visual…

Undergraduate, Nonprofessional Pharmacology: Status of Courses Taught by North American Colleges of Pharmacy and Medicine.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gerald, Michael C.

1989-01-01

A study assessed and compared the current status of undergraduate, nonprofessional pharmacology courses as taught in the U. S. and Canadian colleges of pharmacy and medicine; courses offered by veterinary medicine are also noted. Pharmacy courses seek to increase general drug knowledge and promote rational drug use. (Author/MLW)

Improving Business School Courses by Applying Lean Principles and Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Emiliani, M. L.

2004-01-01

Describes the application of lean principles and practices to the design and delivery of a graduate business course on leadership taken by part-time working professional students in a classroom setting. The principal objectives were to improve consistency between what was taught in the course and how the course was taught, eliminate waste, improve…

Physics in ``Polymers, Composites, and Sports Materials" an Interdisciplinary Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hagedorn, Eric; Suskavcevic, Milijana

2007-10-01

The undergraduate science course described uses the themes of polymers and composites, as used in sports materials, to teach some key concepts in introductory chemistry and physics. The course is geared towards students who are interested in science, but are still completing prerequisite mathematics courses required for science majors. Each class is built around a laboratory activity. Atoms, molecules and chemical reactions are taught in reference to making polyvinyl acetate (white glue) and polyvinyl alcohol (gel glue). These materials, combined with borax, form balls which are subsequently used in physics activities centered on free-fall and the coefficient of restitution. These activities allow the introduction of kinematics and dynamics. A free fall activity involving ice pellets, with and without embedded tissue paper, illustrates the properties of composites. The final series of activities uses balls, shoes, racquets and bats to further illustrate dynamics concepts (including friction, momentum and energy). The physical properties of these sports objects are discussed in terms of the materials of which they are made. The evaluation plan to determine the effectiveness of these activities and preliminary results are also presented.

Effect of Instructor Gender and Gender Role on Student Willingness to Take a Psychology Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freeman, Harvey R.

1992-01-01

Presents a study of students' preferences regarding teachers. Reports that students selected psychology courses taught by instructors possessing stereotypically male, female, or androgynous characteristics. Concludes that students preferred courses taught by those with "feminine" or androgynous characteristics over those possessing…

Using Inquiry to Learn about Soil: A Fourth Grade Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Magee, Paula A.; Wingate, Elisha

2014-01-01

In this article, we describe a fourth-grade inquiry unit on soil. The unit was designed and taught by preservice elementary teachers as part of a university science methods course. Using a student-driven inquiry approach to designing curriculum, the unit engaged fourth graders in learning about the physical properties soil, erosion, worms, and…

The Effects of Peer Instruction on Students' Conceptual Learning and Motivation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gok, Tolga

2012-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of peer instruction on college students' conceptual learning, motivation, and self-efficacy in an algebra-based introductory physics course for nonmajors. Variables were studied via a quasi-experiment, Solomon four-group design on 123 students. Treatment groups were taught by peer instruction.…

The Status of Reading Instruction in the College of Education at Southern University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Armstrong, W. Cliff; Goyol, Anthony

Forty-six members of the college of education at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, were surveyed to determine the status of reading instruction within that college. The faculty members taught a total of 114 courses in six departments: health and physical education, vocational education, recreation, special education, elementary…

“Workshop Astronomy” at Dickinson College

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morgan, Windsor A., Jr.

2006-12-01

Dickinson College, a 2400-student liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, is recognized for the development of Workshop Physics. This innovative, calculus-based introductory course combines physics lectures and laboratories with integrated hands-on, small-group sessions. It allows students to do experiments, so that they will make their own observations and, with the guidance of the professor discover the principles of physics themselves. Since spring 2006, I have been developing an introductory solar-system astronomy course in the “Workshop” format at Dickinson. Students participate in discussions with their classmates and investigate astronomical concepts with computer simulations and guided inquiry. I emphasize “practical” astronomy (such as lunar phases, sky motions, and seasons) and physics concepts (such as density and Doppler shift); thus, my students become familiar with the basics of astronomy before developing a better understanding of the solar system. In my paper, I will discuss class activities and will evaluate their efficacy based on a comparison with traditionally-taught astronomy courses.

An Introduction to Business German.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ambacher, Robert

At Millersville University (Pennsylvania), business German is taught in the German section in a two-semester introduction at the sophomore level, a junior-level advanced course, and a senior-level translation course. These four courses are augmented by introductions to business and economics, both taught in English outside the German section.…

The Fruit of Silence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelson, Marilyn

2006-01-01

This presentation explores how contemplative practices, especially those anchored in an active listening to silence, are integrated into creative writing courses. It pays particular attention to a course taught at the United States Military Academy at West Point and to a course on the poetry of war and peace taught at the University of…

Essential Mathematics for the Physical Sciences; Volume I: Homogeneous boundary value problems, Fourier methods, and special functions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Borden, Brett; Luscombe, James

2017-10-01

Physics is expressed in the language of mathematics; it is deeply ingrained in how physics is taught and how it's practiced. A study of the mathematics used in science is thus a sound intellectual investment for training as scientists and engineers. This first volume of two is centered on methods of solving partial differential equations and the special functions introduced. This text is based on a course offered at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) and while produced for NPS needs, it will serve other universities well.

Postgraduate Taught Portfolio Review--The Cluster Approach, Non-Subject-Based Grouping of Courses and Relevant Performance Indicators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Konstantinidis-Pereira, Alicja

2018-01-01

This paper summarises a new method of grouping postgraduate taught (PGT) courses introduced at Oxford Brookes University as a part of a Portfolio Review. Instead of classifying courses by subject, the new cluster approach uses statistical methods to group the courses based on factors including flexibility of study options, level of specialisation,…

Expectations of University Students in Team Taught Interdisciplinary Courses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodwin, William M.; LeBold, William K.

Educational goals were presented to faculty involved in a group of eight team taught interdisciplinary (TTI) courses and were rated in terms of their importance to the courses as a group. The goals rated highest by the faculty were then presented to students enrolled in one of the TTI courses during the first and last weeks of the semester and…

Physics instructors are not blank slates either: An exploratory study of introductory physics instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mitchell, Willyetta Adele

2009-11-01

The purpose of the study was to investigate the views of the nature of science and the classroom practices of instructors who teach introductory physics at a research intensive university. A study of this nature is necessary because calls to change how science is taught have been made since the 1800's, yet the methods of instruction have remained virtually unchanged. The conflict between how science is taught and how students learn science can be remedied by effective professional development at the university. However, training on the change process is virtually nonexistent in teacher education programs and in teacher professional development workshops at all levels. The Views About Science Survey (VASS) was first administered to a sample of twenty-nine physics instructors and graduate assistants who have taught introductory physics courses within the last five years. To assess instructional practices in introductory physics at a research extensive university, a purposeful, stratified sample of 56 classes was observed. The interactions between the students and teachers were analyzed using the Flanders Interaction Analysis. The findings suggest that the physics instructors hold a mixed view of the nature of science. The instructors' views do not necessarily indicate how they teach physics. The results also showed that the professors reported that they use elements of effective teaching practices throughout their instruction. The results of the classroom observations revealed that non interactive lecture is the dominate instructional method used. The Flander's confirms that the majority of the class time is spent with the teacher talking and the student passively listening.

A Taxonomy of Introductory Physics Concepts.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mokaya, Fridah; Savkar, Amit; Valente, Diego

We have designed and implemented a hierarchical taxonomic classification of physics concepts for our introductory physics for engineers course sequence taught at the University of Connecticut. This classification can be used to provide a mechanism to measure student progress in learning at the level of individual concepts or clusters of concepts, and also as part of a tool to measure effectiveness of teaching pedagogy. We examine our pre- and post-test FCI results broken down by topics using Hestenes et al.'s taxonomy classification for the FCI, and compare these results with those found using our own taxonomy classification. In addition, we expand this taxonomic classification to measure performance in our other course exams, investigating possible correlations in results achieved across different assessments at the individual topic level. UCONN CLAS(College of Liberal Arts and Science).

Seminar in Flow Visualization at Lafayette College: Variations on the Hertzberg Effect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rossmann, Jenn Stroud

2013-11-01

Flow visualization reveals an invisible world of fluid dynamics, blending scientific investigation and artistic exploration. The resulting images have inspired, and in some cases themselves become appreciated as, art. At Lafayette College, a sophomore-level seminar in The Art and Science of Flow Visualization exposes students to these techniques and the science of fluid mechanics, and to the photographic methods needed to create effective images that are successful both scientifically and artistically. Unlike other courses in flow visualization, this course assumes no a priori familiarity with fluid flow or with photography. The fundamentals of both are taught and practiced in a studio setting. Students are engaged in an interdisciplinary discourse about fluids and physics, photography, scientific ethics, and historical societal responses to science and art. Relevant texts from several disciplines are read, discussed, and responded to in student writing. This seminar approach makes flow visualization and fluid dynamics a natural part of a liberal education. The development, implementation, and assessment of this team-taught course at Lafayette College will be discussed. Support provided by National Science Foundation.

Quickulum: A Process for Quick Response Curriculum Verification

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lovett, Marvin; Jones, Irma S.; Stingley, Paul

2010-01-01

This paper addresses the need for a method of continual and frequent verification regarding course content taught in some post-secondary courses. With excessive amounts of information generated within the workplace, continual change exists for what is taught in some of our business courses. This is especially true for specific content areas such…

Linking Class and Community: An Investigation of Service Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fleck, Bethany; Hussey, Heather D.; Rutledge-Ellison, Lily

2017-01-01

This study contributes to the service learning (SL) literature by providing new empirical evidence of learning from a problem-based SL research project conducted in a developmental research methods course. Two sections of the course taught in a traditional manner were compared to two sections of the course taught with an integrated SL project…

The Effects of Learning Strategy Instruction on Achievement, Attitude, and Achievement Motivation in a Physics Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sezgin Selçuk, Gamze; Sahin, Mehmet; Açıkgöz, Kamile Ün

2011-01-01

This article reports on the influence of learning strategy instruction on student teachers' physics achievement, attitude towards physics, and achievement motivation. A pre-test/post-test quasi-experimental design with matching control group was used in the study. Two groups of student teachers ( n = 75) who were enrolled in an introductory physics course participated in the study. In the experimental group, questioning, summarizing, and graphic organizers were taught. The control group did not receive any presentation on strategy learning. Data were collected via the pre- and post-administration of the Physics Course Achievement Test, the Scale of Attitudes towards Physics, and the Achievement Motivation Scale. Univariate and multivariate analyses of variance on the data revealed no significant differences in the attitude and achievement motivation between the strategy and control groups. However, the strategy group students were observed to have a tendency of more positive attitude and motivation than the control group students. Results also showed that explicit learning strategy instruction was more effective than traditional instruction in improving physics achievement of the participating students. The implications of these results for physics education are discussed.

A Leadership Elective Course Developed and Taught by Graduate Students

PubMed Central

Garza, Oscar W.; Witry, Matthew J.; Chang, Elizabeth H.; Letendre, Donald E.; Trewet, CoraLynn B.

2013-01-01

Objective. To develop and implement a flexible-credit elective course to empower student pharmacists to develop lifelong leadership skills and provide teaching practice opportunities for graduate students. Design. An elective course focusing on leadership development for second- and third-year doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students was designed and taught by 4 graduate students under the mentorship of 2 faculty members. Student pharmacists could enroll in a 1-, 2-, or 3-credit-hour version of the course. Assessment. Attainment of course objectives was measured using student pharmacist reflection papers and continuing professional development portfolios. Additionally, self-assessments of graduate students and faculty members delivering the course were conducted. In their responses on course evaluations, student pharmacists indicated they found the course a valuable learning experience. Graduate students found course development to be challenging but useful in developing faculty skills. Conclusion. This flexible-credit elective course taught by graduate students was an innovative way to offer formal leadership instruction using limited college resources. PMID:24371347

Transforming the junior level: Outcomes from instruction and research in E&M

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chasteen, Stephanie V.; Pollock, Steven J.; Pepper, Rachel E.; Perkins, Katherine K.

2012-12-01

Over the course of four years, we have researched and transformed a key course in the career of an undergraduate physics major—junior-level electricity and magnetism. With the aim of educating our majors based on a more complete understanding of the cognitive and conceptual challenges of upper-division courses, we used principles of active engagement and learning theory to develop course materials and conceptual assessments. Our research results from student and faculty interviews and observations also informed our approach. We present several measures of the outcomes of this work at the University of Colorado at Boulder and external institutions. Students in the transformed courses achieved higher learning gains compared to those in the traditionally taught courses, particularly in the areas of conceptual understanding and ability to articulate their reasoning about a problem. The course transformations appear to close a gender gap, improving female students’ scores on conceptual and traditional assessments so that they are more similar to those of male students. Students enthusiastically support the transformations, and indicate that several course elements provide useful scaffolding in conceptual understanding, as well as physicists’ “habits of mind” such as problem-solving approaches and work habits. Despite these positive outcomes, student conceptual learning gains do not fully meet faculty expectations, suggesting that it is valuable to further investigate how the content and skills indicative of “thinking like a physicist” can be most usefully taught at the upper division.

A School in Siberia: 14-Year-Olds Take University Math Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bogdanovsky, Georgy

1978-01-01

Ordinary students (n=40) are participating in a Soviet experiment wherein they are taught by well-known scientists and specialists in a math-intensive course comparable to that taught at the Kiev University. (JC)

The Effect of High School Physics Laboratories on Performance in Introductory College Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maltese, Adam V.; Tai, Robert H.; Sadler, Philip M.

2010-05-01

Laboratory experiences play a substantial role in most high school science courses, and many teachers believe the number of labs they offer is a measure of the quality of their curriculum. While some teachers believe labs are meant to confirm concepts taught during lectures, others feel labs should address students' everyday beliefs about the world. Still other teachers emphasize learning of the scientific method and laboratory techniques. Accordingly, many articles offer advice on "effective" pedagogical practices.2-5

Mineral Physics Educational Modules for Advanced Undergraduates and Graduate Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burnley, P. C.; Thomas, S.; Honn, D. K.

2011-12-01

We are assembling a group of web-based educational modules for a course entitled "Introduction to Mineral Physics". Although the modules are designed to function as part of a full semester course, each module will also be able to stand alone. The modules are targeted at entry level graduate students and advanced undergraduate students. Learning outcomes for the course are being developed in consultation with educators throughout the mineral physics community. Potential users include mineral physicists teaching "bricks and mortar" graduate classes at their own institutions, mineral physicists teaching graduate classes in a distance education setting, mineralogy teachers interested in including supplementary material in their undergraduate mineralogy class, undergraduates doing independent study projects and graduate students and colleagues in other subdisciplines who wish to brush up on mineral physics topics. The modules reside on the Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College web site in the On the Cutting Edge - Teaching Mineralogy collection. Links to the materials will be posted on the Consortium for Materials Properties Research in Earth Sciences website. The modules will be piloted in a graduate level distance education course in mineral physics taught from UNLV during the spring 2012 semester. This course and others like it can address the current problems faced by faculty in state universities where rising minimum enrollments are making it difficult to teach a suitable graduate course to incoming students.

Teaching Quantum Mechanics through Project-based Learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duda, Gintaras

2013-04-01

Project/Problem-based learning (PBL) is an active area of research within the physics education research (PER) community, however, work done to date has focused on introductory courses. This talk will explore research on upper division quantum mechanics, a junior/senior level course at Creighton, which was taught using PBL pedagogy with no in-class lectures. The talk will explore: 1. student learning in light of the new pedagogy and embedded meta-cognitive self-monitoring and reflective exercises and 2. the effect of the PBL curriculum on student attitudes students’ epistemologies.

A qualitative study comparing the instruction on vectors between a physics course and a trigonometry course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

James, Wendy Michelle

Science and engineering instructors often observe that students have difficulty using or applying prerequisite mathematics knowledge in their courses. This qualitative project uses a case-study method to investigate the instruction in a trigonometry course and a physics course based on a different methodology and set of assumptions about student learning and the nature of mathematics than traditionally used when investigating students' difficulty using or applying prerequisite mathematics knowledge. Transfer theory examined within a positivist or post-positivist paradigm is often used to investigate students' issue applying their knowledge; in contrast, this qualitative case-study is positioned using constructionism as an epistemology to understand and describe mathematical practices concerning vectors in a trigonometry and a physics course. Instructor interviews, observations of course lectures, and textbooks served as the qualitative data for in-depth study and comparison, and Saussure's (1959) concept of signifier and signified provided a lens for examining the data during analysis. Multiple recursions of within-case comparisons and across-case comparison were analyzed for differences in what the instructors and textbooks explicitly stated and later performed as their practices. While the trigonometry and physics instruction differed slightly, the two main differences occurred in the nature and use of vectors in the physics course. First, the "what" that is signified in notation and diagrams differs between contextualized and context-free situations, and second, physics instruction taught vectors very similar to trigonometry instruction when teaching the mathematics for doing physics, but once instruction focused on physics, the manner in which vector notation and diagrams are used differed from what is explicitly stated during mathematics instruction.

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

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.

How Things Work: Teaching Physics in the Context of Everyday Objects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bloomfield, Louis

2015-03-01

How Things Work is an unconventional introduction to physics, a course that starts with whole objects and looks inside them to see what makes them work. Effectively ``case-study physics,'' it is designed primarily for non-science students who are unsure of the role of physics in the world and are looking for relevance in their studies. How Things Work is essentially the generalization of context-based introductory courses (Physics of the Human Body, Physics of the Automobile, and Physics of Music) and demonstrates that when physics is taught in the context of ordinary objects, these students are enthusiastic about it, look forward to classes, ask insightful questions, experiment on their own, and find themselves explaining to friends and family how things in their world work. In this talk, I will discuss the concept and structure of a How Things Work course and look briefly at how to teach its objects and assess what students learn from it. Although this course focuses on concepts rather than on calculations, it is rich in physics and requires that students think hard about the world around them. It also teaches problem solving and logical thinking skills, and demands that students face their misconceptions and failures of intuition. Lastly, it is actually quantitative in many respects, though its results are usually more words than numbers: your weight, the battery's voltage, or the acceleration due to gravity.

A Pilot Study of Students' Learning Outcomes Using Didactic and Socratic Instructional Methods: An Assessment Based on Bloom's Taxonomy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akinde, Oluwatoyin Adenike

2015-01-01

This work is a pilot study on the learning outcomes of students, who were taught a research course for seven weeks, using didactic and Socratic instruction methods. The course was taught in two sessions concurrently. The students were divided into two groups (A and B) and both groups were taught either with Socratic instruction method or didactic…

A Calculus-Level Introductory Physics Course with an Astronomy Theme

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amato, Joseph

2011-05-01

Physics from Planet Earth (PPE) is a one-semester, calculus-based introductory course in classical mechanics intended for first year students of physics, chemistry, astronomy and engineering. Most of the core topics in mechanics are included, but many of the examples and applications are drawn from astronomy, space science, and astrophysics. The laws of physics are assigned the task of exploring the heavens - the same task addressed by Newton over 300 years ago at the birth of classical mechanics. How do we know the distance to the Moon, Sun, or other galaxies? How do we know the masses of the Earth, Sun, and other planets and stars, and why do we believe in "missing” mass? As a physics course, PPE concentrates on how we know rather than what we know. Examples and applications include those of historical importance (the Earth-Moon distance, the Earth-Sun distance, Ptolemaic vs. Copernican models, weighing the Earth) as well as those of contemporary interest (Hubble's Law, rocket propulsion, spacecraft gravity boosts, the Roche limit, search for extrasolar planets, orbital mechanics, pulsars, galactic rotation curves). The course has been taught successfully at Colgate for over a decade, using materials that have been developed and refined during the past 15 years. Developers of PPE are eager to enrich the course by identifying other topics in contemporary astronomy that can be adapted for the first year physics audience.

The physiatrists' crucial role in the development and implementation of a longitudinal musculoskeletal physical examination curriculum in a medical school.

PubMed

Newcomer, Karen L; Laskowski, Edward R; Grande, Joseph P; Dyrbye, Liselotte N

2013-01-01

The musculoskeletal physical examination (MSK PE) is a critical clinical skill that should be mastered by all medical students. The authors believe that physiatrists should have a crucial role in undergraduate musculoskeletal education. This article outlines the successful integration of an MSK PE curriculum taught by physiatrists into the first 2 yrs of medical school. During year 1, a basic MSK PE is taught concomitantly with the human anatomy course and focuses on anatomical correlation with physical examination maneuvers. In year 2, the MSK PE is taught concomitantly with the musculoskeletal didactic block. Special musculoskeletal tests, basic neurologic evaluation, and case correlation are also added to expand on the examination skills learned in the first year. At the end of the second year and before beginning third-year clinical rotations, students take a practical test to demonstrate their competency in the MSK PE. The authors believe that an important component of their MSK PE educational sessions is a low student-to-instructor ratio (4:1), with ample hands-on supervision of physical examination skills practice. Residents in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation assist with the teaching. With their intensive training and clinical experience in musculoskeletal medicine, physiatric staff and residents are ideal faculty for teaching the MSK PE. The authors are hopeful that this article encourages other physiatrists to construct similar programs aimed to develop MSK PE skills in medical students.

Investigating and improving introductory physics students’ understanding of electric flux

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jing; Singh, Chandralekha

2018-07-01

A solid grasp of the concept of electric flux is an important pre-requisite for appropriate use of Gauss’s law in solving electrostatics problems. As part of a broader investigation focusing on improving understanding of electrostatics concepts, we investigated the conceptual difficulties of college students in a traditionally taught calculus-based introductory physics course with the concept of electric flux and then the research on student difficulties was used as a guide in the development and evaluation of a research-validated tutorial which strives to help students learn this concept better. During the investigation of difficulties and the design and validation of the guided inquiry-based tutorial, college students in a calculus-based introductory physics course were given written questions to probe the common conceptual difficulties with the electric flux related concepts, and we also interviewed a subset of those students to get an in-depth account of the reasons behind the conceptual difficulties. The guided inquiry-based learning sequences in the tutorial were also iterated several times with instructors who regularly teach these courses. Here we discuss the common student difficulties with the electric flux found in our investigations, and the development and validation of a tutorial that strives to improve student understanding. We analyse how students performed on the pre-test (administered before the electric flux tutorial but after traditional instruction in the electric flux concepts) and on the post-test (administered after students in the tutorial group had engaged with the electric flux related tutorial). The performance of students in all sections of the course was comparable on the pre-test regardless of who taught that section. However, on the post-test, the performance of those in the sections of the course in which students engaged with the tutorial is significantly better that the section in which the tutorial was not used.

Effects of Virtual Education on Academic Culture: Perceived Advantages and Disadvantages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jefferson, Renee N.; Arnold, Liz W.

2009-01-01

The perceived advantages and disadvantages of courses taught in online and face-to-face learning environments were explored for students taking an accounting and a data collection and analysis course. Both courses were taught in a face-to-face learning environment at the main or satellite campus. It was hypothesized that there would be…

The Elements of Teaching Nonscientists: Make it Conceptual, Social, Modern, and Interactive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hobson, Art

2001-03-01

Physics literacy for all students should be a top priority for every physics department. Reasons include each department's self-interest, and the health of our profession. But most importantly, as the American Association for the Adancement of Science puts it, "Without a scientifically literate population, the outlook for a better world is not promising." Because nonscientists have little need and less desire for algebra-based physics problems, these courses should be conceptual (non-algebraic) although they should certainly be numerate. Since 1976, I have developed and taught a course of this type that includes most of the major principles of physics. Its success has stemmed from (1) a conceptual approach, (2) inclusion of relevant societal topics such as energy resources, scientific methodology, pseudoscience, global warming, and technological risk, (3) modern physics topics that occupy 50instruction techniques even in (especially in!) classes of over 200. I will describe this course and present interactive teaching ideas for one socially relevant topic: transportation and energy efficiency. A textbook is available: Physics: Concepts and Connections, by Art Hobson (Prentice Hall, 2nd Edition 1999). Further info: http://www.uark.edu/depts/physics/about/hobson.html

The Elements of Teaching Nonscientists: Make it Conceptual, Social, Modern, and Interactive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hobson, Art

2000-04-01

Physics literacy for all students should be a top priority for every physics department. Reasons include each department's self-interest, and the health of our profession. But most importantly, as the American Association for the Adancement of Science puts it, "Without a scientifically literate population, the outlook for a better world is not promising." Because nonscientists have little need and less desire for algebra-based physics problems, these courses should be conceptual (non-algebraic) although they should certainly be numerate. Since 1976, I have developed and taught a course of this type that includes most of the major principles of physics. Its success has stemmed from (1) a conceptual approach, (2) inclusion of relevant societal topics such as energy resources, scientific methodology, pseudoscience, global warming, and technological risk, (3) modern physics topics that occupy 50instruction techniques even in (especially in!) classes of over 200. I will describe this course and conduct an "active learning" demonstration of ideas for teaching one socially relevant topic: transportation and energy efficiency. A textbook is available: Physics: Concepts and Connections, by Art Hobson (Prentice Hall, 2nd Edition 1999). Further info: http://www.uark.edu/depts/physics/about/hobson.html

Elementary Education Program for Engineering by Dual System of Workshop and Teaching Program with Practical Subject

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hara, Toshitsugu

Elementary education program for engineering by the dual system combined with workshop program and teaching program with practical subject was discussed. The dual system which consists of several workshop programs and fundamental subjects (such as mathematics, English and physics) with practical material has been performed for the freshmen. The elementary workshop program (primary course) has four workshops and the related lectures. Fundamental subjects are taught with the practical or engineering texts. English subjects are taught by specified teachers who have ever worked in engineering field with English. The dual system was supported by such systems as the center for success initiative and the English education center.

Patterns of Incorrect Responses on the FCI and Course Success

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wells, James; Mokaya, Fridah; Valente, Diego

The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) is often used to measure the effectiveness of instructional pedagogy in introductory physics courses both at the algebra- and calculus-based level. Scores on the FCI are correlated with the performance of students in a class, as measured by their final course grade. We have collected data from several semesters of first-semester introductory mechanics courses at a public 4-year university, taught in large-scale classrooms with pedagogy including elements of Just-in-Time Teaching pedagogy along with active learning course components. The data collected includes pre- and post-test FCI scores, midterm exam grades, and final course grades. We examine whether certain patterns of incorrect answers on the FCI post-test are predictive of course grades, indicating whether certain specific student preconceptions are more detrimental than others to the success of students in an introductory mechanics course. Funding from UConn - College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS).

Teaching with technology: learning outcomes for a combined dental and dental hygiene online hybrid oral histology course.

PubMed

Gadbury-Amyot, Cynthia C; Singh, Amul H; Overman, Pamela R

2013-06-01

Among the challenges leaders in dental and allied dental education have faced in recent years is a shortage of well-qualified faculty members, especially in some specialty areas of dentistry. One proposed solution has been the use of technology. At the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Dentistry, the departure of a faculty member who taught the highly specialized content in oral histology and embryology provided the opportunity to implement distance delivery of that course. The course is taught once a year to a combined group of dental and dental hygiene students. Previous to spring semester of 2009, the course was taught using traditional face-to-face, in-class lectures and multiple-choice examinations. During the spring semesters of 2009, 2010, and 2011, the course was taught using synchronous and asynchronous distance delivery technology. Outcomes for these courses (including course grades and performance on the National Board Dental Examination Part I) were compared to those from the 2006, 2007, and 2008 courses. Students participating in the online hybrid course were also given an author-designed survey, and the perceptions of the faculty member who made the transition from teaching the course in a traditional face-to-face format to teaching in an online hybrid format were solicited. Overall, student and faculty perceptions and student outcomes and course reviews have been positive. The results of this study can provide guidance to those seeking to use technology as one method of curricular delivery.

Enlivening Introductory Physics With SETI

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hobson, Art

2001-04-01

The search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI), popular for years in astronomy courses, is also an excellent topic in physics literacy courses. Space travel, relativity, scientific methodology, pseudoscience, and physics-related societal topics can all be taught within the SETI context. Fermi's question (see Kuiper and Brin, Extraterrestrial Civilization, AAPT 1989, p. 67) is especially appropriate. Enrico Fermi, speculating in 1950 on the number of technological civilizations in our galaxy, concluded that we should have been visited long ago and many times over. Thus one might ask, paraphrasing Fermi, "Where is everybody?" Fermi concluded that either interstellar travel is impossible, or is always judged not to be worth the effort, or technological civilization doesn't last long enough for it to happen. Whether one agrees with Fermi or not, the great physicist's third suggestion is a sobering perspective on the sustainability of Earth-based civilization.

Comparing Student Outcomes in Blended and Face-to-Face Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roscoe, Douglas D.

2012-01-01

This article reports on a study of student outcomes in a pair of matched courses, one taught face-to-face and one taught in a blended format, in which students completed most of the work online but met several times face-to-face. Learning objectives, course content, and pedagogical approaches were identical but the mode of instruction was…

Redesigning a Large Enrollment Course: The Impact on Academic Performance, Course Completion and Student Perceptions in Introductory Psychology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hudson, Danae L.; Whisenhunt, Brooke L.; Shoptaugh, Carol F.; Rost, Ann D.; Fondren-Happel, Rachel N.

