The Impact of a Required Undergraduate Health and Wellness Course on Students' Awareness and Knowledge of Physical Activity and Chronic Disease

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kuruganti, Usha

2014-01-01

As part of the undergraduate curriculum, the Faculty of Kinesiology at the University of New Brunswick (UNB) requires all students to take an undergraduate course in physical activity, health and wellness in their third year of study. This capstone course allows students to integrate concepts from their program regarding physical activity,…

A model for undergraduate physics major outcomes objectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taylor, G. R.; Erwin, T. Dary

1989-06-01

Concern with assessment of student outcomes of undergraduate physics major programs is rapidly rising. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and many other regional and state organizations are requiring explicit outcomes assessment in the accrediting process. The first step in this assessment process for major programs is the establishment of student outcomes objectives. A model and set of physics outcomes (educational) objectives that were developed by the faculty in the Physics Department at James Madison University are presented.

Research Experiences for Undergraduates.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rettig, Terrence W.; And Others

1990-01-01

Reviewed are six programs at different colleges and universities which provide research opportunities for undergraduate students in physics, astronomy, marine biology, meteorology, and anthropology. Background, features, and accomplishments of the programs are discussed. (CW)

Comparison of Career Concerns among College Women and Men Enrolled in Biological and Physical Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dodson, Maria

The underrepresentation of women enrolled in the physical sciences continues to challenge academic leaders despite over 40 years of programming to promote gender equity within these curricula. This study employed a quantitative, causal comparative method to explore if and to what extent career concerns differed among female and male undergraduate physical and biological science students. The theory of planned behavior and life-span, life-space theory served as the theoretical framework for the study. Quantitative survey data were collected from 43 students at four institutions across the United States. The findings indicated that undergraduate women in physical science programs of study had a significantly different level of concern about the Innovating sub-category of the third stage of career development, Maintenance, as compared to undergraduate women in biological science curricula [F(1,33) = 6.244, p = 0.018]. Additionally, there was a statistically significant difference between female undergraduate physical science students and undergraduate male science students in the sub-categories of Implementation [F(1,19) = 7.228, p = 0.015], Advancing [F(1,19) = 11.877, p = 0.003], and Innovating [F(1,19) = 11.782, p = 0.003] within the first three stages of career development (Exploration, Establishment, and Maintenance). The comparative differences among the study groups offers new information about undergraduate career concerns that may contribute to the underrepresentation of women enrolled in the physical sciences. Suggestions for future research and programs within higher education targeted at reducing the career concerns of current and prospective female students in physical science curricula are discussed.

Evaluation of a Voluntary Tutoring Program in Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics for First-Year Undergraduates at Universidad Andres Bello, Chile

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jiménez, Verónica A.; Acuña, Fabiola C.; Quiero, Felipe J.; López, Margarita; Zahn, Carmen I.

2015-01-01

This work describes the preliminary results of a tutoring program that provides personalized academic assistance to first-year undergraduates enrolled in introductory chemistry, physics and mathematics courses at Universidad Andres Bello (UNAB), in Concepción, Chile. Intervened courses have historically large enrolments, diverse student population…

Undergraduate Program Reviews at Brock University. Report of the UPRAC Auditors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Council of Ontario Universities, Toronto.

Pursuant to the Council of Ontario Universities' procedures for periodic quality reviews of undergraduate programs, auditors examined the policies and programs of Brock University (BU) during 1997. Three departments were selected for audits of their program review procedures: Philosophy, Geography, and Physics; additionally, the Oenology and…

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.

The Impact of Nintendo Wii to Physical Education Students' Balance Compared to the Traditional Approaches

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vernadakis, Nikolaos; Gioftsidou, Asimenia; Antoniou, Panagiotis; Ioannidis, Dionysis; Giannousi, Maria

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there is a difference between an exergame-based and a traditional balance training program, in undergraduate Physical Education students. Thirty two third-year undergraduate students at the Democritus University of Thrace were randomly divided into two training program groups of 16 students each,…

A Study of Physics Faculty's Instructional Practices: Implications for Experiential STEM Faculty Development Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soto, Marissa; Suskavcevic, Miliana; Forrest, Rebecca; Cheung, Margaret; Kapral, Andrew; Khon, Lawrence

When teaching physics, many factors determine the final impact the course will have on a student. Using STEP, a teacher content professional development program, we are studying the incorporation of inquiry-based teaching strategies in the professional development of university professors through an active engagement program. Through the professors' involvement in the program, they gain experience with inquiry-based instruction that can be put into effect in their own classrooms to possibly create a shift in understanding and success ratesat physics undergraduate courses. This model consists of faculty peer mentoring, facilitating instruction within a community of practice, and implementation of undergraduate inquiry-based physics teaching strategies. Here, professors are facilitating the physics lessons to in-service high school teachers while using inquiry strategies and interactive activities rather than traditional lecture. This project aided the creation of an undergraduate inquiry-based physics course at the University of Houston. It could lead to a new form of professor professional development workshop that does not only benefit the professor, but also highschoolteachers not properly trained in the field of physics.

Implementation and Results of a Learning Assistant Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bogue, Thomas B.; Seeley, L.; Vokos, S.

2006-12-01

The Physics Department at Seattle Pacific University has recently completed a three-year CCLI grant to integrate Tutorials in Introductory Physics , Activity Based Physics , and Real Time Physics into our one-year introductory curriculum. One of the difficulties encountered in doing this at a small undergraduate university was the need for additional instructors. This need is met through the use of undergraduate learning assistants. The development of recruitment and implementation methods will be discussed, along with the advantages to physics education, and the challenges encountered. We will also discuss several strategies we have identified as critical to a successful learning assistant program.

Outreach to Underrepresented Groups in Plasma Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dominguez, A.; Zwicker, A.; Ortiz, D.; Greco, S. L.

2017-10-01

Physics, and specifically plasma physics, has a recruitment and retention problem for women and historically underrepresented minorities at all levels of their academic careers. For example, women make up approximately 8% of the APS-DPP membership while making up 13% of APS membership at large. In this presentation, we describe outreach activities we have undertaken targeting retention of these groups after their undergraduate careers. These include: Targeted recruitment visits for undergraduate research internships, as well as plasma physics workshops aimed at undergraduate women in physics, faculty members of minority serving institutions, and underrepresented undergraduates. After the first year of implementation, we have already seen results, including students reached through these programs participating in SULI undergraduate internships at PPPL. This work was support by a Grant from the DOE Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS).

Manpower Assessment Brief #45: HEALTH PHYSICS Enrollments Decreased at All Levels in 1998.Undergraduate and Master's Degrees Decreased, While Doctoral Degrees Increased Slightly.

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

Shirley, Duveen

1999-05-04

The "Health Physics Enrollments and Degrees, 1998" survey consisted of 47 institutions (49 programs) offering a major in health physics/radiation protection or radiation health, or an option program equivalent to a major (for example, in radiobiology or biophysics) that prepare the graduates to perform as health physicists. This document provides statistical data on undergraduate and graduate enrollment and degrees, employment or post-graduation plans, and foreign national participation.

Barriers to Undergraduate Peer-Physical Examination of the Lower Limb in the Health Sciences and Strategies to Improve Inclusion: A Review

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hendry, Gordon James

2013-01-01

Peer-physical examination is a widely adopted and an integral component of the undergraduate curriculum for many health science programs. Unwillingness or perceived inability to participate in peer-physical examination classes may have a negative impact upon students' abilities to competently conduct physical examinations of patients in…

Educational Outreach at CASPER

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hyde, Truell; Smith, Bernard; Carmona-Reyes, Jorge

2007-11-01

The CASPER Educational Outreach program with support from the Department of Education, the Department of Labor and the National Science Foundation advances physics education through a variety of avenues including CASPER's REU / RET program, High School Scholars Program, spiral curriculum development program and the CASPER Physics Circus. These programs impact K-12 teachers and students providing teachers with curriculum, supporting hands-on material and support for introducing plasma and basic physical science into the classroom. The most visible of the CASPER outreach programs is the Physics Circus, created during the 1999-2000 school year and funded since that time through two large grants from the Department of Education. The Physics Circus is part of GEAR UP Waco (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) and was originally one of 185 grants awarded nationwide by the U. S. Department of Education in 1999 to help 200,000 disadvantaged children prepare for and gain a pathway to undergraduate programs. The CASPER Physics Circus is composed of intense science explorations, physics demonstrations, hands-on interactive displays, theatrical performances, and excellent teaching experiences. Examples and efficacy data from the above will be discussed.

They Won't All Grow Up to Be You: Preparing Students for Diverse Careers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNeil, Laurie

The Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs (J-TUPP) was formed in response to a growing awareness in the physics community that undergraduate physics majors pursue a wide range of careers after graduation, with very few ending up employed as physics professors. The task force was charged to identify the skills and knowledge that undergraduate physics degree holders should possess to be well prepared for a diverse set of careers, and to provide guidance on how physicists could revise the undergraduate curriculum to improve the education of a diverse student population. Our report (issued in October 2016) is the result of the task force's reviews of employment data, surveys of employers, and reports generated by other disciplines, as well as meetings with physicists in selected industries and interviews with recent physics graduates employed in the private sector. As part of our study we also identified exemplary programs that provide models of how physics departments can ensure that all of their students are well prepared to pursue a wide range of career paths. I will summarize and illustrate the findings and recommendations contained in the task force's report.

Integrating Computational Chemistry into the Physical Chemistry Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Lewis E.; Engel, Thomas

2011-01-01

Relatively few undergraduate physical chemistry programs integrate molecular modeling into their quantum mechanics curriculum owing to concerns about limited access to computational facilities, the cost of software, and concerns about increasing the course material. However, modeling exercises can be integrated into an undergraduate course at a…

Training Undergraduate Physics Peer Tutors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nossal, S. M.; Jacob, A. T.

2004-05-01

The University of Wisconsin's Physics Peer Mentor Tutor Program matches upper level undergraduate physics students in small study groups with students studying introductory algebra-based physics. We work with students who are potentially at-risk for having academic trouble with the course. They include students with a low exam score, learning disabilities, no high school physics, weak math backgrounds, and/or on academic probation. We also work with students from groups under represented in the sciences and who may be feeling isolated or marginal on campus such as minority, returning adult, and international students. The tutors provide a supportive learning environment, extra practice problems, and an overview of key concepts. In so doing, they help our students to build confidence and problem solving skills applicable to physics and other areas of their academic careers. The Physics Peer Mentor Tutor Program is modeled after a similar program for chemistry created by the University of Wisconsin's Chemistry Learning Center. Both programs are now run in collaboration. The tutors are chosen for their academic strength and excellent communication skills. Our tutors are majoring in physics, math, and secondary-level science education. The tutors receive ongoing training and supervision throughout the year. They attend weekly discipline-specific meetings to discuss strategies for teaching the content currently being discussed in the physics course. They also participate in a weekly teaching seminar with science tutors from chemistry and biochemistry to discuss teaching methods, mentoring, and general information relating to the students with whom we work. We will describe an overview of the Physics Peer Mentor Tutor Program with a focus on the teacher training program for our undergraduate tutors.

An Investigation of Pre-Service Science Teachers' Level of Efficacy in the Undergraduate Science Teacher Education Program and Pedagogical Formation Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Çetin, Oguz

2017-01-01

The purpose of this research is to comparatively investigate the efficacy levels of pre-service science (Science, Biology, Physics, and Chemistry) teachers enrolled at the Undergraduate Program of Science Teacher Education and Pedagogical Formation Program. A total of 275 pre-service teachers who were studying in different programmes in the…

6th Annual Midwest Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics, January 18-20, 2013, Urbana, Illinois

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

Pitts, Kevin T.

This document is the program for the 6th Annual Midwest Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics, which was held at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on January 18-20, 2013. The goals of the conference were to foster a culture in which undergraduate women are encouraged and supported to pursue, and also to succeed in, higher education in physics; to provide career information to students in physics and related fields; to give women the resources, motivation, and confidence to apply to graduate school and successfully complete a Ph.D. program in Physics; to provide information and dispel misconceptions about the applicationmore » process for graduate school and the diverse employment opportunities in physics and related fields, enabling women to make more informed decisions about their goals and attain them; and to connect female physics students with successful female physicists to whom they can relate and who can act as inspirational role models and mentors.« less

Why Some Stay: A Study of Factors Contributing to Persistence In Undergraduate Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vazquez-Abad, Jesus; And Others

This paper reports on research undertaken to provide information about the factors influencing student persistence in undergraduate physics programs at the University of Montreal in Quebec, Canada. Data collection methods included student interviews, faculty and staff interviews, and two separate questionnaire administrations to students enrolled…

Who Wants to Be a Physical Education Teacher? A Case Study of a Non-Traditional Undergraduate Student in a Physical Education Teacher Education Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ronspies, Scott

2011-01-01

Forty percent of undergraduate students are non-traditional students. The purpose of this study was to identify what attracted the participant to physical education, identify what situational/social factors facilitated the career choice, and the beliefs of the participant about what it meant to be a physical educator. The study consisted of one…

APS Education and Diversity Efforts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prestridge, Katherine; Hodapp, Theodore

2015-11-01

American Physical Society (APS) has a wide range of education and diversity programs and activities, including programs that improve physics education, increase diversity, provide outreach to the public, and impact public policy. We present the latest programs spearheaded by the Committee on the Status of Women in Physics (CSWP), with highlights from other diversity and education efforts. The CSWP is working to increase the fraction of women in physics, understand and implement solutions for gender-specific issues, enhance professional development opportunities for women in physics, and remedy issues that impact gender inequality in physics. The Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics, Professional Skills Development Workshops, and our new Professional Skills program for students and postdocs are all working towards meeting these goals. The CSWP also has site visit and conversation visit programs, where department chairs request that the APS assess the climate for women in their departments or facilitate climate discussions. APS also has two significant programs to increase participation by underrepresented minorities (URM). The newest program, the APS National Mentoring Community, is working to provide mentoring to URM undergraduates, and the APS Bridge Program is an established effort that is dramatically increasing the number of URM PhDs in physics.

A conference experience for undergraduates

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

Collins, L.A.; Magee, N.H.; Bryant, H.C.

1999-08-01

Programs launched by many universities and the federal government expose many undergraduate students in the physical sciences to research early in their careers. However, in their research experiences, undergraduates are not usually introduced to the modes by which scientific knowledge, which they may have helped gather, is communicated and evaluated by working scientists. Nor is it always made clear where the research frontiers really lie. To this end, we guided a selected group of undergraduates through a national scientific conference, followed by a week of tutorials and discussions to help them better understand what had transpired. The program complemented themore » basic undergraduate research endeavors by emphasizing the importance of disseminating results both to other scientists and to society in general. Tutors and discussion leaders in the second week were experts in their fields and included some of the invited speakers from the main meeting. A considerable improvement in the understanding of the issues and prospects for a career in physics was discernible among the students after their two-week experience. {copyright} {ital 1999 American Association of Physics Teachers.}« less

Assessing Program Learning Objectives to Improve Undergraduate Physics Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Menke, Carrie

2014-03-01

Our physics undergraduate program has five program learning objectives (PLOs) focusing on (1) physical principles, (2) mathematical expertise, (3) experimental technique, (4) communication and teamwork, and (5) research proficiency. One PLO is assessed each year, with the results guiding modifications in our curriculum and future assessment practices; we have just completed our first cycle of assessing all PLOs. Our approach strives to maximize the ease and applicability of our assessment practices while maintaining faculty's flexibility in course design and delivery. Objectives are mapped onto our core curriculum with identified coursework collected as direct evidence. We've utilized mostly descriptive rubrics, applying them at the course and program levels as well as sharing them with the students. This has resulted in more efficient assessment that is also applicable to reaccreditation efforts, higher inter-rater reliability than with other rubric types, and higher quality capstone projects. We've also found that the varied quality of student writing can interfere with our assessment of other objectives. This poster outlines our processes, resources, and how we have used PLO assessment to strengthen our undergraduate program.

Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs: Implications for physics programs and why you should care

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hodapp, Theodore

2016-03-01

The content of undergraduate physics programs has not changed appreciably in 50 years, however, the jobs our students take have changed dramatically. Preparing students for careers they are likely to encounter requires physics programs to rethink and in some cases retool to provide an education that will not only educate an individual in the habits of mind and keen sense of how to solve complex technical problems, but also what related skills they will need to be effective in those careers. Do you teach your student how to read or create a budget? How about dealing with a low-performing member of an R&D team? This talk will explore driving forces behind this report, potential implications for physics departments, and practical steps faculty members can take to continue to consider improvements in experiences for our students. This work is supported in part by the National Science Foundation (NSF-1540570).

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.

A Python Program for Solving Schro¨dinger's Equation in Undergraduate Physical Chemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Srnec, Matthew N.; Upadhyay, Shiv; Madura, Jeffry D.

2017-01-01

In undergraduate physical chemistry, Schrödinger's equation is solved for a variety of cases. In doing so, the energies and wave functions of the system can be interpreted to provide connections with the physical system being studied. Solving this equation by hand for a one-dimensional system is a manageable task, but it becomes time-consuming…

Rural Adapted Physical Education Teacher Preparation Programs: A Pilot Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palma, Gloria M.; DePauw, Karen

1990-01-01

Among 22 teacher educators of adapted physical education, 10 reported that their institutions offered a degree program in adapted physical education; 4 of these required practical training in rural districts. Eighteen institutions required an undergraduate course in adapted physical education; 12 of these courses contained a rural-oriented…

An undergraduate program for astronomy in México

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bravo-Alfaro, Hector; Migenes, Victor

Astronomy in Mexico has an ancient tradition, reinforced during the XXth century by groups working in theoretical and observational astronomy. During the 90s, the Great Millimeter Telescope (a single 50-m antenna) has been approved, and a 6-m infrared telescope is under study. Graduate and undergraduate programs must be improved to prepare future Mexican and Latin American astronomers to take advantage of these facilities. To meet the challenge, two traditional Mexican programs (Instituto de Astronomia-UNAM and Instituto Nacional de Astrofisica, Optica y Electronica-INAOE) are updating their graduate programs for. Similarly, the Departamento de Astronomia de la Universidad de Guanajuato is joining physicists in the first undergraduate program in Mexico in Physics and Engineering with an option in Astrophysics. This will prepare students so that they can choose between industry, academia or national laboratories, either in Physics or Astronomy. Jobs in academia have been scarce; many students had to give up their goals after one or two postdoctoral positions. Graduate and undergraduate programs must adjust, by broadening the scope of present programs so that students are better prepared for other job opportunities. We present a BSc program designed by astronomers and physicists to try to address some of these concerns and prepare the students for either continuing with graduate studies or finding employment in an ever-changing job market.

Building an undergraduate physics program with Learning Assistants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Price, Edward

2013-04-01

In 2007, the CSUSM Physics Department began offering a B.S. in Applied Physics, its first physics bachelors degree program. The program has grown from 11 majors in 2008 to over 80 in 2012, due in part to recruiting students from local high schools and community colleges. More broadly, because most CSUSM students come from the local region, the longer-term health of the Department is coupled with the vitality and strength of local high school physics education. In addition, establishing a new physics degree required curriculum development and offered the opportunity to incorporate recent innovations in physics education when developing courses. A Learning Assistants (LA) Program, established by the Department in 2008, has been a critical component in these efforts to recruit students, build local educational networks, and implement innovative curricula. In an LA Program, undergraduate Learning Assistants assist faculty in class, meet regularly with the course instructor, and participate in a weekly seminar on teaching and learning, which provides guidance on effective instruction and an opportunity to reflect on their experiences in the classroom. The LA program promotes course transformation, improved student learning, and teacher recruitment. This talk will describe the CSUSM LA Program and its role in support of our growing applied physics degree program.

Involving Undergraduates in Solar Physics Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lopresto, James C.; Jenkins, Nancy

1996-05-01

Via a combination of local funding, Cottrell Research Corporation and a pending NSF proposal, I am actively involved in including undergraduates in solar physics research. Severl undergraduates, about 2-3 per academic year over the past several years have participated in a combination of activities. This project has been ongoing since November of 1992. Student involvement includes; 1)acquiring image and other data via the INTERNET, 2) reducing dat via inhouse programs and image processing, 3) traveling to Kitt Peak to obtain solar spectral index data.

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…

Radioactivity teaching: Environmental consequences of the radiological accident in Goiânia (Brazil)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anjos, R. M.; Facure, A.; Lima, E. L. N.; Gomes, P. R. S.; Santos, M. S.; Brage, J. A. P.; Okuno, E.; Yoshimura, E. M.; Umisedo, N. K.

2001-03-01

Ionizing radiation and its effects on human beings, radiation protection, and radiological accident prevention are topics usually not included in the physics courses at the Brazilian universities. As a consequence, high school teachers are not able to enlighten their students when radiological or nuclear accidents occur. This paper presents a teaching program on ionizing radiation physics, to be applied to undergraduate physics students and to physics high school teachers. It is based on the environmental consequences of the 1987 radiological accident in Goiânia. This program was applied to two undergraduate physics students, in 1999, at the Universidade Federal Fluminense, Brazil. Results of the gamma ray spectrometry measurements of samples collected in Goiânia by the students are presented.

Women in Physics in Perú

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loayza, María Luisa Cerón; Vásquez, Yezeña Huaypar; Cabrejos, Jorge Aurelio Bravo

2009-04-01

The numbers of women receiving undergraduate and master's degrees in physics from San Marcos National University and undergraduate physics degrees from San Luis Gonzaga National University in Perú are reported. The number of undergraduate degrees in physics has increased for women in San Marcos University, but not for women earning master's degrees. Why don't women complete their post-degree studies? Economics and gender stereotypes are factors that women in Perú have to fight each day. Perú does not have a good scholar program in science, so few students are interested in beginning their university careers in science. Improvements in science education are needed for our country to reach its potential.

CSPAP Professional Preparation: Takeaways from Pioneering Physical Education Teacher Education Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carson, Russell L.; Castelli, Darla M.; Kulinna, Pamela Hodges

2017-01-01

As comprehensive school physical activity program (CSPAP) professional development becomes increasingly available to current K-12 physical education teachers, this special feature shifts attention to the preparation of future PE teachers and teacher educators for CSPAP. The purpose of this concluding article is to summarize the undergraduate- and…

Assessment of the benefits of a summer undergraduate research program for physics and chemistry majors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hughes, Chris; MacDonald, Gina

2006-11-01

Presently at James Madison University, there are slightly more than 100 physics majors and 150 chemistry majors. Each summer, a significant fraction of these students participate in either the chemistry or interdisciplinary materials science Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program on campus. This provides a large pool of students from which to draw data comparing the influence of undergraduate research on both classroom performance and attitudes toward science as a profession. By analyzing the grade point averages of chemistry and physics majors, we have shown slightly larger increases from spring semester to fall semester for students who participated in the REU than those who did not. We have also measured changes in attitudes using surveys of the students both at the beginning and at the end of the summer experience. An analysis of these surveys will be presented.

Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs (J-TUPP): What skills and knowledge are needed for a diverse set of careers and what's the basis for these recommendations?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woolf, Lawrence

2016-03-01

A wide variety of reports have been issued recently concerning the skills, knowledge, and attitudes needed by employees to be successful. This talk will review findings from reports from the major science and engineering disciplines, from surveys of employers, and from interviews with recent undergraduate physics graduates. Also to be discussed is the correlation between these findings and the detailed J-TUPP recommendations for the skills and knowledge needed by the next generation of undergraduate physics degree holders to be prepared for a diverse set of careers.

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

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

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

2018-07-01

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

The Nature and Incorporation of CSPAP Learning Experiences in Physical Education Teacher Education: Accounts of Faculty from "Highly Effective" Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Webster, Collin A.; Russ, Laura; Webster, Liana; Molina, Sergio; Lee, Heesu; Cribbs, Jason

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine faculty accounts of the nature and incorporation of Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) learning experiences for preservice physical education teachers (PPETs) in undergraduate physical education teacher education (PETE). Nine individuals employed as faculty members in different PETE…

Physiology undergraduate degree requirements in the U.S.

PubMed

VanRyn, Valerie S; Poteracki, James M; Wehrwein, Erica A

2017-12-01

Course-level learning objectives and core concepts for undergraduate physiology teaching exist. The next step is to consider how these resources fit into generalizable program-level guidelines for Bachelor of Science (BS) degrees in Physiology. In the absence of program-level guidelines for Physiology degree programs, we compiled a selective internal report to review degree requirements from 18 peer BS programs entitled "Physiology" in the United States (U.S.). There was a range of zero to three required semesters of math, physics, physics laboratory, general biology, biology laboratory, general chemistry, chemistry laboratory, organic chemistry, organic chemistry laboratory, biochemistry, biochemistry laboratory, anatomy, anatomy laboratory, core systems physiology, and physiology laboratory. Required upper division credits ranged from 11 to 31 and included system-specific, exercise and environmental, clinically relevant, pathology/disease-related, and basic science options. We hope that this information will be useful for all programs that consider themselves to be physiology, regardless of name. Reports such as this can serve as a starting point for collaboration among BS programs to improve physiology undergraduate education and best serve our students. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Experiences Gained Creating a Biophysics Major at a Predominately Undergraduate Institution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Link, Justin; Herbert, Steven

2014-03-01

Xavier University, a liberal arts predominately undergraduate institution (PUI) located in Cincinnati, OH, implemented a Biophysics major in the Department of Physics in spring 2012. The program is built upon foundational physics courses and is unique due to the possible selection of upper-division courses that students elect to take towards their undergraduate degree. A capstone course is offered to bring all prior knowledge in the fundamental sciences together to approach complex problems in biology. Due to the flexibility of the program, it serves students well who are interested in pursuing advanced degrees in Biophysics or Biomedical Engineering. It also offers students interested in the health professions an alternate path towards medical school which can be advantageous in the application process. This session will express some of the advantages and challenges to creating such a program at a liberal arts PUI and discuss the capstone course within the major.

Assessment of Student and Faculty Mentor Perceptions of an International Undergraduate Research Program in Physical Geography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Houser, Chris; Cahill, Anthony; Lemmons, Kelly

2014-01-01

In this study, we assess whether students and their faculty mentors in a Research Experience for Undergraduates program have similar perceptions about the relative importance of different outcomes of their study abroad experience. Results of a Q-analysis reveal a significant difference of opinion between the students and the faculty mentors. It is…

Analysis of graphical representation among freshmen in undergraduate physics laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adam, A. S.; Anggrayni, S.; Kholiq, A.; Putri, N. P.; Suprapto, N.

2018-03-01

Physics concept understanding is the importance of the physics laboratory among freshmen in the undergraduate program. These include the ability to interpret the meaning of the graph to make an appropriate conclusion. This particular study analyses the graphical representation among freshmen in an undergraduate physics laboratory. This study uses empirical study with quantitative approach. The graphical representation covers 3 physics topics: velocity of sound, simple pendulum and spring system. The result of this study shows most of the freshmen (90% of the sample) make a graph based on the data from physics laboratory. It means the transferring process of raw data which illustrated in the table to physics graph can be categorised. Most of the Freshmen use the proportional principle of the variable in graph analysis. However, Freshmen can't make the graph in an appropriate variable to gain more information and can't analyse the graph to obtain the useful information from the slope.

STAIRSTEP -- a research-oriented program for undergraduate students at Lamar University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bahrim, Cristian

2011-03-01

The relative low number of undergraduate STEM students in many science disciplines, and in particular in physics, represents a major concern for our faculty and the administration at Lamar University. Therefore, a collaborative effort between several science programs, including computer science, chemistry, geology, mathematics and physics was set up with the goal of increasing the number of science majors and to minimize the retention rate. Lamar's Student Advancing through Involvement in Research Student Talent Expansion Program (STAIRSTEP) is a NSF-DUE sponsored program designed to motivate STEM students to graduate with a science degree from one of these five disciplines by involving them in state-of-the-art research projects and various outreach activities organized on-campus or in road shows at the secondary and high schools. The physics program offers hands-on experience in optics, such as computer-based experiments for studying the diffraction and interference of light incident on nettings or electronic wave packets incident on crystals, with applications in optical imaging, electron microscopy, and crystallography. The impact of the various activities done in STAIRSTEP on our Physics Program will be discussed.

Correlation of admissions statistics to graduate student success in medical physics

PubMed Central

McSpadden, Erin; Rakowski, Joseph; Nalichowski, Adrian; Yudelev, Mark; Snyder, Michael

2014-01-01

The purpose of this work is to develop metrics for evaluation of medical physics graduate student performance, assess relationships between success and other quantifiable factors, and determine whether graduate student performance can be accurately predicted by admissions statistics. A cohort of 108 medical physics graduate students from a single institution were rated for performance after matriculation based on final scores in specific courses, first year graduate Grade Point Average (GPA), performance on the program exit exam, performance in oral review sessions, and faculty rating. Admissions statistics including matriculating program (MS vs. PhD); undergraduate degree type, GPA, and country; graduate degree; general and subject GRE scores; traditional vs. nontraditional status; and ranking by admissions committee were evaluated for potential correlation with the performance metrics. GRE verbal and quantitative scores were correlated with higher scores in the most difficult courses in the program and with the program exit exam; however, the GRE section most correlated with overall faculty rating was the analytical writing section. Students with undergraduate degrees in engineering had a higher faculty rating than those from other disciplines and faculty rating was strongly correlated with undergraduate country. Undergraduate GPA was not statistically correlated with any success metrics investigated in this study. However, the high degree of selection on GPA and quantitative GRE scores during the admissions process results in relatively narrow ranges for these quantities. As such, these results do not necessarily imply that one should not strongly consider traditional metrics, such as undergraduate GPA and quantitative GRE score, during the admissions process. They suggest that once applicants have been initially filtered by these metrics, additional selection should be performed via the other metrics shown here to be correlated with success. The parameters used to make admissions decisions for our program are accurate in predicting student success, as illustrated by the very strong statistical correlation between admissions rank and course average, first year graduate GPA, and faculty rating (p<0.002). Overall, this study indicates that an undergraduate degree in physics should not be considered a fundamental requirement for entry into our program and that within the relatively narrow range of undergraduate GPA and quantitative GRE scores of those admitted into our program, additional variations in these metrics are not important predictors of success. While the high degree of selection on particular statistics involved in the admissions process, along with the relatively small sample size, makes it difficult to draw concrete conclusions about the meaning of correlations here, these results suggest that success in medical physics is based on more than quantitative capabilities. Specifically, they indicate that analytical and communication skills play a major role in student success in our program, as well as predicted future success by program faculty members. Finally, this study confirms that our current admissions process is effective in identifying candidates who will be successful in our program and are expected to be successful after graduation, and provides additional insight useful in improving our admissions selection process. PACS number: 01.40.‐d PMID:24423842

Phys21:Preparing Physics Students for 21st Century Careers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCormack, Elizabeth

2017-04-01

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

A Thriving and Innovative Undergraduate Experiential Physics Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roughani, Bahram

2013-03-01

The thriving physics program at Kettering University has experienced a three-fold increase in the number of physics majors since 2002. Our unique physics program requires students alternate between on-campus academic terms and off-campus co-op work terms on a three months rotation format to complete their degree in 4.5 years that includes summer as either school or co-op term. Students complete a minimum of five terms (~15 months) of cooperative work terms, and two terms (~6 months) of senior thesis work. The IP of the thesis work done at a co-op site belongs to the company. This has attracted co-op sponsors for our program by removing the IP concerns. The cooperative and experiential education part of our program is required for graduation, without any credits assigned to it. At the end of every co-op term students' work performance is evaluated by their co-op supervisor, which should match expected performance standards. In addition to co-op and thesis, our programs include a senior capstone design project course, concentrations within physics (Acoustics, Optics, and Materials), a required technical sequence outside physics, as well as entrepreneurship across curriculum. The success of our student securing the highest paid jobs for undergraduate physics majors in the nation plus their success in graduate studies are the main ``Pull Factors'' that has lead to three fold increase the physics majors since 2002.

The Effective and Evolving Role of Graduate Students in the SURFO REU Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pockalny, R. A.

2005-12-01

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships in Oceanography (SURFO) program is a 10-week research/educational program designed to expose 9 undergraduates per year to cutting-edge, authentic oceanographic research at the Graduate School of Oceanography/University of Rhode Island. The SURFO program primarily focuses on the more quantitative aspects of oceanography (e.g., physical oceanography, geophysical fluid dynamics and marine geophysics), which closely parallel the strengths of GSO/URI. Thus, the primary undergraduate population targeted by the program includes students from various disciplines, but with strong backgrounds in math, physics, computer science, and engineering. Over its 20-year existence, the SURFO program has continuously evolved; however, three basics goals of the program have been maintained: 1) expose students to the breadth and depth of oceanography, 2) provide students with an authentic research experience, and 3) integrate/assimilate students into the lifestyle and community of a graduate research institution. An integral component for achieving these goals has been the inclusion of graduate students as workshop leaders/instructors, research mentors, and social directors. In these roles the graduate students act as a 'big brother/sister' to transition the undergraduates into the academic and research community. The graduate students also initially behave as liaisons between the senior researcher and the SURFO participant by fielding questions and concerns the undergraduate may be too intimidated to voice. As the summer progresses, the graduate students typically evolve into a lead research advisor and begin to learn effective techniques for advising students. Responses from SURFO participants on exit questionnaires frequently comment on how their experience and research project were directly affected by the extent of graduate student participation during the summer. Anecdotal evidence also indicates the participating graduate students gain maturity in their approach to research and become more willing advisees.

Integration of NASA Research into Undergraduate Education in Math, Science, Engineering and Technology at North Carolina A&T State University

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Monroe, Joseph; Kelkar, Ajit

2003-01-01

The NASA PAIR program incorporated the NASA-Sponsored research into the undergraduate environment at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. This program is designed to significantly improve undergraduate education in the areas of mathematics, science, engineering, and technology (MSET) by directly benefiting from the experiences of NASA field centers, affiliated industrial partners and academic institutions. The three basic goals of the program were enhancing core courses in MSET curriculum, upgrading core-engineering laboratories to compliment upgraded MSET curriculum, and conduct research training for undergraduates in MSET disciplines through a sophomore shadow program and through Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) programs. Since the inception of the program nine courses have been modified to include NASA related topics and research. These courses have impacted over 900 students in the first three years of the program. The Electrical Engineering circuit's lab is completely re-equipped to include Computer controlled and data acquisition equipment. The Physics lab is upgraded to implement better sensory data acquisition to enhance students understanding of course concepts. In addition a new instrumentation laboratory in the department of Mechanical Engineering is developed. Research training for A&T students was conducted through four different programs: Apprentice program, Developers program, Sophomore Shadow program and Independent Research program. These programs provided opportunities for an average of forty students per semester.

Bridging the Gulf between Formal Calculus and Physical Reasoning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Der Meer, A.

1980-01-01

Some ways to link calculus instruction with the mathematical models used in physics courses are presented. The activity of modelling is presented as a major tool in synchronizing physics and mathematics instruction in undergraduate engineering programs. (MP)

Focus on Undergraduate Personal/Professional Preparation in Physical Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weinberg, Herman

A program is described that features an integrated course sequence and a continuous field-based experience. It focuses intensively on the individual needs and growth of the prospective physical education teacher. The primary components of the program are interrelated and designed to ensure that relevant content appears concurrently and…

Achieving Alignment in the Preparation of CSPAP Leaders in PETE Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bulger, Sean; Illg, Kiel; Jones, Emily

2017-01-01

The emergence of a research focus on comprehensive school physical activity programs (CSPAP) has prompted faculty within physical education teacher education (PETE) at West Virginia University to reconceptualize undergraduate, graduate and doctoral plans of study. In response to their experiences during the implementation of several multicomponent…

Enhancing Women's Undergraduate Experience in Physics and Chemistry Through a PUI/MRSEC Collaboration Emphasizing Materials Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goldberg, Velda; Malliaras, George; Schember, Helene; Singhota, Nevjinder

2002-04-01

This three-year collaboration between a predominately undergraduate women's college (Simmons College) and a NSF-supported Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (the Cornell Center for Materials Research (CCMR)) provides opportunities for physics and chemistry students to participate in materials-related research throughout their undergraduate careers, have access to sophisticated instrumentation, and gain related work experience in industrial settings. As part of the project, undergraduate students are involved in all aspects of a collaborative Simmons/Cornell research program concentrating on degradation processes in electroluminescent materials. This work is particularly interesting because an understanding and control of these processes will ultimately influence the use of these materials in various types of consumer products.

Morehouse Physics & Dual Degree Engineering Program: We C . A . R . E . Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rockward, Willie S.

2015-03-01

Growing the physics major at any undergraduate institution, especially Morehouse College - a private, all-male, liberal arts HBCU, can be very challenging. To address this challenge at Morehouse, the faculty and staff in the Department of Physics and Dual Degree Engineering Program (Physics & DDEP) are applying a methodology and pedagogical approach called ``We C . A . R . E '' which stands for Curriculum,Advisement,Recruitment/Retention/Research, andExtras. This approach utilizes an integrated strategy of cultural (family-orientated), collaborative (shared-governance), and career (personalized-pathways) modalities to provide the momentum of growing the physics major at Morehouse from 10-12 students to over 100 students in less than 5 years. Physics & DDEP at Morehouse, creatively, altered faculty course assignments, curriculum offerings, and departmental policies while expanding research projects, student organizations, and external collaborations. This method supplies a variety of meaningful, academic and research experiences for undergraduates at Morehouse and thoroughly prepares students for graduate studies or professional careers in STEM disciplines. Thus, a detailed overview of the ``We C . A . R . E . '' approach will be presented along with the Physics & DDEP vision, alterations and expansions in growing the physics major at Morehouse College. Department of Physics and Dual Degree Engineering Program, Atlanta, Georgia 30314.

A community of educators: professional development for graduate students within the Berkeley Compass Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwab, Josiah; Roth, Nathaniel; Berkeley Compass Project

2015-01-01

The Berkeley Compass Project is a self-formed group of graduate and undergraduate students in the physical sciences at UC Berkeley. Our goals are to improve undergraduate physics education, provide opportunities for professional development, and increase retention of students from populations typically underrepresented in the physical sciences. Graduate students, together with upper-level undergraduates, design and run all Compass programs. We strive to create a community of educators that incorporates best practices from the science education literature. Along the way, we develop experience in curriculum development, fundraising, grant writing, interfacing with university administration, and other aspects of running an effective organization. Our experience in Compass leaves us better poised to be successful researchers, teachers, and mentors.

An IYPT-based undergraduate physics tournament in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Chuanyong; Song, Feng; Liu, Yubin; Sun, Qian

2013-03-01

International Young Physicists' Tournament (IYPT) is a team-oriented scientific competition of secondary school students. The participants present their solutions to scientific problems they have prepared over several months and discuss their solutions with other teams. It can also be implemented in university level as its physics problems are all open questions and have no standard answers, especially suitable for undergraduates' ability training in China. The annual tournament of physics learning of undergraduates in our school of physics was started in 2008. Each year, there are 15-18 teams, 20 more student volunteers and 30 more faculty jurors involved. The students benefited in different ways. It is project-based, requiring students to solve the problems in a research way. Team work is developed in both experimenting and discussing stages. The knowledge learned in classrooms can be used to solve these practical and life-related problems, raising their interest and initiative in physics learning. Finally, they are building up their skills in scientific presentation and communication. An IYPT-based program called CUPT (China undergraduate physics tournament) was launched in 2010 and annually attracts about 40 universities to attend. It gains its important role in physics education. National Fund for Talent Training in Basic Sciences (J1103208)

3D Printing of Protein Models in an Undergraduate Laboratory: Leucine Zippers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meyer, Scott C.

2015-01-01

An upper-division undergraduate laboratory experiment is described that explores the structure/function relationship of protein domains, namely leucine zippers, through a molecular graphics computer program and physical models fabricated by 3D printing. By generating solvent accessible surfaces and color-coding hydrophobic, basic, and acidic amino…

Undergraduate Professional Education in Chemistry: Guidelines and Evaluation Procedures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Chemical Society, Washington, DC.

Provided are guidelines for evaluating undergraduate professional education in chemistry. The guidelines summarize an approved program as including: 400 hours of classroom work; 500 hours of laboratory work; a core curriculum covering principles of analytical, inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry; 1 year of advanced work in chemistry or…

New Directions in Undergraduate and Graduate Education in Kinesiology and Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ennis, Catherine D.

2010-01-01

New opportunities exist in graduate and undergraduate kinesiology programs for both enhancement and innovation. Professional master's degrees prepare students for careers at the intersections of academic disciplines and the business world. Interdisciplinary study can result in opportunities not only for innovative research discoveries, but also…

Connecting Physics Bachelors to Their Dream Jobs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bhattacharya, Shouvik

2013-01-01

People who earn bachelor’s degrees in physics are highly employable. Employers value the skills that physics bachelor’s recipients acquire and develop over their four years of a college education, such as complex problem solving, advanced mathematics, teamwork and programming. The Career Pathways Project of the American Institute of Physics (AIP) aims to better prepare physics undergraduates for the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workforce. This presentation will include a discussion of common features among departments visited by the AIP’s Career Pathways team, ideas for a career workshop for physics undergraduates, and advice on how to make the most out of a job fair and how to start effective online professional networking.

Air, Ocean and Climate Monitoring Enhancing Undergraduate Training in the Physical, Environmental and Computer Sciences

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hope, W. W.; Johnson, L. P.; Obl, W.; Stewart, A.; Harris, W. C.; Craig, R. D.

2000-01-01

Faculty in the Department of Physical, Environmental and Computer Sciences strongly believe in the concept that undergraduate research and research-related activities must be integrated into the fabric of our undergraduate Science and Technology curricula. High level skills, such as problem solving, reasoning, collaboration and the ability to engage in research, are learned for advanced study in graduate school or for competing for well paying positions in the scientific community. One goal of our academic programs is to have a pipeline of research activities from high school to four year college, to graduate school, based on the GISS Institute on Climate and Planets model.

Competency-Based Training Program--Teachers of Physical Education for Handicapped Individuals. Summer Institute Final Report, 1986-1990.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheatum, Billye Ann

This federally funded project's goals were to provide a competency-based training program that would enable Western Michigan University graduate and undergraduate students to meet Michigan's endorsement requirements for teaching physical education to handicapped individuals, and to provide direct services to handicapped children in the Kalamazoo…

Learning physical biology via modeling and simulation: A new course and textbook for science and engineering undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, Philip

To a large extent, undergraduate physical-science curricula remain firmly rooted in pencil-and-paper calculation, despite the fact that most research is done with computers. To a large extent, undergraduate life-science curricula remain firmly rooted in descriptive approaches, despite the fact that much current research involves quantitative modeling. Not only does our pedagogy not reflect current reality; it also creates a spurious barrier between the fields, reinforcing the narrow silos that prevent students from connecting them. I'll describe an intermediate-level course on ``Physical Models of Living Systems.'' The prerequisite is first-year university physics and calculus. The course is a response to rapidly growing interest among undergraduates in a broad range of science and engineering majors. Students acquire several research skills that are often not addressed in traditional undergraduate courses: •Basic modeling skills; •Probabilistic modeling skills; •Data analysis methods; •Computer programming using a general-purpose platform like MATLAB or Python; •Pulling datasets from the Web for analysis; •Data visualization; •Dynamical systems, particularly feedback control. Partially supported by the NSF under Grants EF-0928048 and DMR-0832802.

Development of an advanced undergraduate course in acoustics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gee, Kent L.; Neilsen, Tracianne B.; Sommerfeldt, Scott D.

2016-03-01

Within many physics undergraduate programs, acoustics is given only a cursory treatment, usually within an introductory course. Because acoustics is a natural vehicle for students to develop intuition about wave phenomena, an advanced undergraduate acoustics course has been developed at Brigham Young University. Although it remains an elective course, enrollment has increased steadily since its inception. The course has been taken by students in physics, applied physics, physics teaching, and mechanical and electrical engineering. In addition to providing training for students motivated by interest in undergraduate research, internship, employment, and graduate schooling opportunities in acoustics, the course facilitates connections between various areas of physics. Explicit connections are made to mechanics, electricity and magnetism, thermodynamics, optics, quantum mechanics, and experimental and computational laboratory courses. Active learning is emphasized through Just-in-Time-Teaching and course structure. Homework exercises are both theoretical and practical and often require making and interpreting of graphs. For example, students may model traffic noise as a series of uncorrelated monopoles or examine highway barrier effectiveness using Fresnel diffraction techniques. Additionally, students participate in resumé-building measurements and learn to report their results in the form of technical memoranda. Course evaluations and post-graduation student surveys rate it among the most valuable undergraduate student courses offered.

Fear, an unpleasant experience among undergraduate midwifery students: A qualitative study.

PubMed

Ahmadi, Golnoosh; Shahriari, Mohsen; Kohan, Shahnaz; Keyvanara, Mahmood

2018-03-01

Fear is a normal emotion that can evoke an appropriate response when facing threat. However, sometimes the consequences of fear can lead to responses that are maladaptive. Fear can have negative effects on learning. Research has focused on the experience of fear and its consequences among midwifery students during their undergraduate program. A qualitative analysis was conducted of interviews with ten midwifery students in different years of an undergraduate program. The data was analyzed through a content analysis approach. Two main categories and five subcategories emerged. The first category, areas of fear in midwifery students, consisted of the following subcategories: fear of doing harm, fear of encountering their first childbirth, and fear of penalties. The second category, consequences of fear, consisted of the following subcategories: general physical and psychological consequences and interference in adopting the professional role. In this study, fear not only raised the students' stress levels thereby, leading to physical and psychological issues but also hindered their adoption of their professional role. These findings will potentially inform support and retention strategies within midwifery undergraduate programs in the future. Maternity care in Iran is provided mainly within a medical model of care. The majority of women give birth in hospital, where care is provided by midwives who work under the direction and supervision of an obstetrician. Midwives within the medically dominated system lack autonomy and have very little opportunity to gain experience in providing continuity of care for women as midwife-led models of care are rare. This practice context means that midwifery students have very little opportunity to gain experience in autonomous midwifery practice. Midwifery undergraduate program in Iran is for four years. Admission to the undergraduate program is implemented via a direct entry route. Nearly all of the midwifery students are school leavers with their first exposure to university and hospital systems. Most of the midwifery students have chosen this career without sufficient understanding about midwifery and the work that it involves (Arfaee et al., 2008). The midwifery undergraduate program comprises theoretical and clinical elements. After the first semester, students enter clinical settings under the supervision of their clinical instructors. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Results from undergraduate PV projects at Seven Historically Black Colleges and Universities

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

McConnell, R.D.

1999-03-01

In 1995, the NREL/Department of Energy (DOE) National Photovoltaics Program funded seven Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in its HBCU Photovoltaic Research Associates Program for a period of three years. The program{close_quote}s purpose is to advance HBCU undergraduate knowledge of photovoltaics, primarily as a result of research investigations performed, and to encourage students to pursue careers in photovoltaics. This paper presents results from PV projects ranging from fundamental materials research on PV materials to field projects of PV systems. {copyright} {ital 1999 American Institute of Physics.}

Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Do Repeating Students Overlook Online Course Components?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holland, Jane; Clarke, Eric; Glynn, Mark

2016-01-01

E-Learning is becoming an integral part of undergraduate medicine, with many curricula incorporating a number of online activities and resources, in addition to more traditional teaching methods. This study examines physical attendance, online activity, and examination outcomes in a first-year undergraduate medical program. All 358 students who…

Leveraging Online Learning Resources to Teach Core Research Skills to Undergraduates at a Diverse Research University.

PubMed

McFARLIN, Brian K; Breslin, Whitney L; Carpenter, Katie C; Strohacker, Kelley; Weintraub, Randi J

2010-01-01

Today's students have unique learning needs and lack knowledge of core research skills. In this program report, we describe an online approach that we developed to teach core research skills to freshman and sophomore undergraduates. Specifically, we used two undergraduate kinesiology (KIN) courses designed to target students throughout campus (KIN1304: Public Health Issues in Physical Activity and Obesity) and specifically kinesiology majors (KIN1252: Foundations of Kinesiology). Our program was developed and validated at the 2 nd largest ethnically diverse research university in the United States, thus we believe that it would be effective in a variety of student populations.

SCALE-UP Your Astronomy and Physics Undergraduate Courses to Incorporate Heliophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Rawi, Ahlam N.; Cox, Amanda; Hoshino, Laura; Fitzgerald, Cullen; Cebulka, Rebecca; Rodriguez Garrigues, Alvar; Montgomery, Michele; Velissaris, Chris; Flitsiyan, Elena

2016-01-01

Although physics and astronomy courses include heliophysics topics, students still leave these courses without knowing what heliophysics is and how heliophysics relates to their daily lives. To meet goals of NASA's Living With a Star Program of incorporating heliophysics into undergraduate curriculum, UCF Physics has modified courses such as Astronomy (for non-science majors), Astrophysics, and SCALE-UP: Electricity and Magnetism for Engineers and Scientists to incorporate heliophysics topics. In this presentation, we discuss these incorporations and give examples that have been published in NASA Wavelength. In an associated poster, we present data on student learnin

Brief 77 Health Physics Enrollments and Degrees Survey, 2015 Data

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

None, None

The 2015 Health Physics Enrollments and Degrees Survey reports degrees granted between September 1, 2014 and August 31, 2015. Enrollment information refers to the fall term 2015. Twenty-two academic programs were included in the survey universe, with all 22 programs providing data. The enrollments and degrees information comprises students majoring in health physics or in an option program equivalent to a major. The report includes enrollment information on undergraduate students and graduate students and information by degree level for post-graduation plans.

The Assessment of the Impact of REU Programs on Student Classroom Performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hughes, Chris

2009-03-01

Supporters of undergraduate research claim that the research experience enhances the success of students in their classes and promotes their progress toward completing a science major. Since there are many other variables that can influence a student's progress through a curriculum, it is frequently difficult to compare students from undergraduate research programs with a suitable control group. At James Madison University, a significant number of chemistry and physics majors participate in summer REU programs on campus. However, since JMU is among the top 10% of undergraduate institutions in the US in undergraduate physics enrollment, there are also a significant number who choose not to stay on campus for summer research. Using several years worth of data, we have determined the change in the GPAs of REU students (N=75) from the semester before the REU to the semester after the REU and compared these with the students who did not participate in summer research (N=663). We have found that the REU students' average GPA increased by a statistically significant amount while the non-REU students' average GPA was unchanged to within a standard deviation. We will also discuss other assessment methods used at JMU and some of the limitations in the interpretation of this study.

The Preparation of Regular Physical Educators for Mainstreaming. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winnick, Joseph P., Ed.; Hurwitz, Jan, Ed.

The monograph reports on a 3-year project to develop competencies in physical education teachers for dealing with mainstream exceptional students. Results of a survey of physical educators on the types of competencies needed to teach in mainstreamed settings are presented. Adjustments made to the undergraduate physical education program at State…

Gender Differences in Introductory University Physics Performance: The Influence of High School Physics Preparation and Affective Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

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

2007-01-01

The attrition of females studying physics after high school is a growing concern to the science education community. Most undergraduate science programs require introductory physics coursework. Thus, success in introductory physics is usually necessary for students to progress to higher levels of science study. Success also influences attitudes;…

The unique challenge of managing an undergraduate Get-Away-Special experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roming, Peter W. A.; Spute, Mark K.; Williams, Memorie K.

1992-01-01

A group of Bringham Young University (BYU) undergraduate students has undertaken an experiment to design and build a normal incidence soft x ray robotics telescope for solar observations. The design phase of this, GOLDHELOX project, has now been completed and final construction and modifications are in progress. The design and manufacture of the payload is under the direction of team leaders and a system's integrator. A goal of this project is educating and furnishing experiences in space engineering and physics for undergraduate students. Our main source of funding is NASA and the BYU Colleges of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering and Technology. This project is possible because of the NASA Get-Away Special (GAS) program. The only feasible alternative is using an expensive sounding rocket. We estimate the sun tracking and guidance package alone would cost upwards of a million dollars -- at least ten times our entire budget. Because of the GAS program, we simplified the construction, operation, and programming of the instruments with resulting savings in weight, cost, and time spent.

Repackaging undergraduate physics programs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garner, James

1997-03-01

During the nineties the undergraduate physics major has experienced a number of problems that are not especially new. However, the severity of these problems may be at an all time high. The problems concern such matters as the difficulty of recruiting majors, the retention of majors and non-majors in our physics courses, and a poor employment picture for the B.S. physics graduates. The seriousness of these problems has reached such a profound level that it may be time for the physics community to reexamine a disturbing but fundamental question, i.e., what should be the primary purpose of the undergraduate physics program in our universities? Indeed, this question seems to be one of the primary focuses of this physics education conference. In previous eras physics departments did not have to be greatly concerned about these issues. Traditionally, physics was considered one of the liberal arts and we could tell prospective majors that if they wanted to work in a physics-related job then they should enroll in physics graduate studies. We expected most of them, at least the "worthy" ones, to do just that. We often callously disregarded the low retention of students in our courses with flippant phrases like, "we are just weeding them out." There seemed to be plenty of students eager to enter our exciting discipline and industry was quick to snatch up these excellent problem solvers when they finished their degree. Many would agree that this picture changed in the post cold-war nineties and things may never be the way they used to be.

Introduction to Computational Physics for Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zubairi, Omair; Weber, Fridolin

2018-03-01

This is an introductory textbook on computational methods and techniques intended for undergraduates at the sophomore or junior level in the fields of science, mathematics, and engineering. It provides an introduction to programming languages such as FORTRAN 90/95/2000 and covers numerical techniques such as differentiation, integration, root finding, and data fitting. The textbook also entails the use of the Linux/Unix operating system and other relevant software such as plotting programs, text editors, and mark up languages such as LaTeX. It includes multiple homework assignments.

Academic Excellence: The Role of Research in the Physical Sciences at Undergraduate Institutions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doyle, Michael P., Ed.

Chapters of this collection show that students benefit from a research-based teaching environment, and that students who have the opportunity for research complete their science programs in greater numbers than those who do not. The chapters of section 1, "Achieving Excellence," are: (1) "The Role of Research at Undergraduate Institution: Why Is…

Integrating Chemistry Laboratory Instrumentation into the Industrial Internet: Building, Programming, and Experimenting with an Automatic Titrator

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Famularo, Nicole; Kholod, Yana; Kosenkov, Dmytro

2016-01-01

This project is designed to improve physical chemistry and instrumental analysis laboratory courses for undergraduate students by employing as teaching tools novel technologies in electronics and data integration using the industrial Internet. The project carried out by upper-division undergraduates is described. Students are exposed to a complete…

Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) in Canada

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Melnychuk, Nancy; Robinson, Daniel; Lu, Chunlei; Chorney, David; Randall, Lynn

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify physical education (PE) teacher educators and examine physical education teacher education (PETE) programs presently offered at undergraduate degree-granting Canadian universities. The investigation was conceptualized by issues related to the dislodging of PETE from a central to a marginal role in higher…

Effectiveness of Point-Based Physical Activity Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Largo-Wight, Erin; Todorovich, John R.; O'Hara, Brian K.

2008-01-01

Understanding and promoting physical activity is critical to combat the growing obesity epidemic in the U.S. This study was designed to compare two 10-week physical activity programs among college students. One hundred and thirty-six undergraduate college students participated in this randomized posttest only control group study. Seventy-seven…

Teacher Effectiveness in Physical Education: Profession Vs Discipline.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paese, Paul C.

This study sought to determine if a professional course of study during teacher preparation in physical education had more influence on teaching effectiveness than a discipline-oriented course of study. The subjects were 41 undergraduates involved in two different physical education programs. The discipline-oriented course contained such subjects…

The Necessity of Physical Activity in Kinesiology Degree Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Tyler G.; Twietmeyer, Gregg

2018-01-01

The term "the practice of physical activity" was recently introduced as one of the four elements of the American Kinesiology Association undergraduate core curriculum. The purpose of this article is to articulate the nature of the term by offering a philosophical justification (other than health) for including physical activity…

Implementation of the court visitor program in a clinical nursing curriculum.

PubMed

Stowell, Jane M; Pihlak, Mary Rose; Matzke, Amanda; O'Keefe, Mary

2013-12-01

The State of Texas has more than 19,000 individuals who lack the physical or mental ability to provide for their need for shelter, financial management, or physical care. These individuals have been designated as wards of the court and placed under guardianship. Texas probate courts appoint individuals known as court visitors to make annual visits to wards of the court to assess their well-being under guardianship. Although the 10 statutory probate courts have court visitor programs, many county courts do not. This article describes the details of a service-learning experience using an online distance educational program to train undergraduate nursing students in a mental health course to become court visitors. This information may be useful to others looking for nontraditional clinical experiences and service-learning opportunities for undergraduate nursing students.

Evaluation of a Metric Booklet as a Supplement to Teaching the Metric System to Undergraduate Non-Science Majors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Exum, Kenith Gene

Examined is the effectiveness of a method of teaching the metric system using the booklet, Metric Supplement to Mathematics, in combination with a physical science textbook. The participants in the study were randomly selected undergraduates in a non-science oriented program of study. Instruments used included the Metric Supplement to Mathematics…

REU Students' Initial Perceptions of Scientific Ethics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murphy, Sytil; Zollman, Dean

2010-10-01

One goal of undergraduate research, particularly Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) programs, is to help students become aware of the importance of ethical conduct in research. The Survey of Undergraduate Research Experiences (SURE) indicates that biology students believe they learn more about ethical conduct from their research experiences than physics students. Motivated by this, we initiated a study of both biology and physics REU students at Kansas State University consisting of pre- and post-interviews regarding their understanding of ethics with results to be compared to the SURE. This paper presents the students' initial perceptions (from the pre-interview) of how ethical issues impact science in general as well as their own specific work. We also discuss the differences in the interview responses of the two groups.

I Can Play Too: Disability Awareness Activities for Your Physical Education Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fittipaldi-Wert, Jeanine; Brock, Sheri J.

2007-01-01

Students with disabilities are now more than ever being included in physical education classes. However, most physical educators feel they have not received adequate preparation in their undergraduate programs regarding teaching students with disabilities. There are many factors that go into providing a positive inclusive setting, such as using…

Undergraduates study climate change science, philosophy, and public policy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bullock, Mark A.; Frodeman, Robert L.

The National Science Foundation's (NSF) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to participate in ongoing scientific research. Existing either as stand-alone summer programs or as supplementary components to existing NSF research grants, the REU program focuses on introducing aspiring young scientists to the delights and complexities of science. Global Climate Change and Society (GCCS) is an intensive, 8-week REU program that began a 3-year run in the summer of 2001.Developed by a philosopher at the Colorado School of Mines, and a planetary scientist at Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colrado, GCCS is a unique experiment in research and pedagogy that introduces students to science by using a distinctive approach. Choosing as its topic the questions surrounding global climate change, the program explores the interwoven scientific, philosophical, and public policy issues that make the climate change debate such a volatile topic in contemporary society. Last summer, the program selected 12 undergraduates through a nationally advertised competition. Student interns came from diverse academic and cultural backgrounds and included physics, philosophy and public policy majors from elite liberal arts schools, major research institutions, and mainstream state universities. The program was held at the University of Colorado and the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), in Boulder, Colorado (Figure 1).

K-12 Neuroscience Education Outreach Program: Interactive Activities for Educating Students about Neuroscience.

PubMed

Deal, Alex L; Erickson, Kristen J; Bilsky, Edward J; Hillman, Susan J; Burman, Michael A

2014-01-01

The University of New England's Center for Excellence in the Neurosciences has developed a successful and growing K-12 outreach program that incorporates undergraduate and graduate/professional students. The program has several goals, including raising awareness about fundamental issues in neuroscience, supplementing science education in area schools and enhancing undergraduate and graduate/professional students' academic knowledge and skill set. The outreach curriculum is centered on core neuroscience themes including: Brain Safety, Neuroanatomy, Drugs of Abuse and Addiction, Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders, and Cognition and Brain Function. For each theme, lesson plans were developed based upon interactive, small-group activities. Additionally, we've organized our themes in a "Grow-up, Grow-out" approach. Grow-up refers to returning to a common theme, increasing in complexity as we revisit students from early elementary through high school. Grow-out refers to integrating other scientific fields into our lessons, such as the chemistry of addiction, the physics of brain injury and neuronal imaging. One of the more successful components of our program is our innovative team-based model of curriculum design. By creating a team of undergraduate, graduate/professional students and faculty, we create a unique multi-level mentoring opportunity that appears to be successful in enhancing undergraduate students' skills and knowledge. Preliminary assessments suggest that undergraduates believe they are enhancing their content knowledge and professional skills through our program. Additionally, we're having a significant, short-term impact on K-12 interest in science. Overall, our program appears to be enhancing the academic experience of our undergraduates and exciting K-12 students about the brain and science in general.