2014-01-01

Increasing college enrollments, and decreased funding have led institutions and instructors to focus on developing courses that can be taught effectively in a large class format. This article presents the effectiveness of a redesigned, blended format of Introductory Psychology taught in large sections. The goals of the project included improving…

Transformation of a Traditional, Freshman Biology, Three-Semester Sequence, to a Two-Semester, Integrated Thematically Organized, and Team-Taught Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Soto, Julio G.; Everhart, Jerry

2016-01-01

Biology faculty at San José State University developed, piloted, implemented, and assessed a freshmen course sequence based on the macro-to micro-teaching approach that was team-taught, and organized around unifying themes. Content learning assessment drove the conceptual framework of our course sequence. Content student learning increased…

Computer-Assisted Learning in Anatomy at the International Medical School in Debrecen, Hungary: A Preliminary Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kish, Gary; Cook, Samuel A.; Kis, Greta

2013-01-01

The University of Debrecen's Faculty of Medicine has an international, multilingual student population with anatomy courses taught in English to all but Hungarian students. An elective computer-assisted gross anatomy course, the Computer Human Anatomy (CHA), has been taught in English at the Anatomy Department since 2008. This course focuses on an…

To Stream or Not to Stream in a Quantitative Business Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buhagiar, Tarek; Potter, Robert

2010-01-01

This paper investigates whether there is a difference in student learning in a quantitative business course taught through video streaming with the option of going to a face-to-face lecture, compared to the same course taught only through face-to-face lecture. This topic has been the subject of research in recent years because of the importance of…

A Hands-on Exploration of the Retrograde Motion of Mars as Seen from the Earth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pincelli, M. M.; Otranto, S.

2013-01-01

In this paper, we propose a set of activities based on the use of a celestial simulator to gain insights into the retrograde motion of Mars as seen from the Earth. These activities provide a useful link between the heliocentric concepts taught in schools and those tackled in typical introductory physics courses based on classical mechanics for…

"They [The Lecturers] Have to Get through a Certain Amount in an Hour": First Year Students' Problems with Service Mathematics Lectures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Diane; Pampaka, Maria

2016-01-01

Drawing on large-scale survey data and interviews with students during their first year at university, and case studies in their institutions, we explore the problems faced by students taking mathematically demanding courses, e.g. physics and engineering. These students are often taught mathematics as a service subject by lecturers of mathematics.…

Tagging and purifying proteins to teach molecular biology and advanced biochemistry.

PubMed

Roecklein-Canfield, Jennifer A; Lopilato, Jane

2004-11-01

Two distinct courses, "Molecular Biology" taught by the Biology Department and "Advanced Biochemistry" taught by the Chemistry Department, complement each other and, when taught in a coordinated and integrated way, can enhance student learning and understanding of complex material. "Molecular Biology" is a comprehensive lecture-based course with a 3-h laboratory once a week, while "Advanced Biochemistry" is a completely laboratory-based course with lecture fully integrated around independent student projects. Both courses emphasize and utilize cutting-edge technology. Teaching across departmental boundaries allows students access to faculty expertise and techniques rarely used at the undergraduate level, namely the tagging of proteins and their use in protein purification. Copyright © 2004 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Philosophy of Science and Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jung, Walter

2012-08-01

This is a vast and vague topic. In order to do justice to it one has to write a book or maybe more than one. For it can be understood in quite different ways and on different levels For example you may think mainly of the historical aspect, that is how philosophy of science developed in the last hundred or so years and how its influence on education changed; you may think of quite different schools of philosophy, from Marxist or positivist to such exotic but at some places influential philosophic positions like that of Rudolph Steiner; of course, you may limit the subject to special fields like epistemology, theory of scientific methodology, or, what has become fashionable recently, sociology of knowledge which may have a considerable bearing on physics teaching (Collins and Shapin 1983; Jung 1985). Again we may think of the topic treated by a philosopher, a scientist, an educationalist, a teacher, which would mean quite a difference. I am trying here to speak as an educationalist, with the physics teacher in mind: this is my vocational perspective as someone who educates physics teachers. Of course, our main concern is the contribution of science, especially physics, to general education, which integrates many of the special topics mentioned. Philosophy of science comes in because it is not at all clear what science and physics is, and what of it should be taught, and how such chosen parts should be taught. I also take this opportunity to give an idea of the longstanding tradition of this discussion in Germany, connected with names like Wagenshein, Litt, Heisenberg and many others.

Jurisprudence and business management course content taught at accredited chiropractic colleges: A comparative audit.

PubMed

Gleberzon, Brian J

2010-03-01

the purpose of this study was to conduct a comparative audit of the jurisprudence and business management courses offered at a number of different accredited chiropractic colleges. Faculty members responsible for teaching students jurisprudence and/or business management courses at a number of accredited colleges were contacted and asked to electronically submit their course outlines for review. Of the 62 different topics delivered at the 11 chiropractic colleges surveyed, not one topic was taught at all of them. The following topics were taught at 10 of the 11 respondent chiropractic colleges: business plan development; ethics and codes of conduct and; office staff/employees. Several topics were only taught at one accredited chiropractic college. While most chiropractic colleges provide some education in the areas of jurisprudence and business management, it would appear that there is no consensus opinion or 'model curriculum' on these topics towards which chiropractic programs may align themselves. Based on a literature search, this study is the first of its kind. A more extensive study is required, as well as a Delphi process to determine what should be taught to chiropractic students with respect to jurisprudence and business management in order to protect the public interest.

Chronicling a successful secondary implementation of Studio Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kohl, Patrick B.; Vincent Kuo, H.

2012-09-01

The Colorado School of Mines (CSM) has taught its first-semester calculus-based introductory physics course (Physics I) using a hybrid lecture/Studio Physics format since the spring of 1997. Starting in the fall of 2007, we have been converting the second semester of our calculus-based introductory physics course (Physics II) to a hybrid lecture/Studio Physics format, beginning from a traditional lecture/lab/recitation course. In this paper, we document the stages of this transformation, highlighting what has worked and what has not, and the challenges and benefits associated with the switch to Studio Physics. A major goal in this study is to develop a method for secondary implementations of Studio physics that keeps the time and resource investments manageable. We describe the history of Studio at CSM and characterize our progress via several metrics, including pre/post Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM) scores, Colorado Learning About Science Survey scores (CLASS), exam scores, failure rates, and a variety of qualitative observations. Results suggest that Studio has increased student performance and satisfaction despite an aggressive expansion of class sizes in the past few years. Gains have been concentrated mostly in problem-solving skills and exam performance (as opposed to conceptual survey gains), in contrast to what has sometimes been seen in other studies.

Technical Subjects in Secondary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howard, A. E.

2008-01-01

Purpose: This paper aims to examine technical education in various types of secondary schools, and suggests three levels of technical courses to be taught in secondary schools. Design/methodology/approach: The paper discusses the differences between technical schools and colleges, and vocational technical courses taught in "academic"…

Asynchronous Video Streaming vs. Synchronous Videoconferencing for Teaching a Pharmacogenetic Pharmacotherapy Course

PubMed Central

2007-01-01

Objectives To compare students' performance and course evaluations for a pharmacogenetic pharmacotherapy course taught by synchronous videoconferencing method via the Internet and for the same course taught via asynchronous video streaming via the Internet. Methods In spring 2005, a pharmacogenetic therapy course was taught to 73 students located on Amarillo, Lubbock, and Dallas campuses using synchronous videoconferencing, and in spring 2006, to 78 students located on the same 3 campuses using asynchronous video streaming. A course evaluation was administered to each group at the end of the courses. Results Students in the asynchronous setting had final course grades of 89% ± 7% compared to the mean final course grade of 87% ± 7% in the synchronous group (p = 0.05). Regardless of which technology was used, average course grades did not differ significantly among the 3 campus sites. Significantly more of the students in the asynchronous setting agreed (57%) with the statement that they could read the lecture notes and absorb the content on their own without attending the class than students in the synchronous class (23%; chi-square test; p < 0.001). Conclusions Students in both asynchronous and synchronous settings performed well. However, students taught using asynchronous videotaped lectures had lower satisfaction with the method of content delivery, and preferred live interactive sessions or a mix of interactive sessions and asynchronous videos over delivery of content using the synchronous or asynchronous method alone. PMID:17429516

One thousand words: evaluating an interdisciplinary art education program.

PubMed

Klugman, Craig M; Beckmann-Mendez, Diana

2015-04-01

Art Rounds, an innovative interdisciplinary program, began as a pilot project to determine if use of fine arts instructional strategies would be of benefit in health professional education. Specifically, students were exposed to fine art and taught to use visual thinking strategies (VTS). The initial evaluation of the pilot program revealed improved physical observation skills, increased tolerance for ambiguity, and increased interest in communication skills. More recently, the Art Rounds program has been expanded to an interdisciplinary elective course open to both nursing student and medical students at all levels. An evaluation of Art Rounds as a semester- long course was conducted by course faculty and compared to the original pilot program for differences and similarities. Outcomes have demonstrated that the use of visual arts and humanities continues to be highly effective in improving students' physical observation skills and a powerful tool for teaching nursing students how to be skilled clinicians. Copyright 2015, SLACK Incorporated.

Developing a magnetism conceptual survey and assessing gender differences in student understanding of magnetism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jing; Singh, Chandralekha

2012-02-01

We discuss the development of a research-based conceptual multiple-choice survey of magnetism. We also discuss the use of the survey to investigate gender differences in students' difficulties with concepts related to magnetism. We find that while there was no gender difference on the pre-test. However, female students performed significantly worse than male students when the survey was given as a post-test in traditionally taught calculus-based introductory physics courses with similar results in both the regular and honors versions of the course. In the algebra-based courses, the performance of female and male students has no statistical difference on the pre-test or the post-test.

An Exploration Geophysics Course With an Environmental Focus for an Urban Minority Institution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kenyon, P. M.

2004-12-01

A hands-on exploration geophysics field course with an environmental focus has been developed with NSF support for use at the City College of New York in Manhattan. To maximize access for the students, no prerequisites beyond introductory earth science and physics are required. The course is taught for three hours on Saturday mornings. This has resulted in it attracting not only regular City College students, but also earth science teachers studying for alternate certification or Master's degrees. After a brief introduction to the nature of geophysics and to concepts in data processing, the course is taught in four three-week modules, one each on seismology, resistivity surveying, electromagnetic ground conductivity, and magnetic measurements. Each module contains one week of theory, a field experience, computer data analysis, and a final report. Field exercises are planned to emphasize teamwork and include realistic urban applications of the techniques. Student surveys done in conjunction with this course provide insights into the motivations and needs of the mostly minority students taking it. In general, these students come to the course already comfortable with teamwork and with working in the field. The questionnaires indicate that their greatest need is increased knowledge of the methods of geophysics and of the problems that can be attacked using it. Most of the students gave high ratings to the course, citing the fieldwork as the part that they most enjoyed. The results of these surveys will be presented, along with examples of the field exercises used. The computer analysis assignments written for this course will also be available.

Evaluation of the Impact of an Active-Learning Introductory Gemology Studio Course on Community College Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shekoyan, V.; Scal, R.

2014-12-01

A new active learning introductory gemology studio course with a lab component has been created at Queensborough Community College with the support of NSF TUES grant. Various pedagogical techniques that have shown efficacy at 4-year colleges have been implemented and adopted to improve student learning and course retention as well as to stimulate their interest in science and in STEM careers. The course covered broad range of STEM topics central to the gemology curriculum, including concepts from geology, mineralogy, physics and chemistry. Lectures and labs were linked. Students' misconceptions were addressed via guided laboratory activities in a studio-learning environment. The course used peer-based learning and problem solving by creating student groups that discussed observations and measurements. Discussion groups were required to observe, synthesize, and evaluate data for presentations. The goal was to empower student learning and peer-based teaching and to recruit early career, often non-STEM students, to earth science. Students were often prompted to engage in self-reflections on their learning. In this presentation we will present the analysis of the evaluation of the course and its impact on community college students. Some of the evaluation tools we have used are pre- and post- knowledge surveys, science attitude and belief surveys as well as a Geological Interest instrument. Parallel sections of traditionally taught lecture-only courses (taught by the same instructor) were utilized as a control group in the analysis. The pedagogical implications of the analysis on instruction and course design will be discussed as well.

A Comparison of the Development and Delivery of Two Short-Term Study-Abroad Thermal Sciences Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jacobitz, Frank

2014-11-01

Short-term study-abroad engineering courses provide an opportunity to increase the international awareness and global competency of engineering students. Two different approaches have been taken in the past years in the development and delivery of two three-week long thermal sciences courses. A senior-level elective Topics in Fluid Mechanics course was taught twice in Marseille (France) in January 2010 and 2013. A sophomore-level Introduction to Thermal Sciences course was offered in London (United Kingdom) in July 2014. Both courses were developed due to a strong student desire for engineering study-abroad courses and an effort by the home institution to internationalize its curriculum. The common goals of the two courses are an effective teaching of their respective technical content combined with a meaningful international experience. The two courses differed in their respective settings: Topics in Fluid Mechanics was taught at Aix-Marseille University and included strong interactions with local faculty and students. Introduction to Thermal Sciences, however, was taught in a cluster of seven courses offered by the home institution in London. The courses were assessed using surveys, student reflection papers, course evaluations, and instructor observations.

Evaluation of Parallel Authentic Research-Based Courses in Human Biology on Student Experiences at Stanford University and the University of Gothenburg

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindh, Jacob; Annerstedt, Claes; Besier, Thor; Matheson, Gordon O.; Rydmark, Martin

2016-01-01

Under a previous grant (2005-08), researchers and teachers at Stanford University (SU) and the University of Gothenburg (GU) co-designed a ten-week interdisciplinary, research-based laboratory course in human biology to be taught online to undergraduate students. Essentials in the subject were taught during the first four weeks of this course.…

Effects of In-Class Hands-On Laboratories in a Large Enrollment, Multiple Section Blended Linear Circuits Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferri, Bonni H.; Ferri, Aldo A.; Majerich, David M.; Madden, Amanda G.

2016-01-01

This paper examines the effects of hands-on learning in an undergraduate circuits class that is taught to non-majors; i.e., students outside of electrical and computing engineering. The course, ECE3710, is taught in a blended format facilitated by the video lectures prepared for two Massive Open Online Courses developed for the Coursera Platform.…

Large-scale Assessment Yields Evidence of Minimal Use of Reasoning Skills in Traditionally Taught Classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thacker, Beth

2017-01-01

Large-scale assessment data from Texas Tech University yielded evidence that most students taught traditionally in large lecture classes with online homework and predominantly multiple choice question exams, when asked to answer free-response (FR) questions, did not support their answers with logical arguments grounded in physics concepts. In addition to a lack of conceptual understanding, incorrect and partially correct answers lacked evidence of the ability to apply even lower level reasoning skills in order to solve a problem. Correct answers, however, did show evidence of at least lower level thinking skills as coded using a rubric based on Bloom's taxonomy. With the introduction of evidence-based instruction into the labs and recitations of the large courses and in a small, completely laboratory-based, hands-on course, the percentage of correct answers with correct explanations increased. The FR format, unlike other assessment formats, allowed assessment of both conceptual understanding and the application of thinking skills, clearly pointing out weaknesses not revealed by other assessment instruments, and providing data on skills beyond conceptual understanding for course and program assessment. Supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH) Challenge grant #1RC1GM090897-01.

Geography, Resources, and Environment of Latin America: An Undergraduate Science Course focused on Attracting Hispanic students to Science and on Educating Non-Hispanics about Latin America.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pujana, I.; Stern, R. J.; Ledbetter, C. E.

2004-12-01

With NSF-CCLI funding, we have developed, taught, and evaluated a new lower-division science course for non-majors, entitled "Geography, Resources, and Environment of Hispanic America" (GRELA). This is an adaptation of a similar course, "Geology and Development of Modern Africa" developed by Barbara Tewksbury (Hamilton College), to attract African American students to science by highlighting cultural ties with their ancestral lands. We think that a similar approach focusing on Latin America may attract Hispanic undergraduates, at the same time that it increases awareness among non-Hispanic students about challenges facing our neighbors to the south. GRELA is an interdisciplinary exploration of how the physical and biological environment of Mexico, Central America, and South America have influenced the people who live there. The course consists of 20 lectures and requires the student to present a report partnering with correspondents in Latin American universities. GRELA begins with an overview of Latin American physical and cultural geography and geologic evolution followed by a series of modules that relate the natural resources and environment of Latin America to the history, economy, and culture of the region. This is followed by an exploration of pre-Columbian cultures. The use of metals by pre-Columbian, colonial, and modern cultures is presented next. We then discuss hydrocarbon resources, geothermal energy, and natural hazards of volcanoes and earthquakes. The last half of the course focuses on Earth System Science themes, including El Nino, glaciers, the Amazon river and rainforest, and coral reefs. The final presentation concerns population growth and water resources along the US-Mexico border. Grades are based on two midterms, one final, and a project which requires that groups of students communicate with scientists in Latin America to explore some aspect of geography, natural resources, or the environment of a Latin American region of common interest. The course was taught in 2003 to 8 students and is being taught this Fall to 10. Lecture materials are distributed to the class as a series of PowerPoint presentations. Assessment of the course has been favorable, but the lack of a suitable text is a problem. Development of a GRELA textbook, perhaps in Spanish as well as in English, is essential for broad dissemination of a course like this, which is designed to introduce modern scientific observations to an undergraduate audience that is often not comfortable with science. We believe that the general approach and topics covered have great potential to stimulate the scientific interest of Hispanic undergraduates and that developing a GRELA text is essential for widespread adoption of this course.

A Source Book for Teaching Chemical Oceanography.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loder, Theodore C.; Glibert, Patricia M.

Chemical oceanography or marine chemistry are taught in many colleges and universities. This publication provides sources for instructors of such courses. The first section of this report is a detailed composite outline of a course in chemical oceanography. It includes fundamental topics taught in many chemical oceanography classes. The outline…

A Research-Based Development Economics Course for Undergraduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Singh, Prakarsh; Guo, Hongye; Morales, Alvaro

2015-01-01

The authors present details of a research-based course in development economics taught at a private liberal arts college. There were three key elements in this class: teaching of applied econometrics, group presentations reviewing published and working papers in development economics, and using concepts taught in class to write an original…

Teaching Writing in Sociology: A Social Constructionist Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Leon; Holt, Mara

1990-01-01

Provides an overview of the "social constructionist" approach to teaching composition in sociology courses. Describes a course that is team taught by the authors and is based on the social constructionist paradigm. Stresses that sociological writing is a special type of discourse that can be taught most effectively by sociologists who…

Does Video-Autotutorial Instruction Improve College Student Achievement?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, K. M.; And Others

1977-01-01

Compares student achievement in an upper-division college introductory course taught by the video-autotutorial method with that in two comparable courses taught by the lecture-discussion method. Pre-post tests of 623 students reveal that video-autotutorial students outperform lecture/discussion participants at all ability levels and that in…

Using a Research-based Approach to Transform Upper-division Courses in Classical and Quantum Mechanics and E&M

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pollock, Steven

2013-04-01

At most universities, including the University of Colorado, upper-division physics courses are taught using a traditional lecture approach that does not make use of many of the instructional techniques that have been found to improve student learning at the introductory level. We are transforming several upper-division courses using principles of active engagement and learning theory, guided by the results of observations, interviews, and analysis of student work at CU and elsewhere. In this talk I outline these transformations, including the development of faculty consensus learning goals, clicker questions, tutorials, modified homeworks, and more. We present evidence of the effectiveness of these transformations relative to traditional courses, based on student grades, interviews, and through research-based assessments of student conceptual mastery and student attitudes. Our results suggest that many of the tools that have been effective in introductory courses are effective for our majors, and that further research is warranted in the upper-division environment. (See www.colorado.edu/sei/departments/physics.htm for materials)

Dissociative conceptual and quantitative problem solving outcomes across interactive engagement and traditional format introductory physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McDaniel, Mark A.; Stoen, Siera M.; Frey, Regina F.; Markow, Zachary E.; Hynes, K. Mairin; Zhao, Jiuqing; Cahill, Michael J.

2016-12-01

The existing literature indicates that interactive-engagement (IE) based general physics classes improve conceptual learning relative to more traditional lecture-oriented classrooms. Very little research, however, has examined quantitative problem-solving outcomes from IE based relative to traditional lecture-based physics classes. The present study included both pre- and post-course conceptual-learning assessments and a new quantitative physics problem-solving assessment that included three representative conservation of energy problems from a first-semester calculus-based college physics course. Scores for problem translation, plan coherence, solution execution, and evaluation of solution plausibility were extracted for each problem. Over 450 students in three IE-based sections and two traditional lecture sections taught at the same university during the same semester participated. As expected, the IE-based course produced more robust gains on a Force Concept Inventory than did the lecture course. By contrast, when the full sample was considered, gains in quantitative problem solving were significantly greater for lecture than IE-based physics; when students were matched on pre-test scores, there was still no advantage for IE-based physics on gains in quantitative problem solving. Further, the association between performance on the concept inventory and quantitative problem solving was minimal. These results highlight that improved conceptual understanding does not necessarily support improved quantitative physics problem solving, and that the instructional method appears to have less bearing on gains in quantitative problem solving than does the kinds of problems emphasized in the courses and homework and the overlap of these problems to those on the assessment.

Optimizing Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences: Placing Physics in Biological Context

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crouch, Catherine

2014-03-01

Physics is a critical foundation for today's life sciences and medicine. However, the physics content and ways of thinking identified by life scientists as most important for their fields are often not taught, or underemphasized, in traditional introductory physics courses. Furthermore, such courses rarely give students practice using physics to understand living systems in a substantial way. Consequently, students are unlikely to recognize the value of physics to their chosen fields, or to develop facility in applying physics to biological systems. At Swarthmore, as at several other institutions engaged in reforming this course, we have reorganized the introductory course for life science students around touchstone biological examples, in which fundamental physics contributes significantly to understanding biological phenomena or research techniques, in order to make explicit the value of physics to the life sciences. We have also focused on the physics topics and approaches most relevant to biology while seeking to develop rigorous qualitative reasoning and quantitative problem solving skills, using established pedagogical best practices. Each unit is motivated by and culminates with students analyzing one or more touchstone examples. For example, in the second semester we emphasize electric potential and potential difference more than electric field, and start from students' typically superficial understanding of the cell membrane potential and of electrical interactions in biochemistry to help them develop a more sophisticated understanding of electric forces, field, and potential, including in the salt water environment of life. Other second semester touchstones include optics of vision and microscopes, circuit models for neural signaling, and magnetotactic bacteria. When possible, we have adapted existing research-based curricular materials to support these examples. This talk will describe the design and development process for this course, give examples of materials, and present initial assessment data evaluating both content learning and student attitudes.

The effect of the flipped model on achievement in an introductory college physics course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winter, Joshua Brian

The flipped or inverted classroom model is one in which the time and place for traditional lecture and homework are reversed. Traditional lecture is replaced by online videos assigned as homework. This frees up time in class to be spent with more student centered activities such as discussion based concept questions and group problem solving. While growing in popularity, research on the effectiveness of this format is sparse. In this quasi-experimental study, two sections of an introductory algebra-based college physics course were examined over a five week period. Each section was taught with either the traditional or flipped model and physics knowledge achieved was compared using independent samples t-tests on both the instructor's unit exam and the Mechanics Baseline Test pre/posttest normalized gain. Results indicated that there was no statistically significant difference between the flipped model and the traditional lecture format. Avenues for further research are discussed.

Hydrology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brutsaert, Wilfried

2005-08-01

Water in its different forms has always been a source of wonder, curiosity and practical concern for humans everywhere. Hydrology - An Introduction presents a coherent introduction to the fundamental principles of hydrology, based on the course that Wilfried Brutsaert has taught at Cornell University for the last thirty years. Hydrologic phenomena are dealt with at spatial and temporal scales at which they occur in nature. The physics and mathematics necessary to describe these phenomena are introduced and developed, and readers will require a working knowledge of calculus and basic fluid mechanics. The book will be invaluable as a textbook for entry-level courses in hydrology directed at advanced seniors and graduate students in physical science and engineering. In addition, the book will be more broadly of interest to professional scientists and engineers in hydrology, environmental science, meteorology, agronomy, geology, climatology, oceanology, glaciology and other earth sciences. Emphasis on fundamentals Clarification of the underlying physical processes Applications of fluid mechanics in the natural environment

Benefits and Limitations of Online Instruction in Natural Science Undergraduate Liberal Arts Courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liddicoat, Joseph; Roberts, Godfrey; Liddicoat, Kendra; Porzecanski, Ana Luz; Mendez, Martin; McMullen, David

2013-04-01

Online courses in the Natural Sciences are taught three ways at New York University to undergraduate students majoring in the liberal arts and professional programs - synchronous courses in which students communicate online with the instructor and classmates in real time, asynchronous courses when faculty present course material for students to access and learn at their leisure, and hybrid or blended courses when part is taught asynchronously and part is taught face-to-face in a classroom with all students present. We have done online courses each way - Global Ecology (synchronous); Stars, Planets, and Life (synchronous and asynchronous); Darwin to DNA: An Overview of Evolution (asynchronous); Biodiversity Conservation (asynchronous); and Biology of Hunger and Population (blended). We will present the advantages and challenges we experienced teaching courses online in this fashion. Besides the advantages listed in the description for this session, another can be programmed learning that allows a set of sequential steps or a more complex branching of steps that allows students to repeat lessons multiple times to master the material. And from an academic standpoint, course content and assessment can be standardized, making it possible for each student to learn the same material. Challenges include resistance to online learning by a host of stakeholders who might be educators, students, parents, and the community. Equally challenging might be the readiness of instructors and students to teach and learn online. Student integrity issues such as plagiarism and cheating are a concern in a course taught online (Thormann and Zimmerman, 2012), so we will discuss our strategies to mitigate them.

Jurisprudence and business management course content taught at accredited chiropractic colleges: A comparative audit

PubMed Central

Gleberzon, Brian J.

2010-01-01

Introduction: the purpose of this study was to conduct a comparative audit of the jurisprudence and business management courses offered at a number of different accredited chiropractic colleges. Methods: Faculty members responsible for teaching students jurisprudence and/or business management courses at a number of accredited colleges were contacted and asked to electronically submit their course outlines for review. Results: Of the 62 different topics delivered at the 11 chiropractic colleges surveyed, not one topic was taught at all of them. The following topics were taught at 10 of the 11 respondent chiropractic colleges: business plan development; ethics and codes of conduct and; office staff/employees. Several topics were only taught at one accredited chiropractic college. Conclusion: While most chiropractic colleges provide some education in the areas of jurisprudence and business management, it would appear that there is no consensus opinion or ‘model curriculum’ on these topics towards which chiropractic programs may align themselves. Based on a literature search, this study is the first of its kind. A more extensive study is required, as well as a Delphi process to determine what should be taught to chiropractic students with respect to jurisprudence and business management in order to protect the public interest. PMID:20195426

The FAMULATUR PLUS as an innovative approach for teaching physical examination skills.

PubMed

Jerg, Achim; Öchsner, Wolfgang; Wander, Henriette; Traue, Harald C; Jerg-Bretzke, Lucia

2016-01-01

The FAMULATUR PLUS is an innovative approach to teaching physical examination skills. The concept is aimed at medical students during the clinical part of their studies and includes a clinical traineeship (English for "Famulatur") extended to include various courses ("PLUS"). The courses are divided into clinical examination courses and problembased-learning (PBL) seminars. The concept's special feature is the full integration of these courses into a 30-day hospital traineeship. The aim is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge from the courses into daily practice. Each week of the FAMULATUR PLUS is structured in line with the courses and focuses on a particular part of the body (e.g., abdomen). A physical examination course under the supervision of a physician is offered at the beginning of the week. Here, medical students learn the relevant examination techniques by practicing on each other (partner exercises). Subsequently, the techniques taught are applied independently during everyday work on the ward, corrected by the supervisor, if necessary, and thereby reinforced. The final POL seminar takes place towards the end of the week. Possible differential diagnoses are developed based on a clinical case study. The goal is to check these by taking a fictitious medical history and performing a physical examination, as well as to make a preliminary diagnosis. Finally, during the PBL seminar, medical students will be shown how physical examination techniques can be efficiently applied in the diagnosis of common cardinal symptoms (e.g., abdominal pain). The initial implementation of the FAMULATUR PLUS proved the practical feasibility of the concept. In addition, the accompanying evaluation showed that the participants of the pilot project improved with regard to their practical physical examination skills.

The FAMULATUR PLUS as an innovative approach for teaching physical examination skills

PubMed Central

Jerg, Achim; Öchsner, Wolfgang; Wander, Henriette; Traue, Harald C.; Jerg-Bretzke, Lucia

2016-01-01

The FAMULATUR PLUS is an innovative approach to teaching physical examination skills. The concept is aimed at medical students during the clinical part of their studies and includes a clinical traineeship (English for “Famulatur”) extended to include various courses (“PLUS”). The courses are divided into clinical examination courses and problembased-learning (PBL) seminars. The concept’s special feature is the full integration of these courses into a 30-day hospital traineeship. The aim is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge from the courses into daily practice. Each week of the FAMULATUR PLUS is structured in line with the courses and focuses on a particular part of the body (e.g., abdomen). A physical examination course under the supervision of a physician is offered at the beginning of the week. Here, medical students learn the relevant examination techniques by practicing on each other (partner exercises). Subsequently, the techniques taught are applied independently during everyday work on the ward, corrected by the supervisor, if necessary, and thereby reinforced. The final POL seminar takes place towards the end of the week. Possible differential diagnoses are developed based on a clinical case study. The goal is to check these by taking a fictitious medical history and performing a physical examination, as well as to make a preliminary diagnosis. Finally, during the PBL seminar, medical students will be shown how physical examination techniques can be efficiently applied in the diagnosis of common cardinal symptoms (e.g., abdominal pain). The initial implementation of the FAMULATUR PLUS proved the practical feasibility of the concept. In addition, the accompanying evaluation showed that the participants of the pilot project improved with regard to their practical physical examination skills. PMID:26958652

Great teachers of Gaspare Tagliacozzi (1546-1599).

PubMed

Gurunluoglu, Raffi; Gurunluoglu, Aslin; Arton, Jamie

2017-08-01

Gaspare Tagliacozzi successfully practised the art of plastic surgery in the sixteenth century and conducted a long series of precise observations on the basis of which he formulated detailed principles for rhinoplastic. He wrote the first complete description of nasal reconstruction using skin from the arm. Tagliacozzi's teachers at the University of Bologna during his student days remain largely unfamiliar, Giulio Cesare Aranzio, Ulisse Aldrovandi and Girolamo Cardano. Aldrovandi taught the 'ordinary', that is the principal course in natural philosophy. Aranzio taught the chief course in surgery and anatomy. Cardano taught a course in the theory of medicine. Their activity contributed to the slow move from Galenic teaching in medicine and the static acceptance of tradition in all science.

Comparison of traditional six-year and new four-year dental curricula in South Korea.

PubMed

Komabayashi, Takashi; Ahn, Chul; Kim, Kang-Ju; Oh, Hyo-Won

2012-01-01

This study aimed to compare the dental curriculum of the traditional six-year system with that of the new four-year (graduate-entry) system in South Korea. There are 11 dental schools in South Korea: six are public and five are private. Eight offer the new four-year program and the other three offer the traditional six-year program. Descriptive analyses were conducted using bibliographic data and local information along with statistical analyses such as chi-square tests. In the six-year programs, clinical dentistry subjects were taught almost equally in practical and didactic courses, while the basic science courses were taught more often as practical courses (P < 0.0001). In the four-year programs, both the basic science and clinical dentistry subjects were taught didactically more often; while more dentistry subjects were taught than basic sciences (P = 0.004). The four-year program model in South Korea is more focused on dentistry than on basic science, while both basic and clinical dentistry subjects were equally taught in the six-year program.

Anharmonic effects in simple physical models: introducing undergraduates to nonlinearity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Christian, J. M.

2017-09-01

Given the pervasive character of nonlinearity throughout the physical universe, a case is made for introducing undergraduate students to its consequences and signatures earlier rather than later. The dynamics of two well-known systems—a spring and a pendulum—are reviewed when the standard textbook linearising assumptions are relaxed. Some qualitative effects of nonlinearity can be anticipated from symmetry (e.g., inspection of potential energy functions), and further physical insight gained by applying a simple successive-approximation method that might be taught in parallel with courses on classical mechanics, ordinary differential equations, and computational physics. We conclude with a survey of how these ideas have been deployed on programmes at a UK university.

Molecular Modeling as a Self-Taught Component of a Conventional Undergraduate Chemical Reaction Engineering Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rothe, Erhard W.; Zygmunt, William E.

2016-01-01

We inserted a self-taught molecular modeling project into an otherwise conventional undergraduate chemical-reaction-engineering course. Our objectives were that students should (a) learn with minimal instructor intervention, (b) gain an appreciation for the relationship between molecular structure and, first, macroscopic state functions in…

Two Key Strategies for Teaching Prevention: Specialized Course and Infusion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conyne, Robert K.; Newmeyer, Mark D.; Kenny, Maureen; Romano, John L.; Matthews, Constance R.

2008-01-01

Prevention is taught only rarely in counseling and counseling psychology curricula. Failure to teach it suggests that graduates may be less likely to conduct prevention. In this article, we describe two key strategies for addressing this problem, where prevention is being taught through (a) required courses, and (b) infusion within existing…

Should a First Course in ANOVA Be Taught Through MLR?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, John D.

Before implementing a course in the analysis of variance (ANOVA) taught through multiple linear regression, several concerns must be addressed. Adequate computer facilities that are available to students on a low-cost or cost-free basis are necessary; also students must be able to meaningfully communicate with their major advisor regarding their…

Faculty Perceptions of Moving a Face-to-Face Course to Online Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chiasson, Kari; Terras, Katherine; Smart, Kathy

2015-01-01

This qualitative study explores the experiences of 10 faculty members who developed and taught an online course that they had previously taught in a face-to-face classroom. The categories from the data analysis included planning, implementation, and reflection. Within the categories, eight themes emerged from the data. The themes addressed…

Professional Education in Expert Search: A Content Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Catherine L.; Roseberry, Martha I.

2013-01-01

This paper presents a descriptive model of the subject matter taught in courses on expert search in ALA-accredited programs, answering the question: What is taught in formal professional education on search expertise? The model emerged from a grounded content analysis of 44 course descriptions and 16 syllabi, and was validated via a review of…

Reflections on an Interdisciplinary, Community-Based, Team-Taught Adventure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fauvel, Anne Marie; Miller, Lisa K.; Lane, Paul; Farris, John

2010-01-01

A new team-taught course focused on interdisciplinary teaching and integrative learning was offered at Grand Valley State University during the Summer of 2008 at a regional campus in Holland, Michigan. Faculty from Engineering and Business developed this community-based, alternative-format course to engage students in the question: "What will…

The Professors behind the MOOC Hype

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kolowich, Steve

2013-01-01

The largest-ever survey of professors who have taught MOOCs, or massive open online courses, shows that the process is time-consuming, but, according to the instructors, often successful. Nearly half of the professors felt their online courses were as rigorous academically as the versions they taught in the classroom. The survey, conducted by "The…

Implementation and Outcomes of Inquiry-Based Learning in Mathematics Content Courses for Pre-Service Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Laursen, Sandra L.; Hassi, Marja-Liisa; Hough, Sarah

2016-01-01

This mixed-methods study describes classroom characteristics and student outcomes from university mathematics courses that are based in mathematics departments, targeted to future pre-tertiary teachers, and taught with inquiry-based learning (IBL) approaches. The study focused on three two-term sequences taught at two research universities,…

Undergraduate Skills Laboratories at Sonoma State University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gill, Amandeep; Zack, K.; Mills, H.; Cunningham, B.; Jackowski, S.

2014-01-01

Due to the current economic climate, funding sources for many laboratory courses have been cut from university budgets. However, it is still necessary for undergraduates to master laboratory skills to be prepared and competitive applicants when entering the professional world and/or graduate school. In this context, student-led programs may be able to compensate for this lack of formal instruction and reinforce concepts from lecture by applying research techniques to develop hands-on comprehension. The Sonoma State University Chapter of Society of Physics Students has established a peer-led skills lab to teach research techniques in the fields of astronomy and physics. The goal is to alleviate the pressures of both independently learning and efficiently applying techniques to junior and senior-level research projects. These skill labs are especially valuable for nontraditional students who, due to work or family duties, may not get a chance to fully commit to research projects. For example, a topic such as Arduino programming has a multitude of applications in both astronomy and physics, but is not taught in traditional university courses. Although some programming and electronics skills are taught in (separate) classes, they are usually not applied to actual research projects, which combined expertise is needed. For example, in astronomy, there are many situations involving programming telescopes and taking data with electronic cameras. Often students will carry out research using these tools but when something goes wrong, the students will not have the skills to trouble shoot and fix the system. Another astronomical topic to be taught in the skills labs is the analysis of astronomical data, including running remote telescopes, analyzing photometric variability, and understanding the concepts of star magnitudes, flat fields, and biases. These workshops provide a setting in which the student teacher may strengthen his or her understanding of the topic by presenting it to peers. Students teaching fellow peers is an ideal method of furthering understanding for all participants, and the skills lab established by the SPS has begun this process at SSU.

A Framework for Measuring Student Learning Gains and Engagement in an Introductory Computing Course: A Preliminary Report of Findings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lim, Billy; Hosack, Bryan; Vogt, Paul

2012-01-01

This paper describes a framework for measuring student learning gains and engagement in a Computer Science 1 (CS 1) / Information Systems 1 (IS 1) course. The framework is designed for a CS1/IS1 course as it has been traditionally taught over the years as well as when it is taught using a new pedagogical approach with Web services. It enables the…

Academic performance in a pharmacotherapeutics course sequence taught synchronously on two campuses using distance education technology.

PubMed

Steinberg, Michael; Morin, Anna K

2011-10-10

To compare the academic performance of campus-based students in a pharmacotherapeutics course with that of students at a distant campus taught via synchronous teleconferencing. Examination scores and final course grades for campus-based and distant students completing the case-based pharmacotherapeutics course sequence over a 5-year period were collected and analyzed. The mean examination scores and final course grades were not significantly different between students on the 2 campuses. The use of synchronous distance education technology to teach students does not affect students' academic performance when used in an active-learning, case-based pharmacotherapeutics course.

How do educators in one New Zealand undergraduate Bachelor of Oral Health course teach and nurture professionalism?

PubMed

Smith, L; Adam, L; Moffat, S; Meldrum, A; Ahmadi, R

2018-05-01

Research on integrated dental hygiene and dental therapy courses is scarce; studies reporting on how staff in these combined scope courses teach professionalism are even more scarce. This study aimed to partially fill these research gaps. In 2016, online surveys were sent to 34 staff members who taught into the integrated Bachelor of Oral Health (BOH) course at the University of Otago's Faculty of Dentistry; 13 were returned. Two focus groups were conducted with six BOH educators. Aspects of professionalism were taught and nurtured in the formal curriculum, the clinic and the informal curriculum. In the formal curriculum, policies outlining the professional standards of behaviour expected of oral health practitioners and students in New Zealand and the Faculty were discussed. In the clinic, educators taught professionalism through modelling clinical skills, assessing students' performance and commenting on their reflective logbooks. In the informal curriculum, BOH teachers nurtured professionalism through discussions about standards of behaviour outside of the university. Role modelling was the most common method that participants reported they taught or nurtured professionalism in their students. Professionalism is a complex concept that is taught and nurtured in a number of ways over all aspects of the course. Oral Health educators need to maintain a high standard of professionalism when interacting with students and patients, as well as in public spaces, in order to model professionalism to their students. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Interprofessional teaching project with nursing and physical therapy students to promote caregiver and patient safety.

PubMed

von der Lancken, Shelley; Levenhagen, Kim

2014-12-01

Nurse educators must adjust curricula to meet the dynamic and critical changes in the health care environment, and to recognize the risk of injury our educational approach has on safety, team effectiveness, and culture change. Interprofessional collaboration and simulation are key components in the preparation of our students. Utilizing the interprofessional alliance model, an experience to promote collaborative relationships among nursing and physical therapy (PT) students to improve patient and caregiver safety was developed. Through this model, PT students taught safe patient-handling skills in a simulated setting to undergraduate nursing students. The majority of nursing students (N=351) from 2009–2014 strongly agreed or agreed that they were confident in the skills taught by the PT students and provided an overall course rating of outstanding or above average. This educational model, which includes simulation and safe patient handling, was a valuable addition to the curriculum, reinforcing the significance of developing collaborative relationships. Copyright 2014, SLACK Incorporated.

A Preliminary Study of the Effectiveness of Different Recitation Teaching Methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Endorf, Robert J.; Koenig, Kathleen M.; Braun, Gregory A.

2006-02-01

We present preliminary results from a comparative study of student understanding for students who attended recitation classes which used different teaching methods. Student volunteers from our introductory calculus-based physics course attended a special recitation class that was taught using one of four different teaching methods. A total of 272 students were divided into approximately equal groups for each method. Students in each class were taught the same topic, "Changes in energy and momentum," from Tutorials in Introductory Physics. The different teaching methods varied in the amount of student and teacher engagement. Student understanding was evaluated through pretests and posttests given at the recitation class. Our results demonstrate the importance of the instructor's role in teaching recitation classes. The most effective teaching method was for students working in cooperative learning groups with the instructors questioning the groups using Socratic dialogue. These results provide guidance and evidence for the teaching methods which should be emphasized in training future teachers and faculty members.

Operational Space Weather in USAF Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smithtro, C.; Quigley, S.

2006-12-01

Most education programs offering space weather courses are understandably and traditionally heavily weighted with theoretical space physics that is the basis for most of what is researched and modeled. While understanding the theory is a good and necessary grounding for anyone working the field of space weather, few military or commercial jobs employ such theory in real-time operations. The operations sites/centers are much more geared toward use of applied theory-resultant models, tools and products. To ensure its operations centers personnel, commanders, real-time system operators and other customers affected by the space environment are educated on available and soon-to-be operational space weather models and products, the USAF has developed applicable course/lecture material taught at various institutions to include the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) and the Joint Weather Training Complex (335th/TRS/OUA). Less frequent training of operational space weather is available via other venues that will be discussed, and associated course material is also being developed for potential use at the National Security Space Institute (NSSI). This presentation provides an overview of the programs, locations, courses and material developed and/or taught by or for USAF personnel dealing with operational space weather. It also provides general information on student research project results that may be used in operational support, along with observations regarding logistical and professional benefits of teaching such non-theoretical/non-traditional material.

Combining Chemical Information Literacy, Communication Skills, Career Preparation, Ethics, and Peer Review in a Team-Taught Chemistry Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Mary Lou Baker; Seybold, Paul G.

2016-01-01

The widely acknowledged need to include chemical information competencies and communication skills in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum can be accommodated in a variety of ways. We describe a team-taught, semester-length course at Wright State University which combines chemical information literacy, written and oral communication skills,…

Using a Simple Sports Analogy to Help Students Cope with Negotiability, Liability, and Holders in Due Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boggs, Glenn

2004-01-01

Those who have taught commercial paper, sometimes referred to as negotiable instruments, to undergraduate business students know all too well that complexity abounds: "Holders in due course!" "Liability of the parties!" Those who have taught in this area also know the fear students experience as these topics are introduced and…

The Influence of Learning Styles on Student Perception and Satisfaction in a Highly Collaborative Team Taught Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sullivan, Daniel; Colburn, Michael; Fox, Daniel E.

2013-01-01

Team teaching an undergraduate business capstone course has the potential of providing students with an enhanced learning experience in a number of ways. This study examines the relationship between faculty and student learning styles and their impact on student perception and satisfaction in a highly collaborative team taught undergraduate…

Enhancing Professional Self-Efficacy: Factors Contributing to Successful Implementation of Articulated Workplace Intentions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kile, Kimberly S.

2012-01-01

Competency-based education programs foster participants' abilities to perform or implement a skill taught within the curriculum. A competency-based course enhances a participant's professional self-efficacy by imparting in them the confidence to successfully implement one or more of the skills taught within the course. The Career…

Flipping the Math Classroom for Non-Math Majors to Enrich Their Learning Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heuett, William J.

2017-01-01

Students' learning experiences in an introductory statistics course for non-math majors are compared between two different instructional approaches under controlled conditions. Two sections of the course (n = 52) are taught using a flipped classroom approach and one section (n = 30) is taught using a traditional lecture approach. All sections are…

The Disposable Blog: Using the Weblog to Facilitate Classroom Learning and Communications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pimpare, Stephen; Fast, Jonathan

2008-01-01

This article describes two case studies: one is from a graduate course in social work practice evaluation taught by the second author; the other is from an undergraduate political science course in media and politics taught by the first author. These cases describe the way blogs, created by students and the professors, facilitate communications…

Theories of Matter, Space and Time, Volume 2; Quantum theories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Evans, N.; King, S. F.

2018-06-01

This book and its prequel Theories of Matter Space and Time: Classical Theories grew out of courses that we have both taught as part of the undergraduate degree program in Physics at Southampton University, UK. Our goal was to guide the full MPhys undergraduate cohort through some of the trickier areas of theoretical physics that we expect our undergraduates to master. Here we teach the student to understand first quantized relativistic quantum theories. We first quickly review the basics of quantum mechanics which should be familiar to the reader from a prior course. Then we will link the Schrödinger equation to the principle of least action introducing Feynman's path integral methods. Next, we present the relativistic wave equations of Klein, Gordon and Dirac. Finally, we convert Maxwell's equations of electromagnetism to a wave equation for photons and make contact with quantum electrodynamics (QED) at a first quantized level. Between the two volumes we hope to move a student's understanding from their prior courses to a place where they are ready, beyond, to embark on graduate level courses on quantum field theory.

Teaching Astronomy using a Flipped Classroom Model of Instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wenger, Matthew; Impey, Chris D.; Rivera Chavez, Wendy

2014-11-01

Astronomy: State of the Art is a MOOC specifically developed to study student participation in an online learning environment. The project aims to serve multiple audiences of learners. For this project we focused on college students who use the online environment for lectures and quizzes but whose classroom time is devoted to hands-on activities and group work; this is the “flipped classroom” model.In spring 2014, Astronomy: State of the Art was co-convened with “The Physical Universe,” a Natural Sciences course taught at the University of Arizona that satisfies a General Education requirement for non-science majors. Using the same core material as Astronomy - State of the Art (with additional modules on the physics of radiation, atomic structure, energy, and gravity that are not necessary for the informal learners), the local course employed a “flipped” model where the students access lectures and podcasts online but are in a face-to-face classroom two times a week for labs and hands-on activities, lecture tutorials, group discussions, and other research-validated tools for enhancing learning. A flipped or hybrid model gives students flexibility, uses the online medium for the aspects of instruction where interaction with an instructor isn’t required, and optimizes the scarce resource of time in a large classroom.Final student grades were closely related to their attendance, however, performance in this class was not correlated with completion of the online video lectures, even though the quizzes were closely tied to the content of these videos. The course will next be taught using Coursera which allow instructors to more closely examine the relationship between students use of course materials and understanding of course topics. The eventual goal is to recruit undergraduates from anywhere in the United States and award them transferrable credit for completing the class.

Evaluation of a Map Interpretation and Terrain Analysis Course for Nap-of-the-Earth Navigation. Research Report 1198.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holman, Garvin L.

This report documents the training effectiveness of a map interpretation and terrain analysis course (MITAC) developed to enhance the ability of helicopter pilots to navigate accurately during low altitude terrain following flight. A study comparing student aviators taught by the MITAC technique with a control group of students taught by…

Curriculum Guide for Consumer Education. Part One. Grade 11 or 12.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chicago Board of Education, IL.

Consumer education may be included in the curriculum in four ways: (1) as a separate course; (2) taught jointly by a home economics teacher and a business education teacher; (3) taught by teams of teachers in home economics, business education, and social studies; and (4) by including consumer education subject matter in a course in business, home…

An Analysis of the e-Business Program in the School of Business Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarkar, Shyamalendu; Reddy, Surender

2007-01-01

The article analyzes various present and future aspects of e-business as it is or should be incorporated in the school of business curriculum. The study uses both primary and secondary data. The results indicate that e-business courses are currently taught across the traditional disciplines of business schools. The courses are primarily taught as…

How Effective Is Our Teaching?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wyckoff, S.

2002-05-01

More than 90% of U.S. university introductory physics courses are taught using lecture methods in spite of the large amount of research indicating that interactive teaching is considerably more effective. A brief overview of physics education research will be given, together with relevant connections with astronomy education research. Large enrollment classrooms have in the past presented obstacles to converting from lecture to interactive teaching. However, classroom communication systems (CCS) now provide a cost-effective way to convert any science classroom into an interactive learning environment. A pretest-posttest study using control groups of ten large enrollment introductory physics courses will be described. A new instrument, the Physics Concept Survey (PCS), developed to measure student understanding of basic concepts will be described, together with a classroom observation instrument, the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP), for measuring the extent that interactive teaching is used in a science classroom. We find that student conceptual understanding was enhanced by a factor of three in the interactive classrooms compared with the traditional lecture (control) courses. Moreover, a correlation between the PCS normalized gains and the RTOP scores is indicative that the interaction in the classrooms is the cause of the students' improved learning of basic physics concepts. This research was funded by the NSF (DUE 9453610).

Probing students’ conceptions at the classical-quantum interface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chhabra, Mahima; Das, Ritwick

2018-03-01

Quantum mechanics (QM) is one of the core subject areas in the undergraduate physics curriculum and many of the advanced level physics courses involve direct or indirect application of the concepts and ideas taught in QM. On the other hand, proper understanding of QM interpretations requires an optimum level of understanding of fundamental concepts in classical physics such as energy, momentum, force and their role in determining motion of the particle. This study is an attempt to explore a group of undergraduate students’ mental models regarding fundamental concepts in classical physics which are actually the stepping stone for understanding and visualisation of QM. The data and analysis presented here elucidate the challenges students face to understand the classical ideas and how that affects their understanding of QM.

Astronomy in the College Curriculum for Preservice Elementary Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

French, L. M.; MacCormack, A.; Winokur, J.

1997-05-01

Astronomy, astrophysics, and space science play a major role in courses being developed at Wheelock College. The majority of the students are preparing for careers as elementary and early childhood teachers; they will thus be among the first teachers of science a child meets. Wheelock's introductory course in astronomy is based around key topics in the new national science frameworks such as size and scale, our place in the Universe, and light and color. Astrophysics, an intermediate level course, provides a more quantitative survey for those with a background in physical science. An interdisciplinary sequence of two courses, "The Physical Universe" and "The Living World", introduces students to key concepts such as motion and energy. Applications are studied from all of the sciences, including crater formation and the conversion of light to chemical energy in photosynthesis. The interdisciplinary courses have been developed and taught by an astrophysicist, an ecologist, and an early childhood educator. This work has been done under the auspices of TEAMS-BC (Teacher Education Addressing Math and Science in Boston and Cambridge), a Collaborative for Excellence in Teacher Preparation involving Harvard University, MIT, the University of Massachusetts-Boston, Wheelock College, and the Boston and Cambridge Public School Systems.

Teaching Astronomy at the Moscow University at the Beginning of the XIX Century (1811-1826).

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gribko, L. P.

2016-04-01

Teaching astronomy at the Imperial Moscow University in 1811-1826 is reviewed. Lectures in astronomy (as a dedicated course or a part of other courses) were ontinually taught at the Moscow University. During 12 scholar years from 1811-1812 to 1823-1824, except for 1812-1813 during the Patriotic War with France) astronomy was taught in four scholar years by Pankevich (1 year), Chumakov (2 years), Popov (1 year); during five years Chumakov taught optics. Since the 1824-1825 scholar year astronomy was taught on a regular basis by Perevoshchikov. At the same time the chair of the observing astronomer remained vacant for 15 years because of the War of 1812 and of the untimely death of the young, promising magister Alexander Bugrov.

Seeing Science through Symmetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gould, L. I.

Seeing Through Symmetry is a course that introduces non-science majors to the pervasive influence of symmetry in science. The concept of symmetry is usedboth as a link between subjects (such as physics, biology, mathematics, music, poetry, and art) and as a method within a subject. This is done through the development and use of interactive multimedia learning environments to stimulate learning. Computer-based labs enable the student to further explore the concept by being gently led from the arts to science. This talk is an update that includes some of the latest changes to the course. Explanations are given on methodology and how a variety of interactive multimedia tools contribute to both the lecture and lab portion of the course (created in 1991 and taught almost every semester since then, including one in Sweden).

Experiencing Research Firsthand: The "unClassroom" Experiential Learning Approach to Teaching Research Methods in an LIS Master's Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mandel, Lauren H.

2017-01-01

Research methods education in LIS master's degree programs is facing several difficult questions: should a methods course be required, what content should be taught in that course, and what is the most effective mechanism for teaching that content. There is little consensus about what should be taught or how, but the American Library Association,…

Engaging undergradate students in interdisciplinary courses in nanotechnology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goodchild, Fiona

2008-03-01

Two new courses at UCSB engage both undergraduate and graduate students in situated learning so that they can acquire the knowledge and skills they will need for future academic courses and career development. These courses are designed and taught by research faculty and education staff at the California Nanosystems Institute (CNSI) at UC Santa Barbara. The speaker, Dr. Goodchild, Education Director at CNSI, collaborated in the course design and is advisor on assessment and pedagogy for both courses. The first course, entitled INSCITES, is aimed at first and second year students who are interested in the impacts of science and technology in society. This general education course is team taught by three Graduate Teaching Scholars from across engineering, science and social sciences. They collaborate with lead faculty from Materials Science and History to design both the curriculum and instructional format for the 10 week course that is supported by the National Science Foundation. INSCITES was taught for the first time in Spring 2007 and feedback indicated that the course had convinced the undergraduate students that they would like to take further courses outside their majors. The second course, entitled the Practice of Science is open to all majors in science and engineering, especially those in second and third year who are interested in scientific research and related career opportunities. The course has been taught for the past 4 years as a two quarter course by two research faculty who focus on the nature of scientific discovery, the role of graduate researchers and faculty, the challenges of collaboration across disciplines and the mechanisms for funding research in academia and industry. In the first quarter each students is expected to identify a mentor and a research group in which they can pursue an individual research project, to be completed during the second quarter when the classes are designed to operate like research group meetings. Evaluation indicates that both courses attract students from underrepresented groups in science who value gaining a broader perspective about nanotechnology and the career opportunities that it offers to undergraduate students.

Physical and cognitive effects of virtual reality integrated training.

PubMed

Stone, Richard T; Watts, Kristopher P; Zhong, Peihan; Wei, Chen-Shuang

2011-10-01

The objective of this study was to evaluate the cognitive and physical impact of virtual reality (VR) integrated training versus traditional training methods in the domain of weld training. Weld training is very important in various industries and represents a complex skill set appropriate for advanced training intervention. As such, there has been a long search for the most successful and most cost-effective method for training new welders. Participants in this study were randomly assigned to one of two separate training courses taught by sanctioned American Welding Society certified welding instructors; the duration of each course was 2 weeks. After completing the training for a specific weld type, participants were given the opportunity to test for the corresponding certification. Participants were evaluated in terms of their cognitive and physical parameters, total training time exposure, and welding certification awards earned. Each of the four weld types taught in this study represented distinct levels of difficulty and required the development of specialized knowledge and skills. This study demonstrated that participants in the VR integrated training group (VR50) performed as well as, and in some cases, significantly outperformed, the traditional welding (TW) training group.The VR50 group was found to have a 41.6% increase in overall certifications earned compared with the TW group. VR technology is a valuable tool for the production of skilled welders in a shorter time and often with more highly developed skills than their traditionally trained counterparts. These findings strongly support the use ofVR integrated training in the welding industry.

Establishing common course objectives for undergraduate exercise physiology.

PubMed

Simonson, Shawn R

2015-12-01

Undergraduate exercise physiology is a ubiquitous course in undergraduate kinesiology/exercise science programs with a broad scope and depth of topics. It is valuable to explore what is taught within this course. The purpose of the present study was to facilitate an understanding of what instructors teach in undergraduate exercise physiology, how it compares with various guidelines, and to continue the conversation regarding what should be taught. A survey was created using course outcomes from the American Society of Exercise Physiologists, National Association for Sport and Physical Education, Ivy's 2007 Quest article, the National Athletic Training Association, the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, and 36 undergraduate exercise physiology course syllabi. The 134-item survey was disseminated to individuals who use exercise physiology: university faculty members, clinical exercise physiologists, researchers, and other practitioners on various exercise physiology lists; 2,009 surveys were sent, and 322 surveys were completed (16% rate of return). There was a high degree of agreement about a lot of important content in undergraduate exercise physiology. Instructors of exercise physiology should focus their curriculum on regulation and homeostasis (including adaptation, fatigue, and recovery), aerobic systems, bioenergetics, muscle physiology, and fitness principles. In addition, attention should be paid to performance and technical skills. In conclusion, it is up to exercise physiologists to ensure quality of knowledge and practice. Doing so will improve the uniformity and quality of practitioners within the various kinesiology/exercise science fields and increase the value of a Kinesiology/Exercise Science degree and set it apart from other healthcare providers and fitness professionals. Copyright © 2015 The American Physiological Society.

Creating and Maintaining Team-Taught Interdisciplinary General Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seabury, Marcia Bundy; Barrett, Karen A.

2000-01-01

Describes the University of Hartford's All-University Curriculum, which includes 25 interdisciplinary courses, most team taught. Addresses institutional buy-in, resources, team formation, conflict resolution, institutional policies, and ongoing development. (SK)

Increasing Student Success in Large Survey Science Courses via Supplemental Instruction in Learning Centers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hooper, Eric Jon; Nossal, S.; Watson, L.; Timbie, P.

2010-05-01

Large introductory astronomy and physics survey courses can be very challenging and stressful. The University of Wisconsin-Madison Physics Learning Center (PLC) reaches about 10 percent of the students in four introductory physics courses, algebra and calculus based versions of both classical mechanics and electromagnetism. Participants include those potentially most vulnerable to experiencing isolation and hence to having difficulty finding study partners as well as students struggling with the course. They receive specially written tutorials, conceptual summaries, and practice problems; exam reviews; and most importantly, membership in small groups of 3 - 8 students which meet twice per week in a hybrid of traditional teaching and tutoring. Almost all students who regularly participate in the PLC earn at least a "C,” with many earning higher grades. The PLC works closely with other campus programs which seek to increase the participation and enhance the success of underrepresented minorities, first generation college students, and students from lower-income circumstances; and it is well received by students, departmental faculty, and University administration. The PLC staff includes physics education specialists and research scientists with a passion for education. However, the bulk of the teaching is conducted by undergraduates who are majoring in physics, astronomy, mathematics, engineering, and secondary science teaching (many have multiple majors). The staff train these enthusiastic students, denoted Peer Mentor Tutors (PMTs) in general pedagogy and mentoring strategies, as well as the specifics of teaching the physics covered in the course. The PMTs are among the best undergraduates at the university. While currently there is no UW-Madison learning center for astronomy courses, establishing one is a possible future direction. The introductory astronomy courses cater to non-science majors and consequently are less quantitative. However, the basic structure of small groups focusing on fundamental understanding taught mostly by dedicated undergraduates should transfer well.

A Survey of Introductory Statistics Courses at University Faculties of Pharmaceutical Sciences in Japan.

PubMed

Matsumura, Mina; Nakayama, Takuto; Sozu, Takashi

2016-01-01

A survey of introductory statistics courses at Japanese medical schools was published as a report in 2014. To obtain a complete understanding of the way in which statistics is taught at the university level in Japan, it is important to extend this survey to related fields, including pharmacy, dentistry, and nursing. The current study investigates the introductory statistics courses offered by faculties of pharmaceutical sciences (six-year programs) at Japanese universities, comparing the features of these courses with those studied in the survey of medical schools. We collected relevant data from the online syllabi of statistics courses published on the websites of 71 universities. The survey items included basic course information (for example, the course names, the targeted student grades, the number of credits, and course classification), textbooks, handouts, the doctoral subject and employment status of each lecturer, and course contents. The period surveyed was July-September 2015. We found that these 71 universities offered a total of 128 statistics courses. There were 67 course names, the most common of which was "biostatistics (iryou toukeigaku)." About half of the courses were designed for first- or second-year students. Students earned fewer than two credits. There were 62 different types of textbooks. The lecturers held doctoral degrees in 18 different subjects, the most common being a doctorate in pharmacy or science. Some course content differed, reflecting the lecturers' academic specialties. The content of introductory statistics courses taught in pharmaceutical science programs also differed slightly from the equivalent content taught in medical schools.