Advanced Physics Labs and Undergraduate Research: Helping Them Work Together

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peterson, Richard W.

2009-10-01

The 2009 Advanced Lab Topical Conference in Ann Arbor affirmed the importance of advanced labs that teach crucial skills and methodologies by carefully conducting a time-honored experiment. Others however argued that such a constrained experiment can play a complementary role to more open-ended, project experiences. A genuine ``experiment'' where neither student or faculty member is exactly sure of the best approach or anticipated result can often trigger real excitement, creativity, and career direction for students while reinforcing the advanced lab and undergraduate research interface. Several examples are cited in areas of AMO physics, optics, fluids, and acoustics. Colleges and universities that have dual-degree engineering, engineering physics, or applied physics programs may especially profit from interdisciplinary projects that utilize optical, electromagnetic, and acoustical measurements in conjunction with computational physics and simulation.

Contributions to Educational Structures that Promote Undergraduate Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sepikas, John; Mijic, Milan; Young, Don; Gillam, Steve

1997-01-01

The opportunities for community college and traditionally underrepresented minority students to participate in research experiences are typically rare. Further, what research experiences that are available often underutilizes the students' potential and do not have follow-up programs. The Physics Outreach Program (POP) working in conjunction with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is designed to reach out to this segment of the student population and encourage them to consider careers in physics and astronomy. The program is special in that it creates a "vertical" consortium or pipeline of schools whereby students graduating from one participating institution will then transfer to another. This helps to insure that participating students will experience continuity and, with the assistance of JPL equipment and staff, a quality of instruction that they would otherwise not be able to afford. Key words. educational outreach, undergraduate research, community college research, underrepresented minority student research

From Start to Finish: Retention of Physics Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hammer, Donna; Uher, Tim

The University of Maryland Physics Department's NSF Scholarships in Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) project is a unique program that aims to reduce the attrition of students that occurs in the ``pre-major-to-major'' gap - i.e., students who begin at the university intending to study physics, but do not graduate with a physics degree. To increase the retention of admitted students, the UMD S-STEM program is designed to provide student with financial assistance, a strong sense of community, academic support, and career planning. We will discuss how the program has been integrated into the curriculum and culture of the physics department, and focus on developing key components of the program: a nurturing environment, dedicated mentorship, early research experience, and professional development.

Undergraduate Student Involvement in International Research - The IRES Program at MAX-lab, Sweden

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Briscoe, William; O'Rielly, Grant; Fissum, Kevin

2014-03-01

Undergraduate students associated with The George Washington University and UMass Dartmouth have had the opportunity to participate in nuclear physics research as a part of the PIONS@MAXLAB Collaboration performing experiments at MAX-lab at Lund University in Sweden. This project has supported thirteen undergraduate students during 2009 - 2011. The student researchers are involved with all aspects of the experiments performed at the laboratory, from set-up to analysis and presentation at national conferences. These experiments investigate the dynamics responsible for the internal structure of the nucleon through the study of pion photoproduction off the nucleon and high-energy Compton scattering. Along with the US and Swedish project leaders, members of the collaboration (from four different countries) have contributed to the training and mentoring of these students. This program provides students with international research experiences that prepare them to operate successfully in a global environment and encourages them to stay in areas of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) that are crucial for our modern, technology-dependent society. We will present the history, goals and outcomes in both physics results and student success that have come from this program. This work supported by NSF OISE/IRES award 0553467.

CSWP Networking Reception

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Unwind after a long day of sessions by networking with women physicists from the APS Committee on the Status of Women in Physics and members of the APS Panel on Public Affairs (POPA). Cocktails and conversation will flow as we learn about the recently approved APS Statement on the Status of Women in Physics; a POPA study underway, designed to evaluate what top universities are doing to address gender disparity in undergraduate physics programs; and initiatives & programs designed to attract, retain, develop, and support the female physicists in our community.

Investigation of Global Citizenship Levels of Pre-Service Physical Education Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kayisoglu, Numan Bahadir

2016-01-01

The purpose of the present research is to define global citizenship levels of pre-service physical education teachers and investigate whether their global citizenship levels vary by various variables. A total of 485 pre-service teachers, studying at 3rd and 4th grades of undergraduate programs of physical education teaching at thirteen different…

Physics in perspective: Recommendations and program emphases

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

Exerpted material from Physics in Perspective, Vol. 1, is presented on recommendations, priorities, and program emphases. The major recommendations are addressed to the Federal Government and support agencies, the physics community, and the educational community, including precollege, undergraduate, and graduate sectors. Approaches to the questions involved in establishing scientific priorities are discussed, and an approach is evolved which is based on the jury rating application of certain criteria to the program elements of a subfield. The question of national support level for the physics enterprise is also considered, and contingency alternatives are suggested such that whatever the level of available support, it may be used with maximum effectiveness.

"I Understand Why People Need to Ease Their Emotions": Exploring Mindfulness and Emotions in a Conceptual Physics Classroom of an Elementary Teacher Education Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Powietrzynska, Malgorzata; Gangji, Al-Karim H.

2016-01-01

In this manuscript we bring to focus student perceptions of salience (or lack of thereof) of emotions in the undergraduate conceptual physics course (in the teacher education program) and their relevance to teaching and learning. Our analysis of student responses to the Mindfulness in Education Heuristic constitutes a feedback loop affording the…

Promoting Success in the Physical Sciences: The University of Wisconsin's Physics Learning Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nossal, S. M.; Jacob, A. T.

2002-05-01

The Physics Learning Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison provides small group, academic and mentoring support for students enrolled in algebra-based introductory physics courses. Those students accepted into our program are potentially at-risk academically in their physics course or for feeling isolated at the University. They include, among others, students who have not taken high school physics, returning adults, minority students, students with disabilities, and students with English as a second language. A core component of the program is the peer-lead teaching and mentoring groups that match upper level undergraduate physics majors with students potentially at-risk in introductory physics. The tutors receive ongoing training and supervision throughout the year. The program has expanded over the years to include staff tutors, the majority of whom are scientists who seek additional teaching experience. The Physics Peer Mentor Tutor Program is run in collaboration with a similar chemistry program at the University of Wisconsin's Chemistry Learning Center. We will describe our Physics Learning Programs and discuss some of the challenges, successes, and strategies used to work with our tutors and students.

K-12 Neuroscience Education Outreach Program: Interactive Activities for Educating Students about Neuroscience

PubMed Central

Deal, Alex L.; Erickson, Kristen J.; Bilsky, Edward J.; Hillman, Susan J.; Burman, Michael A.

2014-01-01

The University of New England’s Center for Excellence in the Neurosciences has developed a successful and growing K-12 outreach program that incorporates undergraduate and graduate/professional students. The program has several goals, including raising awareness about fundamental issues in neuroscience, supplementing science education in area schools and enhancing undergraduate and graduate/professional students’ academic knowledge and skill set. The outreach curriculum is centered on core neuroscience themes including: Brain Safety, Neuroanatomy, Drugs of Abuse and Addiction, Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders, and Cognition and Brain Function. For each theme, lesson plans were developed based upon interactive, small-group activities. Additionally, we’ve organized our themes in a “Grow-up, Grow-out” approach. Grow-up refers to returning to a common theme, increasing in complexity as we revisit students from early elementary through high school. Grow-out refers to integrating other scientific fields into our lessons, such as the chemistry of addiction, the physics of brain injury and neuronal imaging. One of the more successful components of our program is our innovative team-based model of curriculum design. By creating a team of undergraduate, graduate/professional students and faculty, we create a unique multi-level mentoring opportunity that appears to be successful in enhancing undergraduate students’ skills and knowledge. Preliminary assessments suggest that undergraduates believe they are enhancing their content knowledge and professional skills through our program. Additionally, we’re having a significant, short-term impact on K-12 interest in science. Overall, our program appears to be enhancing the academic experience of our undergraduates and exciting K-12 students about the brain and science in general. PMID:25565921

Intern Programs | Undergraduate Lecture Series

Science.gov Websites

Tuesday June 12 One West Harrison Prosper Florida State University Particle physics Thursday June 14 One Facilities Ops Mechanical Engineering of accelerators Thursday June 21 One West Anne Schukraft Fermilab Neutrino Division / SBN Introduction to neutrino physics Tuesday June 26 One West Leo Aliaga Fermilab SCD

Undergraduate Physical Education Programs: Issues and Approaches.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawson, Hal A., Ed.

Papers presented at the National Professional Preparation Conference in Physical Education were revised and expanded for publication in this monograph. In part I, two papers, "Professional Preparation Conferences: One More Time" (W. G. Anderson) and "Current Context and Future Curriculum" (M. J. Ellis), set the stage for a presentation of…

Status of Women in Physics in Tanzania Since 2002

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samiji, M. E.

2009-04-01

Seeing a need for more teachers in the sciences, including physics, the Tanzanian government upgraded two teachers' training colleges to become constituent colleges of the University of Dar es Salaam. The government has also been aware of the underrepresentation of women in a number of programs, notably science and engineering. The university created two programs—the Pre-Entry Program and the Female Undergraduate Scholarship Program (FUSP)—to facilitate female enrollment in science courses. In 2007 the physics department, in collaboration with the UNESCO Basic Science Program, conducted a workshop for physics teachers in secondary schools. Of 31 participants, six were female. As a result of these efforts, the number of female students who show interest in physics and other fields of science has increased by 5% since 2002.

Kinesiology Career Club: Undergraduate Student Mentors' Perspectives on a Physical Activity-Based Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walsh, David S.; Veri, Maria J.; Willard, Jason J.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this article is to present university student mentors' perspectives on the impact of a teaching personal and social responsibility (TPSR) model youth program called the Kinesiology Career Club. Data sources in this qualitative case study included program observations, mentoring reflections, and semistructured interviews. Data…

A Useful Demonstration of Calculus in a Physics High School Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alvarez, Gustavo; Schulte, Jurgen; Stockton, Geoffrey; Wheeler, David

2018-01-01

The real power of calculus is revealed when it is applied to actual physical problems. In this paper, we present a calculus inspired physics experiment suitable for high school and undergraduate programs. A model for the theory of the terminal velocity of a falling body subject to a resistive force is developed and its validity tested in an…

A Discussion on an Expression Written about Dimensional Analysis in a Physics Textbook

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yildiz, Ali

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study is to discuss a wrong statement written about dimensional analysis in a physics text book prepared for the students who are studying in science, engineering and teaching undergraduate programs at universities and who have to take compulsory physics courses, to analyse the use of the text book including the wrong…

The Importance of Science Policy and its Challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Preis, Benjamin

2015-03-01

I worked for physicist and Congressman Bill Foster (D-IL) as the Mather Public Policy Intern through the American Institute of Physics and the Society of Physics Students during the summer of 2014. This internship is meant to connect undergraduate physics students with the policy process in Washington DC. As a Mather Public Policy Intern, I worked for Congressman Foster researching policy initiatives such as science funding, STEM education, and environmental regulations. This talk will discuss my experience and many of the things that I learned as an undergraduate physicist working on Capitol Hill. For example, through my experience with the internship, I attended lectures and hearings that illuminated for me how members of Congress conceive of scientific research. I also met with many physicists on Capitol Hill working to improve government interest in physics research -- AAAS Fellows, Members of Congress, and Government Relations Specialists -- and I will talk about how I saw physicists impacting governmental policies relating to scientific research and development. This internship is part of the Society of Physics Students internship program and was funded by the John and Jane Mather Foundation for Science and the Arts. This work was part of the Society of Physics Students internship Program.

A Survey of Basic Instructional Program Graduate Teaching Assistant Development and Support Processes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Russell, Jared A.

2009-01-01

For over 100 years, basic instructional programs (BIP) have played a pivotal role in providing undergraduates with opportunities to acquire sport-related skills and conceptual knowledge relevant to promoting their involvement in lifelong physical activity and establishing healthy lifestyle habits. Critical to delivering this instructional content…

Characterizing the Undergraduate Neuroscience Major in the U.S.: An Examination of Course Requirements and Institution-Program Associations

PubMed Central

Pinard-Welyczko, Kira M.; Garrison, Anna C. S.; Ramos, Raddy L.; Carter, Bradley S.

2017-01-01

Neuroscience is a rapidly expanding field, and many colleges and universities throughout the country are implementing new neuroscience degree programs. Despite the field’s growth and popularity, little data exists on the structural character of current undergraduate neuroscience programs. We collected and examined comprehensive data on existing undergraduate neuroscience programs, including academic major requirements and institution characteristics such as size, financial resources, and research opportunities. Thirty-one variables covering information about course requirements, department characteristics, financial resources, and institution characteristics were collected from 118 colleges and universities in the United States that offer a major titled “neuroscience” or “neural sciences.” Data was collected from publicly available sources (online databases, institutions’ neuroscience program websites) and then analyzed to define the average curriculum and identify associations between institution and program characteristics. Our results suggest that the average undergraduate neuroscience major requires 3 chemistry, 3 biology, 3 laboratory, 2–3 neuroscience, 1 physics, 1 math, and 2 psychology courses, suggesting that most neuroscience programs emphasize the natural sciences over the social sciences. Additionally, while 98% of institutions in our database offer research opportunities, only 31% required majors to perform research. Of note, 70% of institutions offering a neuroscience major do not have a neuroscience department, suggesting that most institutions offer neuroscience as an interdisciplinary major spanning several departments. Finally, smaller liberal arts colleges account for the majority of institutions offering a neuroscience major. Overall, these findings may be useful for informing groups interested in undergraduate neuroscience training, including institutions looking to improve or establish programs, students wanting to major in neuroscience and employers hiring neuroscience graduates. PMID:29371843

An evidence based approach to undergraduate physical assessment practicum course development.

PubMed

Anderson, Brenda; Nix, Elizabeth; Norman, Bilinda; McPike, H Dawn

2014-05-01

Physical assessment is an important component of professional nursing practice. New nurse graduates experience difficulty transitioning the traditional head to toe physical assessment into real world nursing practice. This study was conducted to provide current data concerning physical assessment competencies utilized consistently by registered nurses. This quantitative study used a 126 item survey mailed to 900 Registered Nurses. Participants used a Likert-type scale to report frequency of use for physical assessment competencies. Thirty seven competencies were determined to be essential components of the physical assessment, 18 were determined supplemental, and 71 were determined to be non-essential. Transition of the new graduate nurse into professional practice can be enhanced by focusing content in physical assessment practicum courses on the essential competencies of physical assessment. Faculty for the university has analyzed data from this study to support evidence based changes to the undergraduate nursing program physical assessment practicum course. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Enhancing Undergraduate Education through Mentored Research and Practical Writing Experiences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stephens, Denise C.; Hintz, Eric G.; Joner, Michael D.; Moody, J. Ward

2015-01-01

Twenty years ago I attended my very first AAS meeting as a 21-year old undergraduate physics major. At that meeting I presented the light curve of a variable star I had studied as part of a mentored research program at BYU. That opportunity to do mentored research, and to attend a professional meeting of astronomers, helped to set the foundation for my success today as an associate professor of physics and astronomy. Twenty years ago I was the student, now I am the mentor! I have eight undergraduate students whom I currently supervise in active research, four of which are presenting their senior projects at the 225th meeting of the AAS.My experience has shown me that the full impact of mentored research cannot be measured by yearly numbers or statistics. When we mentor a student, we influence their career path and choices for years to come. Where feasible, every undergraduate should have the opportunity to do research if they so choose. It is a sacrifice of our time and our effort that cannot be easily measured through numbers or results, and is only visible many years down the road as these students become the future leaders in astronomy and policy. In this poster, I will discuss the benefits of mentored research, the growth we have seen at BYU over the past twenty years with the introduction of a mentored research program, and ideas for implementing mentored research and writing into course curricula to enhance the undergraduate educational experience.

Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics

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

Bonnie Fleming

2009-04-01

The Yale Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics was held on January 18th and 19th, 2008. The conference, targeted toward undergraduates in the Northeast, was a huge success. It was well attended by both a slate of impressive speakers including Janet Conrad, Mildred Dresselhaus, Elsa Garmire, Howard Georgi, Liz Rhodes, Meg Urry and Wendy Zhang, and many interested attendees. Talks were on current research, about issues for women in physics, and on the application process for graduate school. There was also a career panel, student talks, and a student poster session. The conference ran concurrently with the third annual conferencemore » at USC, as well as a first annual conference at the University of Michigan. Our purpose in creating this conference was to provide a supportive atmosphere for young physicists to connect with peers and with successful women in the field. We hope that from this conference, attendees have become confident and knowledgeable about applying to graduate school and be further inspired to pursue a career in physics. The following describes the conference program, participation and impact, logistics of running the conference and plans for the future.« less

PEER DEVELOPMENT OF UNDERGRADUATE ASTRONOMERS AND PHYSICISTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - MADISON

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abler, Melissa; UW-Madison, Physics Club of

2014-01-01

The physics club at the University of Wisconsin - Madison is actively engaged in many peer-led activities that foster development of career-oriented skills. The Garage Physics program utilizes old, unwanted laboratory equipment to enable students’ in-depth exploration of classroom experiments and to investigate their own ideas. The ability to explore individual interests independently further develops research skills and assists in students’ retention of classroom knowledge. The finished products are then presented to the public at various science education and outreach events throughout the community. Sharing self-motivated projects with the public not only enhances public knowledge, understanding, and interest, but also develops valuable communication skills in the students. A self-developed introductory research guidebook helps younger club members find a mentor in the astronomy or physics departments and begin working in a research group. Senior undergraduate students also facilitate a panel each semester to discuss their experiences in acquiring and maintaining an undergraduate research position.

Exploring Bi-Cultural Awareness through Outdoor Education in Preservice Physical Education Teacher Preparation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brawdy, Paul J.

2004-01-01

This paper focuses on the use of outdoor-based experiential learning in an undergraduate physical education teacher preparation program to develop a culturally-sensitive pedagogy for work with children from different cultures. Applying the six-stage process for becoming a bi-cultural teacher (Klug & Whitfield, 2003), teacher preparation…

Environmentalization of the Physical Education Curriculum in Brazilian Universities: Culturally Comparative Lessons from Critical Outdoor Education in Australia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodrigues, Cae; Payne, Phillip G.

2017-01-01

'Environmentalizing' curriculum in Brazil is a worthy goal of global educational reform for sustainability but is challenging given the limits to rational change thesis already argued in critical social science and post-structural deconstructionism. The federal government mandate to environmentalize undergraduate physical education programs poses…

Preservice Teachers' Responses to Bullying Scenarios: Comparing Physical, Verbal, and Relational Bullying

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bauman, Sheri; Del Rio, Adrienne

2006-01-01

In the present study, 82 undergraduate students in a teacher education program responded to 6 written vignettes describing school bullying incidents. Scenarios described physical bullying, verbal bullying, and relational bullying events. Respondents rated relational bullying as the least serious of the 3 types. Participants had the least empathy…

Service-Learning and Pre-Service Educators' Cultural Competence for Teaching: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meaney, Karen S.; Bohler, Heidi R.; Kopf, Kelcie; Hernandez, Lesley; Scott, LaTosha S.

2008-01-01

Social-cognitive theory (Bandura, 1986) served as the framework to examine a physical education service-learning program's impact on pre-service educators' cultural competence. Participants included 53 undergraduates enrolled in two sections of Health and Physical Education for Children. The course's service-learning component provided pre-service…

Three new bachelors of photonics in Ontario

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nantel, Marc; Beda, Johann; Grevatt, Treena; Chebbi, Brahim; Jessop, Paul; Song, Shaowen

2004-10-01

After the introduction in 2001 of community college programs at the Photonics Technician/Technologist levels, the need to cover the photonics educational space at the undergraduate level was addressed. In the last year, three very different new undergraduate degrees in photonics have started to develop in Ontario. These programs are presented in this paper. The Honours B.Sc. in Photonics at Wilfrid Laurier University (Waterloo) will develop a strong understanding of the theory and application of photonics, with practical hands-on exposure to optics, fibre optics, and lasers. This program benefits from the particularity that the department offering it combines both Physics and Computer Science. At McMaster University, the Engineering Physics program will provide students with a broad background in basic Engineering, Mathematics, Electronics, and Semiconductors, as well as an opportunity to pursue Photonics in greater depth and to have that fact recognized in the program designation. The Niagara and Algonquin College Bachelor of Applied Technology in Photonics program is co-op and joint between the two institutions. Emphasis is placed on the applied aspects of the field, with the more hands-on experimental learning taking precedence in the first years and the more advanced theoretical subjects following in the latter years.

Persistence of physics and engineering students via peer mentoring, active learning, and intentional advising

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCavit, K.; Zellner, N. E. B.

2016-11-01

Albion College, a private, undergraduate-only, liberal arts college in Michigan, USA, has developed and implemented a low-cost peer-mentoring programme that blends personal and academic support to help students achieve academic success in the introductory courses required for the Physics Major or the Dual-Degree Program in Engineering. This enhanced mentoring programme provides much-needed assistance for undergraduate students to master introductory physics and mathematics coursework, to normalise the struggle of learning hard material, and to accept their identity as physics or engineering students (among other goals). Importantly, this programme has increased retention among entering science, technology, engineering and mathematics students at Albion College as they move through the introductory classes, as shown by a 20% increase in retention from first-semester to third-semester physics courses compared to years when this programme was not in place.

Size of Undergraduate Physics and Astronomy Programs: Data from the AIP Enrollments and Degrees and Academic Workforce Surveys. Focus On

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mulvey, Patrick; Tyler, John; Nicholson, Starr; Ivie, Rachel

2017-01-01

This report provides data on the size of degree-granting physics and astronomy departments by examining the number of bachelor's degrees awarded and the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) faculty members employed. The benchmarking data in this report is intended to allow physics and astronomy departments to see how they fit in the national…

GRAD-MAP: A Joint Physics and Astronomy Diversity Initiative at the University of Maryland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steele, Amy; Smith, Robyn; Wilkins, Ashlee; Jameson, Katie

2018-01-01

Graduate Resources for Advancing Diversity with Maryland’s Astronomy and Physics (GRAD-MAP), builds connections between UMD and mid-Atlantic HBCUs, Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs), and community colleges. We use seminars, forums, and workshops to foster a diverse community of undergraduates prepared to succeed in graduate school, inclusion-minded graduate student mentors, and faculty versed in the experiences of students at MSIs and the need for changes in the fields of physics and astronomy. Now in its fifth year, GRAD-MAP remains a graduate-student-powered initiative with a three-pronged approach: 1) Fall Collaborative Seminars, 2) A Winter Workshop, and 3) A Summer Scholars Program. This coherent set of programming allows GRAD-MAP to do more than just increase the numbers of minority students participating in astronomy and physics research (or worse, simply shuffle around students who already are or would be active in research). GRAD-MAP is committed to identifying students who are otherwise underserved or overlooked by the traditional academic pipeline, not only to get them on the path to be successful undergraduate researchers and eventual graduate applicants, but also to make substantial, sustainable efforts toward making the climate of academic physics and astronomy more inclusive to them and all other underrepresented minority students. We will describe the key elements of our program, highlight successes and lessons learned, and describe future directions for program elements. GRAD-MAP can serve as a model for other universities committed to diversity and inclusion.

An Event to Encourage High School Students to Pursue College Degrees in Physics and Math

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bukiet, Bruce; Thomas, Gordon

2003-04-01

We discuss a Math and Physics Day for high school students and teachers, with hands-on activities and seminars involving mathematics and physics. Participants also learn about careers for those who go on to major in physics and mathematics in college. The New York State Section of the APS has provided generous support for this workshop through its Outreach grant program. Approximately a dozen high schools and 100 students attend each year. The program, which runs from 9:15 AM until 2:15 PM, includes an introduction to undergraduate degree programs in Mathematics, Statistics, Optics, Actuarial Science and Applied Physics, a group physics experiment/contest, brief talks over lunch by speakers from industry who have degrees in Math or Physics, and an afternoon seminar. Teachers earn Professional Development credit.

University of Connecticut School of Allied Health Professions: Program Evaluation for the 1979-1980 Academic Year.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rovezzi-Carroll, Susan

The vocational curricular evaluation model (MCC) developed by the Division of Planning and Development at the Metropolitan Community College Administration Center is used to evaluate the University of Connecticut's School of Allied Health Professions. The three undergraduate programs focused on are physical therapy, clinical dietetics and medical…

Integrative Biological Chemistry Program Includes the Use of Informatics Tools, GIS and SAS Software Applications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

D'Souza, Malcolm J.; Kashmar, Richard J.; Hurst, Kent; Fiedler, Frank; Gross, Catherine E.; Deol, Jasbir K.; Wilson, Alora

2015-01-01

Wesley College is a private, primarily undergraduate minority-serving institution located in the historic district of Dover, Delaware (DE). The College recently revised its baccalaureate biological chemistry program requirements to include a one-semester Physical Chemistry for the Life Sciences course and project-based experiential learning…

A Descriptive Analysis of Undergraduate PETE Programs in the Central District

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hetland, Kristen M.; Strand, Bradford

2010-01-01

The current study described physical education teacher education (PETE) programs at institutions located within the Central District of the United States (CDAAAHPERD). Of the 72 institutions invited to participate, 44 institutions completed the survey (58% response rate). The purpose of this study was to describe the general profile/practices of…

Combining research-enhanced and technology-enhanced teaching approaches in module design: A case study of an undergraduate course in Solar Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tong, V.

2011-12-01

There is a growing emphasis on the research-teaching nexus, and there are many innovative ways to incorporate research materials and methods in undergraduate teaching. Solar Physics is a cross-disciplinary subject and offers the ideal opportunity for research-enhanced teaching (1). In this presentation, I outline i) how student-led teaching of research content and methods is introduced in an undergraduate module in Solar Physics, and ii) how electronic learning and teaching can be used to improve students' learning of mathematical concepts in Solar Physics. More specifically, I discuss how research literature reviewing and reporting methods can be embedded and developed systematically throughout the module with aligned assessments. Electronic feedback and feedforward (2) are given to the students in order to enhance their understanding of the subject and improve their research skills. Other technology-enhanced teaching approaches (3) are used to support students' learning of the more quantitative components of the module. This case study is particularly relevant to a wide range of pedagogical contexts (4) as the Solar Physics module is taught to students following undergraduate programs in Geology, Earth Sciences, Environmental Geology as well as Planetary Science with Astronomy in the host Department. Related references: (1) Tong, C. H., Let interdisciplinary research begin in undergraduate years, Nature (2010) v. 463, p. 157. (2) Tong, V. C. H., Linking summative assessments? Electronic feedback and feedforward in module design, British Journal of Educational Technology (2011), accepted for publication. (3) Tong, V. C. H., Using asynchronous electronic surveys to help in-class revision: A case study, British Journal of Educational Technology (2011), doi:10.1111/j.1467-8535.2011.01207.x (4) Tong, V. C. H. (ed.), Geoscience Research and Education, Springer, Dordrecht (2012)

A new method of measuring gravitational acceleration in an undergraduate laboratory program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Qiaochu; Wang, Chang; Xiao, Yunhuan; Schulte, Jurgen; Shi, Qingfan

2018-01-01

This paper presents a high accuracy method to measure gravitational acceleration in an undergraduate laboratory program. The experiment is based on water in a cylindrical vessel rotating about its vertical axis at a constant speed. The water surface forms a paraboloid whose focal length is related to rotational period and gravitational acceleration. This experimental setup avoids classical source errors in determining the local value of gravitational acceleration, so prevalent in the common simple pendulum and inclined plane experiments. The presented method combines multiple physics concepts such as kinematics, classical mechanics and geometric optics, offering the opportunity for lateral as well as project-based learning.

Valuing Professional Development Components for Emerging Undergraduate Researchers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheung, I.

2015-12-01

In 2004 the Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) at Oregon State University (OSU) established a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program to engage undergraduate students in hands-on research training in the marine sciences. The program offers students the opportunity to conduct research focused on biological and ecological topics, chemical and physical oceanography, marine geology, and atmospheric science. In partnership with state and federal government agencies, this ten-week summer program has grown to include 20+ students annually. Participants obtain a background in the academic discipline, professional development training, and research experience to make informed decisions about careers and advanced degrees in marine and earth system sciences. Professional development components of the program are designed to support students in their research experience, explore career goals and develop skills necessary to becoming a successful young marine scientist. These components generally include seminars, discussions, workshops, lab tours, and standards of conduct. These componentscontribute to achieving the following professional development objectives for the overall success of new emerging undergraduate researchers: Forming a fellowship of undergraduate students pursuing marine research Stimulating student interest and understanding of marine research science Learning about research opportunities at Oregon State University "Cross-Training" - broadening the hands-on research experience Exploring and learning about marine science careers and pathways Developing science communication and presentation skills Cultivating a sense of belonging in the sciences Exposure to federal and state agencies in marine and estuarine science Academic and career planning Retention of talented students in the marine science Standards of conduct in science Details of this program's components, objectives and best practices will be discussed.

Why Some Stay: A Study of Factors Contributing to Persistence in Undergraduate Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vazquez-Abad, Jesus; Winer, Laura R.; Derome, Jean-Robert

1997-01-01

Relates that concerns about the dropout rate among physics majors at the University of Montreal (Canada) led to a study of student persistence. Indicates that those who dropped out and those who stayed differed in their perceptions of their skills and knowledge, and their confidence in finishing the program. Presents preliminary recommendations.…

A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Study of Pre-Service Physical Educators' Perceptions of Their Professional Preparedness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hampson, Geoffrey Martin

2017-01-01

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to capture the essence of the perceptions of 11 pre-service physical educators in the final field placement and clinical practices of their undergraduate degree program at the University of Redbank, the University of Peters, and Ina University where they prepared to become professional…

The Impact of Work and Volunteer Hours on the Health of Undergraduate Students.