Team-Taught versus Individually Taught Undergraduate Education: A Qualitative Study of Student Experiences and Preferences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Money, Arthur; Coughlan, Jane

2016-01-01

Team teaching is becoming more common in undergraduate programmes of study although the relative merits to the more traditional individually taught courses have not been determined for best practice. For this study, 15 final-year undergraduate computer science students were interviewed to gain insight into their learning experiences. A thematic…

Assessment of Army Contracting Command’s Contract Management Processes (TACOM and RDECOM)

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-04-01

Management Processes (TACOM and RDECOM)” was prepared for and funded by the Acquisition Program, Graduate School of Business & Public Policy, Naval...system and the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle rocket program. Rendon has taught contract management courses for the UCLA Government Contracts...program; he was also a senior faculty member for the Keller Graduate School of Management, where he taught MBA courses in project management and

Design and assessment of an interactive physics tutoring environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scott, Lisa Ann

2001-07-01

The application of scientific principles is an extremely important skill taught in undergraduate introductory science courses, yet many students emerge from such courses unable to reliably apply the scientific principles they have ostensibly learned. In an attempt to address this problem, the knowledge and thought processes needed to apply an important principle in introductory physics (Newton's law) were carefully analyzed. Reliable performance requires not only declarative knowledge but also corresponding procedural knowledge and the basic cognitive functions of deciding, implementing and assessing. Computer programs called guided-practice PALs (P&barbelow;ersonal A&barbelow;ssistants for Ḻearning) were developed to teach explicitly the knowledge and thought processes needed to apply Newton's law to solve problems. These programs employ a modified form of Palincsar and Brown's reciprocal-teaching strategy (1984) in which students and computers alternately coach each other, taking turns making decisions, implementing and assessing them. The computer programs make it practically feasible to provide students with individual guidance and feedback ordinarily unavailable in most courses. In a pilot study, the guided-practice PALs were found to be nearly as effective as individual tutoring by expert teachers and significantly more effective than the instruction provided in a well-taught physics course. This guided practice however is not sufficient to ensure that students develop the ability to perform independently. Accordingly, independent-performance PALs were developed which require students to work independently, receiving only the minimal feedback necessary to successfully complete the task. These independent-performance PALS are interspersed with guided-practice PALs to create an instructional environment which facilitates a gradual transition to independent performance. In a study designed to assess the efficacy of the PAL instruction, students in the PAL group used only guided-practice PALS and students in the PAL+ group used both guided-practice and independent-performance PALS. The performance of the PAL and PAL+ groups were compared to the performance of a Control group which received traditional instruction. The addition of the independent-performance PALS proved to be at least as effective as the guided-practice PALs alone, and both forms of PAL instruction were significantly more effective than traditional instruction.

Gender and Diversity Topics Taught in Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winston, Ebony Joy; Piercy, Fred P.

2010-01-01

This article explores how the topics of gender and diversity are being taught and defined in accredited marriage and family therapy programs through syllabi content analysis and interviews with selected faculty. We examined findings by program (master's and doctoral) and type of training (those that taught specific gender and culture courses and…

Moral theories may have some role in teaching applied ethics

PubMed Central

Benatar, D

2007-01-01

In a recent paper, Rob Lawlor argues that moral theories should not be taught in courses on applied ethics. The author contends that Dr Lawlor's arguments overlook at least two important roles that some attention to ethical theories may play in practical ethics courses. The conclusion is not that moral theory must be taught, but rather that there is more to be said for it than Dr Lawlor's arguments reveal. PMID:17971473

MSaTERs: Mathematics, Science, and Technology Educators and Researchers of The Ohio State University. Proceedings of the Annual Spring Conference (2nd, May 16, 1998, Columbus, OH).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Michelle K., Ed.; Costner, Kelly M., Ed.

The Mathematics, Science, and Technology Educators and Researchers of The Ohio State University (MSaTERS-OSU) is a newly formed student organization. Papers from the conference include: (1) "Was the Geometry Course, The Nature of Proof, Taught by Harold Pascoe Fawcett the Best Course Ever Taught in Secondary School?" (Frederick Flener); (2) "A…

Teaching evidence based practice in physical therapy in a developing country: a national survey of Philippine schools

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Early education on the foundations of evidence based practice (EBP) is advocated as a potent intervention toward enhancing EBP uptake among physical therapists. Little is known about the extent to which EBP is integrated in educational curricula in developing countries where the benefits of EBP are more acutely needed. This study sought to describe EBP education in Philippine physical therapy schools, including the challenges encountered by educators in teaching EBP. Methods A national survey of higher education institutions offering an undergraduate degree program in physical therapy was conducted from August 2011 through January 2012. A 35-item questionnaire was developed to gather data on whether or not EBP was taught, specific EBP content covered and courses in which content was covered, teaching and evaluation methods, and challenges in teaching EBP. Data were analyzed descriptively. Results The study had a response rate of 55.7% (34/61). Majority of the participating educational institutions (82%, 28/34) reported teaching EBP by incorporating EBP content in the professional courses. Among those that did not teach EBP, inadequate educator competence was the leading barrier. Courses commonly used to teach EBP were those on research (78.6%, 22/28), therapy planning (71.4%, 20/28), treatment skills (57.1-64.3%, 16-18/28), and undergraduate thesis (60.7%, 17/28). Various EBP contents were covered, with statistical concepts more frequently taught compared with critical EBP content. Lectures and journal reports were the usual teaching methods (96.4%, 27/28 and 89.3%, 25/28, respectively) while written examinations, completion of an undergraduate thesis, and oral reports (82.1%, 23/28, 78.6%, 22/28, and 78.6%, 22/28, respectively) were often used in evaluation. Students’ inadequate knowledge of statistics and lack of curricular structure for EBP were identified as leading challenges to teaching (75%, 21/28 and 50%, 14/28, respectively). Conclusions Many physical therapy faculties across the Philippines are incorporating EBP content in teaching. However, there is arbitrary and fragmented coverage of EBP content and inadequate emphasis on clinically oriented teaching-learning and assessment methods. These findings suggest the need to design appropriate entry-level educational programs on EBP. Effective ‘educating the educators’ strategies are urgently needed and can have far-reaching positive repercussions on EBP uptake in physical therapist practice. PMID:24267512

Teaching evidence based practice in physical therapy in a developing country: a national survey of Philippine schools.

PubMed

Gorgon, Edward James R; Basco, Mark David S; Manuel, Almira T

2013-11-22

Early education on the foundations of evidence based practice (EBP) is advocated as a potent intervention toward enhancing EBP uptake among physical therapists. Little is known about the extent to which EBP is integrated in educational curricula in developing countries where the benefits of EBP are more acutely needed. This study sought to describe EBP education in Philippine physical therapy schools, including the challenges encountered by educators in teaching EBP. A national survey of higher education institutions offering an undergraduate degree program in physical therapy was conducted from August 2011 through January 2012. A 35-item questionnaire was developed to gather data on whether or not EBP was taught, specific EBP content covered and courses in which content was covered, teaching and evaluation methods, and challenges in teaching EBP. Data were analyzed descriptively. The study had a response rate of 55.7% (34/61). Majority of the participating educational institutions (82%, 28/34) reported teaching EBP by incorporating EBP content in the professional courses. Among those that did not teach EBP, inadequate educator competence was the leading barrier. Courses commonly used to teach EBP were those on research (78.6%, 22/28), therapy planning (71.4%, 20/28), treatment skills (57.1-64.3%, 16-18/28), and undergraduate thesis (60.7%, 17/28). Various EBP contents were covered, with statistical concepts more frequently taught compared with critical EBP content. Lectures and journal reports were the usual teaching methods (96.4%, 27/28 and 89.3%, 25/28, respectively) while written examinations, completion of an undergraduate thesis, and oral reports (82.1%, 23/28, 78.6%, 22/28, and 78.6%, 22/28, respectively) were often used in evaluation. Students' inadequate knowledge of statistics and lack of curricular structure for EBP were identified as leading challenges to teaching (75%, 21/28 and 50%, 14/28, respectively). Many physical therapy faculties across the Philippines are incorporating EBP content in teaching. However, there is arbitrary and fragmented coverage of EBP content and inadequate emphasis on clinically oriented teaching-learning and assessment methods. These findings suggest the need to design appropriate entry-level educational programs on EBP. Effective 'educating the educators' strategies are urgently needed and can have far-reaching positive repercussions on EBP uptake in physical therapist practice.

From gene to protein: A 3-week intensive course in molecular biology for physical scientists.

PubMed

Nadeau, Jay L

2009-07-01

This article describes a 3-week intensive molecular biology methods course based upon fluorescent proteins, which is successfully taught at the McGill University to advanced undergraduates and graduates in physics, chemical engineering, biomedical engineering, and medicine. No previous knowledge of biological terminology or methods is expected, so the material could readily be adapted to earlier undergraduates or students in other fields. The course emphasizes hands-on experience with one half-hour of lecture and 3 and a half hours of laboratory 4 days per week, for a total of 39 hours. The materials are simple and low in cost and all software used is free, making the budget accessible to small universities and community colleges that possess basic teaching wet labs. Conceptual understanding is reinforced with lab reports and an independent final paper on a subject of the student's choice. The final paper describes a possible thesis project, not necessarily the student's own, with assessment based upon grasping of key concepts and methods of molecular biology. Copyright © 2009 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Is classical mechanics a prerequisite for learning physics of the 20th century?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walwema, Godfrey B.; French, Debbie A.; Verley, Jim D.; Burrows, Andrea C.

2016-11-01

Physics of the 20th century has contributed significantly to modern technology, and yet many physics students are never availed the opportunity to study it as part of the curriculum. One of the possible reasons why it is not taught in high school and introductory physics courses could be because curriculum designers believe that students need a solid background in classical mechanics and calculus in order to study physics of the 20th century such as the photoelectric effect, special and general relativity, the uncertainty principle, etc. This presumption may not be justifiable or valid. The authors of this paper contend that teaching physics of the 20th century aids students in relating physics to modern technology and the real world, making studying physics exciting. In this study, the authors correlated scores for matched questions in the Mechanics Baseline Test and a physics of the 20th century test in order to examine the trend of the scores. The participants included undergraduate students attending an introductory algebra-based physics course with no intention of taking physics at a higher level. The analysis of the scores showed no significant correlation for any of the matched pairs of questions. The purpose of this article is to recommend that even without a solid background in classical mechanics, teachers can introduce physics of the 20th century to their students for increased interest.

Seeing Is Believing: Evaluating a Point-of-Care Ultrasound Curriculum for 1st-Year Medical Students.

PubMed

Nelson, Bret P; Hojsak, Joanne; Dei Rossi, Elizabeth; Karani, Reena; Narula, Jagat

2017-01-01

Point-of-care ultrasound has been a novel addition to undergraduate medical education at a few medical schools. The impact is not fully understood, and few rigorous assessments of educational outcomes exist. This study assessed the impact of a point-of-care ultrasound curriculum on image acquisition, interpretation, and student and faculty perceptions of the course. All 142 first-year medical students completed a curriculum on ultrasound physics and instrumentation, cardiac, thoracic, and abdominal imaging. A flipped classroom model of preclass tutorials and tests augmenting live, hands-on scanning sessions was incorporated into the physical examination course. Students and faculty completed surveys on impressions of the curriculum, and all students under-went competency assessments with standardized patients. The curriculum was a mandatory part of the physical examination course and was taught by experienced clinician-sonographers as well as faculty who do not routinely perform sonography in their clinical practice. Students and faculty agreed that the physical examination course was the right time to introduce ultrasound (87% and 80%). Students demonstrated proper use of the ultrasound machine functions (M score = 91.55), and cardiac, thoracic, and abdominal system assessments (M score = 80.35, 79.58, and 71.57, respectively). Students and faculty valued the curriculum, and students demonstrated basic competency in performance and interpretation of ultrasound. Further study is needed to determine how to best incorporate this emerging technology into a robust learning experience for medical students.

The Blame Game in the Science Preparation of Future Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stein, Fredrick

2003-10-01

Who is responsible for the general lack of science preparation in our newly certified K-12 teachers? If it is true that teachers "teach as they were taught," then we must look to the college and university departments. The American Physical Society (APS), in partnership with the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) and the American Institute of Physics (AIP), has initiated PhysTEC in concert with national reports calling for the improvement of K-12 science teaching. PhysTEC aims to help physics and education faculty work together to provide an education for future teachers that emphasizes a student-centered, hands-on, inquiry-based approach to learning science. An update of the first two years of the project will be given. Program components include: (1) A long-term, active collaboration between the physics and education departments; (2) A full-time Teacher-in-Residence (TIR) program that provides for a local K-12 science teacher to become a full-time participant in assisting faculty with both team-teaching and course revisions; (3) The redesign of content and pedagogy of targeted physics and education courses; and (4) The establishment of a Induction and mentoring program novice science teachers. This includes the participation of physics faculty in increasing and improving a wide array of school experiences. http://www.phystec.org/

The teaching of physical assessment skills in pre-registration nursing programmes in Australia: issues for nursing education.

PubMed

Birks, Melanie; James, Ainsley; Chung, Catherine; Cant, Robyn; Davis, Jenny

2014-01-01

Health assessment is a fundamental aspect of the professional nursing role. The teaching of skills in physical assessment is therefore a large component of pre-registration nursing programmes. As the nursing curriculum becomes more crowded with what is deemed to be essential content, there is a need to rationalise what is taught in preparatory nursing programmes to ensure readiness for practice. The study outlined in this paper, as part of a larger project, explored the teaching of physical assessment skills in pre-registration nursing programmes across Australia. Fifty-three academics completed the 121 item online survey, indicating whether each skill was taught with practice, taught with no practice or not taught at all. The results suggest that only half the skills were being taught by more than 80% of the academics and 23 skills (19%) were taught by more than 90%. Of the 121 skills commonly taught--69 skills (57%) were taught with student practice and 29 (24%) were taught with no student practice. The results of this study raise questions about the teaching of physical assessment in pre-registration nursing programmes. The suggestion is not that skills that are used regularly or infrequently should be removed from the curriculum, rather, the authors propose that consideration be given to whether the teaching of skills that are never likely to be used is occurring at the expense of comprehensive mastery of core skills.

Statistical Mechanics: A Concise Introduction for Chemists (by Benjamin Widom)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kovac, Jeffrey

2002-11-01

This book should be in the hands of everyone who teaches undergraduate physical chemistry to provide a model for what can be taught in that course beyond the material contained in the standard textbooks. Graduate students and faculty who need to learn statistical mechanics can hardly find a better introduction. Even those who regularly teach a graduate course in this area will get some new ideas and inspiration from one of the leading practitioners of the field. For completeness, I must add that the book has one weakness. Although there are excellent in-chapter exercises with solutions, there are no end-of-chapter problems. Since there are many sources of good problems, this is a minor flaw in an otherwise wonderful book.

FORTRAN programming - A self-taught course

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blecher, S.; Butler, R. V.; Horton, M.; Norrod, V.

1971-01-01

Comprehensive programming course begins with numerical systems and basic concepts, proceeds systematically through FORTRAN language elements, and concludes with discussion of programming techniques. Course is suitable either for individual study or for group study on informal basis.

A Flexible Self-Paced Course in Process Control.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Franklin G.

1979-01-01

Describes an undergraduate chemical engineering course which has been taught by a self-paced instructional method at Howard University, Washington, D.C. The instructional method, course description, and students' grades are also discussed. (HM)

What's a Nice Biology Teacher Like You Doing Teaching Humanities?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Biermann, Carol A.

1990-01-01

Described is the College Success Program designed to enhance retention of at-risk individuals. The goals, bioethics course offerings at various colleges, course outline for a bioethics course taught in the humanities, and evaluation of the course are discussed. (CW)

Integration of e-learning technologies in an interprofessional health science course.

PubMed

Carbonaro, Mike; King, Sharla; Taylor, Elizabeth; Satzinger, Franziska; Snart, Fern; Drummond, Jane

2008-02-01

Advances in information and communication technology are influencing instructional formats and delivery modes for post secondary teaching and learning. The purpose of this study was to determine whether interprofessional team process skills traditionally taught in a small group face-to-face classroom setting could be taught in a blended learning environment; without compromising the pedagogical approach and collaborative Group Investigation Model (Sharan & Sharan 1992) used in the course. A required interprofessional team development course designed to teach health science students (Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Dentistry, Dental Hygiene, Medical Laboratory Science, and Nutrition) team process skills was redesigned from a 100% face-to-face delivery format to a blended learning format where 70% of the instruction was delivered using a new synchronous virtual classroom technology (Elluminate www.elluminate.com) in conjunction with asynchronous technology (WebCT). It was hypothesized there would be no significant difference between the blended learning format and the traditional face-to-face format in the development of interprofessional team knowledge, skills and attitudes. The two formats were evaluated on demographic information, computer experience, and interprofessional team attitudes, knowledge and skills. The three main findings are: (a) no significant differences between student groups on achieving team process skills, (b) an observation of differences between the groups on team dynamics, and (c) a more positive achievement of course learning objectives perceived by students in the blended learning class. The results provide evidence to support our blended learning format without compromising pedagogy. They also suggest that this format enhances students' perceptions of their learning.

Graduate student training and creating new physics labs for biology students, killing two birds with one stone.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, Barbara

2001-03-01

At UCSD biology majors are required to take 3 quarters of a calculus based physics course. This is taught in a standard format large lecture class partly by faculty and partly by freeway flyers. We are working with physics graduate students who are also participating in our PFPF (Preparing Future Physics Faculty) program to write, review, and teach new weekly labs for these biology students. This provides an experience for the grad student that is both rewarding to them and useful to the department. The grad students participate in curriculum development, they observe the students behaviour in the labs, and assess the effectiveness of different lab formats. The labs are intended to provide an interactive, hands on experience with a wide variety of equipment which is mostly both simple and inexpensive. Both students and grads find the labs to be engaging and fun. Based on group discussions the labs are modified to try to try to create the best teaching environment. The biology students benefit from the improvements both in the quality of the labs they do, and from the enthusiasm of the TAs who take an active interest in their learning. The ability to make significant changes to the material taught maintains the interest of the grad students and helps to make the labs a stable and robust environment.

Evaluation and Revision of an Introduction to Experiential Rotations Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dy, Eliza A.; Nisly, Sarah A.

2014-01-01

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the perceived student value of topics taught in Butler University's Introduction to Experiential Rotations (RX500) course, implement course revisions to address any perceived weaknesses, and to reassess the course following implementation of those course revisions. Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience…

Understanding Stellar Evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lamers, Henny J. G. L. M.; Levesque, Emily M.

2017-12-01

'Understanding Stellar Evolution' is based on a series of graduate-level courses taught at the University of Washington since 2004, and is written for physics and astronomy students and for anyone with a physics background who is interested in stars. It describes the structure and evolution of stars, with emphasis on the basic physical principles and the interplay between the different processes inside stars such as nuclear reactions, energy transport, chemical mixing, pulsation, mass loss, and rotation. Based on these principles, the evolution of low- and high-mass stars is explained from their formation to their death. In addition to homework exercises for each chapter, the text contains a large number of questions that are meant to stimulate the understanding of the physical principles. An extensive set of accompanying lecture slides is available for teachers in both Keynote® and PowerPoint® formats.

Registered nurses' constructed meaning of concepts of solution and their use in clinical practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkes, Lesley M.; Batts, Judith E.

1991-12-01

Since the introduction of nursing into tertiary institutions in Australia in 1975, there has been increasing interest in the teaching of physical science to nurses. Various courses in physical science for nurse students have been developed. They vary in length and content but there is agreement that concepts taught should be closely related to nursing applications. The choice of relevant concepts tends to be made by individual curriculum developers. This paper reports an examination of the use of physical science concepts and their relevance from the perspective of registered nurses practising in general ward areas. Inherent in this study is the premise that for registered nurses to have ideas of the physical science underlying their practice they must have constructed meaning first for these concepts. Specific chemical concepts related to solutions are discussed in these terms.

Young Astronomers and Astronomy teaching in Moldavia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaina, Alex

1998-09-01

Curricular Astronomy is taught in Moldavia , except Transnistria and Gagauzia, in the final (11th class) of the secondary schools and gymnasiums, and in the 12th class of the lyceums. The program takes 35 academic hours. The basic book is by Vorontsov-Veliaminov, used in the former USSR, but the Romanian one is also used, in spite of many criticisms addressed to both by our astronomy teachers. In Transinstria (on the left of the Dniester river)astronomy is taught 17 hours. Extracurricular activities develop at the Real Lyceum, where students and amateur astronomers carry out regular observations. Particularly, photographs of the comet Hale-Bopp have been realized using a Cassegrain 450 mm telescope by young astronomers under supervision of S. Luca and D. Gorodetzky (Gorodetchi). Except the telescope from the Real Lyceum other few telescopes are in construction. Unfortunately, no planetarium exists now in Chisinau, since the old one was returned to church. Astronomy courses are taught at the physical and mathematical departments of the Pedagogical University, Transnistrian Moldavian University in Tiraspol and the State University of |Moldavia. Many efforts were made by the State University lecturers and scientists to popularize Astronomy and Astrophysics in the books and in the press, at the radio and TV. No astronomy is taught at the Gagauzian National University in Comrat. No astronomiucal departments exist in Universities of |Moldavia.

Rocks and Minerals as a Viable Course in the Undergraduate Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Powell, William E.

1981-01-01

Provides an overview of a one-semester course in rocks and minerals for non-geology majors taught at Pittsburg State University. Includes information involving the methodology and content of the course, equipment needed, textbook selection, and general impressions of the course. (DS)

Evaluating the Efficacy of an Animation to Enhance Understanding of First Motion Diagrams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farmer, E. C.

2011-12-01

Having taught the interpretation of first motion diagrams (sometimes referred to as "beach ball diagrams" due to their appearance) in an Introduction to Physical Geology class over many semesters, I was frustrated with the hand-waving this effort entailed when describing static diagrams. I searched for a computer animation that would show how the initial ground motions in an earthquake correspond to the various shaded regions in each first motion diagram, but was not able to find such a pedagogical tool in existence. I decided to work with the staff of my University's Faculty Computing Services to create something that would serve this need. We designed and constructed an animation of strike-slip motions, which can be seen at http://people.hofstra.edu/alex_smiros/earthquake/grid_22march2011.swf. A still image of the animation appears in Figure 1. In order to see if utilizing this visualization enhanced student understanding of the difficult concepts involved in interpreting first motion diagrams, I compared scores on test questions involving first motion diagrams from two different semester iterations of the course: one was taught without utilizing the animation, and one was taught with utilization of the animation.

Perspective: moving students beyond an organ-based approach when teaching medical interviewing and physical examination skills.

PubMed

Alexander, Erik K

2008-10-01

Medical interviewing and physical examination skills are core pillars of clinical medicine. Though nearly all U.S. medical students participate in preclinical courses designed to teach these skills, medical school faculty often comment that students' abilities remain limited on entering their clinical clerkships. The reason for this contention is not clear.The author briefly describes the current preclinical curricula at most medical schools that are designed to teach patient interviewing and examination. An organ-based curriculum is commonly employed, although the limitations of such an approach readily become apparent. For example, many hospitalized patients do not suffer from single-organ illnesses, but rather from infections or metabolic derangements, which cause numerous abnormalities to several body systems. Furthermore, clinical reasoning skills are rarely taught in such preclinical courses, though these abilities form the foundation for effective doctoring. These findings suggest an opportunity for content development surrounding patient interviewing and examination. The author proposes an educational approach that depicts how the confluence of both content knowledge skills and clinical reasoning skills can work synergistically to enhance preclinical teaching of the medical interview and physical examination.

An interdisciplinary teaching program in geriatrics for physician's assistants.

PubMed

Stark, R; Yeo, G; Fordyce, M; Grudzen, M; Hopkins, J; McGann, L; Shepard, K

1984-11-01

An interdisciplinary curriculum committee within the Division of Family Medicine, Stanford University Medical Center, developed and taught a beginning course in clinical geriatrics for medical students and student physician's assistants, physical therapists, and nurse practitioners. Through a series of Saturday classes held in community facilities serving seniors, physician's assistant students had the opportunity to learn clinical geriatrics from a faculty team including a physician's assistant, physician, nurse, physical therapist, social worker, gerontologist, and health educator. Local seniors served as consumer consultants and models of health and vigor. This interdisciplinary approach was modeled by the faculty to demonstrate the need for a team approach to deliver quality care to seniors. In this well-received course, the role of the physician's assistant in health care was made evident to their future physician employers and physical therapy co-workers through faculty modeling as well as through informal contacts and patient conferences. Older people constitute a growing and increasingly medically underserved population. Team training may serve to stimulate physician's assistant students to include geriatrics in their career plans while educating their future physician employers about their role.

Differences in the Content Knowledge of Those Taught to Teach and Those Taught to Play

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Phillip; Tsuda, Emi; Dervent, Fatih; Devirlmez, Erhan

2018-01-01

Purpose: Little is known about how teachers acquire specialized content knowledge (SCK). We examine the hypothesis that SCK is not acquired from K-12 physical education and from extracurricular activities characterized by playing; instead, SCK must be explicitly taught to teachers. Method: Students were enrolled in either basic physical activity…

Hypothesis-driven physical examination curriculum.

PubMed

Allen, Sharon; Olson, Andrew; Menk, Jeremiah; Nixon, James

2017-12-01

Medical students traditionally learn physical examination skills as a rote list of manoeuvres. Alternatives like hypothesis-driven physical examination (HDPE) may promote students' understanding of the contribution of physical examination to diagnostic reasoning. We sought to determine whether first-year medical students can effectively learn to perform a physical examination using an HDPE approach, and then tailor the examination to specific clinical scenarios. Medical students traditionally learn physical examination skills as a rote list of manoeuvres CONTEXT: First-year medical students at the University of Minnesota were taught both traditional and HDPE approaches during a required 17-week clinical skills course in their first semester. The end-of-course evaluation assessed HDPE skills: students were assigned one of two cardiopulmonary cases. Each case included two diagnostic hypotheses. During an interaction with a standardised patient, students were asked to select physical examination manoeuvres in order to make a final diagnosis. Items were weighted and selection order was recorded. First-year students with minimal pathophysiology performed well. All students selected the correct diagnosis. Importantly, students varied the order when selecting examination manoeuvres depending on the diagnoses under consideration, demonstrating early clinical decision-making skills. An early introduction to HDPE may reinforce physical examination skills for hypothesis generation and testing, and can foster early clinical decision-making skills. This has important implications for further research in physical examination instruction. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education.

Teaching science to science teachers: Lessons taught and lessons learned

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Douglas, E. M.; Hashimoto-Martell, E. A.; Balicki, S.; Oglavie, D. R.

2009-12-01

The Boston Science Partnership has created a comprehensive set of graduate courses that immerse teachers in the science topics most relevant to their teaching practices. In these courses, teachers become students of science, developing their conceptual understandings through scientific inquiry. All courses are co-taught by a university faculty and teacher leaders from the Boston Public Schools. Each course provides contextual linkages between the science content and the standards-based curriculum of the Boston Public School district. One of the most relevant science topics to teachers and students of all disciplines is climate change. This served as the overarching theme for our course delivered during summer 2008 and 2009. This course focused on weather and the pivotal role that water and solar radiation play in the exchange of energy at the Earth's surface. Basic concepts such as the behavior of gases, energy flow, density changes, phase changes, heat capacities, and thermal convection were applied to examine short-term weather and water dynamics and longer-term impacts on global warming and climate change. The course was designed to embrace the 7E learning cycle and instructional model, as proposed by Eisenkraft in his landmark 2003 Science Teacher article. This inquiry-based instructional model builds upon prior conceptions and engages the learner in activities in which they begin to construct meaning of a concept prior to being given an explanation. Each day focused on an essential topic related to weather and climate change, and experiential learning was our main objective. There were many successes and challenges with our course. Twenty-five participants were enrolled, and all had different background knowledge and skill sets. Additionally, their level of teaching varied greatly, from K-12, so the level of depth with which to learn the content in order to bring it back to their classrooms varied a great deal as well. Therefore differentiating instruction for our diverse participants was a constant challenge for us as instructors. In summer 2008, the course was organized so that fundamentals (chemistry, heat transfer, convection, physics) were taught in the first week and then applied in broader topics (water cycle, carbon cycle, weather and precipitation) in the second week. Learning these fundamentals was challenging for many teachers. Furthermore, the organization of topics caused frustration because there was not enough connection to the broader concepts of the course. In summer 2009, we rearranged the topics and interwove fundamentals with contextual topics within each week. We found this approach to be more successful in engaging and educating the teachers. The most successful activities were often the simplest to organize. Valuable instructional strategies included daily assessments in the form of morning quizzes, keeping a class website with all course materials, and centering the major project of the course around a lesson that teachers would design for their particular context. We saw a dramatic improvement in pre- and post-assessment test scores, with the class average increasing from 58% (pre-test) to 95% (post-test).

Engineering Design Modules as Physics Teaching Tools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oliver, Douglas L.; Kane, Jackie

2011-01-01

Pre-engineering is increasingly being taught as a high school subject. This development presents challenges as well as opportunities for the physics education community. If pre-engineering is taught as a separate class, it may divert resources and students from traditional physics classes. However, design modules can be used as physics teaching…

Banned Books: A Study of Censorship.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rossuck, Jennifer

1997-01-01

Describes how a course on censorship taught at an all-girls high school in Tacoma, Washington, drew on current event controversies to initiate discussion. Outlines the course's four units and uses Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451" to frame course questions. (TB)

A First-Year Course That Teaches Research Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Czarneski, Debra

2013-01-01

In the Fall semester of 2009, I taught a first-year course that focused on skills required to successfully complete undergraduate research. This paper will discuss the Simpson College first-year course requirements, my course goals, the graph theory topics covered, student feedback, and instructor reflection.