PubMed

Lederer, Alyssa M; Autry, Dana M; Day, Carol R T; Oswalt, Sara B

2015-01-01

To examine the impact of work and volunteer hours on 4 health issues among undergraduate college students. Full-time undergraduate students (N = 70,068) enrolled at 129 institutions who participated in the Spring 2011 American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment II survey. Multiple linear regression and binary logistic regression were used to examine work and volunteer hour impact on depression, feelings of being overwhelmed, sleep, and physical activity. The impact of work and volunteer hours was inconsistent among the health outcomes. Increased work hours tended to negatively affect sleep and increase feelings of being overwhelmed. Students who volunteered were more likely to meet physical activity guidelines, and those who volunteered 1 to 9 hours per week reported less depression. College health professionals should consider integrating discussion of students' employment and volunteering and their intersection with health outcomes into clinical visits, programming, and other services.

Teaching And Training Tools For The Undergraduate: Experience With A Rebuilt AN-400 Accelerator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roberts, Andrew D.

2011-06-01

There is an increasingly recognized need for people trained in a broad range of applied nuclear science techniques, indicated by reports from the American Physical Society and elsewhere. Anecdotal evidence suggests that opportunities for hands-on training with small particle accelerators have diminished in the US, as development programs established in the 1960's and 1970's have been decommissioned over recent decades. Despite the reduced interest in the use of low energy accelerators in fundamental research, these machines can offer a powerful platform for bringing unique training opportunities to the undergraduate curriculum in nuclear physics, engineering and technology. We report here on the new MSU Applied Nuclear Science Lab, centered around the rebuild of an AN400 electrostatic accelerator. This machine is run entirely by undergraduate students under faculty supervision, allowing a great deal of freedom in its use without restrictions from graduate or external project demands.

Teaching And Training Tools For The Undergraduate: Experience With A Rebuilt AN-400 Accelerator

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

Roberts, Andrew D.

2011-06-01

There is an increasingly recognized need for people trained in a broad range of applied nuclear science techniques, indicated by reports from the American Physical Society and elsewhere. Anecdotal evidence suggests that opportunities for hands-on training with small particle accelerators have diminished in the US, as development programs established in the 1960's and 1970's have been decommissioned over recent decades. Despite the reduced interest in the use of low energy accelerators in fundamental research, these machines can offer a powerful platform for bringing unique training opportunities to the undergraduate curriculum in nuclear physics, engineering and technology. We report here onmore » the new MSU Applied Nuclear Science Lab, centered around the rebuild of an AN400 electrostatic accelerator. This machine is run entirely by undergraduate students under faculty supervision, allowing a great deal of freedom in its use without restrictions from graduate or external project demands.« less

Support for hands-on optics immersions (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spalding, Gabriel C.; McCann, Lowell I.

2016-09-01

The Advanced Laboratory Physics Association (ALPhA) is an official affiliate organization of the AAPT, supporting upper-level undergraduate instructional lab education in physics. The ALPhA Immersions program is intended to be an efficient use of an instructor's time: with expert colleague-mentors on hand they spend 2.5 days learning a key new instructional experiment (of their choice) well enough to confidently teach it to the students at their home institutions. At an ALPhA Immersion, participants work in groups of no more than three per experimental setup. Our follow-up surveys support the notion that this individualized, concentrated focus directly results in significant updating and improvement of undergraduate laboratory instruction in physics across the country. Such programs have the effect of encouraging investment, on the part of individual institutions. For example, we have disseminated ideas, training, and equipment for contemporary single-photon-based instructional labs dealing with core, contemporary issues in Quantum Mechanics. By the time this paper is presented, ALPhA will have delivered at least 420 single-photon detectors to a wide variety of educational institutions. We have also partnered with the non-profit Jonathan F. Reichert Foundation to support equipment acquisition by institutions participating in our wide variety of training programs.

Electron Optics Cannot Be Taught through Computation?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van der Merwe, J. P.

1980-01-01

Describes how certain concepts basic to electron optics may be introduced to undergraduate physics students by calculating trajectories of charged particles through electrostatic fields which can be evaluated on minicomputers with a minimum of programing effort. (Author/SA)

Challenges and Opportunities in Interdisciplinary Materials Research Experiences for Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vohra, Yogesh; Nordlund, Thomas

2009-03-01

The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) offer a broad range of interdisciplinary materials research experiences to undergraduate students with diverse backgrounds in physics, chemistry, applied mathematics, and engineering. The research projects offered cover a broad range of topics including high pressure physics, microelectronic materials, nano-materials, laser materials, bioceramics and biopolymers, cell-biomaterials interactions, planetary materials, and computer simulation of materials. The students welcome the opportunity to work with an interdisciplinary team of basic science, engineering, and biomedical faculty but the challenge is in learning the key vocabulary for interdisciplinary collaborations, experimental tools, and working in an independent capacity. The career development workshops dealing with the graduate school application process and the entrepreneurial business activities were found to be most effective. The interdisciplinary university wide poster session helped student broaden their horizons in research careers. The synergy of the REU program with other concurrently running high school summer programs on UAB campus will also be discussed.

Acoustics: A branch of engineering at the Universidad Austral de Chile (UACh)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poblete, Victor; Arenas, Jorge P.; Sommerhoff, Jorge

2002-11-01

At the end of the 1960s, the first acousticians graduating at UACh had acquired an education in applied physics and musical arts, since there was no College of Engineering at that time. Initially, they had a (rather modest) four-year undergraduate program, and most of the faculty were not specialized teachers. The graduates from such a program received a sound engineering degree and they were skilled for jobs in the musical industry and sound reinforcement companies. In addition, they worked as sound engineers and producers. Later, because of the scientific, industrial and educational changes in Chile during the 1980s, the higher education system had massive changes that affected all of the undergraduate and graduate programs of the 61 universities in Chile. The UACh College of Engineering was officially founded in 1989. Then, acoustics as an area of expertise was included, widened and developed as an interdisciplinary subject. Currently, the undergraduate program in acoustics at UACh offers a degree in engineering sciences and a 6-year professional studies in Civil Engineering (Acoustics), having two main fields: Sound and Image, and Environment and Industry.

Physics Incubator at Kansas State University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flanders, Bret; Chakrabarti, Amitabha

Funded by a major private endowment, the physics department at Kansas State University has recently started a physics incubator program that provides support to research projects with a high probability of commercial application. Some examples of these projects will be discussed in this talk. In a parallel effort, undergraduate physics majors and graduate students are being encouraged to work with our business school to earn an Entrepreneurship minor and a certification in Entrepreneurship. We will discuss how these efforts are promoting a ``culture change'' in the department. We will also discuss the advantages and the difficulties in running such a program in a Midwest college town.

KSC-2012-6221

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-11-08

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Applied Physics Laboratory in the Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, lead researcher Dr. Bob Youngquist demonstrates a technology developed for the Space Shuttle Program to a group of Society of Physics students. About 800 graduate and undergraduate physics students toured Kennedy facilities. A group of about 40 students toured laboratories in the Operations and Checkout Building and the EDL during their visit. The physics students were in Orlando for the 2012 Quadrennial Physics Congress. Photo credit: NASA/Cory Huston

KSC-2012-6220

NASA Image and Video Library

2012-11-08

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the Applied Physics Laboratory in the Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, lead researcher Dr. Bob Youngquist describes technologies developed for the Space Shuttle Program to a group of Society of Physics students. About 800 graduate and undergraduate physics students toured Kennedy facilities. A group of about 40 students toured laboratories in the Operations and Checkout Building and the EDL during their visit. The physics students were in Orlando for the 2012 Quadrennial Physics Congress. Photo credit: NASA/Cory Huston

The Undergraduate ALFALFA Team: Outcomes for Over 250 Undergraduate Participants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Troischt, Parker; Koopmann, Rebecca A.; Haynes, Martha P.; ALFALFA Team

2016-01-01

The NSF-sponsored Undergraduate ALFALFA (Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA) Team (UAT) is a consortium of 19 institutions founded to promote undergraduate research and faculty development within the extragalactic ALFALFA HI blind survey project and follow-up programs. In this talk we present outcomes for the more than 250 undergraduate students who have who have participated in the program during the 8 years of funding. 40% of these students have been women and members of underrepresented groups. To date 148 undergraduate students have attended annual workshops at Arecibo Observatory, interacting with faculty, graduate students, their peers, and Arecibo staff in lectures, group activities, tours, and observing runs. Team faculty have supervised 159 summer research projects and 120 academic year (e.g., senior thesis) projects. 68 students have traveled to Arecibo Observatory for observing runs and 55 have presented their results at national meetings such as the AAS. Through participation in the UAT, students are made aware of career paths they may not have previously considered. More than 90% of alumni are attending graduate school and/or pursuing a career in STEM. 42% of those pursuing graduate degrees in Physics or Astronomy are women. This work has been supported by NSF grants AST-0724918/0902211, AST-075267/0903394, AST-0725380, and AST-1211005

Enhancing interdisciplinary, mathematics, and physical science in an undergraduate life science program through physical chemistry.

PubMed

Pursell, David P

2009-01-01

BIO2010 advocates enhancing the interdisciplinary, mathematics, and physical science components of the undergraduate biology curriculum. The Department of Chemistry and Life Science at West Point responded by developing a required physical chemistry course tailored to the interests of life science majors. To overcome student resistance to physical chemistry, students were enabled as long-term stakeholders who would shape the syllabus by selecting life science topics of interest to them. The initial 2 yr of assessment indicates that students have a positive view of the course, feel they have succeeded in achieving course outcome goals, and that the course is relevant to their professional future. Instructor assessment of student outcome goal achievement via performance on exams and labs is comparable to that of students in traditional physical chemistry courses. Perhaps more noteworthy, both student and instructor assessment indicate positive trends from year 1 to year 2, presumably due to the student stakeholder effect.

Enhancing Interdisciplinary, Mathematics, and Physical Science in an Undergraduate Life Science Program through Physical Chemistry

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

BIO2010 advocates enhancing the interdisciplinary, mathematics, and physical science components of the undergraduate biology curriculum. The Department of Chemistry and Life Science at West Point responded by developing a required physical chemistry course tailored to the interests of life science majors. To overcome student resistance to physical chemistry, students were enabled as long-term stakeholders who would shape the syllabus by selecting life science topics of interest to them. The initial 2 yr of assessment indicates that students have a positive view of the course, feel they have succeeded in achieving course outcome goals, and that the course is relevant to their professional future. Instructor assessment of student outcome goal achievement via performance on exams and labs is comparable to that of students in traditional physical chemistry courses. Perhaps more noteworthy, both student and instructor assessment indicate positive trends from year 1 to year 2, presumably due to the student stakeholder effect. PMID:19255133

ALPhA Laboratory Immersion in Plasma Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dominguez, A.; Zwicker, A.; Williams, J. D.

2016-10-01

According to the FESAC, as recently as 2014 there were a total of just 14 universities offering strong curricula in MFE sciences. Similarly, it was reported that 8 and 19 universities offer strong HEDPL and Discovery Plasma programs respectively. At the undergraduate level, there is also a lack of plasma physics in the curricula. This, regardless of its rich insights into the core subfields of physics, i.e., classical mechanics, electrodynamics, statistical mechanics and quantum phenomena. The coauthors have been leading a plasma physics workshop for the last 3 years directed at undergraduate physics professors and lecturers. The workshop is centered around a versatile and relatively inexpensive (< 10 k) plasma discharge experiment which lets students explore Panchen's Law, spectroscopy and Langmuir probes. The workshop is part of the Advanced Laboratory Physics Association (ALPhA) Laboratory Immersions, and its objective is for the participants to become familiar with the experiments and incorporate them into their home institution's curricula as junior labs, senior labs or independent student projects.

How can we help students appreciate physics education?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

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

2004-03-01

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

Sparking Women's Interest in Physics through Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merali, Aliya; Wissel, S. A.; Ortiz, M.; Morgan, J. T.; Zwicker, A.

2011-10-01

As of 2010, less than 10% of the members of the APS division of plasma physics are female. Data from a 2005 AIP publication indicate that a lack of female presence in physics exists as early as high school and is perpetuated throughout the educational careers of women. Of the undergraduate programs run by PPPL, 16% of participants are female, and only 11% of participants that continue on to graduate school are female. In an effort to increase the exposure of young women to physics, we have expanded existing programs and initiated new programs such as a mentorship program and an energy focused essay contest. The goal of these programs is to bridge the gap between young and established women in science in order to increase young women's interest in the field of physics and thus increase the likelihood that they will continue on to study higher-level physics. Using data collected from participant surveys we have assessed the short-term effectiveness of PPPL programs in influencing young women to pursue careers in science and plasma physics. Ivie and Ray. AIP Publication Number R-430.02 (February 2005)

Evaluating the Effects of a Self-Advocacy Training Program for Undergraduates with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Glen W.; Summers, Jean Ann; Zhang, E; Renault, Val

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study is to explore the efficacy of a training program with a group of college students who have physical, sensory, and/or learning disabilities regarding their acquisition of knowledge and skills related to their rights to reasonable accommodations under several disability-related federal laws (e.g., Section 504, Americans…

Visual Body Pedagogies: How Anti-Oppressive Education Informs the Teaching and Learning of Sporting Bodies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Owens, Robert E.; LeBlanc, Roger G.; Brown, Pam K.

2016-01-01

In this article, the authors borrow from anti-oppressive education theory for its potential to disrupt how students visually conceive sporting bodies and to problematize the teaching and learning of these bodies within undergraduate physical education (PE) programs. Fourteen photo stories produced by students enrolled in PE programs at two…

Optics and communication technology major of physics undergraduate degree at King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buranasiri, Prathan

2014-09-01

A physics undergraduate degree major in optics and communication technology has been offered at King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang (KMITL), Bangkok, Thailand. There are nine required three credit hour courses including two laboratory courses plus a number of selections in optics and communication based technology courses. For independent thinking and industrial working skills, nine credit hours of research project, practical training or overseas studies are included for selection in the final semester. Students are encouraged to participate in international conferences and professional organizations. Recently the program, with support from SPIE and OSA, has organized its first international conference on photonic solutions 2013 (ICPS 2013).

Providing Real Research Opoportunities to Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ragozzine, Darin

2016-01-01

The current approach to undergraduate education focuses on teaching classes which provide the foundational knowledge for more applied experiences such as scientific research. Like most programs, Florida Institute of Technology (Florida Tech or FIT) strongly encourages undergraduate research, but is dominated by content-focused courses (e.g., "Physical Mechanics"). Research-like experiences are generally offered through "lab" classes, but these are almost always reproductions of past experiments: contrived, formulaic, and lacking the "heart" of real (i.e., potentially publishable) scientific research. Real research opportunities 1) provide students with realistic insight into the actual scientific process; 2) excite students far more than end-of-chapter problems; 3) provide context for the importance of learning math, physics, and astrophysics concepts; and 4) allow unique research progress for well-chosen problems. I have provided real research opportunities as an "Exoplanet Lab" component of my Introduction to Space Science (SPS1020) class at Florida Tech, generally taken by first-year majors in our Physics, Astronomy & Astrophysics, Planetary Science, and Astrobiology degree programs. These labs are a hybrid between citizen science (e.g., PlanetHunters) and simultaneously mentoring ~60 undergraduates in similar small research projects. These projects focus on problems that can be understood in the context of the course, but which benefit from "crowdsourcing". Examples include: dividing up the known planetary systems and developing a classification scheme and organizing them into populations (Fall 2013); searching through folded light curves to discover new exoplanets missed by previous pipelines (Fall 2014); and fitting n-body models to all exoplanets with known Transit Timing Variations to estimate planet masses (Fall 2015). The students love the fact that they are doing real potentially publishable research: not many undergraduates can claim to have discovered new exoplanets! Based on these experiences, I will present practical insights into successfully organizing real research opportunities. By employing some of these best practices, we can truly educate students and make scientific progress.

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

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

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

2012-12-01

This presentation describes results from an NSF-funded study of the pathways students in solar and space physics have taken to arrive in graduate school. Our Pathways study has documented results from structured interviews conducted with graduate students attending two, week-long, NSF-sponsored scientific workshops during the summer of 2011. Our research team interviewed 48 solar and space physics students (29 males and 19 females currently in graduate programs at US institutions,) in small group settings regarding what attracted and retained them along their pathways leading to grad school. This presentation addresses what these students revealed about the attributes and influences that supported completion of their undergraduate experience and focused their aspirations toward graduate school. In advance of the interview process, we collected 125 on-line survey responses from students at the two workshops. This 20-item survey included questions about high school and undergraduate education, as well as about research and graduate experience. A subset of the 125 students who completed this on-line survey volunteered to be interviewed. Two types of interview data were collected from the 48 interviewees: 1) written answers to a pre-interview questionnaire; and 2) detailed notes taken by researchers during group interviews. On the pre-interview questionnaire, we posed the question: "How did you come to be a graduate student in your field?" Our findings to date are based on an analysis of responses to this question, cross correlated with the corresponding on-line survey data. Our analysis reveals the importance of early research experiences. About 80% of the students participating in the Pathways study cited formative undergraduate research experiences. Moreover, about 50% of participants reported undergraduate research experiences that were in the field of their current graduate studies. Graduate students interviewed frequently cited a childhood interest in science that grew through high school and undergraduate science courses on into trying out research as an undergraduate. Reasons cited for finding space physics more attractive than, say astronomy or cosmology, included: 1) the domain of physical reality being studied (near-Earth space) can be accessed by humans; 2) the research content is easier to explain to family and friends; and 3) the research has more societal relevance. Our data also suggest the pivotal role of undergraduate professors and research advisors in supporting student persistence.

Why Study Geoscience? Identifying Effective Recruitment and Retention Strategies for an Undergraduate Earth & Environmental Sciences Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vajoczki, S.; Eyles, C. H.; Stewart, J.; Dasilva, L.

2005-12-01

McMaster University is a `research intensive' university with 17,000+ full time undergraduate students. The School of Geography and Earth Sciences (SGES) is located within the Faculty of Science, offers B.Sc., B.A., M.Sc., M.A. and PhD degree programs and teaches more than 70 undergraduate courses on an annual basis. The Honours B.Sc program in Earth and Environmental Sciences (EES) graduates approximately 25 students per year. Students enroll in undergraduate SGES programs in their second year, after completion of an introductory first year in the Faculty of Science in which they take compulsory science courses including math, physics, chemistry, and biology. First year students, as well as those in upper years, may also elect to take one or more of three introductory courses offered by SGES (Earth & the Environment, The Living Environment, Atmosphere & Hydrosphere) to complete their science requirements. Most students entering the Faculty of Science know little about geoscience as it does not form an important part of the Ontario secondary school curriculum. Hence, recruitment into the EES program is primarily via the first year courses. In order to establish reasons why students elected to take the introductory courses offered by SGES, and their reasons for considering subsequent entry to the B.Sc program, a survey of students taking one of the courses was conducted in the fall of 2003. Results from the survey indicate that students enroll in the course, and subsequently the EES program, for a variety of reasons including: general interest in how the planet works, concern for the environment, interesting title of the course and reputation of the instructor. Student concern over lack of potential jobs is cited as the main reason for not pursuing a degree in geoscience. This survey has helped to direct the multifaceted recruitment strategies used by SGES to continue to develop its undergraduate program through delivery of high quality first year courses. Additional recruitment strategies used to recruit and retain high quality students include an active undergraduate society and departmental events that contribute towards a culture of learning and sense of belonging that is sought by students.

GRAD-MAP: A Joint Physics and Astronomy Diversity Initiative at the University of Maryland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkins, Ashlee N.; Jameson, Katherine; Taylor, Corbin James; Anderson, Neil; Megson, Peter; Roberg-Clark, Gareth; Sheppard, Kyle; Uher, Tim; Hammer, Donna; Vogel, Stuart N.

2016-01-01

Graduate Resources for Advancing Diversity with Maryland's Astronomy and Physics (GRAD-MAP), builds connections between UMD and mid-Atlantic HBCUs, Minority-Serving Institutions, and community colleges, and uses seminars, forums, and workshops to foster a diverse community of undergraduates prepared to succeed in graduate school, and is now in its third year. GRAD-MAP launched with a three-pronged approach: 1) Collaborative Seminars, 2) A Winter Workshop, and 3) A Spring Symposium. This program allows GRAD-MAP to do more than just increase the numbers of minority students participating in astronomy and physics research (or, worse, simply shuffle around students who already are or would be); it is committed to identifying students who are otherwise underserved or overlooked by the traditional academic pipeline, not only to get them on the path to be successful undergraduate researchers and eventual graduate applicants, but also to make the climate of academic physics and astronomy more inclusive to them and all other underrepresented minority students. Our poster describes the key elements of our program, and highlights successes and lessons learned; GRAD-MAP can serve as a model for other universities committed to diversity and inclusion.

Helping physics teacher-candidates develop questioning skills through innovative technology use

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Milner-Bolotin, Marina

2015-12-01

Peer Instruction has been used successfully in undergraduate classrooms for decades. Its success depends largely on the quality of multiple-choice questions. Yet it is still rare in secondary schools because of teachers' lack of experience in designing, evaluating, and implementing conceptual questions. Research-based multiple-choice conceptual questions are also underutilized in physics teacher education. This study explores the implementation of Peer Instruction enhanced by PeerWise collaborative online system, in a physics methods course in a physics teacher education program.

The Undergraduate ALFALFA Team: A Model for Involving Undergraduates in Major Legacy Astronomy Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Troischt, Parker; Koopmann, Rebecca A.; Haynes, Martha P.; Higdon, Sarah; Balonek, Thomas J.; Cannon, John M.; Coble, Kimberly A.; Craig, David; Durbala, Adriana; Finn, Rose; Hoffman, G. Lyle; Kornreich, David A.; Lebron, Mayra E.; Crone-Odekon, Mary; O'Donoghue, Aileen A.; Olowin, Ronald Paul; Pantoja, Carmen; Rosenberg, Jessica L.; Venkatesan, Aparna; Wilcots, Eric M.; Alfalfa Team

2015-01-01

The NSF-sponsored Undergraduate ALFALFA (Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA) Team (UAT) is a consortium of 19 institutions founded to promote undergraduate research and faculty development within the extragalactic ALFALFA HI blind survey project and follow-up programs. The collaborative nature of the UAT allows faculty and students from a wide ​range of public and private colleges and especially those with small astronomy programs to develop scholarly collaborations. Components of the program include an annual undergraduate workshop at Arecibo Observatory, observing runs at Arecibo, computer infrastructure, summer and academic year research projects, and dissemination at national meetings (e.g., Alfvin et al., Martens et al., Sanders et al., this meeting). Through this model, faculty and students are learning how science is accomplished in a large collaboration while contributing to the scientific goals of a major legacy survey. In the 7 years of the program, 23 faculty and more than 220 undergraduate students have participated at a significant level. 40% of them have been women and members of underrepresented groups. Faculty, many of whom were new to the collaboration and had expertise in other fields, contribute their diverse sets of skills to ALFALFA ​related projects via observing, data reduction, collaborative research, and research with students. 142 undergraduate students have attended the annual workshops at Arecibo Observatory, interacting with faculty, graduate students, their peers, and Arecibo staff in lectures, group activities, tours, and observing runs. Team faculty have supervised 131 summer research projects and 94 academic year (e.g., senior thesis) projects. 62 students have traveled to Arecibo Observatory for observing runs and 46 have presented their results at national meetings. 93% of alumni are attending graduate school and/or pursuing a career in STEM. Half of those pursuing graduate degrees in Physics or Astronomy are women. This work has been supported by NSF grants AST-0724918/0902211, AST075267/0903394, AST0725380, and AST-1211005.

STEERing an IDeA in Undergraduate Research at a Rural Research Intensive University

PubMed Central

Sens, Donald A.; Cisek, Karen L.; Garrett, Scott H.; Somji, Seema; Dunlevy, Jane R.; Sens, Mary Ann; Conway, Pat; Doze, Van A.

2017-01-01

This study documents outcomes, including student career choices, of the North Dakota Institutional Development Award Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence program that provides 10-week, summer undergraduate research experiences at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Program evaluation initiated in 2008 and, to date, 335 students have completed the program. Of the 335, 214 students have successfully completed their bachelor’s degree, 102 are still undergraduates, and 19 either did not complete a bachelor’s degree or were lost to follow-up. The program was able to track 200 of the 214 students for education and career choices following graduation. Of these 200, 76% continued in postgraduate health-related education; 34.0% and 20.5% are enrolled in or have completed MD or PhD programs, respectively. Other postbaccalaureate pursuits included careers in pharmacy, optometry, dentistry, public health, physical therapy, nurse practitioner, and physician’s assistant, accounting for an additional 21.5%. Most students electing to stop formal education at the bachelor’s degree also entered fields related to health care or science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (19.5%), with only a small number of the 200 students tracked going into service or industries which lacked an association with the health-care workforce (4.5%). These student outcomes support the concept that participation in summer undergraduate research boosts efforts to populate the pipeline of future researchers and health professionals. It is also an indication that future researchers and health professionals will be able to communicate the value of research in their professional and social associations. The report also discusses best practices and issues in summer undergraduate research for students originating from rural environments. PMID:29057317

STEERing an IDeA in Undergraduate Research at a Rural Research Intensive University.

PubMed

Sens, Donald A; Cisek, Karen L; Garrett, Scott H; Somji, Seema; Dunlevy, Jane R; Sens, Mary Ann; Conway, Pat; Doze, Van A

2017-01-01

This study documents outcomes, including student career choices, of the North Dakota Institutional Development Award Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence program that provides 10-week, summer undergraduate research experiences at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Program evaluation initiated in 2008 and, to date, 335 students have completed the program. Of the 335, 214 students have successfully completed their bachelor's degree, 102 are still undergraduates, and 19 either did not complete a bachelor's degree or were lost to follow-up. The program was able to track 200 of the 214 students for education and career choices following graduation. Of these 200, 76% continued in postgraduate health-related education; 34.0% and 20.5% are enrolled in or have completed MD or PhD programs, respectively. Other postbaccalaureate pursuits included careers in pharmacy, optometry, dentistry, public health, physical therapy, nurse practitioner, and physician's assistant, accounting for an additional 21.5%. Most students electing to stop formal education at the bachelor's degree also entered fields related to health care or science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (19.5%), with only a small number of the 200 students tracked going into service or industries which lacked an association with the health-care workforce (4.5%). These student outcomes support the concept that participation in summer undergraduate research boosts efforts to populate the pipeline of future researchers and health professionals. It is also an indication that future researchers and health professionals will be able to communicate the value of research in their professional and social associations. The report also discusses best practices and issues in summer undergraduate research for students originating from rural environments.

Advanced interdisciplinary undergraduate program: light engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bakholdin, Alexey; Bougrov, Vladislav; Voznesenskaya, Anna; Ezhova, Kseniia

2016-09-01

The undergraduate educational program "Light Engineering" of an advanced level of studies is focused on development of scientific learning outcomes and training of professionals, whose activities are in the interdisciplinary fields of Optical engineering and Technical physics. The program gives practical experience in transmission, reception, storage, processing and displaying information using opto-electronic devices, automation of optical systems design, computer image modeling, automated quality control and characterization of optical devices. The program is implemented in accordance with Educational standards of the ITMO University. The specific features of the Program is practice- and problem-based learning implemented by engaging students to perform research and projects, internships at the enterprises and in leading Russian and international research educational centers. The modular structure of the Program and a significant proportion of variable disciplines provide the concept of individual learning for each student. Learning outcomes of the program's graduates include theoretical knowledge and skills in natural science and core professional disciplines, deep knowledge of modern computer technologies, research expertise, design skills, optical and optoelectronic systems and devices.

Comparative analysis of female physicists in the physical sciences: Motivation and background variables

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dabney, Katherine P.; Tai, Robert H.

2014-06-01

The majority of existing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) research studies compare women to men, yet a paucity of research exists that examines what differentiates female career choice within the physical sciences. In light of these research trends and recommendations, this study examines the following question: On average, do females who select physics as compared to chemistry doctoral programs differ in their reported personal motivations and background factors prior to entering the field? This question is analyzed using variables from the Project Crossover Survey data set through a subset of female physical science doctoral students and scientists (n =1137). A logistic regression analysis and prototypical odds ratio uncover what differentiates women in the physical sciences based on their academic achievement and experiences ranging from high school through undergraduate education. Results indicate that females who have negative undergraduate chemistry experiences as well as higher grades and positive experiences in undergraduate physics are more likely to pursue a career in physics as opposed to chemistry. Conclusions suggest that a greater emphasis should be placed on the classroom experiences that are provided to females in gateway physics courses. Analyses show that women are not a single entity that should only be examined as a whole group or in comparison to men. Instead women can be compared to one another to see what influences their differences in educational experiences and career choice in STEM-based fields as well as other academic areas of study.

Impact of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research in Mathematics and Biology on the Development of a New Course Integrating Five STEM Disciplines

PubMed Central

Caudill, Lester; Hill, April; Lipan, Ovidiu

2010-01-01

Funded by innovative programs at the National Science Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Richmond faculty in biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and computer science teamed up to offer first- and second-year students the opportunity to contribute to vibrant, interdisciplinary research projects. The result was not only good science but also good science that motivated and informed course development. Here, we describe four recent undergraduate research projects involving students and faculty in biology, physics, mathematics, and computer science and how each contributed in significant ways to the conception and implementation of our new Integrated Quantitative Science course, a course for first-year students that integrates the material in the first course of the major in each of biology, chemistry, mathematics, computer science, and physics. PMID:20810953

Impact of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research in mathematics and biology on the development of a new course integrating five STEM disciplines.

PubMed

Caudill, Lester; Hill, April; Hoke, Kathy; Lipan, Ovidiu

2010-01-01

Funded by innovative programs at the National Science Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Richmond faculty in biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and computer science teamed up to offer first- and second-year students the opportunity to contribute to vibrant, interdisciplinary research projects. The result was not only good science but also good science that motivated and informed course development. Here, we describe four recent undergraduate research projects involving students and faculty in biology, physics, mathematics, and computer science and how each contributed in significant ways to the conception and implementation of our new Integrated Quantitative Science course, a course for first-year students that integrates the material in the first course of the major in each of biology, chemistry, mathematics, computer science, and physics.