Honors Anthropology and the Four Rs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farrer, Claire R.

1990-01-01

Describes an honors introductory cultural anthropology course taught at California State University, Chico. Discusses the course design, how course information is made relevant and reinforced, and how students have partial responsibility for the course design. Discusses the use of science fiction books to make material relevant to students. (JS)

A Conceptual Framework for Interdisciplinary Curriculum Design: A Case Study in Neuroscience

PubMed Central

Modo, Michel; Kinchin, Ian

2011-01-01

Teaching of interdisciplinary fields of study poses a challenge to course organizers. Often interdisciplinary courses are taught by different departments, and hence, at best provide a multidisciplinary overview. Scientific progress in neuroscience, for instance, is thought to depend heavily on interdisciplinary investigations. If students are only taught to think in particular disciplines without integrating these into a coherent framework to study the nervous system, it is unlikely that they will truly develop interdisciplinary thinking. Yet, it is this interdisciplinary thinking that is at the heart of a holistic understanding of the brain. It is, therefore, important to develop a conceptual framework in which students can be taught interdisciplinary, rather than multidisciplinary, thinking. It is also important to recognize that not all teaching needs to be interdisciplinary, but that the type of curriculum design is dependent on the aims of the course, as well as on the background of the students. A rational curriculum design that aligns learning and teaching objectives is, therefore, advocated. PMID:23626496

Gender and diversity topics taught in Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education programs.

PubMed

Winston, Ebony Joy; Piercy, Fred P

2010-10-01

This article explores how the topics of gender and diversity are being taught and defined in accredited marriage and family therapy programs through syllabi content analysis and interviews with selected faculty. We examined findings by program (master's and doctoral) and type of training (those that taught specific gender and culture courses and those that attempted to infuse gender and culture throughout the curriculum). We examined 39 syllabi from 21 master's and 18 doctoral training programs. In addition, we conducted 20 interviews with faculty members. (Eighteen were White/Caucasian, one was African American and one was Asian Indian.) Some variation in topic areas was found between master's and doctoral programs and between those programs that offered specific course content and those that offered infused course content. However, qualitative interview data reflected many similarities. Particularly apparent was the level of commitment, transparency, and experiential learning methods professors used, regardless of program level or type. © 2010 American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

An Examination of the Introductory MIS Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Shouhong

2007-01-01

The introductory management information systems (MIS) course is a core course for all business majors at almost every business school. It is common for this course to have multiple sections taught by a mixed group of instructors each semester. Hence, consistent pedagogy and assessment are needed for multiple sections of this course. This paper…

Student Perceptions of Dual-Listed Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balassiano, Katia; Rosentrater, Kurt A.; Marcketti, Sara B.

2014-01-01

Academic departments regularly offer dual-listed courses in which one course has two course numbers, yet are taught in the same place, at the same time, by a single instructor, and in one department to undergraduate and graduate students. While universities discourage their use by subjecting such courses to more rigorous approval processes,…

Morse Code, Scrabble, and the Alphabet

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richardson, Mary; Gabrosek, John; Reischman, Diann; Curtiss, Phyliss

2004-01-01

In this paper we describe an interactive activity that illustrates simple linear regression. Students collect data and analyze it using simple linear regression techniques taught in an introductory applied statistics course. The activity is extended to illustrate checks for regression assumptions and regression diagnostics taught in an…

Evolving Impressions: Undergraduate Perceptions of Graduate Teaching Assistants and Faculty Members over a Semester

PubMed Central

Kendall, K. Denise; Schussler, Elisabeth E.

2013-01-01

Undergraduate experiences in lower-division science courses are important factors in student retention in science majors. These courses often include a lecture taught by faculty, supplemented by smaller sections, such as discussions and laboratories, taught by graduate teaching assistants (GTAs). Given that portions of these courses are taught by different instructor types, this study explored student ratings of instruction by GTAs and faculty members to see whether perceptions differed by instructor type, whether they changed over a semester, and whether certain instructor traits were associated with student perceptions of their instructors’ teaching effectiveness or how much students learned from their instructors. Students rated their faculty instructors and GTAs for 13 instructor descriptors at the beginning and near the end of the semester in eight biology classes. Analyses of these data identified differences between instructor types; moreover, student perception changed over the semester. Specifically, GTA ratings increased in perception of positive instructional descriptors, while faculty ratings declined for positive instructional descriptors. The relationship of these perception changes with student experience and retention should be further explored, but the findings also suggest the need to differentiate professional development by the different instructor types teaching lower-division science courses to optimize teaching effectiveness and student learning in these important gateway courses. PMID:23463232

NSF Support for Physics at the Undergraduate Level: A View from Inside

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McBride, Duncan

2015-03-01

NSF has supported a wide range of projects in physics that involve undergraduate students. These projects include NSF research grants in which undergraduates participate; Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) centers and supplements; and education grants that range from upper-division labs that may include research, to curriculum development for upper- and lower-level courses and labs, to courses for non-majors, to Physics Education Research (PER). The NSF Divisions of Physics, Materials Research, and Astronomy provide most of the disciplinary research support, with some from other parts of NSF. I recently retired as the permanent physicist in NSF's Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE), which supports the education grants. I was responsible for a majority of DUE's physics grants and was involved with others overseen by a series of physics rotators. There I worked in programs entitled Instrumentation and Laboratory Improvement (ILI); Course and Curriculum Development (CCD); Course, Curriculum, and Laboratory Improvement (CCLI); Transforming Undergraduate STEM Education (TUES); and Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE). NSF support has enabled physics Principal Investigators to change and improve substantially the way physics is taught and the way students learn physics. The most important changes are increased undergraduate participation in physics research; more teaching using interactive engagement methods in classes; and growth of PER as a legitimate field of physics research as well as outcomes from PER that guide physics teaching. In turn these have led, along with other factors, to students who are better-prepared for graduate school and work, and to increases in the number of undergraduate physics majors. In addition, students in disciplines that physics directly supports, notably engineering and chemistry, and increasingly biology, are better and more broadly prepared to use their physics education in these fields. I will describe NSF support for undergraduate physics with both statistics and examples. In addition I will talk about trends in support for undergraduate physics at NSF and speculate about directions such support might go. Contents of this paper reflect the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the National Science Foundation.

Teaching a Hypothesis-driven Physical Diagnosis Curriculum to Pulmonary Fellows Improves Performance of First-Year Medical Students.

PubMed

Staitieh, Bashar S; Saghafi, Ramin; Kempker, Jordan A; Schulman, David A

2016-04-01

Hypothesis-driven physical examination emphasizes the role of bedside examination in the refinement of differential diagnoses and improves diagnostic acumen. This approach has not yet been investigated as a tool to improve the ability of higher-level trainees to teach medical students. To assess the effect of teaching hypothesis-driven physical diagnosis to pulmonary fellows on their ability to improve the pulmonary examination skills of first-year medical students. Fellows and students were assessed on teaching and diagnostic skills by self-rating on a Likert scale. One group of fellows received the hypothesis-driven teaching curriculum (the "intervention" group) and another received instruction on head-to-toe examination. Both groups subsequently taught physical diagnosis to a group of first-year medical students. An oral examination was administered to all students after completion of the course. Fellows were comfortable teaching physical diagnosis to students. Students in both groups reported a lack of comfort with the pulmonary examination at the beginning of the course and improvement in their comfort by the end. Students trained by intervention group fellows outperformed students trained by control group fellows in the interpretation of physical findings (P < 0.05). Teaching hypothesis-driven physical examination to higher-level trainees who teach medical students improves the ability of students to interpret physical findings. This benefit should be confirmed using validated testing tools.

Designing a Mathematics Course for Chemistry and Geology Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Witten, Gareth Q.

2005-01-01

Many mathematics departments usually teach a variety of courses for students from different science departments and even from different faculties. These "service" courses are usually taught in the same way as the courses for mathematics major students. However, in science, because of the need to better analyse and interpret experimental…

Room Air Conditioners; Appliance Repair--Advanced: 9027.04.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dade County Public Schools, Miami, FL.

This Quinmester course includes installations, electrical and mechanical servicing, reverse cycle air conditioning, malfunctions, troubleshooting and repair, discharge, pump down, and recharging the system. The course may be taught as a two or three Quinmester credit course. In each instance the course consists of six instructional blocks:…

Teaching Database Management System Use in a Library School Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooper, Michael D.

1985-01-01

Description of database management systems course being taught to students at School of Library and Information Studies, University of California, Berkeley, notes course structure, assignments, and course evaluation. Approaches to teaching concepts of three types of database systems are discussed and systems used by students in the course are…

Undergraduates Achieve Learning Gains in Plant Genetics through Peer Teaching of Secondary Students

PubMed Central

Chrispeels, H. E.; Klosterman, M. L.; Martin, J. B.; Lundy, S. R.; Watkins, J. M.; Gibson, C. L.

2014-01-01

This study tests the hypothesis that undergraduates who peer teach genetics will have greater understanding of genetic and molecular biology concepts as a result of their teaching experiences. Undergraduates enrolled in a non–majors biology course participated in a service-learning program in which they led middle school (MS) or high school (HS) students through a case study curriculum to discover the cause of a green tomato variant. The curriculum explored plant reproduction and genetic principles, highlighting variation in heirloom tomato fruits to reinforce the concept of the genetic basis of phenotypic variation. HS students were taught additional activities related to mole­cular biology techniques not included in the MS curriculum. We measured undergraduates’ learning outcomes using pre/postteaching content assessments and the course final exam. Undergraduates showed significant gains in understanding of topics related to the curriculum they taught, compared with other course content, on both types of assessments. Undergraduates who taught HS students scored higher on questions specific to the HS curriculum compared with undergraduates who taught MS students, despite identical lecture content, on both types of assessments. These results indicate the positive effect of service-learning peer-teaching experiences on undergraduates’ content knowledge, even for non–science major students. PMID:25452487

Nontraditional approach to algebra-based general physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meltzer, David E.

1997-03-01

In order to improve the degree of conceptual learning in our algebra-based general physics course, the second semester (of a two-semester sequence) has been taught in a nontraditional format during the past year. The key characteristics of this course were: 1) Intense and continuous use of interactive-engagement methods and cooperative learning; 2) coverage of less than half of the conventional number of topics, 3) heavy emphasis on qualitative questions as opposed to quantitative problems, 4) adjustment of the pacing of the course based on continuous (twice per week) formative assessment. The students enrolled in the course were relatively poorly prepared, with weak mathematical skills. Open-book quizzes stressing qualitative concepts in electricity and magnetism were given twice per week; most were given in "group quiz" format, allowing collaboration. Exams (also open-book) were all done individually. Most of the class time was taken up by quizzes, and by interactive discussion and group work related to quiz questions. New topics were not introduced until a majority of the class demonstrated competence in the topic under discussion. Despite lengthy and intensive focus on qualitative, conceptual questions and simple quantitative problems, only a small minority of the class ultimately demonstrated mastery of the targeted concepts. Frequent testing and re-testing of the students on basic concepts disclosed tenacious persistence of misconceptions.

Benefits of Multi-Sports Physical Education in the Elementary School Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pesce, Caterina; Faigenbaum, Avery; Crova, Claudia; Marchetti, Rosalba; Bellucci, Mario

2013-01-01

Objective: In many countries, physical education (PE) is taught by classroom teachers (generalists) during the formative years of elementary school. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the physical and psychological outcomes of multi-sports PE taught by qualified PE teachers (specialists) and how they contribute to children's physical and…

EDITORIAL: The outcomes of an education in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dobson, Ken

1998-01-01

Honorary Editor Readers should now be fully aware that both The Institute of Physics and the Association for Science Education (ASE) are encouraging members to think hard about what they would like to see in the revised National Curriculum for science. The story of curriculum development in science for the past ten years has been of grand national initiatives which have concentrated, in science at least, on the content of what is taught rather than on the ways in which it might be taught - or how it is learnt. The initiatives have been `top-down', with usually rather hurried `consultation' with no attempt to weigh the value of responses. For example, in deciding upon a common core for A-level physics the Institute of Biology was given as much weighting as the Institute of Physics. What students thought seemed to be irrelevant. But chickens come home to roost, horses led to water don't always drink, and it seems that compelling all children to study physics as part of a science course has not had the effect of making them fall in love with subject and opt to study more of it after age 16. Physics is a growing subject, in terms of what it now covers, as the increase in the number of journal titles over recent years shows. These show that it is also more and more a fragmented subject, and the practitioners of different fragments will have different views on what constitutes a foundation core for further studies. And, of course, fewer than 10% of students at one educational level choose to take the subject in the next. I conclude from this that what physics young people study between age 11 and age 16 doesn't matter as much as the writers of the National Curriculum supposed. We would like to get young people interested in physics (or better, interested by physics) and to develop positive feelings about physics and what physicists do, based on a feeling of success in studying the subject. Different students should be given opportunities to gain satisfaction in different ways; some via linking physics to everyday life, some via the way real people have developed and are developing the ideas and artefacts of physics and technology, some via the sheer pleasure of handling difficult ideas and mathematical models. And so on. It may be that we should start looking at the outcomes of a physics course less (or not only) in terms of the knowledge and understanding that examinations test but also in terms of what the students think and feel about the time they have spent at our disposal. I suggest that a successful physics course should have the following certifiable outcomes for all students (within reason!), who should be able to say, as a minimum: I enjoyed learning physics. I understood quite a lot of it. I can use my understanding of physics to make some sense of the way things are and how things work. I could learn more physics if I had to.... ... and I know how I can find things out by myself when I do need to learn something new. I guess that this might even apply to PhD students. Ken Dobson Honorary Editor

Factors that Influence Community College Students' Interest in Science Coursework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sasway, Hope

There is a need for science education research that explores community college student, instructor, and course characteristics that influence student interest and motivation to study science. Increasing student enrollment and persistence in STEM is a national concern. Nearly half of all college graduates have passed through a community college at some point in their higher education. This study at a large, ethnically diverse, suburban community college showed that student interest tends to change over the course of a semester, and these changes are related to student, instructor, and course variables. The theoretical framework for this study was based upon Adult Learning Theory and research in motivation to learn science. Adult Learning Theory relies heavily on self-directed learning and concepts of andragogy, or the art and science of teaching adults. This explanatory sequential mixed-methods case study of student course interest utilized quantitative data from 639 pre-and post-surveys and a background and personal experience questionnaire. The four factors of the survey instrument (attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction) were related to motivation and interest by interviewing 12 students selected through maximum variation sampling in order to reach saturation. Qualitative data were collected and categorized by these factors with extrinsic and intrinsic themes emerging from personal and educational experiences. Analysis of covariance showed student characteristics that were significant included age and whether the student already held a post-secondary degree. Significant instructor characteristics included whether the instructor taught full- or part-time, taught high school, held a doctoral degree, and had pedagogical training. Significant course characteristics included whether the biology course was a major, elective, or service course; whether the course had a library assignment; and high attrition rate. The binary logistic regression model showed six significant variables that predicted increased student interest: older students, previous degree holders, students that took courses at night rather than during the daytime, students who were taught by instructors who taught high school, instructors who taught part-time, and students who had a non-STEM major. Methodological triangulation ensured that the research questions were adequately addressed, as qualitative data corroborated and provided insights for quantitative results. These findings imply that interventions such as implementation of professional development, specifically in andragogical training for instructors and support personnel, are necessary in order to properly address the needs of community college students. Policy makers need to ensure that proper academic and financial counseling systems are in place for students enrolled in these science courses. Students were affected by past experiences and required support from others in order to increase their interest and motivation to study science. This study will inform efforts to help community college students persist in the pipeline to join in the STEM workforce or transfer to four-year colleges.

Retention of Information Taught in Introductory Psychology Courses across Different Accelerated Course Formats

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deichert, Nathan T.; Maxwell, Shannon J.; Klotz, Joseph

2016-01-01

The current study is a quasi-experimental examination of the effects of traditional and accelerated course formats on learning retention. The study analyzed data on an end-of-course exam collected from 132 students enrolled in introductory psychology courses across 3 course formats: a traditional 16-week format, a 5-week accelerated format, and an…

Criteria for Using Technology To Teach the Basic Course in Communication.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eadie, William F.; Andersen, Peter A.; Armas-Matsumoto, Catherine M.; Block, Evan; Martin, Patricia Geist; Goehring, Charles; Good, Jeffrey; Hellweg, Susan A.; Knight, Laura L.; Lubic, Bryan; Spitzberg, Brian H.

This paper describes the beginnings of a project to remake the oral communication general education course--part of the vision for the course is to use technology to help students learn course content. According to the paper, currently the basic course is taught mostly in traditional format (relatively small sections with set assignments), with…

Library Instruction for First Year Students Using a CMS Meta-Course: Scalable and Customizable!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Megan

2017-01-01

This case study reports on the process for creating a self-paced non-credit information literacy (IL) course delivered via a university's course management system. The four online modules are designed to contextualize information literacy competencies within the curriculum taught in First Year Seminar (FYS) courses. The meta-course approach…

Online vs. Face-to-Face Course Evaluations: Considerations for Administrators and Faculty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marzano, Michael P.; Allen, Robert

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether students evaluate courses differently, and perhaps more critically, when delivered online vs. face-to-face (F2F). Course evaluations are associated with the instructor that taught the course. Course evaluation continues to be a significant assessment vehicle of faculty performance used by many…

Course Format Effects on Learning Outcomes in an Introductory Statistics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sami, Fary

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine if course format significantly impacted student learning and course completion rates in an introductory statistics course taught at Harford Community College. In addition to the traditional lecture format, the College offers an online, and a hybrid (blend of traditional and online) version of this class.…

Service Courses in Avian Health Taught to Students Pursuing Degrees in Colleges of Agriculture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colwell, W. M.

1977-01-01

Avian health courses for agriculture students cover common types of poultry diseases and techniques for disease prevention and emphasize isolation, sanitation, and immunization. The outline of such a course at North Carolina State University is presented. (LBH)

Strengthening introductory psychology: A new model for teaching the introductory course.

PubMed

Gurung, Regan A R; Hackathorn, Jana; Enns, Carolyn; Frantz, Susan; Cacioppo, John T; Loop, Trudy; Freeman, James E

2016-01-01

Introductory psychology (Intro Psych) is one of the most popular and frequently taught courses on college campuses, yet educators in psychology have limited knowledge about what is covered in classes around the nation or the extent to which class content reflects the current scope of the discipline. There is no explicit model to guide course content selection for the intro course, which poses substantial challenges for instructors. This article proposes a new model for teaching the intro course that integrates (a) scientific foundations, (b) 5 major domains or pillars of knowledge (biological, cognitive, developmental, social and personality, and mental and physical health), and (c) cross-cutting themes relevant to all domains (cultural and social diversity, ethics, variations in human functioning, and applications; American Psychological Association, 2014). We advocate for national assessment of the course, a similar introductory course for majors and nonmajors, the inclusion of experiential or laboratory components, and additional training resources for instructors of the intro course. Given the exponential growth of psychological knowledge and applications during the past decades, we caution against attempting to provide exhaustive coverage of all topic areas of psychology in a one-semester course. We conclude by discussing the challenges that lie ahead for the discipline of psychology as it launches this new model for Intro Psych. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Public Relations Education and the Business Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Donald K.

1982-01-01

Reports on a study to examine what is being taught in U.S. business schools. Found that public relations is not being taught at most of the major schools, although many universities offer public policy courses which cover some elements important to public relations. For journal availability, see CS 705 902. (PD)

Dramatically Improve How and Where Academic Content Is Taught

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hyslop, Alisha

2007-01-01

The fourth recommendation in ACTE's high school reform position statement is to dramatically improve how and where academic content is taught. Even as advanced academic course-taking and high school graduation requirements have increased, student achievement on national benchmarks has remained flat, and college remediation rates continue to…

Can Empathy Be Taught?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Monroe, Kristen Renwick

2006-01-01

Prejudice and discrimination are ugly cousins, haunting humankind like the evil fairy who appears unbidden to curse the young princess. Is education the good fairy, bestowing tools to overcome this curse? A course the author taught in winter 2006 at the University of California, Irvine--one of the most ethnically diverse campuses in the United…

Composite Scheduling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Childers, Gary L.; Ireland, Rebecca Weeks

2005-01-01

In education, there is no one best way to do anything. There are compelling reasons why some courses should be taught in longer segments of time, which the block schedule provides. There are also compelling reasons why some classes should be taught in shorter segments. At Watauga High School in Boone, North Carolina, an alternative schedule that…

Fundamentals of Geophysical Fluid Dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McWilliams, James C.

2006-07-01

Earth's atmosphere and oceans exhibit complex patterns of fluid motion over a vast range of space and time scales. These patterns combine to establish the climate in response to solar radiation that is inhomogeneously absorbed by the materials comprising air, water, and land. Spontaneous, energetic variability arises from instabilities in the planetary-scale circulations, appearing in many different forms such as waves, jets, vortices, boundary layers, and turbulence. Geophysical fluid dynamics (GFD) is the science of all these types of fluid motion. This textbook is a concise and accessible introduction to GFD for intermediate to advanced students of the physics, chemistry, and/or biology of Earth's fluid environment. The book was developed from the author's many years of teaching a first-year graduate course at the University of California, Los Angeles. Readers are expected to be familiar with physics and mathematics at the level of general dynamics (mechanics) and partial differential equations. Covers the essential GFD required for atmospheric science and oceanography courses Mathematically rigorous, concise coverage of basic theory and applications to both oceans and atmospheres Author is a world expert; this book is based on the course he has taught for many years Exercises are included, with solutions available to instructors from solutions@cambridge.org

A Descriptive Profile of Physical Education Teachers and Programs in Atlantic Canada

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Randall, Lynn; Robinson, Daniel Bruce; Fletcher, Tim

2014-01-01

The purpose of this research was to investigate the extent to which quality physical education is currently being taught in Atlantic Canada. We used survey methods to generate descriptive data indicating: (a) the backgrounds of those who teach physical education and (b) what is being taught in physical education. Our findings suggest physical…

Student Perception of Metacognitive Activities in Entry-Level Science Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sandall, Leah; Mamo, Martha; Speth, Carol; Lee, Don; Kettler, Timothy

2014-01-01

A research study investigated student perception of the use of metacognitive activities in the classroom. The courses were large enrollment (n greater than 100) introductory Plant and Soil Sciences courses taught in the fall semester. The courses implemented activities such as concept sketches or conceptual modeling to help students develop their…

Networking Course Syllabus in Accredited Library and Information Science Programs: A Comparative Analysis Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abouserie, Hossam Eldin Mohamed Refaat

2009-01-01

The study investigated networking courses offered in accredited Library and Information Science schools in the United States in 2009. The study analyzed and compared network syllabi according to Course Syllabus Evaluation Rubric to obtain in-depth understanding of basic features and characteristics of networking courses taught. The study embraced…

38 CFR 21.4266 - Approval of courses at a branch campus or extension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... organization; and (iii) Offers courses in education programs leading to a degree, certificate, or other... institution is offering the course may be temporary will not serve to change jurisdictional authority. (3) The... which the course is being taught will not serve to change jurisdictional authority. (Authority: 38 U.S.C...

Incorporation of Modified Basic and Advanced Life Support in the Pharmacy Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Masoud, A. N.; And Others

1978-01-01

Offered as an independent, elective, one-credit course available to second-year pharmacy students, a life support course has been taught at the University of Nebraska Medical Center by instructors certified by the American Heart Association. Course structure and materials, student response, and course evaluation are discussed. (LBH)

Current Status of Undergraduate, Nonprofessional Pharmacology Courses Taught in Colleges of Pharmacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gerald, Michael C.

1976-01-01

Of the 57 colleges of pharmacy surveyed, 33 are currently offering a total of 44 elective, undergraduate, nonprofessional pharmacology courses, and seven contemplate initiating such courses by 1977. The courses generally cover three areas: social and legal aspects of drug usage and nonprescription consumerism; pharmacology of the drugs of abuse;…

38 CFR 21.4266 - Approval of courses at a branch campus or extension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... organization; and (iii) Offers courses in education programs leading to a degree, certificate, or other... institution is offering the course may be temporary will not serve to change jurisdictional authority. (3) The... which the course is being taught will not serve to change jurisdictional authority. (Authority: 38 U.S.C...

Representing Targets of Measurement within Evidence-Centered Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ewing, Maureen; Packman, Sheryl; Hamen, Cynthia; Thurber, Allison Clark

2010-01-01

In the last few years, the Advanced Placement (AP) Program[R] has used evidence-centered assessment design (ECD) to articulate the knowledge, skills, and abilities to be taught in the course and measured on the summative exam for four science courses, three history courses, and six world language courses; its application to calculus and English…

Synchronous Office Hours in an Asynchronous Course: Making the Connection

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gibbons-Kunka, Beatrice

2017-01-01

The notion of synchronous office hours in an asynchronous course seems counterintuitive. After all, one of the tenets of asynchronous education is to not require students to be online and participating at any time during the course. Having taught higher education online asynchronous courses for twenty years, the researcher experimented with online…

Quality Assurance in Large Scale Online Course Production

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holsombach-Ebner, Cinda

2013-01-01

The course design and development process (often referred to here as the "production process") at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU-Worldwide) aims to produce turnkey style courses to be taught by a highly-qualified pool of over 800 instructors. Given the high number of online courses and tremendous number of live sections…

Fostering a positive attitude towards science through college courses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flohic, Helene

2015-01-01

For non-science majors, a general education course in college is often the last science course they will ever take. General education courses are often regarded by students as a right of passage in which they have no interest. Thus strict coursework might aggravate students against the matter taught, and decrease their general interest in the subject. To test whether general education courses killed the students' interest in science, we administered a science attitude inventory at the beginning and at the end of an introductory astronomy course. We compared the gain/loss in science attitude with that experienced by students of a writing course as a baseline. Finally, we evaluated the gain/loss in science attitude for students enrolled in a general education course on science and society, where no formal science knowledge was taught, but where the students discussed the different aspects of the relation between science and society.This study (once tested on a larger scale) could serve as a guideline for educational policies aiming to foster a positive attitude in the population of college graduates.

Understanding Scientific Ideas: An Honors Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Capps, Joan; Schueler, Paul

At Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) in New Jersey, an honors philosophy course was developed which taught mathematics and science concepts independent of computational skill. The course required that students complete a weekly writing assignment designed as a continuous refinement of logical reasoning development. This refinement was…

Develop and teach graduate course on rail terminal design and operations.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-06-02

This project planned and developed the course material for CEE 598 RTD, and taught it as a fullsemester course open to graduate students at UIUC in Fall 2014. Students enrolled in the class participated in lecture-discussion sessions, twice a week fo...

Oleanna Math Program Materials.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coole, Walter A.

This document is a collection of course outlines, syllabi, and test materials designed for several high school level and lower division mathematics courses taught in an auto-tutorial learning laboratory at Skagit Valley College (Washington). The courses included are: Pre-Algebra, Basic Algebra, Plan Geometry, Intermediate Algebra, Probability and…

Finding the Right Fit: Assessing the Impact of Traditional v. Large Lecture/Small Lab Course Formats on a General Education Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wildermuth, Susan M.; French, Tammy; Fredrick, Edward

2013-01-01

This study explores alternative approaches for teaching general education courses burdened with serving extremely large enrollments. It compares the effectiveness of a self-contained course in which each course section is taught by one instructor to a large lecture/small lab format in which all course enrollees attend one large lecture section and…

An evaluation of pharmacology curricula in Australian science and health-related degree programs.

PubMed

Lloyd, Hilary; Hinton, Tina; Bullock, Shane; Babey, Anna-Marie; Davis, Elizabeth; Fernandes, Lynette; Hart, Joanne; Musgrave, Ian; Ziogas, James

2013-11-19

Pharmacology is a biomedical discipline taught in basic science and professional degree programs. In order to provide information that would facilitate pharmacology curricula to be refined and developed, and approaches to teaching to be updated, a national survey was undertaken in Australia that investigated pharmacology course content, teaching and summative assessment methods. Twenty-two institutions participated in a purpose-built online questionnaire, which enabled an evaluation of 147 courses taught in 10 different degrees. To enable comparison, degrees were grouped into four major degree programs, namely science, pharmacy, medicine and nursing. The pharmacology content was then classified into 16 lecture themes, with 2-21 lecture topics identified per theme. The resultant data were analysed for similarities and differences in pharmacology curricula across the degree programs. While all lecture themes were taught across degree programs, curriculum content differed with respect to the breadth and hours of coverage. Overall, lecture themes were taught most broadly in medicine and with greatest coverage in pharmacy. Reflecting a more traditional approach, lectures were a dominant teaching method (at least 90% of courses). Sixty-three percent of science courses provided practical classes but such sessions occurred much less frequently in other degree programs, while tutorials were much more common in pharmacy degree programs (70%). Notably, problem-based learning was common across medical programs. Considerable diversity was found in the types of summative assessment tasks employed. In science courses the most common form of in-semester assessment was practical reports, whereas in other programs pen-and-paper quizzes predominated. End-of-semester assessment contributed 50-80% to overall assessment across degree programs. The similarity in lecture themes taught across the four different degree programs shows that common knowledge- and competency-based learning outcomes can be defined for pharmacology. The authors contend that it is the differences in breadth and coverage of material for each lecture theme, and the differing teaching modes and assessment that characterise particular degree programs. Adoption of pharmacology knowledge-based learning outcomes that could be tailored to suit individual degree programs would better facilitate the sharing of expertise and teaching practice than the current model where pharmacology curricula are degree-specific.

Teaching the Inquiry Process through Experimental Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pudwell, Lara

2017-01-01

In this paper, we discuss the Experimental Mathematics course taught at Valparaiso University since 2009. We focus on aspects of the course that facilitate students' abilities to ask and explore their own research questions.

A collaborative learning approach for service-oriented introductory physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Michael R.