NanoJapan: international research experience for undergraduates program: fostering U.S.-Japan research collaborations in terahertz science and technology of nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phillips, Sarah R.; Matherly, Cheryl A.; Kono, Junichiro

2014-09-01

The international nature of science and engineering research demands that students have the skillsets necessary to collaborate internationally. However, limited options exist for science and engineering undergraduates who want to pursue research abroad. The NanoJapan International Research Experience for Undergraduates Program is an innovative response to this need. Developed to foster research and international engagement among young undergraduate students, it is funded by a National Science Foundation Partnerships for International Research and Education (PIRE) grant. Each summer, NanoJapan sends 12 U.S. students to Japan to conduct research internships with world leaders in terahertz (THz) spectroscopy, nanophotonics, and ultrafast optics. The students participate in cutting-edge research projects managed within the framework of the U.S-Japan NSF-PIRE collaboration. One of our focus topics is THz science and technology of nanosystems (or `TeraNano'), which investigates the physics and applications of THz dynamics of carriers and phonons in nanostructures and nanomaterials. In this article, we will introduce the program model, with specific emphasis on designing high-quality international student research experiences. We will specifically address the program curriculum that introduces students to THz research, Japanese language, and intercultural communications, in preparation for work in their labs. Ultimately, the program aims to increase the number of U.S. students who choose to pursue graduate study in this field, while cultivating a generation of globally aware engineers and scientists who are prepared for international research collaboration.

Developing Strong Geoscience Programs and Departments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, R.; Manduca, C. A.

2002-12-01

Strong geoscience programs are essential for preparing future geoscientists and developing a broad public understanding of our science. Faculty working as a department team can create stronger programs than individual faculty working alone. Workshops sponsored by Project Kaleidoscope (www.pkal.org) on departmental planning in the geosciences have emphasized the importance of designing programs in the context of both departmental and student goals. Well-articulated goals form a foundation for designing curriculum, courses, and other departmental activities. Course/skill matrices have emerged as particularly valuable tools for analyzing how individual courses combine in a curriculum to meet learning goals. Integrated programs where students have opportunities to learn and use skills in multiple contexts have been developed at several institutions. Departments are leveraging synergies between courses to more effectively reach departmental goals and capitalize on opportunities in the larger campus environment. A full departmental program extends beyond courses and curriculum. Studies in physics (National Task Force on Undergraduate Physics, Hilborne, 2002) indicate the importance of activities such as recruiting able students, mentoring students, providing courses appropriate for pre-service K-12 teachers, assisting with professional development for a diversity of careers, providing opportunities for undergraduates to participate in research, and making connections with the local industries and businesses that employ graduates. PKAL workshop participants have articulated a wide variety of approaches to undergraduate research opportunities within and outside of class based on their departmental goals, faculty goals, and resources. Similarly, departments have a wide variety of strategies for developing productive synergies with campus-wide programs including those emphasizing writing skills, quantitative skills, and environmental studies. Mentoring and advising activities are becoming more central to many departmental programs and can effectively draw on campus, alumni, and industry resources. Attention to the role and reputation of the department on campus is important in creating a supportive climate for departmental activities. The challenges of creating a strong program can be most effectively met using a team approach that capitalizes on the strengths of every department member.

Impacting university physics students through participation in informal science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinko, Kathleen; Finkelstein, Noah D.

2013-01-01

Informal education programs organized by university physics departments are a popular means of reaching out to communities and satisfying grant requirements. The outcomes of these programs are often described in terms of broader impacts on the community. Comparatively little attention, however, has been paid to the influence of such programs on those students facilitating the informal science programs. Through Partnerships for Informal Science Education in the Community (PISEC) at the University of Colorado Boulder, undergraduate and graduate physics students coach elementary and middle school children during an inquiry-based science afterschool program. As part of their participation in PISEC, university students complete preparation in pedagogy, communication and diversity, engage with children on a weekly basis and provide regular feedback about the program. We present findings that indicate these experiences improve the ability of university students to communicate in everyday language and positively influence their perspectives on teaching and learning.

What Works for Women in Undergraduate Physics?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitten, Barbara L.; Dorato, Shannon R.; Foster, Suzanne R.; Duncombe, Margaret L.

2005-10-01

The physics community in the U.S. has been concerned about the low participation by women for many years. Although some progress has been made, the percentage of undergraduate women in physics is still less than half that in mathematics and chemistry. While the percentage of women in physics declines at every step up the academic ladder, the largest decrease occurs in the undergraduate years. Therefore it is worthwhile to look at how undergraduate physics departments might make women students comfortable. We have conducted a study of undergraduate physics departments in order to learn "what works" in attracting and retaining women in the undergraduate physics major. With a team of women physicists, we visited nine undergraduate physics departments, five with high participation by women and four with average participation. We also visited six departments in women's colleges, which are known for producing accomplished women in all fields, including science. Three of the 15 schools are historically Black colleges, which produce disproportionate numbers of African-American women scientists. We found that the most important factor in a female-friendly physics department is a warm and inclusive culture that reaches out to introductory students. We also discuss the effects of curriculum, pedagogy, and institutional policy.

Physics Teacher Preparation's Role in the Transformation of a Physics Department

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kramer, Laird

2011-04-01

Physics teacher preparation programs offer one vehicle of creating sustained educational transformation within a physics department. Strategic implementations pave the way for developing more and better prepared physics teachers while providing a cohort of trained peer instructors to drive reform in the physics course sequence. We present the design and results of the new physics teacher preparation programs implemented at Florida International University (FIU). FIU implemented University of Colorado's Learning Assistant (LA) program in 2008, through the support of a PhysTEC Primary Partner Institute Grant. The LA program is an experiential teaching program for undergraduates that recruits and prepares future teachers while driving reform in the department, as LAs must experience research-validated curricula in order to make informed decisions about teaching in their future. FIU's Physics LA program now employs over 40 LAs, impacts over 2,000 introductory physics students per year, and is now fully sustained by university funding. The LA program's success has prompted a spread to chemistry, earth science, mathematics, and biology and serves as the foundation in the university's strategic vision. The impact is most compelling as FIU is a minority-serving urban public research institution in Miami, Florida serving over 42,000 students, of which 64% are Hispanic, 13% are Black, and 56% are women.

GRAD-MAP: A Physics and Astronomy Diversity Initiative at the University of Maryland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Robyn; Rogoszinski, Zeeve; Sheppard, Kyle; Taylor, Corbin; Wilkins, Ashlee; Vogel, Stuart; Rolston, Steve; Hammer, Donna; Gezari, Suvi; Williams, Jimmy

2017-01-01

Graduate Resources for Advancing Diversity with Maryland's Astronomy and Physics (GRAD-MAP) builds connections with mid-Atlantic HBCUs, Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs), and community colleges using seminars, forums, and workshops to foster a diverse community: undergraduates prepared to succeed in graduate school, inclusion-minded graduate student mentors, and faculty versed in the experiences of students at MSIs. In its fourth year, GRAD-MAP remains a graduate-student-powered initiative with a four-pronged approach: 1) Fall Collaborative Seminars, 2) Winter Workshop, 3) Spring Symposium, and 4) Summer Scholars Program. This coherent programming allows GRAD-MAP to do more than just increase the number of minority students or simply shuffle around students who already are, or would be, active in research. GRAD-MAP is committed to identifying students who are underserved or overlooked by the traditional academic pipeline. Our goal is not only to get them on the path to be successful undergraduate researchers and eventual graduate applicants, but also to make substantial, sustainable efforts toward a more inclusive climate in physics and astronomy. We will describe the key elements of our program, highlight successes and lessons learned, and describe formal evaluation currently underway with the intent that GRAD-MAP could serve as a model for other universities committed to diversity and inclusion.

The Physics Learning Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nossal, S. M.; Watson, L. E.; Hooper, E.; Huesmann, A.; Schenker, B.; Timbie, P.; Rzchowski, M.

2013-03-01

The Physics Learning Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison provides academic support and small-group supplemental instruction to students studying introductory algebra-based and calculus-based physics. These classes are gateway courses for majors in the biological and physical sciences, pre-health fields, engineering, and secondary science education. The Physics Learning Center offers supplemental instruction groups twice weekly where students can discuss concepts and practice with problem-solving techniques. The Center also provides students with access on-line resources that stress conceptual understanding, and to exam review sessions. Participants in our program include returning adults, people from historically underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, students from families in lower-income circumstances, students in the first generation of their family to attend college, transfer students, veterans, and people with disabilities, all of whom might feel isolated in their large introductory course and thus have a more difficult time finding study partners. We also work with students potentially at-risk for having academic difficulty (due to factors academic probation, weak math background, low first exam score, or no high school physics). A second mission of the Physics Learning Center is to provide teacher training and leadership experience for undergraduate Peer Mentor Tutors. These Peer Tutors lead the majority of the weekly group sessions in close supervision by PLC staff members. We will describe our work to support students in the Physics Learning Center, including our teacher-training program for our undergraduate Peer Mentor Tutors

Educational trajectories of graduate students in physics education research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Dusen, Ben; Barthelemy, Ramón S.; Henderson, Charles

2014-12-01

Physics education research (PER) is a rapidly growing area of PhD specialization. In this article we examine the trajectories that led respondents into a PER graduate program as well as their expected future trajectories. Data were collected in the form of an online survey sent to graduate students in PER. Our findings show a lack of visibility of PER as a field of study, a dominance of work at the undergraduate level, and a mismatch of future desires and expectations. We suggest that greater exposure is needed so PER is known as a field of inquiry for graduates, that more emphasis should be placed on research beyond the undergraduate level, and that there needs to be stronger communication to graduate students about potential careers.

Reaching Out: The Bachelor of Arts Degree In Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hobson, Art

1996-05-01

Physics degrees are not only for physicists. Our department believes that it would be healthy if attorneys, physicians, journalists, politicians, businesspeople, and others had undergraduate degrees in physics. Thus, we have begun offering a Bachelor of Arts degree in physics, for students who want to study physics as a background for other fields such as law (patents, environmental law), medical school, business (high-tech firms), journalism (science reporting, environmental reporting), music (accoustics, electronic music), and essentially any other profession. The program reaches outward, outside of physics, rather than pointing toward further work in physics. It begins with the algebra-based introductory course rather than the calculus-based course for future physicists and engineers. Two new courses are being created to provide these pre-professional students with broad science literacy and knowledge of physics-related technologies. The program is more flexible and less technical than the traditional Bachelor of Science program, allowing students time for outside electives and professional requirements in other fields.

Getting the Word Out: Undergradute Space Physics at Rice University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reiff, P. H.; Alexander, D.

2006-12-01

At Rice University we emphasize space physics in our non-major Physics and Astronomy undergraduate classes in addition to our graduate and majors program. In "ASTR 202" (solar system exploration for non- majors), we typically use a textbook which includes magnetospheric and auroral topics in it (many do not). In recent years, we have also created two new courses for undergraduates which highlight space physics. In spring 2005 we began PHYS 401, The Physics of Ham Radio, which includes a significant portion on the Sun, ionosphere, radio propagation, and space storms. It is a fun hands-on way to learn about circuits, electrical theory, antennas, and the effects of space weather, while creating a new hobby at the same time. The students are required to attempt the FCC "Technician" exam as their midterm exam, and all of the class members passed. This course is taken both by undergraduates and by local teachers in the Master of Science Teaching program (the teacher tuition is partially supported by CISM), and is offered every other year (it will be offered again in Spring 2007). In fall 2005 one of us (Alexander) started a new course, ASTR 243 "Exploring the Sun-Earth Connection", which focuses entirely on solar and space weather topics. It required the students to perform several projects over the course of the semester, and used many online resources. The feedback from the first session was very favorable, so it also will likely be offered every other year. Two of the students extended their experience by participating in summer research, one at an REU at the National Solar Observatory working on helioseismology data, and one at an international summer school in the U.K. where she focused on coronal heating. Thus with two courses in an every-other-year rotation, each academic year one undergraduate course in space physics is available at Rice. Furthermore, all senior majors are required to perform research, and each year several students choose a solar or space physics topic for their senior research, and often go on to graduate study at schools around the nation. Sun-Earth course page: http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~astr243/ Ham radio course page: http://space.rice.edu/PHYS401/

Ethics Instruction in Undergraduate Astronomy and Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pilachowski, Catherine A.; van Zee, L.; Bacher, A. D.; Durisen, R. H.

2009-01-01

Instruction in research ethics is now included as part of the formal undergraduate curriculum in astronomy and physics at Indiana University. Traditionally, students learn research ethics through informal mentoring by research advisors. However, a more formal approach is encouraged by funding agencies, professional societies, and common sense. Following the booklet, "On Being a Scientist: Responsible Conduct in Research" (1995, National Academy Press), our ethics program is built around a "case study" approach using scenarios involving real life situations that students are likely to encounter as undergraduates or beginning graduate students. Students discuss possible resolutions of the ethical questions involved. Discussion topics include reporting data, data rights, credit for ideas, and professional behavior. Scenarios for graduate students involve ethical concerns more appropriate for their career stage, including conflicts of interest, authorship, and collaboration. The answers are not clear-cut, and students must grapple with shades of gray to help them define what the limits of ethical behavior are. The scenarios are available on the Web at www.astro.indiana.edu/education/ethics.html

Microcomputer Simulation of Nonlinear Systems: From Oscillations to Chaos.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raw, Cecil J. G.; Stacey, Larry M.

1989-01-01

Presents two short microcomputer programs which illustrate features of nonlinear dynamics, including steady states, periodic oscillations, period doubling, and chaos. Logistic maps are explained, inclusion in undergraduate chemistry and physics courses to teach nonlinear equations is discussed, and applications in social and biological sciences…

A combined system for generating a uniform magnetic field and its application in the investigation of Efimov physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Rui; Sun, Zhen-Dong; Zhou, Shu-Yu; Wang, Ying; Wang, Yu-Zhu

2018-01-01

Not Available Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11674338, 11791240178, and 11547024) and Innovation Training Programs for Undergraduates, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. KCJH-80140-2016-018).

Should I Take Further Mathematics? Physics Undergraduates' Experiences of Post-Compulsory Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowyer, Jessica; Darlington, Ellie

2017-01-01

It is essential that physics undergraduates are appropriately prepared for the mathematical demands of their course. This study investigated physics students' perceptions of post-compulsory mathematics as preparation for their degree course. 494 physics undergraduates responded to an online questionnaire about their experiences of A-level…

An undergraduate course, and new textbook, on ``Physical Models of Living Systems''

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, Philip

2015-03-01

I'll describe an intermediate-level course on ``Physical Models of Living Systems.'' The only prerequisite is first-year university physics and calculus. The course is a response to rapidly growing interest among undergraduates in several science and engineering departments. Students acquire several research skills that are often not addressed in traditional courses, including: basic modeling skills, probabilistic modeling skills, data analysis methods, computer programming using a general-purpose platform like MATLAB or Python, dynamical systems, particularly feedback control. These basic skills, which are relevant to nearly any field of science or engineering, are presented in the context of case studies from living systems, including: virus dynamics; bacterial genetics and evolution of drug resistance; statistical inference; superresolution microscopy; synthetic biology; naturally evolved cellular circuits. Publication of a new textbook by WH Freeman and Co. is scheduled for December 2014. Supported in part by EF-0928048 and DMR-0832802.

Angelo State SPS Marsh White Award: Physics After School Special (P.A.S.S.)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Desai, Vikesh; Sauncy, Toni

2012-03-01

With a recent Marsh White Award from the SPS National Office, the Angelo State SPS has teamed up with a local YMCA after school program to provide fun lab experiences for the diverse group of K-3^rd graders. Several undergraduate presenters are involved, and the funding was used to purchase tshirts for all participants. The afterschool group of approximately 30 children has visited the campus for the first lab session and plans three additional hands on lab experiences over the course of the semester. For the final visit, the Peer Pressure Team will conduct a full demonstration show and P.A.S.S. Party. The goal of this public engagement is to motivate these young students to learn more about physics with hands on activities in a fun and safe environment and to establish meaningful mentoring relationships between undergraduate physics majors and younger students.

The Physics Learning Program at UW-Madison: Strategies for Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nossal, S. M.; Watson, L. E.; Jacob, A. T.; Reading, J. A.

2005-05-01

The Physics Learning Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison provides a supportive learning environment for introductory physics students potentially at-risk for having academic trouble or for feeling isolated at the University. Physics is a gateway course for many undergraduate science majors such as biology, physics, geophysics, atmospheric science, and astronomy, and for pre-health professions. Many students struggle with their physics courses due to factors including large class sizes, isolation and lack of study partners, and/or lack of confidence in mathematical problem solving skills. Our students include those with learning disabilities, no high school physics, weak math backgrounds, and/or on academic probation. We also work with students who may be feeling isolated, such as students from historically underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, first generation college students, returning adults, international students, and students from small rural schools. Many of our students are also part of retention programs such as the TRIO program, the Academic Advancement Program, the McNair Scholars Program, and the McBurney Disability Resource Center. The Physics Learning Program's Peer Mentor Tutor program is run in conjunction with similar programs for chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin. We will discuss strategies we use for creating an inclusive learning environment that engages students in their learning. Such strategies include small group instruction, ongoing training of the tutors, teaching problem solving skills, and creating a welcoming atmosphere.

A day with the women physicists of Pakistan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hasnain, Aziz Fatima; Islam, Aquila; Ali, Asima; Qureshi, Riffat Mehmood; Qamar, Anisa

2015-12-01

The Working Group on Women in Physics successfully organized a national-level meeting of women physicists at the National Centre for Physics, Quaid-e-Azam University, to discuss the agenda for the 5th IUPAP International Conference on Women in Physics. This report describes the outcome of the meeting and the status of female physicists in Pakistan. It also includes a comparative study of the enrollment of women in undergraduate and graduate programs in physics, along with a brief description of factors that create hurdles for female students opting for higher education in this field.

Faculty Member for Research in an Undergraduate Institution Prize Talk: Research and Teaching through high-precision spectroscopy of heavy atoms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Majumder, Tiku

2017-04-01

In recent decades, substantial experimental effort has centered on heavy (high-Z) atomic and molecular systems for atomic-physics-based tests of standard model physics, through (for example) measurements of atomic parity nonconservation and searches for permanent electric dipole moments. In all of this work, a crucial role is played by atomic theorists, whose accurate wave function calculations are essential in connecting experimental observables to tests of relevant fundamental physics parameters. At Williams College, with essential contributions from dozens of undergraduate students, we have pursued a series of precise atomic structure measurements in heavy metal atoms such as thallium, indium, and lead. These include measurements of hyperfine structure, transition amplitudes, and atomic polarizability. This work, involving diode lasers, heated vapor cells, and an atomic beam apparatus, has both tested the accuracy and helped guide the refinement of new atomic theory calculations. I will discuss a number of our recent experimental results, emphasizing the role played by students and the opportunities that have been afforded for research-training in this undergraduate environment. Work supported by Research Corporation, the NIST Precision Measurement Grants program, and the National Science Foundation.

Progress update on a 2015 USIP interdisciplinary undergraduate student microgravity experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dove, A.; Colwell, J. E.; Brisset, J.; Kirstein, J.; Brightwell, K.; Hayden, R.; Jorges, J.; Schwartzberg, D.; Strange, J.; Yates, A.

2016-12-01

Our team was selected by the 2016 USIP program to build, fly, and analyze the results from a granular dynamics experiment that will fly in 2017 on a suborbital flight. The experiment will be designed to test technology and enable science relevant to low-gravity planetary objects, such as asteroids, comets, and small moons. Following on the success of previous NASA Flight Opportunities Program (FOP) and Undergraduate Student Instrumentation Project (USIP) projects, however, the primary driver of the project is to enable undergraduate student participation in the entire lifetime of a science and technology development project. Our mentoring team consists of faculty, postdoctoral researchers, and graduate students, who have experience with the past USIP program and similar projects, as well as with mentoring undergraduate students. The undergraduate team includes a diversity of major disciplines, including physics, mechanical/aerospace engineering, electrical engineering, business (accounting), and marketing. Each team member has specific project tasks, as outlined in the proposal, and all members will also help develop and participate in outreach events. In additional to their project roles, students will also be responsible for presentations and milestones, such as design reviews. Through these reviews and the outreach events, all team members have the chance to develop their technical and non-technical communication skills. Previous experience with the NASA USIP program demonstrated that students achieve significant growth through these projects -gaining a better understanding of the entire lifecycle of a project, and, likely more importantly, how to work with a diverse team. In this talk, we will discuss the status of the project, and present student impressions and thoughts on the project thus far.

New Guidelines for Undergraduate Chemistry Curricula Examined.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Worthy, Ward

1989-01-01

Reviews current biochemistry, education, and polymer course options found in chemistry programs. Proposes a new core curriculum with 28 semester hours with courses in inorganic, chemical, and instrumental analysis, organic, bioorganic, and physical chemistry. Notes that the new curriculum would better prepare students for the existing employment…

Literacy in the Content Areas: Ain't No Need to Sing the Blues.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deegan, Dorothy

1994-01-01

Presents a portrait of a content area reading course taken by undergraduates in a health/physical education teacher preparation program. Discusses how resistance was anticipated and rallied as a way of driving the work done over the course of the semester. (RS)

A Special Topic From Nuclear Reactor Dynamics for the Undergraduate Physics Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sevenich, R. A.

1977-01-01

Presents an intuitive derivation of the point reactor equations followed by formulation of equations for inverse and direct kinetics which are readily programmed on a digital computer. Suggests several computer simulations involving the effect of control rod motion on reactor power. (MLH)

Scaling up Education Reform

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gaffney, Jon D. H.; Richards, Evan; Kustusch, Mary Bridget; Ding, Lin; Beichner, Robert J.

2008-01-01

The SCALE-UP (Student-Centered Activities for Large Enrollment for Undergraduate Programs) project was developed to implement reforms designed for small classes into large physics classes. Over 50 schools across the country, ranging from Wake Technical Community College to Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), have adopted it for classes of…

Parallel programming with Easy Java Simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esquembre, F.; Christian, W.; Belloni, M.

2018-01-01

Nearly all of today's processors are multicore, and ideally programming and algorithm development utilizing the entire processor should be introduced early in the computational physics curriculum. Parallel programming is often not introduced because it requires a new programming environment and uses constructs that are unfamiliar to many teachers. We describe how we decrease the barrier to parallel programming by using a java-based programming environment to treat problems in the usual undergraduate curriculum. We use the easy java simulations programming and authoring tool to create the program's graphical user interface together with objects based on those developed by Kaminsky [Building Parallel Programs (Course Technology, Boston, 2010)] to handle common parallel programming tasks. Shared-memory parallel implementations of physics problems, such as time evolution of the Schrödinger equation, are available as source code and as ready-to-run programs from the AAPT-ComPADRE digital library.

SU-E-E-07: An Adaptable Approach for Education On Medical Physics at Undergraduate and Postgraduate Levels

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

Miller-Clemente, R; Universidad de Oriente, Santiago De Cuba, Santiago de Cuba; Mendez-Perez, L

Purpose: To contribute to the professional profile of future medical physicists, technologists and physicians, and implement an adaptable educational strategy at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Methods: The Medical Physics Block of Electives (MPBE) designed was adapted to the Program of B.S. in Physics. The conferences and practical activities were developed with participatory methods, with interdisciplinary collaboration from research institutions and hospitals engaged on projects of Research, Development and Innovation (RDI). The scientific education was implemented by means of critical analysis of scientific papers and seminars where students debated on solutions for real research problems faced by medical physicists. Thismore » approach included courses for graduates not associated to educational programs of Medical Physics (MP). Results: The implementation of the MPBE began in September 2014, with the electives of Radiation MP and Introduction to Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. The students of second year received an Introduction to MP. This initiative was validated by the departmental Methodological Workshop, which promoted the full implementation of the MPBE. Both postgraduated and undergraduate trainees participated in practices with our DICOM viewer system, a local prototype for photoplethysmography and a home-made interface for ROC analysis, built with MATLAB. All these tools were designed and constructed in previous RDI projects. The collaborative supervision of University’s researchers with clinical medical physicists will allow to overcome the limitations of residency in hospitals, to reduce the workload for clinical supervisors and develop appropriate educational activities. Conclusion: We demonstrated the feasibility of adaptable educational strategies, considering available resources. This provides an innovative way for prospective medical physicists, technologists and radiation oncologists. This strategy can be implemented in several regions without formal programs of MP, like most of developing countries. Starting with undergraduate students would allow to reach appropriate certification faster than most of traditional or alternative approaches for education on MP. The authors acknowledge Radiation Consulting Group, LLC, an Arizona Corporation which promotes the use of ionizing radiation in the healing arts, for the “Oscar Luis Caballero” travel grant. The authors thanks to professors Meisbel Daudinot, David Adame and Alexander Pascau for the practices through imagis, imageROC and ANGIODIN PD3000 respectively.« less

Differences within: A comparative analysis of women in the physical sciences --- Motivation and background factors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dabney, Katherine Patricia Traudel

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education has become a critical focus in the United States due to economic concerns and public policy (National Academy of Sciences, 2007; U.S. Department of Education, 2006). Part of this focus has been an emphasis on encouraging and evaluating career choice and persistence factors among underrepresented groups such as females in the physical sciences (Hill et al., 2010; National Academy of Sciences, 2007). The majority of existing STEM research studies compare women to men, yet a paucity of research exists that examines what differentiates female career choice within the physical sciences. In light of these research trends and recommendations, this study examines the following questions: 1. On average, do females who select chemistry or physics doctoral programs differ in their reported personal motivations and background factors prior to entering the field? 2. Do such variables as racial and ethnic background, age, highest level of education completed by guardians/parents, citizenship status, family interest in science, first interest in general science, first interest in the physical sciences, average grades in high school and undergraduate studies in the physical sciences, and experiences in undergraduate physical science courses explain a significant amount of variance in female physical scientists' years to Ph.D. completion? These questions are analyzed using variables from the Project Crossover Survey dataset through a subset of female physical science doctoral students and scientists. Logistic regression analyses are performed to uncover what differentiates women in the physical sciences based on their background, interest, academic achievement, and experiences ranging prior to elementary school through postsecondary education. Significant variables that positively predict a career choice in chemistry or physics include content specific high school and undergraduate academic achievement and positive undergraduate experiences. Two multiple regression models, one composed of female chemists and one of female physicists, examine significant predictors that positively associated with time to doctoral degree completion. The models account for little differentiation in the outcome of time to doctoral completion. In addition, significant predictors are based on demographic and achievement factors that were not paralleled in the two multiple regressions.

The Development and Assessment of Particle Physics Summer Program for High School Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prefontaine, Brean; Kurahashi Neilson, Naoko, , Dr.; Love, Christina, , Dr.

2017-01-01

A four week immersive summer program for high school students was developed and implemented to promote awareness of university level research. The program was completely directed by an undergraduate physics major and included a hands-on and student-led capstone project for the high school students. The goal was to create an adaptive and shareable curriculum in order to influence high school students' views of university level research and what it means to be a scientist. The program was assessed through various methods including a survey developed for this program, a scientific attitudes survey, weekly blog posts, and an oral exit interview. The curriculum included visits to local laboratories, an introduction to particle physics and the IceCube collaboration, an introduction to electronics and computer programming, and their capstone project: planning and building a scale model of the IceCube detector. At the conclusion of the program, the students participated an informal outreach event for the general public and gave an oral presentation to the Department of Physics at Drexel University. Assessment results and details concerning the curriculum and its development will be discussed.

The NSF Undergraduate ALFALFA Team: Partnering with Arecibo Observatory to Offer Undergraduate and Faculty Extragalactic Radio Astronomy Research Opportunities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ribaudo, Joseph; Koopmann, Rebecca A.; Haynes, Martha P.; Balonek, Thomas J.; Cannon, John M.; Coble, Kimberly A.; Craig, David W.; Denn, Grant R.; Durbala, Adriana; Finn, Rose; Hallenbeck, Gregory L.; Hoffman, G. Lyle; Lebron, Mayra E.; Miller, Brendan P.; Crone-Odekon, Mary; O'Donoghue, Aileen A.; Olowin, Ronald Paul; Pantoja, Carmen; Pisano, Daniel J.; Rosenberg, Jessica L.; Troischt, Parker; Venkatesan, Aparna; Wilcots, Eric M.; ALFALFA Team

2017-01-01

The NSF-sponsored Undergraduate ALFALFA (Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA) Team (UAT) is a consortium of 20 institutions across the US and Puerto Rico, founded to promote undergraduate research and faculty development within the extragalactic ALFALFA HI blind survey project and follow-up programs. The objective of the UAT is to provide opportunities for its members to develop expertise in the technical aspects of observational radio spectroscopy, its associated data analysis, and the motivating science. Partnering with Arecibo Observatory, the UAT has worked with more than 280 undergraduates and 26 faculty to date, offering 8 workshops onsite at Arecibo (148 undergraduates), observing runs at Arecibo (69 undergraduates), remote observing runs on campus, undergraduate research projects based on Arecibo science (120 academic year and 185 summer projects), and presentation of results at national meetings such as the AAS (at AAS229: Ball et al., Collova et al., Davis et al., Miazzo et al., Ruvolo et al, Singer et al., Cannon et al., Craig et al., Koopmann et al., O'Donoghue et al.). 40% of the students and 45% of the faculty participants have been women and members of underrepresented groups. More than 90% of student alumni are attending graduate school and/or pursuing a career in STEM. 42% of those pursuing graduate degrees in Physics or Astronomy are women.In this presentation, we summarize the UAT program and the current research efforts of UAT members based on Arecibo science, including multiwavelength followup observations of ALFALFA sources, the UAT Collaborative Groups Project, the Survey of HI in Extremely Low-mass Dwarfs (SHIELD), and the Arecibo Pisces-Perseus Supercluster Survey (APPSS). This work has been supported by NSF grants AST-0724918/0902211, AST-075267/0903394, AST-0725380, AST-121105, and AST-1637339.

A Survey of Campus Coordinators of Undergraduate Research Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hensley, Merinda Kaye; Shreeves, Sarah L.; Davis-Kahl, Stephanie

2015-01-01

Interest in supporting undergraduate research programs continues to grow within academic librarianship. This article presents how undergraduate research program coordinators perceive and value library support of their programs. Undergraduate research coordinators from a variety of institutions were surveyed on which elements of libraries and…

Lincoln Advanced Science and Engineering Reinforcement (LASER) program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, Willie E.