1997-03-01

I have taught algebra-based introductory physics for six years to liberal arts students. It was primarily a service course for students majoring in Athletic Training, Physical Therapy, Geology, Biology, and Pre-Med. The typical student was characterized by having a minimal math and problem-solving proficiency. There also was a pattern of students being predisposed to memorizing facts and formulas, and attempting to solve problems by finding the correct formula and "plugging in" numbers to get an answer. The students seemed to have a minimal ability in deductive reasoning and problem solving, starting from basic principles. It is no wonder that they entered the introductory physics service course with extreme trepidation, based upon a strongly perceived physics phobia. A standard lecture format was used for the class size of approximately 25-30 students; and an attempt was always made to engage the students through the Socratic approach, by asking leading questions during the course of the lecture. The students were relatively unprepared and couldn't participate in the class, and often responded antagonistically. They indicated they didn't want to be asked to think about an issue, but would rather just be told the facts so they could take specific notes for subsequent memorization. It was clear from the results of the open book exams given during the semester that the majority of students could not approach problem solving using deductive reasoning based on basic principles, but relied on attempting to force-fit the problem into a worked example in the text (often out of context, with illogical results). The absentee rate in the classroom was usually around 30-40%. The academic administration of my liberal arts university has the policy of formal course evaluations by the students at the end of each semester. The evaluation questionnaire appears to be primarily a measurement of the stress level of the student during the course, and the evaluation score I received for the service physics course was typically on the order of 3 out of a possible 5; a score considered unsatisfactory by the administration.

SU-E-E-03: Shared Space Fosters Didactic and Professional Learning Across Professions for Medical and Physics Residents

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

Dieterich, S; Perks, J; Fragoso, R

Purpose: Medical Physicists and Radiation Oncologists are two professions who should be working as a team for optimal patient care, yet lack of mutual understanding about each others respective role and work environment creates barriers To improve collaboration and learning, we designed a shared didactic and work space for physics and radiation oncology residents to maximize interaction throughout their professional training. Methods: Physician and Physics residents are required to take the same didactic classes, including journal clubs and respective seminars. The residents also share an office environment among the seven physician and two physic residents. Results: By maximizing didactic overlapmore » and sharing office space, the two resident groups have developed a close professional relationship and supportive work environment. Several joint research projects have been initiated by the residents. Awareness of physics tasks in the clinic has led to a request by the physician residents to change physics didactics, converting the physics short course into a lab-oriented course for the medical residents which is in part taught by the physics residents. The physics seminar is given by both residency groups; increased motivation and interest in learning about physics has led to several medical resident-initiated topic selections which generated lively discussion. The physics long course has changed toward including more discussion among residents to delve deeper into topics and study beyond what passing the boards would require. A supportive work environment has developed, embedding the two physics residents into a larger residents group, allowing them to find mentor and peers more easily. Conclusion: By creating a shared work and didactic environment, physician and physics residents have improved their understanding of respective professional practice. Resident-initiated changes in didactic practice have led to improved learning and joint research. A strong social support system has developed, embedding physics residents into a larger peer group.« less

Assessing Online Faculty: More than Student Surveys and Design Rubrics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piña, Anthony A.; Bohn, Larry

2014-01-01

As online education continues to grow, so do the number of online courses being taught by those who did not develop the courses. However, the most popular rubrics for evaluating the quality of online courses tend to focus upon the course's design, not upon the actions of the instructor teaching the course. In this study, 140 distance education…

Implementation and outcomes of inquiry-based learning in mathematics content courses for pre-service teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laursen, Sandra L.; Hassi, Marja-Liisa; Hough, Sarah

2016-02-01

This mixed-methods study describes classroom characteristics and student outcomes from university mathematics courses that are based in mathematics departments, targeted to future pre-tertiary teachers, and taught with inquiry-based learning (IBL) approaches. The study focused on three two-term sequences taught at two research universities, separately targeting elementary and secondary pre-service teachers. Classroom observation established that the courses were taught with student-centred methods that were comparable to those used in IBL courses for students in mathematics-intensive fields at the same institutions. To measure pre-service teachers' gains in mathematical knowledge for teaching, we administered the Learning Mathematics for Teaching (LMT) instrument developed by Hill, Ball and Schilling for in-service teacher professional development. Results from the LMT show that pre-service teachers made significant score gains from beginning to end of their course, while data from interviews and from surveys of learning gains show that pre-service teachers viewed their gains as relevant to their future teaching work. Measured changes on pre-/post-surveys of attitudes and beliefs were generally supportive of learning mathematics but modest in magnitude. The study is distinctive in applying the LMT to document pre-service teachers' growth in mathematical knowledge for teaching. The study also suggests IBL is an approach well suited to mathematics departments seeking to strengthen their pre-service teacher preparation offerings in ways consistent with research-based recommendations.

Rosetta Mission's "7 Hours of Terror" and Philae's Descent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blanco, Philip

2015-09-01

In November 2014 the Rosetta mission to Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko made the headlines when its Philae lander completed a successful unpowered descent onto the surface of the comet nucleus after "7 hours of terror" for the mission scientists. 67P's irregular shape and rotation made this task even more challenging. Philae fell almost radially towards 67P, as shown in an animation produced by the European Space Agency (ESA) prior to the event. Below, we investigate whether it is possible to model the spacecraft's descent time and impact speed using concepts taught in an introductory physics course.

The Dürrenmatt's ``Physicists'' as a Tool in Understanding the Ethics of Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kapor, Darko

2007-04-01

Part of the course of the History of Physics taught by the author is dedicated to the ethics of science, in particular to moral responsibility of the scientist towards society. In order to make the subject more interesting to the students, the first step is reading the play ``Physicists'' by Friedrich Dürrenmatt (1962). The students are then asked to relate some of the events connected to the nuclear studies before and during the World War II and armaments race with some situations in the play or the author's theses related to it.

Children's Physical Activity, Health and Physical Education in Isolated Rural Contexts: The Views of Parent Educators in Queensland.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rossi, Tony; Wright, Jan

2002-01-01

A study of rural Queensland (Australia) parents' views of their children's involvement in physical activity interviewed parents who taught their children at home using distance education. Physical activity was encouraged, but not formally taught; health was linked more to nutrition than exercise; and lack of participation in team games was…

Role of Pre-Course Student Characteristics on Student Learning in Interactive Teaching Environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Kelly Anne

The goal of this dissertation is to broaden our understanding of interactive teaching strategies, in the context of the introductory physics classroom at the undergraduate level. The dissertation is divided into four main projects, each of which investigates a specific aspect of teaching physics interactively. All four projects look towards improving the effectiveness of interactive teaching by understanding how pre-course student characteristics affect the way students learn interactively. We first discuss lecture demonstrations in the context of an interactive classroom using Peer Instruction. We study the role of predictions in conceptual learning. We examine how students' predictions affect what they report having seen during a demonstration. We also examine how student predictions affect what they recall as the outcome of the demonstration at the end of the semester. We then analyze student response patterns to conceptual questions posed during Peer Instruction. We look at the relationship between a student's tendency to switch their answer and pre-course student characteristics like science self-efficacy. Next we elucidate response timing to conceptual questions posed over the course of the semester, in two introductory physics classes taught using Peer Instruction. We look at the relationship between student response times and student characteristics like pre-course physics knowledge, science self-efficacy and gender. We study response times as a way of gaining insight into students thinking in Peer Instruction environments as well as to improve the implementation of Peer Instruction. Finally, we present work on the role of NB, an online collaborative textbook annotation tool, in a flipped, project based, physics class. We analyze the relationship between students' level of online engagement and traditional learning metrics to understand the effectiveness of NB in the context of flipped classrooms. We also report the results of experiments conducted to explore ways to steer discussion forums to produce high-quality learning interactions.

The Prison Project: A Proposed Model for a Clinical Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Macey, Nora Lafley; And Others

1977-01-01

During the 1973-74 school year 10 law students taught a course in criminal law and prisoners' rights to interested inmates at the Indiana Women's Prison. Experiences of the Prison Project are described and its feasibility as a clinical course with credit is suggested. (LBH)

An Honors Interdisciplinary Community-Based Research Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dunbar, David; Terlecki, Melissa; Watterson, Nancy; Ratmansky, Lisa

2013-01-01

This article describes how two faculty members at Cabrini College--one from biology and the other from psychology--incorporated interdisciplinary community-based research in an honors course on environmental watershed issues. The course, Environmental Psychology, was team-taught in partnership with a local watershed organization, the Valley Creek…

Integrating First-Year Technology and Finite Mathematics Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shafii-Mousavi, Morteza; Kochanowski, Paul

2006-01-01

This paper describes an interdisciplinary project-based mathematics course linked to a computer technology course. The linkage encourages an appreciation of mathematics and technology as students see an immediate use for these skills in completing actual real-world projects. Linking mathematics and technology integrates subjects taught in…

Design of a Dynamic Undergraduate Green Chemistry Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Sarah A.

2016-01-01

The green chemistry course taught at Westminster College (PA) incorporates nontraditional teaching techniques and texts to educate future chemists about the importance of using green chemistry principles. The course is designed to introduce green chemistry concepts and demonstrate their inherent necessity by discussing historical missteps by the…

Teaching Discrete Mathematics Entirely from Primary Historical Sources

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barnett, Janet Heine; Bezhanishvili, Guram; Lodder, Jerry; Pengelley, David

2016-01-01

We describe teaching an introductory discrete mathematics course entirely from student projects based on primary historical sources. We present case studies of four projects that cover the content of a one-semester course, and mention various other courses that we have taught with primary source projects.

Pitfalls and Successes of Developing an Interdisciplinary Watershed Field Science Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pearce, Andrea R.; Bierman, Paul R.; Druschel, Gregory K.; Massey, Christine; Rizzo, Donna M.; Watzin, Mary C.; Wemple, Beverly C.

2010-01-01

At the University of Vermont, an interdisciplinary faculty team developed an introductory watershed science field course. This course honed field skills and catalyzed communication across water-related disciplines without requiring specific prerequisites. Five faculty (geology, engineering, geography, natural resources) taught the four-credit…

Web-Based Instruction: Business Courses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park-Kim, Kwi

This paper describes the design, implementation, and application of interactive World Wide Web-based learning, based on several business courses taught at Bronx Community College/The City University of New York. The first section summarizes ways the Web was used, including managing the dissemination of course materials, instructor/student…

Teaching Improvisation and the Pedagogical History of the Jimmy Giuffre 3

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnston, Peter

2013-01-01

Improvisation pedagogy has presented a challenge to music educators since jazz courses began being offered in North American universities in the 1950s, a development which has raised important pedagogical questions ranging from 'Can improvisation be taught?' to "Should it be taught?" Following on the increase in academic…

Sage on the Stage: Is Lecturing Really All that Bad?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwerdt, Guido; Wuppermann, Amelie C.

2011-01-01

In recent years, a consensus has emerged among researchers that teacher quality matters enormously for student performance. Students taught by more-effective teachers learn substantially more over the course of the year than students taught by less-effective teachers. Yet little is known about what makes for a more-effective teacher. Most research…

Teaching Univariate Measures of Location-Using Loss Functions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paolino, Jon-Paul

2018-01-01

This article presents a new method for introductory teaching of the sample mean, median and mode(s) from a univariate dataset. These basic statistical concepts are taught at various levels of education from elementary school curriculums to courses at the tertiary level. These descriptive measures of location can be taught as optimized solutions to…

The Questions We Care about: Paradigms and Progression in Entrepreneurship Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blenker, Per; Korsgaard, Steffen; Neergaard, Helle; Thrane, Claus

2011-01-01

One of the most frequently discussed topics in the entrepreneurship education literature is current practice in entrepreneurship education with regard to what is taught and how it is taught. The literature on entrepreneurship education is replete with statistics and reviews of entrepreneurship courses and programmes. In this paper, the authors…

Professional Development Supports for the Blended, Co-Taught Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewis, Somer; Garrett Dikkers, Amy

2016-01-01

This qualitative study used survey research to examine a blended co-taught model of instruction designed for students enrolled in an Occupational Course of Study via the North Carolina Virtual Public School. While blended learning has successfully served the needs of students with disabilities, face-to-face and virtual teachers identify the need…

Original Recipes for Matrix Multiplication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hallman-Thrasher, Allyson; Litchfield, Erin T.; Dael, Kevin E.

2016-01-01

Matrices occupy an awkward spot in a typical algebra 2 textbook: sandwiched between solving linear systems and solving quadratics. Even teachers who do not base their course timeline and pacing on the class textbook may find a disconnect between how matrices are taught (procedurally) and how other topics are taught (conceptually or with real-world…

Digitally Mastered? Technology and Transition in the Experience of Taught Postgraduate Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Masterman, Elizabeth; Shuyska, Jane Alexen

2012-01-01

Taught Master's students have been largely overlooked in research into learners' engagement with digital technologies. This article reports work to redress this imbalance, in which an extended email correspondence was conducted with 23 Master's students. Specifically, it investigates (1) the extent to which these students start their courses both…

CALL and Less Commonly Taught Languages--Still a Way to Go

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ward, Monica

2016-01-01

Many Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) innovations mainly apply to the Most Commonly Taught Languages (MCTLs), especially English. Recent manifestations of CALL for MCTLs such as corpora, Mobile Assisted Language Learning (MALL) and Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are found less frequently in the world of Less Commonly Taught…

Teaching "The Nuclear Predicament."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carman, Philip; Kneeshaw, Stephen

1987-01-01

Contends that courses on nuclear war must help students examine the political, social, religious, philosophical, economic, and moral assumptions which characterized the dilemma of nuclear armament/disarmament. Describes the upper level undergraduate course taught by the authors. (JDH)

The Cost and Efficiency of Self-Paced Education: An Experiment with Keller PSI in Mechanics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blair, Philip

1977-01-01

Reports cost and academic achievement differences between a traditional course and a Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) fluid mechanics course taught at San Jose State University. The PSI course cost 7.3 percent more than the lecture course; grades were 48 percent higher on a 4 point maximum scale. (SL)

Managing Diversity: A Cooperative Course in Foreign Languages and Business.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sampsell, Martha; Thompson, Earl

This very brief paper is a description of a business course, "Business 350 Managing Diversity," at Elmhurst College in Illinois. The course is taught in an intensive 6-day, 42-hour format. The underlying philosophy of the course is that one becomes more open to the diversity of others by better understanding the diversity within oneself.…

Four Courses within a Discipline: UGA Unified Core

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Powell, Gwynn M.; Johnson, Corey W.; James, Joy; Dunlap, Rudy

2013-01-01

This article introduces the reader to the Unified Core Curriculum model developed and implemented at the University of Georgia (UGA). Four courses are taught as one course to the juniors coming into the Recreation and Leisure Studies major. An overview of the blended course and sample assignments are provided, as well as a discussion of challenges…

Designing and Implementing ESP Courses in French Higher Education: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Birch-Bécaas, Susan; Hoskins, Laüra

2017-01-01

This chapter reports on the design, implementation and evaluation of an English for Specific Purposes (ESP) course for dental students at the University of Bordeaux. We give an overview of the "English for Dental Studies" courses taught from second year through to fifth year before focussing on the fifth year course in which the…

An Examination of the Outcomes of a Distance-Delivered Science Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schoenfeld-Tacher, Regina; McConnell, Sherry

A comparative study was conducted to examine the effects of distance delivery on student performance in a science course. Academic outcomes and interactions were compared among students (n=44) enrolled in two sections of an upper level histology course taught over the course of a single semester by the same instructor. Eleven students took the…

Preparing Teachers of Statistics: A Graduate Course for Future Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garfield, Joan; Everson, Michelle

2009-01-01

This paper describes a unique graduate-level course that prepares teachers of introductory statistics at the college and high school levels. The course was developed as part of a graduate degree program in statistics education. Although originally taught in a face-to-face setting, the class has been converted to an online course to be accessible…

ERIC Review: The Scope and Transferability of Occupational Courses in the Two-Year College.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cohen, Arthur M.; Ignash, Jan M.

1993-01-01

Describes study that sought to find the ratio of liberal arts to nonliberal arts courses taught in the nation's community colleges; the extent to which the curriculum is devoted to nonliberal arts; the number of transferable nonliberal arts courses; and the variability of transfer of these courses. Considers the transferability of nonliberal arts…

A Project-Based Cornerstone Course in Civil Engineering: Student Perceptions and Identity Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marshall, Jill; Bhasin, Amit; Boyles, Stephen; David, Bernard; James, Rachel; Patrick, Anita

2018-01-01

Our study used a natural experiment to compare a project-based cornerstone course with the traditionally-taught introductory course in civil engineering. During the study, two sections of the course were organized around an overarching project, the design of an event center, and the remaining sections used guest lectures, a textbook, and…

Lecture Videos in Online Courses: A Follow-Up

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Heather K.; Cordova, Victoria

2015-01-01

In a recent study regarding online lecture videos, Evans (2014) shows that lecture videos are not superior to still slides. Using two Introduction to American Government courses, taught in a 4-week summer session, she shows that students in a non-video course had higher satisfaction with the course and instructor and performed better on exams than…

The Design and Implementation of a Career Orientation Course for Undergraduate Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freeman, Edward

2012-01-01

Over the past several years I have taught a career orientation course at St. John Fisher College. This course was designed to increase student awareness of potential careers following their undergraduate studies in our Biology program. Additionally, the course has also been used as a model for similar experiences in our Psychology, Chemistry,…

Extra Credit Micro-Incentives and Response Rates for Online Course Evaluations: Two Quasi-Experiments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sundstrom, Eric D.; Hardin, Erin E.; Shaffer, Matthew J.

2016-01-01

To extend prior findings on the motivational value of tiny, nonfinancial incentives, we conducted two quasi-experiments on the relationship of extra credit micro-incentives (ECMIs, worth =1% of course grade) and response rates for online course evaluations. Study 1 involved two advanced undergraduate psychology courses taught by the same…

Music and the mind: a new interdisciplinary course on the science of musical experience.

PubMed

Prichard, J Roxanne; Cornett-Murtada, Vanessa

2011-01-01

In this paper the instructors describe a new team-taught transdisciplinary seminar, "Music and Mind: The Science of Musical Experience." The instructors, with backgrounds in music and neuroscience, valued the interdisciplinary approach as a way to capture student interest and to reflect the inherent interconnectivity of neuroscience. The course covered foundational background information about the science of hearing and musical perception and about the phenomenology of musical creation and experience. This two-credit honors course, which attracted students from eleven majors, integrated experiential learning (active listening, journaling, conducting mini-experiments) with rigorous reflection and discussion of academic research. The course culminated in student-led discussions and presentations of final projects around hot topics in the science of music, such as the 'Mozart Effect,' music and religious experience, etc. Although this course was a two-credit seminar, it could easily be expanded to a four-credit lecture or laboratory course. Student evaluations reveal that the course was successful in meeting the learning objectives, that students were intrinsically motivated to learn more about the discipline, and that the team-taught, experiential learning approach was a success.

A survey of physical examination skills taught in undergraduate nursing programs: are we teaching too much?

PubMed

Giddens, Jean Foret; Eddy, Linda

2009-01-01

Because content saturation is a growing concern, as reflected in the nursing literature, the content taught in undergraduate nursing curricula should be critically examined. The purpose of this descriptive cross-sectional research was to determine and analyze the physical assessment content currently taught in undergraduate nursing programs. A total of 198 individuals teaching in undergraduate nursing programs completed a Web-based survey. Of the 122 skills included on the survey, 81% were reportedly being taught in most of the nursing programs. Total scores for 18 systems-based assessment categories were significantly different among associate and baccalaureate nursing programs in all but three categories: assessment of integument, breast, and female genitals. Previous research has shown that nurses use less than 25% of these same skills regularly in clinical practice, regardless of their educational preparation. Findings from this research raise questions about the breadth to which physical examination content should be taught in undergraduate nursing education.

Bridging the Gap: Embedding Communication Courses in the Science Undergraduate Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jandciu, Eric; Stewart, Jaclyn J.; Stoodley, Robin; Birol, Gülnur; Han, Andrea; Fox, Joanne A.

2015-01-01

The authors describe a model for embedding science communication into the science curriculum without displacing science content. They describe the rationale, development, design, and implementation of two courses taught by science faculty addressing these criteria. They also outline the evaluation plan for these courses, which emphasize broad…

Green Chemistry and Sustainability: An Undergraduate Course for Science and Nonscience Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gross, Erin M.

2013-01-01

An undergraduate lecture course in Green Chemistry and Sustainability has been developed and taught to a "multidisciplinary" group of science and nonscience majors. The course introduced students to the topics of green chemistry and sustainability and also immersed them in usage of the scientific literature. Through literature…

Building Industries Occupations: Syllabus.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New York State Education Dept., Albany. Bureau of Secondary Curriculum Development.

The Building Industries Occupations course is a two-year program of approximately 160 three-period teaching days per year. The required course content is designed to be effectively taught in 80 percent of the total course time, thus allowing 20 percent of the time for instruction adapted to such local conditions as employment prospects, student…

Teaching an Introductory Statistics Course with CyberStats, an Electronic Textbook

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Symanzik, Jurgen; Vukasinovic, Natascha

2006-01-01

In the Fall 2001 semester, we taught a "Web-enhanced" version of the undergraduate course "Statistical Methods" ("STAT 2000") at Utah State University. The course used the electronic textbook CyberStats in addition to "face-to-face" teaching. This paper gives insight in our experiences in teaching this…

Law, Justice, and Legal History: The Textbook Problem.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Behlar, Patricia A.

1991-01-01

Discusses the increasing availability of law, justice, and legal history as a first-year college course. Explains that the course is an interdisciplinary one, mostly taught by political scientists, sociologists, historians, and lawyers. Reviews available college and law school textbooks that could be used in the course. (SG)

The Humanities and Foreign Languages: Analogous or Anomalous?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dease, Barbara C.

1982-01-01

Optional interdisciplinary courses taught by foreign language teachers to college sophomores are described. The courses are English Word Power, Classical Mythology, Afro-French Literature in Translation, and two courses in law in literature. The emphasis was on integrating a humanities concept with a foreign language-foreign culture orientation.…

How We Teach Introductory Bible Courses: A Comparative and Historical Sampling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cornell, Collin; LeMon, Joel M.

2016-01-01

This study identifies the dominant modes of biblical interpretation being taught in introductory Bible courses through a qualitative analysis of course syllabi from three institutional contexts: evangelical Christian colleges, private colleges, and public universities. Despite a proliferation of methods and scholarly approaches to the Bible, this…

How to Use Case Analysis as an Entire Semester Course in Aviation

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1996-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the use of the case analysis method as an entire semester course in aviation. The author taught a sixteen week course entitled Case Analysis in Aviation at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO). This paper ...

Brokering Disciplinary Writing: TAs and the Teaching of Writing across the Disciplines

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winzenried, Misty Anne

2016-01-01

Graduate teaching assistants (TAs) and the general education yet discipline-specific courses they often teach occupy a complex peripheral position in the university. This qualitative comparative case study investigated disciplinary TAs' identities and pedagogical strategies as they taught writing courses linked with disciplinary lecture courses at…

Service Learning Projects in Online Courses: Delivery Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hervani, Aref Agahei; Helms, Marilyn M.; Rutti, Raina M.; LaBonte, Joanne; Sarkarat, Sy

2015-01-01

As more college courses are taught online, maintaining course deliverables and learning to mirror face-to-face offerings is important to faculty, students, and accrediting agencies. Offering experiential and service learning is an increasingly important way to connect students to their local communities. This article presents a case study…

Online Course Effectiveness: A Model for Innovative Research in Counselor Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cicco, Gina

2013-01-01

This article will discuss the need for experimental research to document the effectiveness of online counseling skills courses. There are relatively few published studies that have investigated faculty and student performance outcomes when counseling skills and techniques courses are taught through a completely online modality. Various studies…

Developing a Biostatistical Collaboration Course in a Health Science Research Methodology Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thabane, Lehana; Walter, Stephen D.; Hanna, Steven; Goldsmith, Charles H.; Pullenayegum, Eleanor

2008-01-01

Effective statistical collaboration in a multidisciplinary health research environment requires skills not taught in the usual statistics courses. Graduates often learn such collaborative skills through trial and error. In this paper, we discuss the development of a biostatistical collaboration course aimed at graduate students in a Health…

Mathematics. Arkansas Public School Course Content Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arkansas State Dept. of Education, Little Rock.

The standards for accreditation of public schools, adopted by the Arkansas State Board of Education, required the development of these course content guides. The standards also required that essential skills be identified for each course taught in the public schools of Arkansas. Committees of classroom teachers, curriculum specialists, principals,…

A Course on Plasma Processing in Integrated Circuit Fabrication.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sawin, Herbert H.; Reif, Rafael

1983-01-01

Describes a course, taught jointly by electrical/chemical engineering departments at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, designed to teach the fundamental science of plasma processing as well as to give an overview of the present state of industrial processes. Provides rationale for course development, texts used, class composition, and…

Two Undergraduate Process Modeling Courses Taught Using Inductive Learning Methods

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Soroush, Masoud; Weinberger, Charles B.

2010-01-01

This manuscript presents a successful application of inductive learning in process modeling. It describes two process modeling courses that use inductive learning methods such as inquiry learning and problem-based learning, among others. The courses include a novel collection of multi-disciplinary complementary process modeling examples. They were…

Teaching a Course about the Space Telescope.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Page, Thornton

1983-01-01

"Astronomy with the Space Telescope" is a course designed to show scientists/engineers how this instrument can make important advances in astrophysics, planetology, and geophysics. A description of the course (taught to 11 students working for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and sample student paper on black holes are…

Mathematics in Literature and Cinema: An Interdisciplinary Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chabrán, H. Rafael; Kozek, Mark

2016-01-01

We describe our team-taught, interdisciplinary course "Numb3rs in Lett3rs & Fi1ms: Mathematics in Literature and Cinema," which explores mathematics in the context of modern literature and cinema. Our goal with this course is to advance collaborations between mathematics and the written/theatre-based creative arts.

Interactive Learning System "VisMis" for Scientific Visualization Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhu, Xiaoming; Sun, Bo; Luo, Yanlin

2018-01-01

Now visualization courses have been taught at universities around the world. Keeping students motivated and actively engaged in this course can be a challenging task. In this paper we introduce our developed interactive learning system called VisMis (Visualization and Multi-modal Interaction System) for postgraduate scientific visualization course…

A Self-Paced Introductory Programming Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gill, T. Grandon; Holton, Carolyn F.

2006-01-01

In this paper, a required introductory programming course being taught to MIS undergraduates using the C++ programming language is described. Two factors make the objectives of the course--which are to provide students with an exposure to the logical organization of the computer in addition to teaching them basic programming logic--particularly…

Lehigh Design Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grassi, Vincent G.; Luyben, William L.; Silebi, Cesar A.

2011-01-01

This paper discusses a two-semester senior design course that combines traditional steady-state economic process design with dynamic plantwide control. This unique course has been taught at Lehigh for more than a decade and has garnered rave reviews from students, industry, and ABET. Each student design group has its own industrial consultant who…

Asynchronous Discourse in a Web-Assisted Mathematics Education Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Zhongxiao

2009-01-01

Fall term of 2006, a web-assisted undergraduate mathematics course was taught at the University of Idaho: Math 235 Mathematics for Elementary Teachers I. The course goals were: To foster a deep understanding of critical mathematical content; and to promote the development of mathematical communication and collaboration concepts, skills, and…

Teaching Criticism via TV Evangelists.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Handford, Charlene J.

This paper describes a graduate course at Louisiana State University in Shreveport, entitled "The Electronic Church, with an Emphasis on Its Evangelists." The paper addresses some of the ways in which criticism is taught via the television evangelists. Following a mini-course in speech analysis, the course focuses on the various aspects…

Introducing Islamic Civilization: Course Syllabus.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Reuben W., Ed.

The syllabus reflects a course in Islamic civilization taught at the University of Chicago and includes the recommendations of participants at a conference on the problems of presenting such a course. The "civilization approach" offers a panoramic view of various related fields, affords a perspective on the problems of analyzing changes over time,…

The Impact of Collaboration, Empowerment, and Choice: An Empirical Examination of the Collaborative Course Development Method

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aiken, K. Damon; Heinze, Timothy C.; Meuter, Matthew L.; Chapman, Kenneth J.

2017-01-01

This research empirically tests collaborative course development (CCD)-a pedagogy presented in the 2016 "Marketing Education Review Special Issue on Teaching Innovations". A team of researchers taught experimental courses using CCD methods (employing various techniques including syllabus building, "flex-tures," free-choice…

Enhancing Motivation in Online Courses with Mobile Communication Tool Support: A Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chaiprasurt, Chantorn; Esichaikul, Vatcharaporn

2013-01-01

Mobile technologies have helped establish new channels of communication among learners and instructors, potentially providing greater access to course information, and promoting easier access to course activities and learner motivation in online learning environments. The paper compares motivation between groups of learners being taught through an…

Teaching Continuum Mechanics in a Mechanical Engineering Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Yucheng

2011-01-01

This paper introduces a graduate course, continuum mechanics, which is designed for and taught to graduate students in a Mechanical Engineering (ME) program. The significance of continuum mechanics in engineering education is demonstrated and the course structure is described. Methods used in teaching this course such as topics, class…

Blogging in the Communication Technology Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Platt, Carrie Anne

2011-01-01

This article describes an assignment that was developed for an undergraduate course on communication technologies taught at a public university in the Upper Midwest. The course focuses on the impact of new media technologies on traditional media industries and contemporary culture, and is taken by students majoring in journalism, public relations,…

Integrated Humanities: A Participatory Course for a Multi-Cultural Environment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Timothy R.

A course description and syllabus are provided for "Integrated Humanities," a general education course taught at Northern New Mexico Community College to provide students with a solid, reliable knowledge base and framework upon which to build future educational experiences. Following introductory material, a syllabus for students is…

The Impact of Presentation Graphics on Students' Experience in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Apperson, Jennifer M.; Laws, Eric L.; Scepansky, James A.

2006-01-01

To investigate the benefits and perceived effectiveness of instructional technology, students enrolled in several courses were compared on student evaluations of instruction, grades and an attitudinal questionnaire. The instructors of the courses taught the same course across two successive semesters, using traditional "chalk-and-talk" methods the…

Teaching Business Simulation Games: Comparing Achievements Frontal Teaching vs. eLearning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bregman, David; Keinan, Gila; Korman, Arik; Raanan, Yossi

This paper addresses the issue of comparing results achieved by students taught the same course but in two drastically different - a regular, frontal method and an eLearning method. The subject taught required intensive communications among the students, thus making the eLearning students, a priori, less likely to do well in it. The research, comparing the achievements of students in a business simulation game over three semesters, shows that the use of eLearning method did not result in any differences in performance, grades or cooperation, thus strengthening the case for using eLearning in this type of course.

XIII Modave Summer School in Mathematical Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2017-09-01

The Modave Summer School on Mathematical Physics is a yearly summer school in topics of theoretical physics. Various topics ranging from quantum gravity and cosmology to theoretical particle physics and string theory. The school takes place in Modave, a charming village in the Belgian Ardennes close to Huy. Modave School is organised by PhD students for PhD students, and this makes it rather unique. The courses are taught by Post-Docs or late PhD students, and they are all made of pedagogical, basic blackboard lectures about recent topics in theoretical physics. Participants and lecturers eat and sleep in the same place where the lectures are given. The absence of senior members, and the fact of spending day and night together in an isolated, peaceful place contribute to creating an informal atmosphere and facilitating interactions. Lectures of the thirteenth edition are centered around the following subjects: bulk reconstruction in AdS/CFT, twistor theory, AdS_2/CFT_1 and SYK, geometry and topology, and asymptotic charges.

Teaching a Hypothesis-driven Physical Diagnosis Curriculum to Pulmonary Fellows Improves Performance of First-Year Medical Students

PubMed Central

Saghafi, Ramin; Kempker, Jordan A.; Schulman, David A.

2016-01-01

Rationale: Hypothesis-driven physical examination emphasizes the role of bedside examination in the refinement of differential diagnoses and improves diagnostic acumen. This approach has not yet been investigated as a tool to improve the ability of higher-level trainees to teach medical students. Objectives: To assess the effect of teaching hypothesis-driven physical diagnosis to pulmonary fellows on their ability to improve the pulmonary examination skills of first-year medical students. Methods: Fellows and students were assessed on teaching and diagnostic skills by self-rating on a Likert scale. One group of fellows received the hypothesis-driven teaching curriculum (the “intervention” group) and another received instruction on head-to-toe examination. Both groups subsequently taught physical diagnosis to a group of first-year medical students. An oral examination was administered to all students after completion of the course. Measurements and Main Results: Fellows were comfortable teaching physical diagnosis to students. Students in both groups reported a lack of comfort with the pulmonary examination at the beginning of the course and improvement in their comfort by the end. Students trained by intervention group fellows outperformed students trained by control group fellows in the interpretation of physical findings (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Teaching hypothesis-driven physical examination to higher-level trainees who teach medical students improves the ability of students to interpret physical findings. This benefit should be confirmed using validated testing tools. PMID:26730644

A Comparison of Final Grades in Courses When Faculty Concurrently Taught the Same Course to Campus-Based and Distance Education Students: Winter Term 1997.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacFarland, Thomas W.

This study examined differences in final course grades for campus-based and distance education students at Nova Southeastern University (Florida). Data on over 26,000 course grades for winter term 1997 were obtained from university records. It was found that students enrolled in courses offered through distance education received a significantly…

How to Mutually Advance General Education and Major-Based Education: A Grounded Theory Study on the Course Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fang, Hualiang

2018-01-01

The author employs grounded theory to investigate the teaching process of an interdisciplinary general education course at A University as a case. The author finds that under the condition of rather concrete relations between the subject of a major-based course and that of an elected general education course, if the major course is taught with a…

Experiences Teaching a Software Aided Mathematics Course for a General University Audience.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGivney, Raymond J., Jr.

1990-01-01

Described is a nonmajor mathematics course taught using computers and lab experiments. Included are the challenge, solution, description of the first class, problems, successes, the syllabus, student comments, and the conclusion. (KR)

Field Ecology Studies in the Rocky Mountains.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robertson, Philip A.

1978-01-01

Describes a six-week field plant ecology course in Montana which is offered by the Botany Department at Southern Illinois University. The goals of the course, how it is taught, and student evaluation are also presented. (HM)

Improving Discussion in Astronomy Courses Taught Online

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Troischt, Parker

2017-06-01

Astronomy courses that are either hybrid in nature or offered in a completely online format are becoming more common at colleges and universities. In particular, faculty members at small colleges are being encouraged to develop courses that can be taught online in order to give students increased flexibility in scheduling classes and reach a separate population of learners. For instructors accustomed to teaching students in person using plenty of interaction, making the switch to teaching even one online course a year can be challenging. However, some topics are developing so rapidly (exoplanets) that it is difficult to imagine having students rely on a standard textbook at all, and the use of online resources become essential. Here, we describe methods used to promote discussion, evaluate its content and effectively incorporate the use of recently released articles in order to keep students engaged. We present efforts to produce a lively classroom atmosphere centered on recent advances and several debated topics. Lastly, we report on successes, challenges and plans for improving online courses in the future.

Former Students' Feedback on a Liberal Arts Undergraduate Course in Entrepreneurship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Egge, Karl A.

2006-01-01

We present initial and preliminary results from a questionnaire survey in early 2005 of former students who took the only entrepreneurship class taught once/year at Macalester College. The objective was to elicit their opinions of what should be taught, the importance of alternative classroom pedagogies, and judgments on how to evaluate student…

Teaching Project-Based Assessment in 12 Days in a Developing Country

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hargis, Jace

2007-01-01

Through a partnership between the University of North Florida (UNF) and the University of Belize (UB), faculty members from UNF taught a graduate course on Assessment and Measurement at UB to train in-service teachers and principals in the area of educational leadership. Two classes totalling 71 graduate students were taught during a three-week…

Teaching International Business across Multiple Modes of Delivery: How to Maintain Equivalence in Learning Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Drew, Antony

2014-01-01

The drivers of globalization are changing how, where, and when international business (IB) is being taught, and increasing student diversity. Concomitantly, education is becoming an important contributor to GDP in developed economies. Today, the same course may be taught at home to domestic and in-bound international students, in host countries,…

The Degrees of Freedom Concept--Extending the Domain

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Biernacki, J. J.

2016-01-01

The degrees of freedom (DOF) concept is a powerful tool that has been taught since at least the '70s in undergraduate curriculum, typically introduced in the context of a first course on material and energy balances. The concept, however, has not been widely applied beyond the material balance domain and in general is not taught as a unified…

Active versus Passive Teaching Styles: An Empirical Study of Student Learning Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Michel, Norbert; Cater, John James, III; Varela, Otmar

2009-01-01

This study compares the impact of an active teaching approach and a traditional (or passive) teaching style on student cognitive outcomes. Across two sections of an introductory business course, one class was taught in an active or nontraditional manner, with a variety of active learning exercises. The second class was taught in a passive or…

Changing the Public's Attitude Toward Braille: A Grassroots Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wells-Jensen, Sheri; Wells-Jensen, Jason; Belknap, Gabrielle

2005-01-01

This study addressed the effect of casual exposure to braille on the attitudes toward blindness and the use of braille of three groups of sighted university students: students in two sections of a general linguistics course for language arts teachers, one taught by a blind instructor (Group 1) and the other taught by a sighted instructor (Group…

You and the Ocean.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ocean Education Project, Washington, DC.

This multidisciplinary unit of study introduces the law of the sea to students in grades one through six. The unit, which takes three weeks to complete can be taught in science and social studies courses. Concepts taught include the following: there are many things in the sea that are of value to humankind; people need products from the sea;…

Assessing the Effectiveness of Student Oriented Learning Outlines (SOLOs) in an Equine Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jogan, Kathleen S.

2014-01-01

This study determined if the use of the student oriented learning outline (SOLO) in a University of Arkansas equine production classroom had a positive influence in three areas: mastery of material taught, retention of material taught and voluntary positive student behaviors related to the use of course material. Thirty-one students who were…

Science choices and preferences of middle and secondary school students in Utah

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baird, J. Hugh; Lazarowitz, Reuven; Allman, Verl

This research sought to answer two questions: (1) What are Utah junior and senior high school students' preferences and choices regarding science subjects? (2) Could preferences and choices be related to the type of school, age or gender? Two thousand students from grades six through twelve participated in this study. Findings show that zoology and human anatomy and physiology were most preferred. Ecology was least prefered. Topics in the physical sciences were also low. There was a trend among girls to prefer natural sciences such as botany while boys tended to prefer the physical sciences. Generally, students' choices were limited to those subjects presently taught in the formal school curriculum. They appeared unaware of the many science related subjects outside the texts or the approved course of study.

A Comparison of Learning Outcomes in Skills-Based Courses: Online versus Face-to-Face Formats

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Callister, Ronda Roberts; Love, Mary Sue

2016-01-01

In comparing the learning outcomes of online versus face-to-face courses, skills-based forms of instruction have received little attention. This study asks the question "Can skills-based courses taught online achieve the same outcomes as face-to-face courses in which the instructor and students interacting in real time may have higher levels…

Adding Instruction about Technology Infusion to the Secondary Social Studies Course with Web-Based Modules.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ehman, Lee H.

Modules to teach the appropriate integration of technology into social studies teaching were pilot-taught in a secondary social studies methods course. The seven modules emphasized the World Wide Web as a resource for teachers and students. Pre- and post-course surveys were conducted with the 24 students in the course. Both qualitative and…

Teaching Science in Art: Technical Examination of 17th-Century Dutch Painting as Interdisciplinary Coursework for Science Majors and Nonmajors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uffelman, Erich S.

2007-01-01

Two linked courses examining conservation science and art history of 17th-century Dutch painting are described. The two courses have been taught on campus and, most recently, as study-abroad courses in collaboration with the Center for European Studies, Universiteit Maastricht, The Netherlands. The highly interdisciplinary courses are intense, yet…

Comparing the Rigor of Compressed Format Courses to Their Regular Semester Counterparts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lutes, Lyndell; Davies, Randall

2013-01-01

This study compared workloads of undergraduate courses taught in 16-week and 8-week sessions. A statistically significant difference in workload was found between the two. Based on survey data from approximately 29,000 students, on average students spent about 17 minutes more per credit per week on 16-week courses than on similar 8-week courses.…

Games in an Introductory Soil Science Course: A Novel Approach for Increasing Student Involvement with Course Material

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sulzman, Elizabeth W.

2004-01-01

An optional 1-credit recitation course was developed to supplement a traditionally taught 4-credit lecture-plus-laboratory course in soil science at Oregon State University. Popular, competitive games that would be familiar to students were revised to be "soils-based" and were employed in the recitation class. These games were seen as a…

Pedagogy and Content in Sexuality Education Courses in US Colleges and Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oswalt, Sara B.; Wagner, Laurie M.; Eastman-Mueller, Heather P.; Nevers, Joleen M.

2015-01-01

Most research on sexuality courses in US higher education was conducted in the 1980s and 1990s. Less is known about what is being taught in undergraduate sexuality courses today; this study sought to fill that gap. Reviewing content based on 161 courses (provided by 150 different instructors) from all regions of the USA, this study examined…

"Curso de Vulcanología General": Web-education efforts on volcanic hazards for the Latin American region from Mexico.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delgado, Hugo

2016-04-01

Education of volcanic hazards is a never-ending task in countries where volcanoes erupt very frequently as they do in the Latin American region (LAR). Eleven countries in the LAR have active volcanoes within their territories and some volcanoes are located in between countries so the volcanic hazards associated to the eruption of those volcanoes affect more than one country. Besides, countries without volcanoes within their territory (i. e. Belize, Honduras or Brazil) can be impacted as well. Personnel working at several volcano observatories in the LAR need training in Volcanology and, more importantly, in Volcanic Hazards. Unfortunately, Volcanology is a discipline that is not taught at universities of some countries. Even worse, Earth Sciences are not even taught at high education centers in some countries of the LAR. Thus, there is an important need for the acquisition of volcanological knowledge by the personnel working at volcano observatories but there are no possibilities for them to study at their countries or they are impended for travel abroad for training. The international course: "Curso de Vulcanología General" taught from Mexico City at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) has been successfully implemented and has been active over the last five years. Nearly 700 students have participated in this course although only ~150 have been awarded the certificate UNAM grants to the students who have concluded the course successfully. This course has been sponsored by UNAM, ALVO (Latin American Volcanological Association) and IAVCEI (International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior). More than 50 lecturers from LAR, Europe and US have been involved in these courses. Here, Reflections on the course, the opportunities sparkled, the educational tools, benefits, statistics and virtues of the course are presented.

Integrating ethics into technical courses: micro-insertion.

PubMed

Davis, Michael

2006-10-01

Perhaps the most common reason science and engineering faculty give for not including 'ethics' (that is, research ethics, engineering ethics, or some discussion of professional responsibility) in their technical classes is that 'there is no room'. This article 1) describes a technique ('micro-insertion') that introduces ethics (and related topics) into technical courses in small enough units not to push out technical material, 2) explains where this technique might fit into the larger undertaking of integrating ethics into the technical (scientific or engineering) curriculum, and 3) concludes with some quantified evidence (collected over more than a decade) suggesting success. Integrating ethics into science and engineering courses is largely a matter of providing context for what is already being taught, context that also makes the material already being taught seem 'more relevant'.

Graduate Syllabi.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Journal of Teaching in the Addictions, 2002

2002-01-01

"Methods and Techniques" includes 15 graduate, 2 undergraduate, and 1 community college working syllabi for courses taught at schools throughout the country. Graduate syllabi include courses on addictions diagnosis, treatment, and counseling; drug problem identification; and behavior and treatment issues; Undergraduate syllabi include: Alcohol and…

Continuous Risk Management Course. Revised

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hammer, Theodore F.

1999-01-01

This document includes a course plan for Continuous Risk Management taught by the Software Assurance Technology Center along with the Continuous Risk Management Guidebook of the Software Engineering Institute of Carnegie Mellon University and a description of Continuous Risk Management at NASA.

Internationalizing the Business Communication Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sturges, David L.

1992-01-01

Proposes a course in business communication that includes international or global perspectives in its philosophy, content, and assignments. Includes a syllabus, a scheme describing how the course is taught, a communication audit plan, a capstone project, and a sample reading list. (SR)

A Comparative Study of Students' Learning Experiences in Intensive and Semester-Length Courses and of the Attributes of High-Quality Intensive and Semester Course Learning Experiences.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Patricia A.

This study compared students' learning experiences in a set of courses in British literature and a set of courses in marketing, in which each set included a course taught in an intensive format and a semester-long format with the same instructor and content. Data collection included participant observation, videotaped class sessions,…

Combining Content and Elements of Communication into an Upper-Level Biochemistry Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whittington, Carli P.; Pellock, Samuel J.; Cunningham, Rebecca L.; Cox, James R.

2014-01-01

This report describes how a science communication module was incorporated into an advanced biochemistry course. Elements of communication were taught synergistically with biochemistry content in this course in an effort to expose students to a variety of effective oral communication strategies. Students were trained to use these established…

Stand Up and Write: Completing the Freshman Communications Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldstein, Richard M.; Nelson, Charles W.

Members of the English and speech faculty at Michigan Technological University combined and coordinated their ideas to find a way to introduce the basics of oral communication into the composition course. The course itself is structured according to the quarter system, in which basic composition is taught in the first term, research methods and…

Development of a Course Sequence for an Interdisciplinary Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ali, Muhammad

2012-01-01

Interdisciplinary curriculum development is challenging in the sense that materials from more than one discipline have to be integrated in a seamless manner. A faculty member has to develop expertise in multiple disciplines in order to teach an interdisciplinary course, or the course has to be team-taught. Both approaches are difficult to…

Structuring the AP Art History Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herscher, Walter R.

2013-01-01

While AP (Advanced Placement) Art History may be taught within the art department in many schools, social studies teachers are equally capable of teaching the course well. They have the historical background to discuss the reasons for changes in art styles. A teacher's preparation is similar to teaching a course stressing political history,…

A Combinatorics Course with One Goal: Authentic Mathematical Inquiry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Storm, Christopher

2017-01-01

This article shares an example of a course in Combinatorics, taught at Adelphi University in Fall 2012, designed with a primary goal of engaging students in pursuing mathematics as mathematicians do. The course went beyond usual applications of inquiry-based learning in that students were also charged with the responsibility of posing the…

A General Chemistry Laboratory Course Designed for Student Discussion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Obenland, Carrie A.; Kincaid, Kristi; Hutchinson, John S.

2014-01-01

We report a study of the general chemistry laboratory course at one university over four years. We found that when taught as a traditional laboratory course, lab experiences do not encourage students to deepen their understanding of chemical concepts. Although the lab instructor emphasized that the lab experiences were designed to enhance…

Update Status: The State of Social Media Marketing Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muñoz, Caroline Lego; Wood, Natalie T.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this research is to examine how the topic of social media has been integrated and executed within academic institutions and marketing courses. An exploratory survey of marketing educators that taught social media in their course(s) was undertaken. The survey addressed how social media was embedded within an institute's curriculum,…

Teaching a Comprehensive Orofacial Pain Course in the Dental Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonty, Arthur A.

1990-01-01

Two surveys about the teaching of orofacial pain in the dental curriculum are reported, and the comprehensive course taught at the University of Kentucky is described. The first survey was of 89 Kentucky course alumni. The second was of 57 dental schools concerning the status of their orofacial pain curricula. (MSE)

Establishing Common Course Objectives for Undergraduate Exercise Physiology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simonson, Shawn R.

2015-01-01

Undergraduate exercise physiology is a ubiquitous course in undergraduate kinesiology/exercise science programs with a broad scope and depth of topics. It is valuable to explore what is taught within this course. The purpose of the present study was to facilitate an understanding of what instructors teach in undergraduate exercise physiology, how…

Scientific Computing for Chemists: An Undergraduate Course in Simulations, Data Processing, and Visualization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weiss, Charles J.

2017-01-01

The Scientific Computing for Chemists course taught at Wabash College teaches chemistry students to use the Python programming language, Jupyter notebooks, and a number of common Python scientific libraries to process, analyze, and visualize data. Assuming no prior programming experience, the course introduces students to basic programming and…

The Development and Assessment of an Online Microscopic Anatomy Laboratory Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barbeau, Michele L.; Johnson, Marjorie; Gibson, Candace; Rogers, Kem A.

2013-01-01

Increasing enrollment in post-secondary institutions across North America, along with an increase in popularity of and demand for distance education is pressuring institutions to offer a greater number and variety of courses online. A fully online laboratory course in microscopic anatomy (histology) which can be taught simultaneously with a…

United Campuses to Prevent Nuclear War: Nuclear War Course Summaries.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Journal of College Science Teaching, 1983

1983-01-01

Briefly describes 46 courses on nuclear war available from United Campuses to Prevent Nuclear War (UCAM). These courses are currently being or have been taught at colleges/universities, addressing effects of nuclear war, arms race history, new weapons, and past arms control efforts. Syllabi (with assignments/reading lists) are available from UCAM.…

Establishing the Content Validity of a Basic Computer Literacy Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clements, James; Carifio, James

1995-01-01

Content analysis of 13 textbooks and 2 Department of Education documents was conducted to ascertain common word processing, database, and spreadsheet software skills in order to determine which specific skills should be taught in a high school computer literacy course. Aspects of a basic computer course, created from this analysis, are described.…

The Learning and Teaching Experiences in an Online Problem-Based Learning Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sage, Sara M.

This paper describes and examines the experiences of eight learners and two teachers in an online distance education graduate course taught using an asynchronous program and a problem-based learning (PBL) pedagogy. The course, "Integrating the Internet across the Curriculum," was offered by Indiana University Bloomington as a 6-week…

The Sociology Research Experience Capstone Course at Three Institutions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKinney, Kathleen; Busher, Melissa

2011-01-01

This study describes the objectives, structures, and outcomes of a one-semester, required sociology research capstone course as taught at three institutions. Pre- and postquestionnaires from students, syllabi from instructors, and a random sample of final research papers were analyzed. Results indicate that the main foci of the course are to…

Educational Impact of Digital Visualization Tools on Digital Character Production Computer Science Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van Langeveld, Mark Christensen

2009-01-01

Digital character production courses have traditionally been taught in art departments. The digital character production course at the University of Utah is centered, drawing uniformly from art and engineering disciplines. Its design has evolved to include a synergy of computer science, functional art and human anatomy. It gives students an…

Engaging Students in Applied Electromagnetics at the University of San Diego

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lumori, M. L. D.; Kim, E. M.

2010-01-01

Two possible topical approaches that have been applied to teaching an upper-division undergraduate electrical engineering applied electromagnetics course are presented. Each approach was applied to one of two offerings of the course, taught in different semesters. In either case, the course includes the study of electromagnetic theory and…

A French Culture Course for Non-Language Majors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Savoie, Norman R.

The traditional upper-level course in French civilization at Utah State University was abandoned in favor of a course entitled "France Today," taught once a year to a consistent enrollment of students majoring in a wide variety of disciplines. The content varies somewhat each year, but the class typically begins with several class…

A Course Offering in Jewish Law

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dorff, Elliott N.; Rosett, Arthur L.

1976-01-01

Describes a course taught at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law. Content was divided into four segments: an introduction to the literature and a brief history of its development, court procedures, marriage and family law, and commercial law. Origins of the course and problems, especially that of comparing two legal systems…

Teaching Communication to Indian Educators.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Julien, Daniel J.; Monsma, John W.

A course on communication in the classroom was designed as part of a program to bring education courses, taught by regular university faculty, to Indian reservations, making it possible for an Indian student to continue working while taking courses and to complete his degree in five years. This paper describes the objectives and philosophy of the…

Critical Media Literacy as Engaged Pedagogy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hammer, Rhonda

2011-01-01

Given the escalating role of media and new media in our everyday lives, there is an urgent need for courses in Critical Media Literacy, at all levels of schooling. The empowering nature of these kinds of courses is demonstrated through a discussion of a Critical Media Literacy course taught at UCLA. (Contains 1 note.)

40 CFR 745.225 - Accreditation of training programs: target housing and child occupied facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... purposes of this section, courses taught in different languages and electronic learning courses are... training manager who has: (i) At least 2 years of experience, education, or training in teaching workers or... for each course who has: (i) Demonstrated experience, education, or training in teaching workers or...

40 CFR 745.225 - Accreditation of training programs: target housing and child occupied facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... purposes of this section, courses taught in different languages and electronic learning courses are... training manager who has: (i) At least 2 years of experience, education, or training in teaching workers or... for each course who has: (i) Demonstrated experience, education, or training in teaching workers or...

40 CFR 745.225 - Accreditation of training programs: target housing and child occupied facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... purposes of this section, courses taught in different languages and electronic learning courses are... training manager who has: (i) At least 2 years of experience, education, or training in teaching workers or... for each course who has: (i) Demonstrated experience, education, or training in teaching workers or...

Contextualizing the Intermediate Financial Accounting Courses in the Global Financial Crisis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bloom, Robert; Webinger, Mariah

2011-01-01

This paper represents an attempt to incorporate concepts and issues stemming from the global financial crisis (GFC) into the typical Intermediate Accounting, two-course sequence as taught in North American colleges and universities. The teaching approach which the authors advocate embeds the GFC throughout these courses. The main expected outcome…

A Simulation for Teaching the Basic and Clinical Science of Fluid Therapy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rawson, Richard E.; Dispensa, Marilyn E.; Goldstein, Richard E.; Nicholson, Kimberley W.; Vidal, Noni Korf

2009-01-01

The course "Management of Fluid and Electrolyte Disorders" is an applied physiology course taught using lectures and paper-based cases. The course approaches fluid therapy from both basic science and clinical perspectives. While paper cases provide a basis for application of basic science concepts, they lack key components of genuine clinical…

Accounting for Sustainability: An Active Learning Assignment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gusc, Joanna; van Veen-Dirks, Paula

2017-01-01

Purpose: Sustainability is one of the newer topics in the accounting courses taught in university teaching programs. The active learning assignment as described in this paper was developed for use in an accounting course in an undergraduate program. The aim was to enhance teaching about sustainability within such a course. The purpose of this…

Improving Student Attitudes about Learning Science and Student Scientific Reasoning Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duncan, Douglas K.; Arthurs, Leilani

2012-01-01

Student attitudes about learning science and student ideas about the nature of science were compared at the end of two astronomy courses taught in Fall 2007, a course with a traditional astronomy curriculum and a transformed course, whose traditional astronomy curriculum was supplemented by an embedded curriculum that explicitly addressed the…

Team-Based Learning: The Importance of Attendance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jakobsen, Krisztina V.; McIlreavy, Megan; Marrs, Sarah

2014-01-01

Using a quasi-experimental design, the authors examined student performance (i.e., exam scores) in a traditional, lecture-based course (n = 43) and a team-based learning (TBL) course (n = 47). Students from James Madison University, USA--who were unaware that the two sections of the course were taught using different methods--self-selected into…

Astrophysical Flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pringle, James E.; King, Andrew

2003-07-01

Almost all conventional matter in the Universe is fluid, and fluid dynamics plays a crucial role in astrophysics. This new graduate textbook provides a basic understanding of the fluid dynamical processes relevant to astrophysics. The mathematics used to describe these processes is simplified to bring out the underlying physics. The authors cover many topics, including wave propagation, shocks, spherical flows, stellar oscillations, the instabilities caused by effects such as magnetic fields, thermal driving, gravity, shear flows, and the basic concepts of compressible fluid dynamics and magnetohydrodynamics. The authors are Directors of the UK Astrophysical Fluids Facility (UKAFF) at the University of Leicester, and editors of the Cambridge Astrophysics Series. This book has been developed from a course in astrophysical fluid dynamics taught at the University of Cambridge. It is suitable for graduate students in astrophysics, physics and applied mathematics, and requires only a basic familiarity with fluid dynamics.• Provides coverage of the fundamental fluid dynamical processes an astrophysical theorist needs to know • Introduces new mathematical theory and techniques in a straightforward manner • Includes end-of-chapter problems to illustrate the course and introduce additional ideas

The Makeup of the Modern US High School Astronomy Course -- 25 Years After Sadler's Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krumenaker, Larry

2007-12-01

Surveys to nearly 3000 high school astronomy teachers portray the field for the first time in 25 years. This multimethods study included quantitative questions on the backgrounds of teachers, demographics of students, teaching styles and content, resources used such as websites, books, telescopes and planetaria, and qualitative questions on the effects of No Child Left Behind and high-stakes testing, teachers justifications and advises for creating and defending a class's existence, attitudes towards the future. Among the findings are that there are more female teachers here than in physics, that student population mimics closely the US demographics, that physics no longer is the dominant 'other course' taught by astronomy teachers, and there is a 'hidden mass' of teachers not accounted for by most statistical studies. Portable planetaria have made some inroads into replacing fixed dome but 'planetarium' software has made even more. Philip Sadler's "Project Star" study of 1983 holds up remarkably well but some numbers have changed. Finally, unlike other science societies, the AAS has not made many inroads into the awareness or education of the high school teachers.

A survey of resuscitation training in Canadian undergraduate medical programs.

PubMed

Goldstein, D H; Beckwith, R K

1991-07-01

To establish a national profile of undergraduate training in resuscitation at Canadian medical schools, to compare the resuscitation training programs of the schools and to determine the cost of teaching seven resuscitation courses. Mail survey in 1989 and follow-up telephone interviews in 1991 to update and verify the information. The undergraduate deans of the 16 Canadian medical schools. The mail survey asked five questions: (a) Is completion of a standard first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) course a requirement for admission to medical school? (b) Are these courses and those in basic and advanced cardiac, trauma and neurologic life support for children and adults provided to undergraduate students? (c) During which undergraduate year are these courses offered? (d) Is their successful completion required for graduation? and (e) Who funds the training courses? The medical schools placed emphasis on the seven courses differently. More than half the schools required the completion of courses before admission or taught some courses but did not require the completion of the courses for graduation. On average, fewer than three of the seven courses were taught, and the completion of fewer than two was required for graduation. About half of the courses were funded by the universities. The annual projected maximum cost of teaching the seven courses was $1790 per medical student. The seven resuscitation courses have not been fully implemented at the undergraduate level in Canadian medical schools.

Contextualizing Earth Science Professional Development Courses for Geoscience Teachers in Boston

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, R. F.; Pelletier, P.; Dorsen, J.; Douglas, E. M.; Pringle, M. S.; Karp, J.

2009-12-01

Inquiry-based, hands-on, graduate content courses have been developed specifically for Boston Public School middle school teachers of Earth Science. Earth Science I: Weather and Water and Earth Science II: The Solid Earth--Earth History and Planetary Systems have been taught a total of seven times to over 120 teachers. Several key attributes to these successful courses have been identified, including co-instruction by a university professor and a high school and a middle school teacher that are familiar with the Boston curriculum, use of hands-on activities that are closed related to those used in the Boston curriculum, pre- and post-course local field trips, and identification of key learning objectives for each day. This model of professional development was developed over several years in all disciplines (Earth Science, Physics, Biology, Chemistry) by the Boston Science Partnership (BSP), an NSF-funded Math Science Partnership program. One of the core strategies of the BSP is these Contextualized Content Courses (CCC), graduate level, lab-based courses taught at either UMass Boston or Northeastern University during summer intensive or semester formats. Two of the eleven courses developed under the grant are Earth Science I & II. This presentation shares the model of the CCC, the impact on teacher participants, the value of these courses for the professor, and lessons learned for successful professional development. Findings about the courses’ impact and effectiveness come from our external evaluation by the Program Evaluation Research Group (PERG). The combination of content and modeling good instructional practices have many positive outcomes for teachers, including increased self-efficacy in science understanding and teaching, positive impacts on student achievement, and teacher shifts from more traditional, more lecture-based instructional models to more inquiry approaches. STEM faculty members become involved in science education and learn and practice new instructional strategies. The teacher co-instructors hold leadership roles for their peers and gain university teaching experience. The participants have a course that is content rich and tailored for their needs in the classroom. Earth scientists develop a “broader impact” for their science by increasing climate and earth science literacy for teachers who, in turn, reach 100s to 1000s of students every year, possibly stimulating interest for students becoming future earth scientists, but at the very least, increasing the public appreciation for earth science.