1989-01-01

Lincoln University, under the Lincoln Advanced Science and Engineering Reinforcement (LASER) Program, has identified and successfully recruited over 100 students for majors in technical fields. To date, over 70 percent of these students have completed or will complete technical degrees in engineering, physics, chemistry, and computer science. Of those completing the undergraduate degree, over 40 percent have gone on to graduate and professional schools. This success is attributable to well planned approaches to student recruitment, training, personal motivation, retention, and program staff. Very closely coupled to the above factors is a focus designed to achieve excellence in program services and student performance. Future contributions by the LASER Program to the pool of technical minority graduates will have a significant impact. This is already evident from the success of the students that began the first year of the program. With program plans to refine many of the already successful techniques, follow-on activities are expected to make even greater contributions to the availability of technically trained minorities. For example, undergraduate research exposure, broadened summer, and co-op work experiences will be enhanced.

Microcomputer Calculation of Theoretical Pre-Exponential Factors for Bimolecular Reactions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Venugopalan, Mundiyath

1991-01-01

Described is the application of microcomputers to predict reaction rates based on theoretical atomic and molecular properties taught in undergraduate physical chemistry. Listed is the BASIC program which computes the partition functions for any specific bimolecular reactants. These functions are then used to calculate the pre-exponential factor of…

Increasing Physical Activity in Nursing Home Residents Using Student Power, Not Dollars

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romack, Jennifer L.

2004-01-01

Nursing home programs committed to providing quality care need to investigate innovative ways to meet today's budget challenges. The purpose of this article is to describe a creative collaboration between a nonprofit nursing home facility and a suburban university. Through service-learning, undergraduate students planned and implemented…

Analyzing the Learning of the Taking Personal and Social Responsibility Model within a New Physical Education Undergraduate Degree Program in El Salvador

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andre, Mauro H.; Mandigo, James L.

2013-01-01

El Salvador has an unfortunate history that includes a military regime and a civil war that together created a legacy of violence in which the country still struggles nowadays. Salud Escolar Integral (SEI) was created in 2005 by universities, federal governments, a corporate sponsor, and sport associations as a program to combat youth violence…

NASA's Planetary Geology and Geophysics Undergraduate Research Program (PGGURP): The Value of Undergraduate Geoscience Internships

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gregg, T. K.

2008-12-01

NASA's Planetary Geology and Geophysics Program began funding PGGURP in 1978, in an effort to help planetary scientists deal with what was then seen as a flood of Viking Orbiter data. Each subsequent year, PGGURP has paired 8 - 15 undergraduates with NASA-funded Principal Investigators (PIs) around the country for approximately 8 weeks during the summer. Unlike other internship programs, the students are not housed together, but are paired, one-on-one, with a PI at his or her home institution. PGGURP interns have worked at sites ranging from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Through NASA's Planetary Geology and Geophysics Program, the interns' travel and lodging costs are covered, as are a cost-of-living stipend. Approximately 30% of the undergraduate PGGURP participants continue on to graduate school in the planetary sciences. We consider this to be an enormous success, because the participants are among the best and brightest undergraduates in the country with a wide range of declared majors (e.g., physics, chemistry, biology, as well as geology). Furthermore, those students that do continue tend to excel, and point to the internship as a turning point in their scientific careers. The NASA PIs who serve as mentors agree that this is a valuable experience for them, too, and many of them have been hosting interns annually for well over a decade. The PI obtains enthusiastic and intelligent undergraduate, free of charge, for a summer, while having the opportunity to work closely with today's students who are the future of planetary science. The Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) in Houston, TX, also sponsors a summer undergraduate internship. Approximately 12 students are selected to live together in apartments located near the Lunar and Planetary Institute and the Johnson Space Center. Similar to PGGURP, the LPI interns are carefully selected to work one-on-one for ~10 weeks during the summer with one of the LPI staff scientists. Many LPI Summer Intern graduates have forged geoscience or planetary science careers after this rewarding experience.

Undergraduate computational physics projects on quantum computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Candela, D.

2015-08-01

Computational projects on quantum computing suitable for students in a junior-level quantum mechanics course are described. In these projects students write their own programs to simulate quantum computers. Knowledge is assumed of introductory quantum mechanics through the properties of spin 1/2. Initial, more easily programmed projects treat the basics of quantum computation, quantum gates, and Grover's quantum search algorithm. These are followed by more advanced projects to increase the number of qubits and implement Shor's quantum factoring algorithm. The projects can be run on a typical laptop or desktop computer, using most programming languages. Supplementing resources available elsewhere, the projects are presented here in a self-contained format especially suitable for a short computational module for physics students.

Teaching and Research with Accelerators at Tarleton State University

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

Marble, Daniel K.

2009-03-10

Tarleton State University students began performing both research and laboratory experiments using accelerators in 1998 through visitation programs at the University of North Texas, US Army Research Laboratory, and the Naval Surface Warfare Center at Carderock. In 2003, Tarleton outfitted its new science building with a 1 MV pelletron that was donated by the California Institution of Technology. The accelerator has been upgraded and supports a wide range of classes for both the Physics program and the ABET accredited Engineering Physics program as well as supplying undergraduate research opportunities on campus. A discussion of various laboratory activities and research projectsmore » performed by Tarleton students will be presented.« less

The Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory Summer Student Programs in La Serena, Chile

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaleida, Catherine C.; Smith, C.; Van Der Bliek, N. S.; James, D.

2014-01-01

The Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) offers positions for U.S. and Chilean student interns during the Chilean summer months of January-March (northern winter semester) at the CTIO offices in La Serena, Chile. CTIO is part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) of the United States, focused on the development of astronomy in the southern hemisphere. Six undergraduate research assistantships are offered for U.S. physics and astronomy undergraduate students through the NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. The CTIO-funded Prácticas de Investigación en Astronomía (PIA) program is run concurrently with the REU program, and offers two research assistantships for Chilean undergraduate or 1st or 2nd year masters students, also at the CTIO offices in La Serena, Chile. The CTIO REU and PIA programs provide exceptional opportunities for students considering a career in astronomy to engage in substantive research activities with scientists working at the forefront of contemporary astrophysics. Student participants work on specific research projects in close collaboration with members of the CTIO scientific and technical staff, such as galaxy clusters, gravitational lensing, supernovae, planetary nebulae, stellar populations, star clusters, star formation, variable stars and interstellar medium. The CTIO REU and PIA programs emphasize observational techniques and provide opportunities for direct observational experience using CTIO's state-of-the-art telescopes and instrumentation. The programs run for 10 weeks, from mid-January to the end of March. A two-night observing run on Cerro Tololo and a field trip to another observatory in Chile are included for students of both programs. These positions are full time, and those selected will receive a modest stipend and subsidized housing on the grounds of the offices of CTIO in La Serena, as well as travel costs to and from La Serena. In addition, the students have the opportunity attend the American Astronomical Society (AAS) winter meeting to present their research the year following the program.

Conceptualization, Development and Validation of an Instrument for Investigating Elements of Undergraduate Physics Laboratory Learning Environments: The UPLLES (Undergraduate Physics Laboratory Learning Environment Survey)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Gregory P; Meldrum, Al; Beamish, John

2013-01-01

First-year undergraduate physics laboratories are important physics learning environments. However, there is a lack of empirically informed literature regarding how students perceive their overall laboratory learning experiences. Recipe formats persist as the dominant form of instructional design in these sites, and these formats do not adequately…

Promoting Physical Understanding through Peer Mentoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nossal, S. M.; Huesmann, A.; Hooper, E.; Moore, C.; Watson, L.; Trestrail, A.; Weber, J.; Timbie, P.; Jacob, A.

2015-12-01

The Physics Learning Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison provides a supportive learning community for students studying introductory physics, as well as teaching and leadership experience for undergraduate Peer Mentor Tutors who receive extensive training and supervision. Many of our Peer Tutors were former Physics Learning Center participants. A central goal of the Physics Learning Center is to address achievement/equity gaps (e.g. race, gender, socio-economic status, disability, age, transfer status, etc.) for undergraduate students pursuing majors and coursework in STEM fields. Students meet twice a week in small learning teams of 3-8 students, facilitated by a trained Peer Mentor Tutor or staff member. These active learning teams focus on discussing core physical concepts and practicing problem-solving. The weekly training of the tutors addresses both teaching and mentoring issues in science education such as helping students to build confidence, strategies for assessing student understanding, and fostering a growth mindset. A second weekly training meeting addresses common misconceptions and strategies for teaching specific physics topics. For non-science majors we have a small Peer Mentor Tutor program for Physics in the Arts. We will discuss the Physics Learning Center's approaches to promoting inclusion, understanding, and confidence for both our participants and Peer Mentor Tutors, as well as examples from the geosciences that can be used to illustrate introductory physics concepts.

Feeding the pipeline: academic skills training for predental students.

PubMed

Markel, Geraldine; Woolfolk, Marilyn; Inglehart, Marita Rohr

2008-06-01

This article reports the outcomes of an evaluation conducted to determine if an academic skills training program for undergraduate predental students from underrepresented minority backgrounds increased the students' standardized academic skills test scores for vocabulary, reading comprehension, reading rates, spelling, and math as well as subject-specific test results in biology, chemistry, and physics. Data from standardized academic skill tests and subject-specific tests were collected at the beginning and end of the 1998 to 2006 Pipeline Programs, six-week summer enrichment programs for undergraduate predental students from disadvantaged backgrounds. In total, 179 students (75.4 percent African American, 7.3 percent Hispanic, 5.6 percent Asian American, 5 percent white) attended the programs during these nine summers. Scores on the Nelson-Denny Reading Test showed that the students improved their vocabulary scores (percentile ranks before/after: 46.80 percent/59.56 percent; p<.001), reading comprehension scores (47.21 percent/62.67 percent; p<.001), and reading rates (34.01 percent/78.31 percent; p<.001) from the beginning to the end of the summer programs. Results on the Wide Range Achievement Test III showed increases in spelling (73.58 percent/86.22 percent; p<.001) and math scores (56.98 percent/81.28 percent; p<.001). The students also improved their subject-specific scores in biology (39.07 percent/63.42 percent; p<.001), chemistry (20.54 percent/51.01 percent; p<.001), and physics (35.12 percent/61.14 percent; p<.001). To increase the number of underrepresented minority students in the dental school admissions pool, efforts are needed to prepare students from disadvantaged backgrounds for this process. These data demonstrate that a six-week enrichment program significantly improved the academic skills and basic science knowledge scores of undergraduate predental students. These improvements have the potential to enhance the performance of these students in college courses and thus increase their level of competitiveness in the dental school admissions process.

PR2EPS: Preparation, Recruitment, Retention and Excellence in the Physical Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gallagher, Hugh

2005-04-01

PR2EPS, is an NSF-DUE sponsored program at SUNY Oneonta designed to attract students to pursue physics, chemistry and related physical science degrees in college. For those students who choose to study at SUNY Oneonta, the program also seeks to increase the retention rate of all students in the physical sciences by providing specialized skills and professional development courses, an evening tutoring center, and exposure to research and professional activities early in their undergraduate careers. A key focus of the project is drawing students from the five, primarily rural and agricultural, counties surrounding Oneonta, NY. Their first direct exposure to the program will be in recruiting visits to local high schools where promising candidates will be invited to participate in a weeklong summer camp designed to demonstrate to them that they possess the requisite skills and potential to succeed in these technically demanding disciplines. We will provide a brief description of the program and discuss outcomes of the first year including the inaugural summer camp.

What Works for Women in Undergraduate Physics?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitten, Barbara L.

2004-03-01

The participation of women in physics has increased in recent years, but the percentage of women in undergraduate physics is still less than half that in mathematics and chemistry. This is due in large part to the "leaky pipeline" - the participation of women in physics decreases with every step up the academic ladder. The largest decrease occurs between high school and college graduation, so it is worthwhile looking at how undergraduate physics departments try to make women undergraduates comfortable. With a team of women physicists, I visited nine undergraduate physics departments and compared those that are successful in producing a large percentage of women with those that are more typical of the national average. We found that the most important factor is a warm and female-friendly department culture that reaches out to introductory students. I'll discuss the factors that make up a female-friendly culture, and describe other results of our research.

Statistical panorama of female physics graduate students for 2000-2010 in Peru

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cerón Loayza, María Luisa; Bravo Cabrejos, Jorge Aurelio

2013-03-01

We report the results of a statistical study on the number of women entering the undergraduate and master's programs of physics at Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos in Peru. From 2006 through 2010, 13 female students entered the master's degree program but no females graduated with the degree. Considering that Peru is a developing country, a career in physics is not considered an attractive professional choice even for male students because it is thought that there are no work centers to practice this profession. We recommend that the causes preventing female physics students from completing their studies and research work be analyzed, and that strategies be planned to help women complete their academic work. We are considering getting help from the Peruvian Physics Society (SOPERFI) in order to draw more attention for our plan.

Supporting the whole student: Inclusive program design for making undergraduate research experiences accessible

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haacker-Santos, R.; Allen, L.; Batchelor, R. L.

2013-12-01

As undergraduate research experiences have become an unofficial pre-requisite to enter graduate school programs in the sciences, we have to make sure that these experiences are inclusive and accessible to all students. Program managers who make a conscious effort to recruit students from traditionally under-represented groups, including veterans, non-traditional students or students with disabilities, are often unaware of the financial and program implications these students require, and discover that their current program design might inadvertently exclude or not fully support these students. The SOARS Program, an undergraduate-to-graduate bridge program in the atmospheric sciences, has supported this group of students for over 15 years. We have found that we needed to adjust some program elements and secure extra funding sources to holistically support our students in their research experience, however, the program and the students have reaped tremendous benefits. Involving non-traditional students or veterans in our program has raised the maturity level and problem solving skills of the group, and having students with disabilities participate has been a vehicle for broadening perspective and diverse knowledge into the field of study, e.g. researching weather and climate beyond what you can 'see'. This presentation will highlight some of the findings from the SOARS program experience, and will share practices for recruitment and holistic support to ensure student success. We will share resources and tips on inclusive program design, including working with students with family commitments or physical disabilities, and will report on the enormous program benefits and peer learning these students have brought to the student cohorts and research labs they are working in.

Lab notebooks as scientific communication: Investigating development from undergraduate courses to graduate research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanley, Jacob T.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2016-12-01

In experimental physics, lab notebooks play an essential role in the research process. For all of the ubiquity of lab notebooks, little formal attention has been paid to addressing what is considered "best practice" for scientific documentation and how researchers come to learn these practices in experimental physics. Using interviews with practicing researchers, namely, physics graduate students, we explore the different experiences researchers had in learning how to effectively use a notebook for scientific documentation. We find that very few of those interviewed thought that their undergraduate lab classes successfully taught them the benefit of maintaining a lab notebook. Most described training in lab notebook use as either ineffective or outright missing from their undergraduate lab course experience. Furthermore, a large majority of those interviewed explained that they did not receive any formal training in maintaining a lab notebook during their graduate school experience and received little to no feedback from their advisors on these records. Many of the interviewees describe learning the purpose of, and how to maintain, these kinds of lab records only after having a period of trial and error, having already started doing research in their graduate program. Despite the central role of scientific documentation in the research enterprise, these physics graduate students did not gain skills in documentation through formal instruction, but rather through informal hands-on practice.

Gamification: using elements of video games to improve engagement in an undergraduate physics class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rose, J. A.; O'Meara, J. M.; Gerhardt, T. C.; Williams, M.

2016-09-01

Gamification has been extensively implemented and studied in corporate settings and has proven to be more effective than traditional employee-training programs, however, few classroom studies of gamification have been reported in the literature. Our study explored the potential of gamified on-line undergraduate physics content as a mechanism to enhance student learning and motivation. Specifically, the main objective of this work was to determine whether extrinsic motivation indicators commonly used in video games could increase student engagement with course content outside of the classroom. Life Science students taking an introductory physics course were provided access to gamified multiple choice quizzes as part of their course assessment. The quizzes incorporated common gaming elements such as points, streaks, leaderboards and achievements, as well as some gamified graphical enhancements and feedback. Student attitudes and performance among those using the gamified quizzes were examined and compared to non-gamified control groups within the same course. Student engagement was quantified through examining student participation above and beyond the minimum course requirements. The results showed that gaming techniques are significantly correlated with increased engagement with course material outside of the classroom. These results may assist instructors in engaging and motivating students outside the classroom through carefully designed online and distance-delivered undergraduate physics content. Furthermore, the gaming elements incorporated in this study were not specifically tied to the physics content and can be easily translated to any educational setting.

Relationships between Undergraduates' Argumentation Skills, Conceptual Quality of Problem Solutions, and Problem Solving Strategies in Introductory Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rebello, Carina M.

2012-01-01

This study explored the effects of alternative forms of argumentation on undergraduates' physics solutions in introductory calculus-based physics. A two-phase concurrent mixed methods design was employed to investigate relationships between undergraduates' written argumentation abilities, conceptual quality of problem solutions, as well…

Undergraduate Student Construction and Interpretation of Graphs in Physics Lab Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nixon, Ryan S.; Godfrey, T. J.; Mayhew, Nicholas T.; Wiegert, Craig C.

2016-01-01

Lab activities are an important element of an undergraduate physics course. In these lab activities, students construct and interpret graphs in order to connect the procedures of the lab with an understanding of the related physics concepts. This study investigated undergraduate students' construction and interpretation of graphs with best-fit…

The simulated clinical environment: Cognitive and emotional impact among undergraduates.

PubMed

Tremblay, Marie-Laurence; Lafleur, Alexandre; Leppink, Jimmie; Dolmans, Diana H J M

2017-02-01

Simulated clinical immersion (SCI) is used in undergraduate healthcare programs to expose the learner to real-life situations in authentic simulated clinical environments. For novices, the environment in which the simulation occurs can be distracting and stressful, hence potentially compromising learning. This study aims to determine whether SCI (with environment) imposes greater extraneous cognitive load and stress on undergraduate pharmacy students than simulated patients (SP) (without environment). It also aims to explore how features of the simulated environment influence students' perception of learning. In this mixed-methods study, 143 undergraduate pharmacy students experienced both SCI and SP in a crossover design. After the simulations, participants rated their cognitive load and emotions. Thirty-five students met in focus groups to explore their perception of learning in simulation. Intrinsic and extraneous cognitive load and stress scores in SCI were significantly but modestly higher compared to SP. Qualitative findings reveal that the physical environment in SCI generated more stress and affected students? focus. In SP, students concentrated on clinical reasoning. SCI stimulated a focus on data collection but impeded in-depth problem solving processes. The physical environment in simulation influences what and how students learn. SCI was reported as more cognitively demanding than SP. Our findings emphasize the need for the development of adapted instructional design guidelines in simulation for novices.

The California-Arizona Minority Partnership for Astronomy Research and Education (CAMPARE): A New Model for Promoting Minority Participation in Astronomy Research and Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rudolph, Alexander L.; Impey, C. D.; Bieging, J. H.; Phillips, C. B.; Tieu, J.; Prather, E. E.; Povich, M. S.

2013-01-01

The California-Arizona Minority Partnership for Astronomy Research and Education (CAMPARE) program represents a new and innovative kind of research program for undergraduates: one that can effectively carry out the goal of recruiting qualified minority and female students to participate in Astronomy and Planetary Science research opportunities, while mentoring them in a way to maximize the chance that these students will persist in obtaining their undergraduate degrees in STEM fields, and potentially go on to obtain their PhDs or pursue careers in those fields. The members of CAMPARE comprise a network of comprehensive universities and community colleges in Southern California and Arizona (most of which are minority serving institutions), and four major research institutions (University of Arizona Steward Observatory, the SETI Institute, and JPL/Caltech). Most undergraduate research programs focus on a single research institution. By having multiple institutions, we significantly broaden the opportunities for students, both in terms of breadth of research topics and geographical location. In its first three years, the CAMPARE program has had 20 undergraduates from two CSU campuses, both Hispanic Serving Institutions, take part in research and educational activities at four research institutions, the University of Arizona Steward Observatory, the SETI Institute, and JPL/Caltech. Of the 20 participants, 9 are women and 11 are men, a much more even split than is typical in Astronomy research programs; 10 are Hispanic, 2 are African American, and 1 is part Native American, including 2 female Hispanic and 2 female African-American participants, an exceptionally high participation rate (65%) for students from underrepresented minority groups. Of the five participants who have graduated since the program began, two are in graduate programs in Physics or Astronomy, two are pursuing a K-12 teaching credential, and one has enlisted in the Nuclear Propulsion Officer Candidate (NUPOC) program of the U.S. Navy.

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.

Introduction of optical tweezers in advanced physics laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Gang

2017-08-01

Laboratories are an essential part of undergraduate optoelectronics and photonics education. Of particular interest are the sequence of laboratories which offer students meaningful research experience within a reasonable time-frame limited by regular laboratory hours. We will present our introduction of optical tweezers into the upper-level physics laboratory. We developed the sequence of experiments in the Advanced Lab to offer students sufficient freedom to explore, rather than simply setting up a demonstration following certain recipes. We will also present its impact on our current curriculum of optoelectronics concentration within the physics program.

The current status of education and career paths of students after completion of medical physicist programs in Japan: a survey by the Japanese Board for Medical Physicist Qualification.

PubMed

Kadoya, Noriyuki; Karasawa, Kumiko; Sumida, Iori; Arimura, Hidetaka; Yamada, Syogo

2015-07-01

To standardize educational programs and clinical training for medical physics students, the Japanese Board for Medical Physicist Qualification (JBMP) began to accredit master's, doctorate, and residency programs for medical physicists in 2012. At present, 16 universities accredited by the JBMP offer 22 courses. In this study, we aimed to survey the current status of educational programs and career paths of students after completion of the medical physicist program in Japan. A questionnaire was sent in August 2014 to 32 universities offering medical physicist programs. The questionnaire was created and organized by the educational course certification committee of the JBMP and comprised two sections: the first collected information about the university attended, and the second collected information about characteristics and career paths of students after completion of medical physicist programs from 2008 to 2014. Thirty universities (16 accredited and 14 non-accredited) completed the survey (response rate 94 %). A total of 209, 40, and 3 students graduated from the master's, doctorate, and residency programs, respectively. Undergraduates entered the medical physicist program constantly, indicating an interest in medical physics among undergraduates. A large percentage of the students held a bachelor's degree in radiological technology (master's program 94 %; doctorate program 70 %); graduates obtained a national radiological technologist license. Regarding career paths, although the number of the graduates who work as medical physicist remains low, 7 % with a master's degree and 50 % with a doctorate degree worked as medical physicists. Our results could be helpful for improving the medical physicist program in Japan.

Guidelines for Teaching Undergraduate Sport Sociology. Guidance Document

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coakley, Jay; Riemer, Brenda; Sailes, Gary; Harrison, Louis; Pittman, Beverly

2009-01-01

Sport sociology is a subdiscipline of sociology that, since the late 1960s, has produced knowledge about sports as social phenomena in a wide range of societies. It may be included as a major specialization area in graduate programs in kinesiology, sports studies and physical education departments, and is widely offered as a single undergraduate…

Mathematics for Physicists and Engineers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, Paris (France).

The text is a report of the OEEC Seminar on "The Mathematical Knowledge Required by the Physicist and Engineer" held in Paris, 1961. There are twelve major papers presented: (1) An American Parallel (describes the work of the Panel on Physical Sciences and Engineering of the Committee on the Undergraduate Program in Mathematics of the Mathematical…

American Kinesiology Association: A National Effort to Promote Kinesiology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morrow, James R., Jr.; Thomas, Jerry R.

2010-01-01

The American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education (AAKPE) and The American Kinesiology Association (AKA) should work together to help kinesiology thrive. Data are provided about kinesiology that reflects its visibility in PubMed and Google. Survey data from AKA show the rapid growth of the undergraduate major and graduate programs. In…

75 FR 1384 - Indian Health Professions Preparatory, Indian Health Professions Pregraduate and Indian Health...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-01-11

.... undergraduate years). D. Pre-Nursing. E. Pre-Occupational Therapy. F. Pre-Pharmacy. G. Pre-Physical Therapy (Jr..., Geriatric, Women's Health, Pediatric Nursing, Nurse Anesthetist, and Nurse Practitioner. (Priority...) and its amendments; or in a program assisted under Title V of the IHCIA.) L. Occupational Therapy: B.S...

Reforming the Environment: The Influence of the Roundtable Classroom Design on Interactive Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parsons, Caroline S.

2017-01-01

This study investigated the influence of physical and virtual learning spaces on interactive learning in a college and university setting. Qualitative analysis of an undergraduate liberal arts program that employs the use of roundtable classrooms was conducted. Interview and focus group data from students and faculty, along with classroom…

Determining the Deacetylation Degree of Chitosan: Opportunities to Learn Instrumental Techniques

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pérez-Álvarez, Leyre; Ruiz-Rubio, Leire; Vilas-Vilela, Jose Luis

2018-01-01

To enhance critical thinking and problem-solving skills, a project-based learning (PBL) approach for "Instrumental Techniques" courses in undergraduate physical chemistry was specifically developed for a pharmacy bachelor degree program. The starting point of this PBL was an open-ended question that is close to the student scientist's…

Notes on Experiments: A Versatile Light-Emitter-Detector Arrangement for Use with a Microcomputer.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirkup, Les

1987-01-01

Describes efforts of members of the biology and physics departments of Paisley College (Scotland) to develop a simple light-emitter-detector arrangement adapted as a colorimeter interfaced with a microcomputer for use by undergraduate students. Discusses the setup and provides a computer program in BASIC to run it. (CW)

Out of sight, out of mind: Do repeating students overlook online course components?

PubMed

Holland, Jane; Clarke, Eric; Glynn, Mark

2016-11-01

E-Learning is becoming an integral part of undergraduate medicine, with many curricula incorporating a number of online activities and resources, in addition to more traditional teaching methods. This study examines physical attendance, online activity, and examination outcomes in a first-year undergraduate medical program. All 358 students who completed the Alimentary System module within the first semester of the program were included, 30 of whom were repeating the year, and thus the module. This systems-based, multidisciplinary module incorporated didactic lectures, cadaveric small group tutorials and additional e-Learning resources such as online histology tutorials. Significant differences were demonstrated in physical attendance and utilization of online resources between repeating students and those participating in the module for the first time. Subsequent analyses confirmed that physical attendance, access of online lecture resources, and utilization of online histology tutorials were all significantly correlated. In addition, both physical attendance and utilization of online resources significantly correlated with summative examination performance. While nonattendance may be due to a variety of factors, our data confirm that significant differences exist in both physical attendance and online activity between new entrants and repeating students, such that all students repeating a module or academic year should be routinely interviewed and offered appropriate supports to ensure that they continue to engage with the program. While the development of complex algorithmic models may be resource intensive, using readily available indices from virtual learning environments is a straightforward, albeit less powerful, means to identify struggling students prior to summative examinations. Anat Sci Educ 9: 555-564. © 2016 American Association of Anatomists. © 2016 American Association of Anatomists.

The Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blessing, Susan

2014-03-01

The APS Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) are the continuation of a grass-roots collaborative effort that began 2006. The goals of the conferences are to increase retention and improve career outcomes of undergraduate women in physics. I will discuss the conferences, including organization and participant response, and encourage participation--of both students and institutions.

The 2012 CASPER Physics Circus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carmona Reyes, Jorge; Land-Zandstra, Anne; Cheng, Joyce; Douglass, Angela; Harris, Brandon; Zhang, Zhuanhao; Chen, Mudi; Matthews, Lorin; Hyde, Truell

2012-10-01

The CASPER Physics Circus is one component of a CASPER ongoing educational outreach initiative known as the CASPER Seamless Pathway. The Physics Circus is funded by the United States Department of Education and is designed to increase interest in, engagement with, and understanding of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) within students in grades 6 through 12. The program's material and curriculum is aligned with both TEKS (Texas Essentials Knowledge and Skills) and National Science and Mathematics Standards, with its components (theatre, hands-on exhibitions, game show, professional development and curriculum) reinforcing these goals in a creative and entertaining format. Pre- and post-assessments measuring both content understanding and attitude towards science were conducted for a representative sample of the cohort and the analyzed data will be presented. The role the Circus plays within CASPER's Seamless Pathway will also be discussed along with other current CASPER programs including its High School Scholars program, CASPER's Interns program and CASPER NSF funded REU/RET programs for college undergraduates and K-12 teachers.

Undergraduate study in psychology: Curriculum and assessment.

PubMed

Norcross, John C; Hailstorks, Robin; Aiken, Leona S; Pfund, Rory A; Stamm, Karen E; Christidis, Peggy

2016-01-01

The undergraduate curriculum in psychology profoundly reflects and shapes the discipline. Yet, reliable information on the undergraduate psychology curriculum has been difficult to acquire due to insufficient research carried out on unrepresentative program samples with disparate methods. In 2014, APA launched the first systematic effort in a decade to gather national data on the psychology major and program outcomes. We surveyed a stratified random sample of department chairs/coordinators of accredited colleges and universities in the United States that offer undergraduate courses and programs in psychology. A total of 439 undergraduate psychology programs (45.2%) completed the survey. This article summarizes, for both associate and baccalaureate programs, the results of the Undergraduate Study in Psychology. Current practices concerning the introductory course, the courses offered, core requirements, the psychology minor, and tracks/concentrations are presented. The frequency of formal program reviews and program-level assessment methods are also addressed. By extending prior research on the undergraduate curriculum, we chronicle longitudinal changes in the psychology major over the past 20 years. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Undergraduate Research Experience in Ocean/Marine Science (URE-OMS) with African Student Component

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-01

The Undergraduate Research Experience in Ocean/Marine Science program supports active participation by underrepresented undergraduate students in remote sensing and Ocean/Marine Science research training activities. The program is based on a model for undergraduate research programs supported by the National Science Foundation . The

A new course and textbook on Physical Models of Living Systems, for science and engineering undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, Philip

2015-03-01

I'll describe an intermediate-level course on ``Physical Models of Living Systems.'' The only prerequisite is first-year university physics and calculus. The course is a response to rapidly growing interest among undergraduates in a broad range of science and engineering majors. Students acquire several research skills that are often not addressed in traditional courses: Basic modeling skills Probabilistic modeling skills Data analysis methods Computer programming using a general-purpose platform like MATLAB or Python Dynamical systems, particularly feedback control. These basic skills, which are relevant to nearly any field of science or engineering, are presented in the context of case studies from living systems, including: Virus dynamics Bacterial genetics and evolution of drug resistance Statistical inference Superresolution microscopy Synthetic biology Naturally evolved cellular circuits. Work supported by NSF Grants EF-0928048 and DMR-0832802.

Nursing, occupational therapy, and physical therapy preparation in rheumatology in the United States and Canada.

PubMed

Jette, A M; Becker, M C

1980-11-01

Directors of undergraduate programs in nursing, physical therapy, and occupational therapy in the United States and Canada were surveyed to determine the amount and perceived adequacy of the current degree of classroom and clinical exposure to the rheumatic diseases. One hundred ninety-one (73%) of the 262 mailed questionnaires were returned. Results indicate that regardless of the actual degree of rheumatologic classroom exposure, directors in all three disciplines view current amounts as adequate. A larger proportion views levels of clinical exposure as inadequate. In general, the Canadian programs had a greater emphasis on rheumatology than their United States counterparts.

Unique educational opportunities at the Missouri University research reactor

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

Ketring, A.R.; Ross, F.K.; Spate, V.

1997-12-01

Since the Missouri University Research Reactor (MURR) went critical in 1966, it has been a center where students from many departments conduct their graduate research. In the past three decades, hundreds of graduate students from the MU departments of chemistry, physics, anthropology, nuclear engineering, etc., have received masters and doctoral degrees based on research using neutrons produced at MURR. More recently, the educational opportunities at MURR have been expanded to include undergraduate students and local high school students. Since 1989 MURR has participated in the National Science Foundation-funded Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program. As part of this program, undergraduatemore » students from universities and colleges throughout the United States come to MURR and get hands-on research experience during the summer. Another program, started in 1994 by the Nuclear Analysis Program at MURR, allows students from a local high school to conduct a neutron activation analysis (NAA) experiment. We also conduct tours of the center, where we describe the research and educational programs at MURR to groups of elementary school children, high school science teachers, state legislators, professional organizations, and many other groups.« less

Exploring deliberate mentoring approaches aimed at improving the recruitment and persistence of undergraduate women in the geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pollack, I. B.; Adams, A. S.; Barnes, R. T.; Burt, M. A.; Clinton, S. M.; Godfrey, E.; Hernandez, P.; Bloodhart, B.; Donaldson, L.; Henderson, H.; Sayers, J.; Sample McMeeking, L. B.; Bowker, C.; Fischer, E. V.

2015-12-01

In the United States, men outnumber women in many science and engineering fields by nearly 3 to 1. In fields like physics or the geosciences, the gender gap can be even wider. Previous studies have identified the early college years as a critical point where many women exit STEM disciplines. An interdisciplinary team including experts in the geosciences, psychology, education, and STEM persistence have recently begun a 5-year project focused on understanding whether mentoring can increase the interest, persistence, and achievement of undergraduate women in the geosciences. The program focuses on mentoring first and second year female undergraduate students from three universities in Colorado and Wyoming and four universities in North and South Carolina. The mentoring program includes a weekend workshop, access to professional women across geoscience fields and both in-person and virtual peer networks. The first weekend workshops will be held in October 2015. We will present an overview of the major components and lessons learned from these workshops and showcase the web center, including the online peer-networking forum.

Collaboration and Community Building in Summer Undergraduate Research Programs in the School of Earth Sciences at Stanford University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nevle, R. J.; Watson Nelson, T.; Harris, J. M.; Klemperer, S. L.

2012-12-01

In 2012, the School of Earth Sciences (SES) at Stanford University sponsored two summer undergraduate research programs. Here we describe these programs and efforts to build a cohesive research cohort among the programs' diverse participants. The two programs, the Stanford School of Earth Sciences Undergraduate Research (SESUR) Program and Stanford School of Earth Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research in Geoscience and Engineering (SURGE) Program, serve different undergraduate populations and have somewhat different objectives, but both provide students with opportunities to work on strongly mentored yet individualized research projects. In addition to research, enrichment activities co-sponsored by both programs support the development of community within the combined SES summer undergraduate research cohort. Over the course of 6 to 9 months, the SESUR Program engages Stanford undergraduates, primarily rising sophomores and juniors, with opportunities to deeply explore Earth sciences research while learning about diverse areas of inquiry within SES. Now in its eleventh year, the SESUR experience incorporates the breadth of the scientific endeavor: finding an advisor, proposal writing, obtaining funding, conducting research, and presenting results. Goals of the SESUR program include (1) providing a challenging and rewarding research experience for undergraduates who wish to explore the Earth sciences; (2) fostering interdisciplinary study in the Earth sciences among the undergraduate population; and (3) encouraging students to major or minor in the Earth sciences and/or to complete advanced undergraduate research in one of the departments or programs within SES. The SURGE Program, now in its second year, draws high performing students, primarily rising juniors and seniors, from 14 colleges and universities nationwide, including Stanford. Seventy percent of SURGE students are from racial/ethnic backgrounds underrepresented in STEM fields, and approximately one-third are the first in their families to attend college. For eight weeks, SURGE scholars conduct independent research with the guidance of faculty, research group mentors, and program assistants. The primary objectives of the SURGE program are to (1) provide undergraduates with a research experience in SES; (2) prepare undergraduates for the process of applying to graduate school; (3) introduce undergraduates to career opportunities in the geosciences and engineering; and (4) increase diversity in SES graduate programs. Independent research, network building, and intense mentoring culminate in a final oral and poster symposium. SESUR and SURGE scholars jointly participate in enrichment activities including faculty research seminars; career, graduate school, and software training workshops; GRE preparation classes; and geoscience-oriented field trips. Interaction among our students takes place through both research and enrichment activities, creating a critical mass of undergraduate scholars and promoting community development. Pre- and post-program surveys indicate that the overall goals of both programs are being achieved.

Perceived climate in physical activity settings.

PubMed

Gill, Diane L; Morrow, Ronald G; Collins, Karen E; Lucey, Allison B; Schultz, Allison M

2010-01-01

This study focused on the perceived climate for LGBT youth and other minority groups in physical activity settings. A large sample of undergraduates and a selected sample including student teachers/interns and a campus Pride group completed a school climate survey and rated the climate in three physical activity settings (physical education, organized sport, exercise). Overall, school climate survey results paralleled the results with national samples revealing high levels of homophobic remarks and low levels of intervention. Physical activity climate ratings were mid-range, but multivariate analysis of variation test (MANOVA) revealed clear differences with all settings rated more inclusive for racial/ethnic minorities and most exclusive for gays/lesbians and people with disabilities. The results are in line with national surveys and research suggesting sexual orientation and physical characteristics are often the basis for harassment and exclusion in sport and physical activity. The current results also indicate that future physical activity professionals recognize exclusion, suggesting they could benefit from programs that move beyond awareness to skills and strategies for creating more inclusive programs.

The performance assessment of undergraduate students in physics laboratory by using guided inquiry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mubarok, H.; Lutfiyah, A.; Kholiq, A.; Suprapto, N.; Putri, N. P.

2018-03-01

The performance assessment of basic physics experiment among undergraduate physics students which includes three stages: pre-laboratory, conducting experiment and final report was explored in this study. The research used a descriptive quantitative approach by utilizing guidebook of basic physics experiment. The findings showed that (1) the performance of pre-laboratory rate among undergraduate physics students in good category (average score = 77.55), which includes the ability of undergraduate physics students’ theory before they were doing the experiment. (2) The performance of conducting experiment was in good category (average score = 78.33). (3) While the performance of final report was in moderate category (average score = 73.73), with the biggest weakness at how to analyse and to discuss the data and writing the abstract.

How to double the number of undergraduate physics majors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kopp, Sacha

2015-03-01

Many colleges and universities around the country have a solid physics program that prepares students bound for graduate physics study. For a variety of reasons, the number of students choosing to major in physics may be small, typically <1% of the student body. When compared to other majors, this population is experiencing negligible growth. I will describe a campaign launched while at the University of Texas at Austin aimed at recruiting and retention of majors. This campaign includes actual programmatic changes in the curriculum and instruction of majors. Additionally, it includes a direct marketing campaign that attempted to change student attitudes about physics and its relation to their current major. Finally, it includes a program to reach out to local high schools and engage students in a discussion about their career choices before they apply for college. I will share some numerical and attitudinal data that suggests positive changes in the student population.

Follow-up of the graduates of one curriculum. 1956-1980.

PubMed

Morrison, M A; Linder, M T; Aubert, E J

1982-09-01

A questionnaire was developed to obtain information from the graduates of the Marquette University Program in Physical Therapy from 1956, the year the program was established, to 1980. The response rate was 65 percent, with 433 graduates from 25 classes returning the questionnaire. The profile derived from the responses is of a graduate who remains employed in physical therapy full time or part-time, is satisfied with the undergraduate preparation received, and is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association. Compared with other studies, this survey reveals that lower percentages of physical therapy graduates are employed in hospital settings, higher percentages are earning graduate credits, and the dropout rate from the profession has decreased significantly. Other information obtained from the questionnaire is presented relating ti demographics, continuing education, and participation in professional organizations.

Untypical Undergraduate Research: Player Motion Analysis in Sports

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loerke, Dinah

There is significant concern about the degree of attrition in STEM disciplines from the start of K-12 through to the end of higher education, and the analysis of the `leaky pipeline' from the various institutions has identified a critical decline - which may be as high as 60 percent - between the fraction of students who identify as having an interest in a science or engineering major at the start of college/university, and the fraction of students who ultimately graduate with a STEM degree. It has been shown that this decline is even more dramatic for women and underrepresented minorities (Blickenstaff 2005, Metcalf 2010). One intervention which has been proven to be effective for retention of potential STEM students is early research experience, particularly if it facilitates the students' integration into a STEM learning community (Graham et al. 2013, Toven-Lindsey et al. 2015). In other words, to retain students in STEM majors, we would like to encourage them to `think of themselves as scientists', and simultaneously promote supportive peer networks. The University of Denver (DU) already has a strong undergraduate research program. However, while the current program provides valuable training for many students, it likely comes too late to be effective for student retention in STEM, because it primarily serves older students who have already finished the basic coursework in their discipline; within physics, we know that the introductory physics courses already serve as gatekeeper courses that cause many gifted but `non-typical' students to lose interest in pursuing a STEM major (Tobias 1990). To address this issue, my lab is developing a small research spinoff program in which we apply spatiotemporal motion analysis to the motion trajectories of players in sports, using video recordings of DU Pioneer hockey games. This project aims to fulfill a dual purpose: The research is framed in a way that we think is attractive and accessible for beginning students who have not yet finished the basic physics course sequence, and we hope to use it to attract untypical and retain undecided students in physics. Secondly, since mathematical techniques for trajectory analysis are independent of scale, we hope to harness the creativity and analytical intuition of undergraduates to simultaneously benefit our core biophysical research program.

Climate Literacy: Progress in Climate and Global Change Undergraduate Courses in Meteorology and Earth System Science Programs at Jackson State University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reddy, S. R.; Tuluri, F.; Fadavi, M.

2017-12-01

JSU Meteorology Program will be offering AMS Climate Studies undergraduate course under MET 210: Climatology in spring 2013. AMS Climate Studies is offered as a 3 credit hour laboratory course with 2 lectures and 1 lab sessions per week. Although this course places strong intellectual demands upon each student, the instructors' objective is to help each student to pass the course with an adequate understanding of the fundamentals and advanced and advanced courses. AMS Climate Studies is an introductory college-level course developed by the American Meteorological Society for implementation at undergraduate institutions nationwide. The course places students in a dynamic and highly motivational educational environment where they investigate Earth's climate system using real-world environmental data. The AMS Climate Studies course package consists of a textbook, investigations manual, course website, and course management system-compatible files. Instructors can use these resources in combinations that make for an exciting learning experience for their students. This is a content course in Earth Science. It introduces a new concept that views Earth as a synergistic physical system applied concepts of climatology, for him/her to understand basic atmospheric/climate processes, physical and dynamical climatology, regional climatology, past and future climates and statistical analysis using climate data and to be prepared to profit from studying more of interrelated phenomenon governed by complex processes involving the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the biosphere, and the solid Earth. The course emphasizes that the events that shape the physical, chemical, and biological processes of the Earth do not occur in isolation. Rather, there is a delicate relationship between the events that occur in the ocean, atmosphere, and the solid Earth. The course provides a multidimensional approach in solving scientific issues related to Earth-related sciences,

Research Experience for Undergraduates: Understanding the Arctic as a System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alexeev, V. A.; Walsh, J. E.; Arp, C. D.; Hock, R.; Euskirchen, E. S.; Kaden, U.; Polyakov, I.; Romanovsky, V. E.; Trainor, S.

2017-12-01

Today, more than ever, an integrated cross-disciplinary approach is necessary to understand and explain changes in the Arctic and the implications of those changes. Responding to needs in innovative research and education for understanding high-latitude rapid climate change, scientists at the International Arctic research Center of the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) established a new REU (=Research Experience for Undergraduates) NSF-funded site, aiming to attract more undergraduates to arctic sciences. The science focus of this program, building upon the research strengths of UAF, is on understanding the Arctic as a system with emphasis on its physical component. The goals, which were to disseminate new knowledge at the frontiers of polar science and to ignite the enthusiasm of the undergraduates about the Arctic, are pursued by involving undergraduate students in research and educational projects with their mentors using the available diverse on-campus capabilities. IARC hosted the first group of eight students this past summer, focusing on a variety of different disciplines of the Arctic System Science. Students visited research sites around Fairbanks and in remote parts of Alaska (Toolik Lake Field Station, Gulkana glacier, Bonanza Creek, Poker Flats, the CRREL Permafrost Tunnel and others) to see and experience first-hand how the arctic science is done. Each student worked on a research project guided by an experienced instructor. The summer program culminated with a workshop that consisted of reports from the students about their experiences and the results of their projects.

"Space and Consequences": The Influence of the Roundtable Classroom Design on Student Dialogue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parsons, Caroline S.

2016-01-01

This study sought to explore how the design of both physical and virtual learning spaces influence student dialogue in a modern university. Qualitative analysis of the learning spaces in an undergraduate liberal arts program was conducted. Interview and focus group data from students and faculty, in addition to classroom observations, resulted in…

C.P.R.: Promoting Cooperation, Participation and Respect in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meaney, Karen S.; Kopf, Kelcie

2010-01-01

The Health, Exercise, and Sport Science (HESS) faculty at Texas Tech University, along with many of its graduate and undergraduate students, have been working with overweight youth since the Fun & Fit program launched in 2004. The collaborative effort between Tech and the Lubbock Independent School District, funded by a Carol M. White Physical…

Innovations in Science Teaching. The Forum for Liberal Education, Volume II, Number 4, February, 1980.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mohrman, Kathryn, Ed.

Curricular development in undergraduate programs in the biological, physical, and mathematical sciences at a number of colleges and universities are described. One common theme is the continuing interest in computers in higher education. As the student bodies of many campuses become more heterogeneous with increasing enrollments of minorities and…

Effect of Mental Rehearsal with Part and Whole Demonstration Models on Acquisition of Backstroke Swimming Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yamamoto, Katsuaki; Inomata, Kimihiro

1982-01-01

Three groups of undergraduates participated in a swimming program and took tests related to vividness of general motor imagery, swimming imagery, and accuracy of imagined skill. Speed and distance of backstroke were dependent measures. Physical practice, as well as mental rehearsal, increased vividness and accuracy of imagining the swimming…

34 CFR 658.1 - What is the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Foreign Language Program? 658.1 Section 658.1 Education Regulations of the Offices of the Department of... STUDIES AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROGRAM General § 658.1 What is the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program? The Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program is designed...

34 CFR 658.1 - What is the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Foreign Language Program? 658.1 Section 658.1 Education Regulations of the Offices of the Department of... STUDIES AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROGRAM General § 658.1 What is the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program? The Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program is designed...

Women in Physics: A Caribbean Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanner, Kandice

2009-03-01

This paper is concerned with aspects of post-secondary education of women in physics in the Caribbean, focusing more specifically on the main university campuses in Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and Barbados. Within this framework, there are three institutions of tertiary education that provide for undergraduate and post-graduate studies in physics. On average, the bachelor-level graduating class is roughly 40% female. A great majority of these students go on to seek master's degrees in engineering. Among those enrolled in graduate programs featuring research in astronomy, materials science, environmental physics, medical physics, and quantum physics, 58% are female. Significant numbers of women from the selected countries and from the Caribbean region are engaged in bachelor and doctoral programs in physics abroad, but no formal survey is available to provide the relevant quantitative information. However, an attempt will be made to quantify this component. Based in part on personal experience, a comparison will be made between domestic and foreign educational pathways, in terms of access to resources, level of research training, and occupational opportunities following graduation.

A useful demonstration of calculus in a physics high school laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alvarez, Gustavo; Schulte, Jurgen; Stockton, Geoffrey; Wheeler, David

2018-01-01

The real power of calculus is revealed when it is applied to actual physical problems. In this paper, we present a calculus inspired physics experiment suitable for high school and undergraduate programs. A model for the theory of the terminal velocity of a falling body subject to a resistive force is developed and its validity tested in an experiment of a falling magnet in a column of self-induced eddy currents. The presented method combines multiple physics concepts such as 1D kinematics, classical mechanics, electromagnetism and non-trivial mathematics. It offers the opportunity for lateral as well as project-based learning.

Characterizing Pedagogical Practices of University Physics Students in Informal Learning Environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinko, Kathleen

2016-03-01

University educators (UEs) have a long history of teaching physics not only in formal classroom settings but also in informal outreach environments. The pedagogical practices of UEs in informal physics teaching have not been widely studied, and they may provide insight into formal practices and preparation. We investigate the interactions between UEs and children in an afterschool physics program facilitated by university physics students from the University of Colorado Boulder. In this program, physics undergraduates, graduate students and post-doctoral researchers work with K-8 children on hands-on physics activities on a weekly basis over the course of a semester. We use an Activity Theoretic framework as a tool to examine situational aspects of individuals' behavior in the complex structure of the afterschool program. Using this framework, we analyze video of UE-child interactions and identify three main pedagogical modalities that UEs display during activities: Instruction, Consultation and Participation modes. These modes are characterized by certain language, physical location, and objectives that establish differences in UE-child roles and division of labor. Based on this analysis, we discuss implications for promoting pedagogical strategies through purposeful curriculum development and university educator preparation.

University of Maryland MRSEC - Education: College

Science.gov Websites

; (we call this type of surface a vicinal surface). Modern scanned-probe microscopes, such as the STM Educational Education Pre-College Programs Homeschool Programs Undergraduate & Graduate Programs Teacher MRSEC Templates Opportunities Search Home » Education » Undergraduate/Graduate Programs Undergraduate

Compendium of student papers : 2008 Undergraduate Transportation Scholars Program.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-08-01

This report is a compilation of research papers written by students participating in the 2008 Undergraduate : Transportation Scholars Program. The ten-week summer program, now in its eighteenth year, provides : undergraduate students in Civil Enginee...

Compendium of student papers : 2009 undergraduate transportation engineering fellows program.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-10-01

This report is a compilation of research papers written by students participating in the 2009 Undergraduate : Transportation Scholars Program. The ten-week summer program, now in its nineteenth year, provides : undergraduate students in Civil Enginee...

Inquiry-Based Early Undergraduate Research Using High-Altitude Ballooning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sibbernsen, K.; Sibbernsen, M.

2012-12-01

One common objective for undergraduate science classes is to have students learn how to do scientific inquiry. However, often in science laboratory classes, students learn to take data, analyze the data, and come to conclusions, but they are told what to study and do not have the opportunity to ask their own research questions, a crucial part of scientific inquiry. A special topics class in high-altitude ballooning (HAB) was offered at Metropolitan Community College, a large metropolitan two-year college in Omaha, Nebraska to focus on scientific inquiry for the participants through support of NASA Nebraska Space Grant. A weather balloon with payloads attached (balloonSAT) was launched to near space where the balloon burst and fell back to the ground with a parachute. Students worked in small groups to ask their research questions, they designed their payloads, participated in the launch and retrieval of equipment, analyzed data, and presented the results of their research. This type of experience has potential uses in physics, physical science, engineering, electronics, computer programming, meteorology, astronomy, and chemistry classes. The balloonSAT experience can act as a stepping-stone to designing sounding rocket payloads and it can allow students the opportunity to participate in regional competitions and present at HAB conferences. Results from the workshop are shared, as well as student responses to the experience and suggestions for administering a high-altitude ballooning program for undergraduates or extending inquiry-based ballooning experiences into high-school or middle-school.

My student body: effects of an internet-based prevention program to decrease obesity among college students.

PubMed

Lachausse, Robert G

2012-01-01

To determine the impact of My Student Body (MSB)-Nutrition, an Internet-based obesity prevention program for college students. Three hundred and twenty ethnically diverse undergraduate students were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 conditions: MSB-Nutrition program, an on-campus weight management course, and a comparison group. Students completed baseline and follow-up surveys regarding their nutrition and physical activity behaviors, self-efficacy, stress, attitudes, and body weight. Compared with the on-campus course and a comparison group, the MSB-Nutrition program increased fruit and vegetable consumption, reduced stress, and increased fruit and vegetable self-efficacy but had no significant effect on students' exercise self-efficacy, exercise behavior, or weight loss. The MSB-Nutrition program was effective in changing students' nutrition behaviors but had no effect on physical activity behaviors or weight loss. Suggestions for improving Internet-based interventions aimed at decreasing obesity rates among college students are offered.

PR2EPS: Preparation, Recruitment, Retention and Excellence in the Physical Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schaumloffel, John; Gallagher, Hugh; Miller, Jeremy; Labroo, Sunil; Bischoff, Paul

2004-03-01

PR2EPS, is an NSF-DUE sponsored program at SUNY Oneonta designed to attract students to study physics, chemistry and related physical science disciplines at SUNY Oneonta. The program also seeks to increase the retention rate for all students in these disciplines by providing specialized skill-building and professional development courses, an evening tutoring center, and exposure to research and professional activities during the students first three-years of undergraduate study. A key focus of the project is drawing students from the five, primarily rural and agricultural, counties surrounding Oneonta, NY. Their first direct exposure to the program will be in recruiting visits to local high schools where promising candidates will be invited to participate in a weeklong summer camp designed to demonstrate to them that they possess the requisite skills and potential to succeed in these technically demanding disciplines. A description of the program, including the collaboration of faculty from the Departments of Physics & Astronomy, Chemistry & Biochemistry, Education and as well as the initial outcomes of the tutoring center and local outreach will be presented.

Minorities Road to Graduate School: The Xavier Experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sunda-Meya, Anderson

2010-10-01

During the past decade, Xavier University of Louisiana has ranked first nationally in the number of African American students who have earned undergraduate degrees in biology, chemistry, physics, and the physical sciences overall. Recent data shows that Xavier also ranks 8th in the nation in producing African American students who go on to earn science and engineering PhDs. A look at Xavier's ``way'' will examine several components that contribute to its success: pre-college preparation, recruitment programs, admissions policies, financial assistance, and academic monitoring programs. By promoting comprehensive recruitment and retention strategies and by leveling the playing field, Xavier experience may offer a paradigm and a model for increasing the pool of motivated, talented and well-prepared minority applicants ready to tackle the rigors of a graduate level education in physics.

Polymer-Based Nanocomposites: An Internship Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cebe, Peggy; Cherdack, Daniel; Seyhan Ince-Gunduz, B.; Guertin, Robert; Haas, Terry; Valluzzi, Regina

2007-03-01

We report on our summer internship program in Polymer-Based Nanocomposites, for deaf and hard of hearing undergraduates who engage in classroom and laboratory research work in polymer physics. The unique attributes of this program are its emphasis on: 1. Teamwork; 2. Performance of a start-to-finish research project; 3. Physics of materials approach; and 4. Diversity. Students of all disability levels have participated in this program, including students who neither hear nor voice. The classroom and laboratory components address the materials chemistry and physics of polymer-based nanocomposites, crystallization and melting of polymers, the interaction of X-rays and light with polymers, mechanical properties of polymers, and the connection between thermal processing, structure, and ultimate properties of polymers. A set of Best Practices is developed for accommodating deaf and hard of hearing students into the laboratory setting. The goal is to bring deaf and hard of hearing students into the larger scientific community as professionals, by providing positive scientific experiences at a formative time in their educational lives.

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.

Compendium of student papers : 2010 undergraduate transportation scholars program.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-06-01

This report is a compilation of research papers written by students participating in the 2010 Undergraduate : Transportation Scholars Program. The 10-week summer program, now in its 20th year, provides : undergraduate students in Civil Engineering th...

Incorporating "Ethics in Science" into a Summer Undergraduate Research Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shachter, Amy M.; McNelis, Brian J.; Shanks, Thomas

1999-01-01

Describes a program at Santa Clara University, California where undergraduates participated in weekly Ethics in Science discussions while conducting scientific research. The program was successful in improving the ethical sensitivity, judgment, and commitment of the undergraduates. (WRM)

Compendium of student papers : 2012 undergraduate transportation scholars program.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2013-05-01

This report is a compilation of research papers written by students participating in the 2012 Undergraduate : Transportation Scholars Program. The 10-week summer program, now in its 22nd year, provides : undergraduate students in Civil Engineering th...

Compendium of student papers : 2011 undergraduate transportation scholars program.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-05-01

This report is a compilation of research papers written by students participating in the 2011 Undergraduate : Transportation Scholars Program. The 10-week summer program, now in its 21st year, provides : undergraduate students in Civil Engineering th...

Compendium of student papers : 2013 undergraduate transportation scholars program.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2013-11-01

This report is a compilation of research papers written by students participating in the 2013 Undergraduate Transportation Scholars Program. The 10-week summer program, now in its 23nd year, provides undergraduate students in Civil Engineering the op...

Physics Problems Based on Up-to-Date Science and Technology.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Folan, Lorcan M.; Tsifrinovich, Vladimir I.

2007-03-01

We observe a huge chasm between up-to-date science and undergraduate education. The result of this chasm is that current student interest in undergraduate science is low. Consequently, students who are graduating from college are often unable to take advantage of the many opportunities offered by science and technology. Cutting edge science and technology frequently use the methods learned in undergraduate courses, but up-to-date applications are not normally used as examples or for problems in undergraduate courses. There are many physics problems which contain information about the latest achievements in science and technology. But typically, the level of these problems is too advanced for undergraduates. We created physics problems for undergraduate science and engineering students, which are based on the latest achievements in science and technology. These problems have been successfully used in our courses at the Polytechnic University in New York. We believe that university faculty may suggest such problems in order to provide information about the frontiers of science and technological, demonstrate the importance of undergraduate physics in solving contemporary problems and raise the interest of talented students in science. From the other side, our approach may be considered an indirect way for advertising advanced technologies, which undergraduate students and, even more important, future college graduates could use in their working lives.

Engineering success: Undergraduate Latina women's persistence in an undergradute engineering program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosbottom, Steven R.

The purpose and focus of this narrative inquiry case study were to explore the personal stories of four undergraduate Latina students who persist in their engineering programs. This study was guided by two overarching research questions: a) What are the lived experiences of undergraduate Latina engineering students? b) What are the contributing factors that influence undergraduate Latina students to persist in an undergraduate engineering program? Yosso's (2005) community cultural wealth was used to the analyze data. Findings suggest through Yosso's (2005) aspirational capital, familial capital, social capital, navigational capital, and resistant capital the Latina student persisted in their engineering programs. These contributing factors brought to light five themes that emerged, the discovery of academic passions, guidance and support of family and teachers, preparation for and commitment to persistence, the power of community and collective engagement, and commitment to helping others. The themes supported their persistence in their engineering programs. Thus, this study informs policies, practices, and programs that support undergraduate Latina engineering student's persistence in engineering programs.

Multidisciplinary Field Training in Undergraduate Physical Geography: Russian Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kasimov, Nikolay S.; Chalov, Sergey R.; Panin, Andrey V.

2013-01-01

Field training is seen as a central component of the discipline of Physical Geography and an essential part of the undergraduate curriculum. This paper explores the structure and relationships between fieldwork and theoretical courses and the abundant experiences of field training in the undergraduate curriculum of 37 Russian universities. It…

Barriers to undergraduate peer-physical examination of the lower limb in the health sciences and strategies to improve inclusion: a review.

PubMed

Hendry, Gordon James

2013-10-01

Peer-physical examination is a widely adopted and an integral component of the undergraduate curriculum for many health science programs. Unwillingness or perceived inability to participate in peer-physical examination classes may have a negative impact upon students' abilities to competently conduct physical examinations of patients in future as registered health professionals. A literature review on the perceptions and attitudes of peer-physical examination of the lower limb amongst medical and health science students was conducted to identify potential barriers to participation, and to review strategies to improve participation in classes designed to develop clinical examination skills. A pragmatic search strategy of the literature from PubMed and Google Scholar published prior to June 2012 yielded 23 relevant articles. All articles were concerned with the views of medical students' education and there were no articles explicitly addressing the role of peer-physical examination in health science disciplines. Several ethical issues were identified including feelings of coercion, embarrassment, and perceptions of a lack of consideration for cultural and religious beliefs. The available evidence suggests that barriers to participation may be overcome by implementing standard protocols concerned with obtaining informed written consent, adequate choice of peer-examiner, changing facilities and garment advice, and possible alternative learning methods.