Board Game in Physics Classes—a Proposal for a New Method of Student Assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dziob, Daniel

2018-03-01

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of assessing students' achievements in a physics course in the form of a group board game. Research was conducted in two groups of 131 high school students in Poland. In each school, the research sample was divided into experimental and control groups. Each group was taught by the same teacher and participated in the same courses and tests before the game. Just after finishing the course on waves and vibrations (school 1) and optics (school 2), experimental groups took part in a group board game to assess their knowledge. One week after the game, the experimental and control groups (not involved in the game) took part in the post-tests. Students from the experimental groups performed better in the game than in the tests given before the game. As well their results in the post-tests were significantly higher statistically than students from the control groups. Simultaneously, student's opinions in the experimental groups about the board game as an assessment method were collected in an open-descriptive form and in a short questionnaire, and analyzed. Results showed that students experienced a positive attitude toward the assessment method, a reduction of test anxiety and an increase in their motivation for learning.

A Radionavigation Systems Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lozano-Guerrero, Antonio José; Valenzuela-Valdés, Juan Francisco

2015-01-01

This paper presents a new course, Radionavigation Systems, whose laboratory and theoretical components complement each other to enhance student learning. Radionavigation skills and knowledge are taught by means of various instructional methods, and the laboratory successfully merges hands-on learning using specific instrumentation and software…

Electronic Learning in Yugoslavia.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barker, Philip G.

1990-01-01

Describes a course taught at the University of Zagreb (Yugoslavia) on electronic learning methods based upon computer-assisted learning techniques. The course content is outlined, including lectures, workshops, videotapes, demonstration software, and courseware authoring; a multimedia teaching laboratory is described; and an evaluation of course…

Introducing Contemporary Anthropology: A Team-Taught Course for Large Classes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plotnicov, Leonard

1985-01-01

Describes a method of teaching large sections of college introductory anthropology by members of the anthropology faculty giving their best lectures. Presents details of how such a course was initiated, operated, and evaluated at the University of Pittsburgh. (KH)

Integrating Dispute Resolution into Standard First-Year Courses: The Missouri Plan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riskin, Leonard L.; Westbrook, James E.

1989-01-01

The University of Missouri-Columbia Law School has implemented a first-year course in dispute resolution integrating topics in torts, property, civil procedure, contracts, and criminal law and taught by teachers in all of those areas. (MSE)

Clubes de Ciencia: Intensive science workshops in Mexico provide a unique opportunity for teaching, scientific and cultural exchange

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Bras, I.; Rosengard, S.; Estefania, M.; Jinich, A.

2016-02-01

Clubes de Ciencia, which translates to "Science Clubs" is an initiative started by a group of graduate students at Harvard University in 2014 to encourage scientific exchange between the US and Mexico. These science clubs are one-week long intensive workshops taught by graduate students and/or postdocs on a subject of their choice in six Mexican cities. Instructors apply to teach a workshop by sending a proposal to the organizing committee, who is looking for workshops that emphasize hands-on, practical ideas. The instructors, primarily graduate students in the US, are paired with local co-instructors who assist and often co-teach the workshop. Local student participants, who are in their last two years of high school and the first two years of college, are selected based on their interest and enthusiasm. Each class has about 15-20 students, so that the classroom setting is intimate and interactive Sponsors, who fund instructor stipends, class supplies and program development, include the Mexican department of energy (SENER), the Mexican national science foundation (CONACYT), Harvard and MIT. Host universities also provide space and resources. In this presentation we focus on clubs that were taught in January 2015 on ocean physics and July 2015 on ocean chemistry, both taught in Ensenada, Baja California at the national autonomous university. Both workshops included a combination of data analysis, lectures, experiments and computational modeling. The ocean physics class was also recorded intermittently and is being used as a test case for an online course. The format provided an intensive teaching and networking experience and could be interesting to implement in other contexts.

The role of veterinary medical librarians in teaching information literacy.

PubMed

Dinkelman, Andrea L; Viera, Ann R; Bickett-Weddle, Danelle A

2011-01-01

This qualitative study seeks to determine the nature of the instruction librarians provide to veterinary medical students at all 28 United States veterinary colleges. A secondary goal of the study was to determine in what ways and to what extent librarians participated in other instructional activities at their colleges. Over half of the librarians formally taught in one or more courses, predominantly in the first two years of the veterinary curriculum. One presentation per course was most common. Over half of the librarians interviewed stated that evidence-based veterinary medicine was taught at their colleges, and about half of these librarians collaborated with veterinary faculty in this instruction. Many librarians participated in orientation for first-year veterinary students. The librarians also taught instructional sessions for residents, interns, faculty, graduate students, and practicing veterinarians. This study found that librarians teach information literacy skills both formally and informally, but, in general, instruction by librarians was not well integrated into the curriculum. This study advances several recommendations to help veterinary students develop information literacy skills. These include: encourage veterinary faculty and administrators to collaborate more closely with librarians, incorporate a broader array of information literacy skills into assignments, and add a literature evaluation course to the curriculum.

Using a Virtual Tissue Culture System to Assist Students in Understanding Life at the Cellular Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLauglin, Jacqueline S.; Seaquist, Stephen B.

2008-01-01

In every biology course ever taught in the nation's classrooms, and in every biology book ever published, students are taught about the "cell." The cell is as fundamental to biology as the atom is to chemistry. Truly, everything an organism does occurs fundamentally at the cellular level. Beyond memorizing the cellular definition, students are not…

A Contemporary Analysis of the Content of Mathematics for Liberal Education at the College Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sporn, Howard Bruce

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine whether educators believe mathematics should be taught to liberal arts students, what topics are taught in liberal arts mathematics courses, and what the motivation is for teaching such topics. The study consists of two parts, a review of the opinions of educators regarding liberal arts mathematics, and a…

Facilitating Student Learning through Contextualization. CCRC Brief. Number 53

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perin, Dolores

2011-01-01

Skills in reading, writing, and mathematics are key to academic learning but are conventionally taught separately from the discipline areas to which they must be applied. For example, students may be taught writing skills in the morning in an English course and then be expected to apply them to writing an essay in a history class in the afternoon.…

Designing and Teaching an Introduction to Federal Indian Law

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morris, Wynema

2015-01-01

Recently, the question has arisen as to whether or not federal Indian law should be taught at tribal colleges and universities (TCUs). To answer this three questions must be asked: (1) Why should such a subject be taught and who would teach it; (2) Which department should be responsible for Indian law courses; and (3) Should they be offered…

The Teaching of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in U.S. Medical Schools: A Survey of Course Directors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brokaw, James J.; Tunnicliff, Godfrey; Raess, Beat U.; Saxon, Dale W.

2002-01-01

Surveyed medical schools to gauge the current state of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) instruction by gathering details about the specific topics being taught and the objectives behind the instruction. Found that a wide variety of topics are being taught under the umbrella of CAM; for the most part, the instruction appears to be…

The Role of Feedback in Cross-Cultural Learning: A Case Study of Chinese Taught Postgraduate Students in a UK University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tian, Mei; Lowe, John

2013-01-01

Insufficient attention has been given to the role of cultural differences in feedback communication with the UK's increasingly internationalised student body. This issue is particularly significant for international students taking short -- one-year -- postgraduate taught courses and we illustrate this in a study of Chinese students at a UK…

Mathematics as a Course of Study in Problem Solving: Then and Now.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellis, Wade, Jr.

The mathematics curriculum in the first 2 years of college is a tool created to assist in solving problems. The current mathematics curriculum has changed little; the same topics, tied to the engineering and science curriculum, are taught as they were being taught in 1945. The problems that students need to solve have changed however. Both the…

Problem-Centered Design and Personal Teaching Style: An Exploratory Study of Youguang Tu's Course on Philosophy of Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lei, Hongde

2016-01-01

Youguang Tu is a contemporary Chinese philosopher of education. His course on philosophy of education had a significant impact on his students. This exploratory study examines how Tu designed and taught this course. Ultimately, there are two reasons why Tu's course had such a significant influence on his students. The first is that Tu used…

Reassessment of Business Courses in Foreign Languages: The European Union vis-a-vis Its Individual Members.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

von Schmidt, Wolff

The need for advanced (fourth-year) college business courses taught in foreign languages by foreign language teachers, and the design of such courses, are discussed. It is proposed that such courses be offered more often, generally in French, German, and Spanish and preferably over two semesters or three quarters, with a minimum of 3 contact hours…

Comparison of patient simulation methods used in a physical assessment course.

PubMed

Grice, Gloria R; Wenger, Philip; Brooks, Natalie; Berry, Tricia M

2013-05-13

To determine whether there is a difference in student pharmacists' learning or satisfaction when standardized patients or manikins are used to teach physical assessment. Third-year student pharmacists were randomized to learn physical assessment (cardiac and pulmonary examinations) using either a standardized patient or a manikin. Performance scores on the final examination and satisfaction with the learning method were compared between groups. Eighty and 74 student pharmacists completed the cardiac and pulmonary examinations, respectively. There was no difference in performance scores between student pharmacists who were trained using manikins vs standardized patients (93.8% vs. 93.5%, p=0.81). Student pharmacists who were trained using manikins indicated that they would have probably learned to perform cardiac and pulmonary examinations better had they been taught using standardized patients (p<0.001) and that they were less satisfied with their method of learning (p=0.04). Training using standardized patients and manikins are equally effective methods of learning physical assessment, but student pharmacists preferred using standardized patients.

Vocational training courses as an intervention on change of work practice among immigrant cleaners.

PubMed

Jensen, Flemming W; Frydendall, Karen B; Flyvholm, Mari-Ann

2011-11-01

The aim of the study was to examine how knowledge and skills from vocational training courses on working techniques modified for immigrant cleaners are applied in practice and to identify factors that influence the implementation. The modifications of the standard course included language support with possibilities for translation and an extension of the duration of the course. The study is a prospective intervention study based on qualitative data. Data were collected as structured interviews and observations were carried out at the workplaces before and after the course. The study population included 31 immigrant cleaners from five different workplaces. Changes were observed in the use of working techniques (i.e., positioning of hands when using the floor mop). In some cases the use of the taught techniques was incorrect, partial, or only used part of the time. Interactions between individual factors (i.e., knowledge, awareness, capability, or work orientation) and environmental factors (i.e., equipment, time, workload, or physical surroundings) influenced the use of the techniques in practice. The course provided the participants with new working techniques through which some were able to reduce work related pain. However, with regard to incorrect and partial use of the working techniques, follow-up and post-training support is recommended. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Restructuring of the jurisprudence course taught at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College

PubMed Central

Gleberzon, Brian J.

2010-01-01

Introduction: The process by which the jurisprudence course was restructured at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College is chronicled. Method: A Delphi process used to restructure the course is described, and the results of a student satisfaction survey are presented. Results: When asked “I think this material was clinically relevant,” over 81% of the 76 students who respondents strongly agreed or agreed with this statement; 100% of students agreed or strongly agreed that scope of practice; marketing, advertising and internal office promotion; record keeping; fee schedules; malpractice issues and; professional malpractice issues and negligence was clinically relevant. When asked “I think this material was taught well,” a minimum of 89% of students agreed or strongly agreed with this statement. Discussion: This is the first article published that described the process by which a jurisprudence course was developed and assessed by student survey. Summary: Based on a survey of student perceptions, restructuring of the jurisprudence course was successful in providing students with clinically relevant information in an appropriate manner. This course may serve as an important first step in development a ‘model curriculum’ for chiropractic practice and the law courses in terms of content, format and assessment strategies. PMID:20195427

Ripped from the Headlines: Using Current Events and Deliberative Democracy to Improve Student Performance in and Perceptions of Nonmajors Biology Courses†

PubMed Central

Tinsley, Heather N.

2016-01-01

Despite the importance of scientific literacy, many foundational science courses are plagued by low student engagement and performance. In an attempt to improve student outcomes, an introductory biology course for nonscience majors was redesigned to present the course content within the framework of current events and deliberative democratic exercises. During each instructional unit of the redesigned course, students were presented with a highly publicized policy question rooted in biological principles and currently facing lawmakers. Working in diverse groups, students sought out the information that was needed to reach an educated, rationalized decision. This approach models civic engagement and demonstrates the real-life importance of science to nonscience majors. The outcomes from two semesters in which the redesign were taught were compared with sections of the course taught using traditional pedagogies. When compared with other versions of the same course, presenting the course content within a deliberative democratic framework proved to be superior for increasing students’ knowledge gains and improving students’ perceptions of biology and its relevance to their everyday lives. These findings establish deliberative democracy as an effective pedagogical strategy for nonmajors biology. PMID:28101264

Music and the Mind: A New Interdisciplinary Course on the Science of Musical Experience

PubMed Central

Prichard, J. Roxanne; Cornett-Murtada, Vanessa

2011-01-01

In this paper the instructors describe a new team-taught transdisciplinary seminar, “Music and Mind: The Science of Musical Experience.” The instructors, with backgrounds in music and neuroscience, valued the interdisciplinary approach as a way to capture student interest and to reflect the inherent interconnectivity of neuroscience. The course covered foundational background information about the science of hearing and musical perception and about the phenomenology of musical creation and experience. This two-credit honors course, which attracted students from eleven majors, integrated experiential learning (active listening, journaling, conducting mini-experiments) with rigorous reflection and discussion of academic research. The course culminated in student-led discussions and presentations of final projects around hot topics in the science of music, such as the ‘Mozart Effect,’ music and religious experience, etc. Although this course was a two-credit seminar, it could easily be expanded to a four-credit lecture or laboratory course. Student evaluations reveal that the course was successful in meeting the learning objectives, that students were intrinsically motivated to learn more about the discipline, and that the team-taught, experiential learning approach was a success. PMID:23494097

Physics teacher use of the history of science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winrich, Charles

The School of Education and the Department of Physics at Boston University offer a sequence of 10 two-credit professional development courses through the Improving the Teaching of Physics (ITOP) project. The ITOP courses combine physics content, readings from the physics education research (PER) literature, and the conceptual history of physics (CHOP). ITOP participants self-report changes to their teaching practices as a result of their participation in ITOP. The purpose of this study was to verify and characterize those changes in the specific area of the participants' use of history after their study of CHOP. Ten recent ITOP participants were observed, interviewed, and asked to provide lesson plans and samples of student work from their classes. Case studies of each participant's teaching were constructed from the data. The individual cases were synthesized to characterize the impact of CHOP on the ITOP participants. The results show that the participants integrate CHOP into their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) to inform their understanding of: (1) the relationship between physics and other disciplines, (2) the relationship between specific physics concepts, (3) student understanding of physics concepts, (4) student difficulties in learning physics concepts, and (5) methods for teaching physics concepts. The participants use history to teach a variety of topics, although the most common were mechanics and electromagnetism. All of the participants used history to teach aspects of the nature of science (NOS) and to increase student interest in physics, while eight participants taught physics concepts through history. The predominant mode of incorporating history was through adding anecdotes about the scientists who worked on the concepts, but seven participants had their students study the historical development of physical concepts. All the participants discussed a lack of time as a factor that inhibits a greater use of history in their courses. Eight participants discussed a lack of appropriate resources for using history in high school physics classes. Two participants said they did not feel that explicit study of the history of physics would benefit their students until they had better mastery of physics concepts.

Projectile motion in real-life situation: Kinematics of basketball shooting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Changjan, A.; Mueanploy, W.

2015-06-01

Basketball shooting is a basic practice for players. The path of the ball from the players to the hoop is projectile motion. For undergraduate introductory physics courses student must be taught about projectile motion. Basketball shooting can be used as a case study for learning projectile motion from real-life situation. In this research, we discuss the relationship between optimal angle, minimum initial velocity and the height of the ball before the player shoots the ball for basketball shooting problem analytically. We found that the value of optimal angle and minimum initial velocity decreases with increasing the height of the ball before the player shoots the ball.

A team approach to an undergraduate interprofessional communication course.

PubMed

Doucet, Shelley; Buchanan, Judy; Cole, Tricia; McCoy, Carolyn

2013-05-01

Interprofessional communication is a team-taught upper-level undergraduate course for Nursing and Health Sciences students. In addition to teaching fundamental communication skills, this course weaves interprofessional competencies into weekly learning activities and assignments. The utilization of the principles and practices of team-based learning in the classroom enhances the attainment and practice of communication and interprofessional collaboration skills. Lessons learned from conducting informal course evaluations and delivering the course multiple times are presented.

Characterizing the Fundamental Intellectual Steps Required in the Solution of Conceptual Problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stewart, John

2010-02-01

At some level, the performance of a science class must depend on what is taught, the information content of the materials and assignments of the course. The introductory calculus-based electricity and magnetism class at the University of Arkansas is examined using a catalog of the basic reasoning steps involved in the solution of problems assigned in the class. This catalog was developed by sampling popular physics textbooks for conceptual problems. The solution to each conceptual problem was decomposed into its fundamental reasoning steps. These fundamental steps are, then, used to quantify the distribution of conceptual content within the course. Using this characterization technique, an exceptionally detailed picture of the information flow and structure of the class can be produced. The intellectual structure of published conceptual inventories is compared with the information presented in the class and the dependence of conceptual performance on the details of coverage extracted. )

Teaching the Psychology of Engagement with Beauty: State and Trait

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diessner, Rhett; Kirk, Cameron; Guenthner, Crystn; Pohling, Rico; Mobasher, Saman

2017-01-01

An undergraduate senior-level course, the psychology of beauty, taught within the positive psychology approach, was designed with the aim to increase state and trait levels of engagement with beauty among its students. The course was a service-learning course in which students were paired by the Area Agency on Aging with elders in the greater…

Patterns of Instructional Discourse that Promote the Perception of Mastery Goals in a Social Constructivist Mathematics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morrone, Anastasia Steffen; Harkness, Shelly S.; D'Ambrosio, Beatriz; Caulfield, Richard

2004-01-01

Elementary education students enrolled in an experimental mathematics course participated in this study. The course is taught using a social constructivist approach and is designed to improve students' mathematical problem-solving ability and deepen their understanding of mathematics. The research question for the present study is as follows: In…

Preparing Industrial Education Teachers as Reading Specialists.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cranney, A. Garr; McKell, William E.

Three years ago Brigham Young University in Provo, UT began offering a required two-credit pass-fail course to prepare industrial education teachers to teach reading in their field. The course is team taught by a reading teacher and an industrial education faculty member who had done his/her dissertation in reading. Addressed in the course are the…

Comparison of High School Dual-Enrollment and Traditional First-Term General/Organic/Biochemistry College Chemistry Class Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zuidema, Daniel R.; Eames, Kevin J.

2014-01-01

Student performance in a high school dual-enrollment chemistry course was compared with student performance in the corresponding traditional college course. The two courses were taught by the same instructor and evaluated using the same American Chemical Society (ACS) standardized examination. Interestingly, the high school dual-enrollment…

Digital Learning in Higher Education: A Training Course for Teaching Online--Universidade Aberta, Portugal

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moreira, José António; José António, Susana; Goulão, Maria de Fátima; Barros, Daniela

2017-01-01

This paper uses qualitative evidence to describe, explore and discuss the progress of the online teaching training course taught at the Universidade Aberta to Portuguese and foreign professors of higher education institutions. As this is an entirely online course, its pedagogical design results from the combination of the basics of open distance…

Investigating Art Objects through Collaborative Student Research Projects in an Undergraduate Chemistry and Art Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wells, Gary; Haaf, Michael

2013-01-01

Inspired in part by Chemistry Collaborations, Workshops, and Community of Scholars workshops, the Chemistry and Art course offered at Ithaca College is team-taught by a chemist and an art historian, underscoring the complementary nature of the two disciplines. The course, populated primarily by nonscience majors, highlights the importance of using…

Moving through MOOCs: Understanding the Progression of Users in Massive Open Online Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perna, Laura W.; Ruby, Alan; Boruch, Robert F.; Wang, Nicole; Scull, Janie; Ahmad, Seher; Evans, Chad

2014-01-01

This paper reports on the progress of users through 16 Coursera courses taught by University of Pennsylvania faculty for the first time between June 2012 and July 2013. Using descriptive analyses, this study advances knowledge by considering two definitions of massive open online course (MOOC) users (registrants and starters), comparing two…

Diploma of Higher Studies in Oceanography. Red Sea & Gulf of Aden Programme (PERSGA).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arab Organization for Education and Science, Cairo (Egypt).

This document presents four courses for the diploma of higher studies in oceanography conducted by the Department of Oceanography, Faculty of Science, University of Alexandria, Egypt. These courses are organized by the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO). Each course is designed to be taught in one academic year…

Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty: Developing a Course on Disney and Fairytale Movies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bonds-Raacke, Jennifer M.

2008-01-01

I developed and taught a course titled The Psychology of Disney and Fairytale Movies. This course examined the psychological effects of mass communication on behavior and thought, specifically the stereotyping of women and men and the concept of true love as portrayed in Disney and Fairytale movies. This paper describes the (a) development of the…

Building a Community of Inquiry and Analytical Skills in an Online History Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stover, Sheri; Pollock, Sean

2014-01-01

The purpose of this case study was to assess a history instructor's attempt to redesign an introductory history survey course. Traditionally, it has been taught in a face-to-face environment within the university's core curriculum program. It was redesigned as a synchronous online course that provided students with opportunities to work…

German Politics "auf Deutsch": Teaching Comparative Politics in a Language across the Curriculum Format.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hallerberg, Mark; Cothran, Bettina

1999-01-01

Explores how language and political science professors can co-teach a course using the Language Across the Curriculum format to increase student understanding of a country's language and politics. Describes a Georgia Tech course taught in German on post-war German politics. Addresses the elements of a successful course and student and course…

MEMSlab: A Practical MEMS Course for the Fabrication, Packaging, and Testing of a Single-Axis Accelerometer

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grundbacher, R.; Hoetzel, J. E.; Hierold, C.

2009-01-01

A microelectro-mechanical systems (MEMS) laboratory course (MEMSlab) in the Mechanical and Process Engineering Department at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), is presented. The course has been taught for four years and has been attended primarily by Master's students from mechanical and electrical engineering; since fall…

A Project-Based Learning Approach to Programmable Logic Design and Computer Architecture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kellett, C. M.

2012-01-01

This paper describes a course in programmable logic design and computer architecture as it is taught at the University of Newcastle, Australia. The course is designed around a major design project and has two supplemental assessment tasks that are also described. The context of the Computer Engineering degree program within which the course is…

Will They Use What You Taught Them? Course-Embedded Assessment of Accounting Students' Information Technology Self-Efficacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, John W.; Mitchem, Cheryl E.

2004-01-01

This paper provides a model of course-embedded assessment for use in an undergraduate Accounting Information Systems course, and reports the results obtained from implementation. The profession's educational objectives are mapped to specific computer skills and assignments, to provide direct evidence of learning outcomes. Indirect evidence of…

Utilizing JUSUR in an Information Systems Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zouhair, Jalila

2010-01-01

The aims of this paper are to report the perceptions of both faculty and students when JUSUR, a web based Learning Management System, is used to supplement the teaching inside and outside the classroom during one academic subject; and to compare the experience of the instructor who had previously taught the same course using a course website to…

Enhancing Student Interest in the Psychology of Aging: An Interview with Susan Krauss Whitbourne.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fingerman, Karen L.

2000-01-01

Presents an interview with Susan Krauss Whitbourne in which she discusses issues such as the challenge in teaching a course on the psychology of aging; types of assignments and active learning she uses in her course; resources she recommends; and how her research influences the adult development courses she has taught. (CMK)

Training of Vocational Education Teachers in Research Methodology and Research Report Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beaumariage, G. N., Jr.

A 45-hour three-unit course in research design, data collection techniques, and research report writing was prepared and taught to vocational/technology instructors. The course emphasized the relationship of design and data to the final reports in terms of techniques used. As a result of teaching the course, a second syllabus was developed…

Defining Assessment Literacy: Is it Different for Language Testers and Non-Language Testers?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jeong, Heejeong

2013-01-01

Language assessment courses (LACs) are taught by professionals who have majored in the area of language testing (language testers or LTs), but also by others who come from different language-related majors (non-language testers, non-LTs). Different language assessment courses may be developed, depending on who teaches the course and the…

Exercise, Nutrition and You: An Off-Campus Course for Grades 2?12

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snyder, Ann C.; Mauzy-Melitz, Debra K.

2005-01-01

Since interest in science classes has declined recently and obesity, especially in youth, continues to increase, an exercise physiology-based course was taught in public parks to promote active-learning science and healthy living. The course emphasized and integrated exercise, nutrition, and health during a 3-h session. Following an introduction,…

Evaluation of an ESP Course of Qur'anic Sciences and Tradition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salehi, Hadi; Davari, Ameneh; Yunus, Melor Md

2015-01-01

Evaluation is defined as matching process that matches the needs to available solutions. The present study is an attempt to evaluate English for specific purposes (ESP) course book on "the ESP Course of Qur'anic Sciences and Tradition" taught at some universities in Iran. To achieve this goal, a researcher-made questionnaire and an…

Pre-Service Teachers' Mind Maps and Opinions on STEM Education Implemented in an Environmental Literacy Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sümen, Özlem Özçakir; Çalisici, Hamza

2016-01-01

This study aims to implement a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education approach in an environmental education course. The research involved the design and implementation of STEM activities by researchers, as part of the environmental education course taught in the second year of a Primary School Teaching undergraduate…

Students' Choice of Language and Initial Motivation for Studying Japanese at the University of Jyväskylä Language Centre

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Takala, Pauliina

2015-01-01

Elective language courses, particularly those starting from the beginner level, constitute their own special group within the communication and language course offerings of universities. The elementary courses of less commonly taught languages (LCTL), such as Japanese, provide students with the opportunity to acquire, among other benefits, a…

Graduate Introductory Educational Research Courses: A Look at What Is Required.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Todd, Robert F.; Reece, Carol Carter

A diversity of practices exists with regard to the actual content taught in graduate-level courses in introduction to educational research. In a recent Delphi study, a national panel of 21 experts in educational research generated a list of 114 skills and knowledge areas they considered worthy objectives in an introductory course. What remained…

Transactional Distance and Student Ratings in Online College Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Benton, Stephen L.; Li, Dan; Gross, Amy; Pallett, William H.; Webster, Russell J.

2013-01-01

Student ratings were compared in courses offered either exclusively online ("n"?=?13,416) or face-to-face ("n" = 5,272). Data from 105 institutions were accessed from archived files of the IDEA Student Ratings of Instruction system. If a course was taught online, the instructor was less likely to lecture and more likely to use…

An Investigation of Marketing Educators' Approach to Teaching International Marketing in the Introductory Marketing Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zimmer, Robert J.; And Others

1996-01-01

A survey of 122 college teachers of marketing courses investigated the extent and methods of their inclusion of international marketing into the course curriculum. Findings suggest that, among those teaching international marketing, how they acquired their international knowledge had a significant effect on how they taught international marketing.…

An Integrated Approach to Management Communication at the T. A. Pai Management Institute

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gupta, Jaba Mukherjee

2005-01-01

Stand-alone communication courses are still the dominant model in both Indian and US schools. Communication courses are taught separately and not integrated into the main course curriculum in a formal manner by communication faculty working alongside with the rest of the faculty. Although this may over-generalize, it suggests the background…

Overcoming Disciplinary and Institutional Barriers: An Interdisciplinary Course in Economic and Sociological Perspectives on Health Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wade, Bruce H.; Stone, Jack H.

2010-01-01

The authors describe an interdisciplinary course team-taught by an economist and a sociologist. Historically mindful of the less than amicable relationship between these disciplines, these colleagues developed a course that attempted to illuminate the different perspectives of economics and sociology in relation to selected health themes. Such a…

Special relativity theorem and Pythagoras’s magic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korkmaz, S. D.; Aybek, E. C.; Örücü, M.

2016-03-01

In the modern physics unit included in the course curriculum of grade 10 physics introduced in the 2007-2008 education year, the aim is that students at this grade level are aware of any developments which constitute modern physics and may be considered new, and interpret whether mass, length and time values of the motions at any velocities close to the speed of light vary or not. One of the scientific concepts and subjects among the final ones to be learned in the unit of modern physics with 12 course hours includes the special relativity theorem and its results. The special relativity theorem, the foundation of which was laid by Einstein in 1905, has three significant predictions proven by experiments and observations: time extension, dimensional shortening and mass relativity. At the first stage of this study, a simple and fast solution that uses the Pythagorean relation for problems and must be treated by using the mathematical expressions of the predictions as specified above is given, and this way of solution was taught while the relativity subject was explained to the secondary education students who are fifteen years old from grade 10 in the 2013-2014 education year. At the second stage of the study, a qualitative study is released together with grade 11 students who are sixteen years old in 2014-2015, who learnt to solve any problems in both methods, while the special relativity subject is discussed in the physics course in grade 10. The findings of the study show that the students have a misconception on the relativity theorem and prefer to solve any relativity-related problems by using the Pythagorean method constituting the first stage of this study.

Lessons that Linger: A 40-Year Follow-Along Note About a Boy with Autism Taught to Communicate by Gestures when Aged Six.

PubMed

Webster, C D; Fruchter, D; Dean, J; Konstantareas, M M; Sloman, L

2016-07-01

We draw on an article published in 1973 in this journal. We described how we taught "Geoff," a 6-year old boy with autism, an elementary form of sign language during the course of 24 one-hour sessions held over a 12-week period (Webster et al. in J Autism Child Schizophr 3:337-346, 1973; Fruchter in Autism: new directions in research and education, pp 184-186, 1980). Here, we describe how it is that Geoff has maintained the vestiges of what we taught him (and indeed what he taught us) over the long span. This basic communication strategy has endured well and continues to contribute to his enjoyment of life.