Exploring Sun-Earth Connections: A Physical Science Program for (K-8)Teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

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

2003-12-01

An experimental, inquiry-based physical science curriculum for undergraduate, pre-service K-8 teachers is under development at the Catholic University of America in collaboration with the Solar Physics Branch of the Naval Research Laboratory and NASA's Sun-Earth Connection missions. This is a progress report. The current, stunningly successful exploratory phase in Sun-Earth Connection (SEC) physics, sparked by SOHO, Yohkoh, TRACE, and other International Solar Terrestrial Physics (ISTP) and Living With a Star (LWS) programs, has provided dynamic, visually intuitive data that can be used for teaching basic physical concepts such as the properties of gravitational and electromagnetic fields which are manifest in beautiful imagery of the astrophysical plasmas of the solar atmosphere and Earth's auroras. Through a team approach capitalizing on the combined expertise of the Catholic University's departments of Education and Physics and of NRL solar researchers deeply involved in SEC missions we have laid out a program that will teach non-science-major undergraduates a very limited number of physical science concepts but in such a way as to develop for each one both a formal understanding and an intuitive grasp that will instill confidence, spark interest and scientific curiosity and, ideally, inspire a habit of lifetime inquiry and professional growth. A three-semester sequence is planned. The first semester will be required of incoming Education freshmen. The second and third semesters will be of such a level as to satisfy the one-year science requirement for non-science majors in the College of Arts and Sciences. The approach as adopted will integrate physics content and educational methods, with each concept introduced through inquiry-based, hands-on investigation using methods and materials directly applicable to K-8 teaching situations (Exploration Phase). The topic is further developed through discussion, demonstration and lecture, introducing such mathematical formulations as are necessary to express the concept clearly (Invention Phase). To further clarify the concept, exercises will be carried out using Web-accessible SEC mission data to develop facility in use of the mathematical formulations, stimulate a sense of participation in ongoing research, and expand on ways to introduce future pupils to the excitement of real-world exploration (Expansion Phase).

What Works for Women in Undergraduate Physics?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitten, Barbara L.

2004-05-01

The participation of women in physics has increased in recent years, but the percentage of women in physics is still less than half that in mathematics and chemistry. This is due in large part to the "leaky pipeline" the participation of women in physics decreases with every step up the academic ladder. The largest decrease occurs between high school and college graduation, so it is worthwhile looking at how undergraduate physics departments try to make women undergraduates comfortable. With a team of women physicists, I visited nine undergraduate physics departments and compared those that are successful in producing a large percentage of women with those that are more typical of the national average. We found that the most important factor is a warm and female-friendly department culture that reaches out to introductory students. I'll discuss the factors that make up a female-friendly culture, and describe other results of our research.

Learning to Do Through Investigative Projects: A Case Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jolly, Pratibha

2005-10-01

In India, the likelihood of a girl student opting out of a physics course only because of gender issues is remote. Even though no special care is taken to attract women, a large percentage of the top-ranking students opt to major in physics. However, subtle forces operate in higher academia. The number of women in teaching and research institutes continues to be dismally low. The confidence and motivation of women students shows a distinct attenuation at the tertiary level. Inasmuch as the undergraduate years lay the foundation for a career in physics, there is a critical need to create learning experiences for women students that would enhance their motivation, nurture talent, and generate confidence in their capacity to make a creative contribution. The author has spent several years teaching at a women's college and in a university department with few women on the faculty. She has coordinated the Learning Through Investigative Projects program for undergraduate students of both genders. In a dual-pronged strategy, students are constructively engaged in open-ended investigative projects and assigned specific tasks. The touchstone of this program is the ambience in which the projects are carried out and the cognitive changes it effects in students as they are weaned away from the prevalent transmissionist mode of teaching and led to a constructivist paradigm of learning. They acquire an ability to work independently. The program and the underpinning pedagogic model have been very successful in capacity building and have influenced many students to choose careers in physics and academia. I present a case study of the work carried out under Project Science Online, in which students helped develop a microcomputer-based laboratory.

The Learning Assistant Model for Science Teacher Recruitment and Preparation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Otero, Valerie

2006-04-01

There is a shortage of high quality physical science teachers in the United States. In 2001, less than 50% of teachers who taught physics held a major or minor in physics or physics education (Neuschatz & McFarling, 2003). Studies point to content knowledge as one of the two factors that is positively correlated with teacher quality. However, those directly responsible for the science content preparation of teachers, specifically science research faculty, are rarely involved in focused efforts to improve teacher quality or to create alternative paths for becoming a teacher. What role should science research faculty play in the recruitment and preparation of science teachers? How might teacher recruitment and preparation be conceived so that science research faculty members' participation in these efforts is not at odds with the traditional scientific research foci of science research departments? To address this issue, we have coupled our teacher recruitment and preparation efforts with our efforts for transforming our large-enrollment, undergraduate science courses. This is achieved through the undergraduate Learning Assistant (LA) program, where talented mathematics and science majors are hired to assist in transforming large enrollment courses to student-centered, collaborative environments. These LAs are the target of our teacher recruitment efforts. Science research faculty, in collaboration with faculty from the school of education have established a community that supports LAs in making decisions to explore K12 teaching as a career option. Fifteen percent of the LAs who have participated in this program have entered teaching credential programs and now plan to become K12 teachers. An added effect of this program is that research faculty have developed skills and knowledge regarding inquiry-based and student-centered pedagogy and theories of student learning. The Learning Assistant program has led to increased subject matter knowledge among learning assistants, increased interest in K-12 teaching as a career, and increased appreciation and understanding of student-centered and inquiry-based learning. Data to support these claims will be presented. Neuschatz, M. & McFarling, M. (2003). Broadning the Base: High School Physics Education at the Turn of a New Century, AIP Report No. R-439.

Undergraduate Course and Curriculum Development Program and Calculus and the Bridge to Calculus Program: 1993 Awards.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Science Foundation, Arlington, VA. Div. of Undergraduate Education.

The Undergraduate Course and Curriculum Development Program of the National Science Foundation supports the development of courses in all disciplines to improve the quality of undergraduate courses and curricula in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology. The purpose of the program in Curriculum Development in Mathematics: Calculus and…

Fieldwork in Geography Education: Defining or Declining? The State of Fieldwork in Canadian Undergraduate Geography Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilson, Heather; Leydon, Joseph; Wincentak, Joanna

2017-01-01

This paper investigates the prevalence of fieldwork in undergraduate Geography programs in Canada. It examines the presence of fieldwork, provided through both field courses and courses that include fieldwork components, by reviewing program requirements and course offerings in undergraduate geography programs. The research explores the extent to…

Engaging Undergraduates in Economics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gajwani, Kiran; Miron, Jeffrey

2015-01-01

Siegfried and Stock (2007) explore the undergraduate training of PhD economists. Their findings show that among U.S. undergraduate economics programs, the Harvard University Economics Department produces many eventual economics PhD recipients. In this article, the authors discuss Harvard's undergraduate economics program and highlight some key…

Preparing physics students for careers outside of academia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Redmond, Kendra; Czujko, Roman; Sauncy, Toni

2014-03-01

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

Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Office of Postsecondary Education, US Department of Education, 2012

2012-01-01

The Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program provides funds to institutions of higher education, a consortia of such institutions, or partnerships between nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education to plan, develop, and implement programs that strengthen and improve undergraduate instruction in…

Engaging Undergraduate Students in Space Weather Research at a 2- Year College

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Damas, M. C.

2017-07-01

The Queensborough Community College (QCC) of the City University of New York (CUNY), a Hispanic and minority-serving institution, has been very successful at engaging undergraduate students in space weather research for the past ten years. Recently, it received two awards to support student research and education in solar and atmospheric physics under the umbrella discipline of space weather. Through these awards, students receive stipends during the academic year and summer to engage in scientific research. Students also have the opportunity to complete a summer internship at NASA and at other partner institutions. Funding also supports the development of course materials and tools in space weather. Educational materials development and the challenges of engaging students in research as early as their first year will be discussed. Once funding is over, how is the program sustained? Sustaining such a program, as well as how to implement it at other universities will also be discussed.

High School Physics Teacher Outreach Programs at California State University Long Beach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwon, Chuhee; Pickett, Galen; Henriques, Laura

2013-03-01

One of the goals of the CSULB PhysTEC project has been to establish a physics teaching community that partners CSULB faculty, high school teachers, pre-service teachers, and physics students. In two years, we have created a solid sustainable Physics Teacher Network with local high school teachers. We will discuss the successful outreach programs for high school physics teachers at CSULB and the detailed logistics. Teacher-In-Residence (TIR), high school physics teachers working with the CSULB PhysTEC team, has provided invaluable input for designing and implementing outreach events. The department organizes biannual open house for local high school teachers and their students. The open house event is attended by pre-service teachers, physics undergraduate and graduate students, and faculty. We also host the monthly demo-sharing day that physics teachers bring and share topical demos, which has about 30 - 50 attendees each month. The CSULB PhysTEC project also distributes a monthly newsletter for local physics teachers with upcoming events and information about teaching, and this newsletter is organized and written by TIR. This work is supported by the PhysTEC grant.

Choosing to Major in Physics, or Not: Factors Affecting Undergraduate Decision Making

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stiles-Clarke, Laura; MacLeod, Katarin

2016-01-01

For the past 40 years, there has been apprehension in North American society, and particularly in the scientific community, concerning the decline of interest and enrollment in science degree programs at the post-secondary level. This trend has proven very difficult to reverse. The purpose of this study was to explore why students at an Atlantic…

Impact of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research in Mathematics and Biology on the Development of a New Course Integrating Five STEM Disciplines

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caudill, Lester; Hill, April; Hoke, Kathy; Lipan, Ovidiu

2010-01-01

Funded by innovative programs at the National Science Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Richmond faculty in biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and computer science teamed up to offer first- and second-year students the opportunity to contribute to vibrant, interdisciplinary research projects. The result was…

Andiamo, a Graphical User Interface for Ohio University's Hauser-Feshbach Implementation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brooks, Matthew

2017-09-01

First and foremost, I am not a physicist. I am an undergraduate computer science major/Japanese minor at Ohio University. However, I am working for Zach Meisel, in the Ohio University's physics department. This is the first software development project I've ever done. My charge is/was to create a graphical program that can be used to more easily set up Hauser-Feshbach equation input files. The input files are of the format expected by the Hauser-Feshbach 2002 code developed by a handful of people at the university. I regularly attend group meetings with Zach and his other subordinates, but these are mostly used as a way for us to discuss our progress and any troubles or roadblocks we may have encountered. I was encouraged to try to come with his group to this event because it could help expose me to the scientific culture of astrophysics research. While I know very little about particles and epic space events, my poster would be an informative and (hopefully) inspiring one that could help get other undergraduates interested in doing object oriented programming. This could be more exposure for them, as I believe a lot of physics majors only learn scripting languages.

Differential Programming Needs of College Students Preferring Web-Based Versus In-Person Physical Activity Programs.

PubMed

Goldstein, Stephanie P; Forman, Evan M; Butryn, Meghan L; Herbert, James D

2017-09-21

College students report several barriers to exercise, highlighting a need for university-based programs that address these challenges. In contrast to in-person interventions, several web-based programs have been developed to enhance program engagement by increasing ease of access and lowering the necessary level of commitment to participate. Unfortunately, web-based programs continue to struggle with engagement and less-than-ideal outcomes. One explanation for this discrepancy is that different intervention modalities may attract students with distinctive activity patterns, motivators, barriers, and program needs. However, no studies have formally evaluated intervention modality preference (e.g., web-based or in-person) among college students. The current study sought to examine the relationship between intervention modality preference and physical activity programming needs. Undergraduate students (n = 157) enrolled in psychology courses at an urban university were asked to complete an online survey regarding current activity patterns and physical activity program preferences. Participants preferring web-based physical activity programs exercised less (p = .05), were less confident in their abilities to exercise (p = .01), were less likely to endorse the maintenance stage of change (p < .01) and perceived more barriers to exercising (p < .01) than those who preferred in-person programming. Findings suggest that students preferring web-based programming may require programs that enhance self-efficacy by fostering goal-setting and problem-solving skills. A user-centered design approach may enhance the engagement (and therefore effectiveness) of physical activity promotion programs for college students.

Undergraduate Psychology Courses Preferred by Graduate Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lawson, Timothy J.; Reisinger, Debra L.; Jordan-Fleming, Mary Kay

2012-01-01

Information about the undergraduate psychology courses preferred by graduate programs is useful for a number of purposes, including (a) advising psychology majors who are interested in graduate school, (b) undergraduate curriculum planning, and (c) examining whether graduate programs' preferences reflect national guidelines for the undergraduate…

Law-Based Degree Programs in Business and Their Departments: What's in a Name? (A Comprehensive Study of Undergraduate Law-Based Degrees in AACSB-Accredited Universities)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Carol J.; Crain, Susan J.

2007-01-01

This study examines undergraduate law-based degree programs in the 404 U.S. universities with undergraduate degrees in business that had Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation in 2005. University Web sites were used to identify and compare law-based undergraduate programs inside business to law-related programs…

34 CFR 658.4 - What definitions apply to the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... International Studies and Foreign Language Program? 658.4 Section 658.4 Education Regulations of the Offices of... UNDERGRADUATE INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROGRAM General § 658.4 What definitions apply to the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program? The definitions in 34 CFR 655.4 apply to this...

34 CFR 658.4 - What definitions apply to the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... International Studies and Foreign Language Program? 658.4 Section 658.4 Education Regulations of the Offices of... UNDERGRADUATE INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROGRAM General § 658.4 What definitions apply to the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program? The definitions in 34 CFR 655.4 apply to this...

Opinions of In-Service and Pre-Service Special Education Teachers on the Competencies of the Undergraduate Special Education Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ergul, Cevriye; Baydik, Berrin; Demir, Seyda

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the opinions of in-service and pre-service special education teachers on the undergraduate special education programs, field competencies, and their own professional competence. Participants' suggestions for improving undergraduate special education programs and in-service training programs including topics…

Open Innovation Labs for Physics Undergraduate Independent Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carlsmith, Duncan

2014-03-01

The open undergraduate laboratory Garage Physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is home to a variety of independent physics and multidisciplinary research projects. Its maker-style environment encourages innovation and entrepreneurship. Experience establishing and staffing the laboratory will be described.

Inorganic Chemistry at the Undergraduate Level: Are We All on the Same Page?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pesterfield, Les L.; Henrickson, Charles H.

2001-01-01

Summarizes and presents results of a national survey on undergraduate inorganic chemistry which asked faculty to describe the general layout of their undergraduate program and course content. Reveals both similarities in the structure of undergraduate inorganic chemistry programs across the country and diversity in content. (ASK)

Characterizing pedagogical practices of university physics students in informal learning environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinko, Kathleen A.; Madigan, Peter; Miller, Eric; Finkelstein, Noah D.

2016-06-01

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Preparing and Supporting University Physics Educators.] University educators (UEs) have a long history of teaching physics not only in formal classroom settings but also in informal outreach environments. The pedagogical practices of UEs in informal physics teaching have not been widely studied, and they may provide insight into formal practices and preparation. We investigate the interactions between UEs and children in an afterschool physics program facilitated by university physics students from the University of Colorado Boulder. In this program, physics undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers work with K-8 children on hands-on physics activities on a weekly basis over the course of a semester. We use an activity theoretic framework as a tool to examine situational aspects of individuals' behavior in the complex structure of the afterschool program. Using this framework, we analyze video of UE-child interactions and identify three main pedagogical modalities that UEs display during activities: instruction, consultation, and participation modes. These modes are characterized by certain language, physical location, and objectives that establish differences in UE-child roles and division of labor. Based on this analysis, we discuss implications for promoting pedagogical strategies through purposeful curriculum development and university educator preparation.

Undergraduate Research as Chemical Education--A Symposium: An Undergraduate Laboratory Experiment: The Total Synthesis of Maytansine.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodwin, Thomas E.

1984-01-01

An undergraduate research program in natural product synthesis was established at a small liberal arts college. Discusses program goals (including the total synthesis of maytansine), objectives, and accomplishments to date. Guidelines for establishing such programs are offered. (JN)

Opportunities for Undergraduate Research in Nuclear Physics

DOE PAGES

Hicks, S. F.; Nguyen, T. D.; Jackson, D. T.; ...

2017-10-26

University of Dallas (UD) physics majors are offered a variety of undergraduate research opportunities in nuclear physics through an established program at the University of Kentucky Accelerator Laboratory (UKAL). The 7-MV Model CN Van de Graaff accelerator and the neutron production and detection facilities located there are used by UD students to investigate how neutrons scatter from materials that are important in nuclear energy production and for our basic understanding of how neutrons interact with matter. Recent student projects include modeling of the laboratory using the neutron transport code MCNP to investigate the effectiveness of laboratory shielding, testing the long-termmore » gain stability of C 6D 6 liquid scintillation detectors, and deducing neutron elastic and inelastic scattering cross sections for 12C. Finally, results of these student projects are presented that indicate the pit below the scattering area reduces background by as much as 30%; the detectors show no significant gain instabilities; and new insights into existing 12C neutron inelastic scattering cross-section discrepancies near a neutron energy of 6.0 MeV are obtained.« less

Opportunities for Undergraduate Research in Nuclear Physics

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

Hicks, S. F.; Nguyen, T. D.; Jackson, D. T.

University of Dallas (UD) physics majors are offered a variety of undergraduate research opportunities in nuclear physics through an established program at the University of Kentucky Accelerator Laboratory (UKAL). The 7-MV Model CN Van de Graaff accelerator and the neutron production and detection facilities located there are used by UD students to investigate how neutrons scatter from materials that are important in nuclear energy production and for our basic understanding of how neutrons interact with matter. Recent student projects include modeling of the laboratory using the neutron transport code MCNP to investigate the effectiveness of laboratory shielding, testing the long-termmore » gain stability of C 6D 6 liquid scintillation detectors, and deducing neutron elastic and inelastic scattering cross sections for 12C. Finally, results of these student projects are presented that indicate the pit below the scattering area reduces background by as much as 30%; the detectors show no significant gain instabilities; and new insights into existing 12C neutron inelastic scattering cross-section discrepancies near a neutron energy of 6.0 MeV are obtained.« less

Accreditation standards for undergraduate forensic science programs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Marilyn Tebbs

Undergraduate forensic science programs are experiencing unprecedented growth in numbers of programs offered and, as a result, student enrollments are increasing. Currently, however, these programs are not subject to professional specialized accreditation. This study sought to identify desirable student outcome measures for undergraduate forensic science programs that should be incorporated into such an accreditation process. To determine desirable student outcomes, three types of data were collected and analyzed. All the existing undergraduate forensic science programs in the United States were examined with regard to the input measures of degree requirements and curriculum content, and for the output measures of mission statements and student competencies. Accreditation procedures and guidelines for three other science-based disciplines, computer science, dietetics, and nursing, were examined to provide guidance on accreditation processes for forensic science education programs. Expert opinion on outcomes for program graduates was solicited from the major stakeholders of undergraduate forensic science programs-forensic science educators, crime laboratory directors, and recent graduates. Opinions were gathered by using a structured Internet-based survey; the total response rate was 48%. Examination of the existing undergraduate forensic science programs revealed that these programs do not use outcome measures. Of the accreditation processes for other science-based programs, nursing education provided the best model for forensic science education, due primarily to the balance between the generality and the specificity of the outcome measures. From the analysis of the questionnaire data, preliminary student outcomes, both general and discipline-specific, suitable for use in the accreditation of undergraduate forensic science programs were determined. The preliminary results were reviewed by a panel of experts and, based on their recommendations, the outcomes identified were revised and refined. The results of this study were used to identify student outcomes and to suggest accreditation standards and an accreditation process for undergraduate forensic science programs based on those outcomes.

The Emergence of Undergraduate Majors in Global Health: Systematic Review of Programs and Recommendations for Future Directions

PubMed Central

Drain, Paul K.; Mock, Charles; Toole, David; Rosenwald, Anne; Jehn, Megan; Csordas, Thomas; Ferguson, Laura; Waggett, Caryl; Obidoa, Chinekwu; Wasserheit, Judith N.

2017-01-01

Global health education has been expanding rapidly and several universities have created an undergraduate major degree (bachelor's degree) in global heath or global health studies. Because there are currently no national guidelines for undergraduate degrees in global health, each of these programs was developed along individual lines. To guide the development of future global health majors, we conducted a systematic review of undergraduate majors in global health. We identified eight programs and invited program directors or representatives to a symposium at the Consortium of Universities for Global Health 2016 conference to review their existing undergraduate major in global health and to discuss lessons learned and recommendations for other colleges and universities seeking to develop undergraduate degrees in global health. We noted significant diversity among the existing programs in terms of required courses, international field experiences, and thesis research projects. In this review, we describe these global health programs, their student characteristics, as well as the key educational competencies, program requirements, and core global health courses. Based on program reviews and discussions, we identify seven recommendations for the development and expansion of an undergraduate major in global health and discuss issues that have arisen in the curricular development of these programs that warrant further exploration. As the field of global health education continues to expand, following these students after graduation will be essential to ensure that the degree programs in global health both meet student needs and launch students on viable career pathways. PMID:28077739

Accreditation of University Undergraduate Programs in Nigeria from 2001-2012: Implications for Graduates Employability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dada, M. S.; Imam, Hauwa

2015-01-01

This study analysed accreditation exercises of universities undergraduate programs in Nigeria from 2001-2013. Accreditation is a quality assurance mechanism to ensure that undergraduate programs offered in Nigeria satisfies benchmark minimum academic standards for producing graduates with requisite skills for employability. The study adopted the…

Lessons Learned: The Evolution of an Undergraduate Research Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Gregory; Laker, Lauren; Tesch, Debbie

2013-01-01

Undergraduate research programs are commonplace at many universities. However, little research has been conducted to evaluate their ongoing and long-term effectiveness from the standpoint of the undergraduate student researcher. In an effort to gain perspective from the student researcher, including their thoughts on such a program, a survey was…

Instructors' Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior in Teaching Undergraduate Physical Education Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Filho, Paulo Jose Barbosa Gutierres; Monteiro, Maria Dolores Alves Ferreira; da Silva, Rudney; Hodge, Samuel R.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyze adapted physical education instructors' views about the application of the theory of planned behavior (TpB) in teaching physical education undergraduate courses. Participants ("n" = 17) were instructors of adapted physical activity courses from twelve randomly selected institutions of higher…

Creativity and Introductory Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guilaran, Ildefonso J.

2012-01-01

When I was an undergraduate physics major, I would often stay up late with my physics major roommate as we would digest the physics content we were learning in our courses and explore our respective imaginations armed with our new knowledge. Such activity during my undergraduate years was confined to informal settings, and the first formal…

Improvement or Selection? A Longitudinal Analysis of Students' Views about Experimental Physics in Their Lab Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

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

2017-01-01

Laboratory courses represent a unique and potentially important component of the undergraduate physics curriculum, which can be designed to allow students to authentically engage with the process of experimental physics. Among other possible benefits, participation in these courses throughout the undergraduate physics curriculum presents an…

Adapting to a Changing World--Challenges and Opportunities in Undergraduate Physics Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Academies Press, 2013

2013-01-01

"Adapting to a Changing World" was commissioned by the National Science Foundation to examine the present status of undergraduate physics education, including the state of physics education research, and, most importantly, to develop a series of recommendations for improving physics education that draws from the knowledge we have about…

Effects of a 10-Day Intensive Health Promotion Program Combining Diet and Physical Activity on Body Composition, Physical Fitness, and Blood Factors of Young Adults: A Randomized Pilot Study

PubMed Central

Lee, Kyoung Soon; Lee, Jae Koo; Yeun, Young Ran

2017-01-01

Background A lifestyle characterized by poor eating habits and physical inactivity is a risk factor for multiple lifestyle diseases in young adults. This study assessed the effects of implementing an intensive 10-day health promotion program combining diet and physical activities on body composition, physical fitness, and biochemical parameters of young adults. Material/Methods In this randomized pilot study, 30 female undergraduate students were randomly allocated to an intervention and a control group. The health promotion program consisted of unlimited amounts of vegetarian food; aerobic, flexibility, and strength exercises (3 hours/day); lectures on health (3 hours/day); massage practice (2 hours/day); and healthy cooking practice (1 hour/day). The effects of the intervention were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results The intensive 10-day health promotion program significantly reduced body weight, body mass index, triglyceride, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, blood glucose, and the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance. At the same time, participants demonstrated increased back muscle, leg muscle, and grip strength; waist and shoulder flexibility; balance; and cardiorespiratory endurance. Conclusions The intensive 10-day health promotion program is a viable intervention for improving body composition, physical fitness, glycemic control, and blood lipid levels in young adults. PMID:28399076

The Core Curricula of Information Systems Undergraduate Programs: A Survey of AACSB-Accredited Colleges in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yang, Samuel C.

2016-01-01

The author examines the present state of information systems undergraduate programs in the United States. He reviewed 516 institutions and collected data on 234 institutions offering information systems (IS) undergraduate programs. Of seven core courses required by the IS 2010 curriculum model, four are required by more than 50% of the programs,…

Factors affecting the number and type of student research products for chemistry and physics students at primarily undergraduate institutions: A case study.

PubMed

Mellis, Birgit; Soto, Patricia; Bruce, Chrystal D; Lacueva, Graciela; Wilson, Anne M; Jayasekare, Rasitha

2018-01-01

For undergraduate students, involvement in authentic research represents scholarship that is consistent with disciplinary quality standards and provides an integrative learning experience. In conjunction with performing research, the communication of the results via presentations or publications is a measure of the level of scientific engagement. The empirical study presented here uses generalized linear mixed models with hierarchical bootstrapping to examine the factors that impact the means of dissemination of undergraduate research results. Focusing on the research experiences in physics and chemistry of undergraduates at four Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs) from 2004-2013, statistical analysis indicates that the gender of the student does not impact the number and type of research products. However, in chemistry, the rank of the faculty advisor and the venue of the presentation do impact the number of research products by undergraduate student, whereas in physics, gender match between student and advisor has an effect on the number of undergraduate research products. This study provides a baseline for future studies of discipline-based bibliometrics and factors that affect the number of research products of undergraduate students.

Factors affecting the number and type of student research products for chemistry and physics students at primarily undergraduate institutions: A case study

PubMed Central

Soto, Patricia; Bruce, Chrystal D.; Lacueva, Graciela; Wilson, Anne M.; Jayasekare, Rasitha

2018-01-01

For undergraduate students, involvement in authentic research represents scholarship that is consistent with disciplinary quality standards and provides an integrative learning experience. In conjunction with performing research, the communication of the results via presentations or publications is a measure of the level of scientific engagement. The empirical study presented here uses generalized linear mixed models with hierarchical bootstrapping to examine the factors that impact the means of dissemination of undergraduate research results. Focusing on the research experiences in physics and chemistry of undergraduates at four Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs) from 2004–2013, statistical analysis indicates that the gender of the student does not impact the number and type of research products. However, in chemistry, the rank of the faculty advisor and the venue of the presentation do impact the number of research products by undergraduate student, whereas in physics, gender match between student and advisor has an effect on the number of undergraduate research products. This study provides a baseline for future studies of discipline-based bibliometrics and factors that affect the number of research products of undergraduate students. PMID:29698502

Determining the Value of Undergraduate Business Programs from Market vs Academic Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Steven; Chi, Robert; Fisher, Dorothy; Kiang, Melody

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to generate an understanding of the value-added to students enrolled in selected undergraduate business programs from an academic and market perspectives. Although there are numerous studies that rank undergraduate colleges and universities, the selection of the "best value" undergraduate business…

Foreword to special issue: Papers from the 57th Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics, November 16–20, 2015, Savannah, Georgia, USA

DOE PAGES

Meyerhofer, D. D.; Mauel, M. E.

2016-05-18

The 57th annual meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics (DPP) was held November 16–20, 2015 in Savannah, Georgia. The meeting brings together researchers (undergraduate students through retirees) from all areas of plasma physics. 1887 abstracts were included in the program, approximately 200 more than the previous year. The presentations included five invited review talks, 97 invited talks, three invited postdeadline talks, and four tutorials. Furthermore, there were approximately 1780 contributed presentations, with about 40% oral and 60% poster. Three mini-conferences were held concurrently.

Foreword to special issue: Papers from the 57th Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics, November 16–20, 2015, Savannah, Georgia, USA

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

Meyerhofer, D. D.; Mauel, M. E.

The 57th annual meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics (DPP) was held November 16–20, 2015 in Savannah, Georgia. The meeting brings together researchers (undergraduate students through retirees) from all areas of plasma physics. 1887 abstracts were included in the program, approximately 200 more than the previous year. The presentations included five invited review talks, 97 invited talks, three invited postdeadline talks, and four tutorials. Furthermore, there were approximately 1780 contributed presentations, with about 40% oral and 60% poster. Three mini-conferences were held concurrently.

Teaching About the Brain and Reaching the Community: Undergraduates in the Pipeline Neuroscience Program at the University of Pennsylvania

PubMed Central

Edlow, Brian L.; Hamilton, Karen; Hamilton, Roy H.

2007-01-01

This article provides an overview of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine’s Pipeline Neuroscience Program, a multi-tiered mentorship and education program for Philadelphia high school students in which University of Pennsylvania undergraduates are integrally involved. The Pipeline Neuroscience Program provides mentorship and education for students at all levels. High school students are taught by undergraduates, who learn from medical students who, in turn, are guided by neurology residents and fellows. Throughout a semester-long course, undergraduates receive instruction in neuroanatomy, neuroscience, and clinical neurology as part of the Pipeline’s case-based curriculum. During weekly classes, undergraduates make the transition from students to community educators by integrating their new knowledge into lesson plans that they teach to small groups of medically and academically underrepresented Philadelphia high school students. The Pipeline program thus achieves the dual goals of educating undergraduates about neuroscience and providing them with an opportunity to perform community service. PMID:23493190

Climbing for credit: applying Kurt Hahn's principles for promoting holistic lifestyles.

PubMed

Brand, James; Kruczek, Nick; Shan, Kevin; Haraf, Paul; Simmons, Daniel E

2012-01-01

Climbing is a sport, a hobby, and metaphor for life's lessons. A climbing course for undergraduate students was designed on the basis of the principles of rock climber and educator Kurt Hahn, who transferred lessons learned from physical activity into lessons for life and whose philosophy underpins the Outward Bound program. Hahn's 10 principles for sound mind-body-spirit are described.

Faculty Motivation to Mentor Students through Undergraduate Research Programs: A Study of Enabling and Constraining Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morales, Danielle X.; Grineski, Sara E.; Collins, Timothy W.

2017-01-01

Undergraduate research experiences are a "high impact" educational practice that confer benefits to students. However, little attention has been paid to understanding faculty motivation to mentor undergraduate students through research training programs, even as the number of programs has grown, requiring increasing numbers of faculty…

Undergraduate Research Experience in Ocean/Marine Science (URE-OMS)

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-09-30

The URE-Ocean/Marine Science program supports active research participation by undergraduate students in remote sensing and GIS. The program is based on a model for undergraduate research programs supported by the National Science Foundation . URE project features mentors, research projects, and professional development opportunities. It is the long-term goal

Counseling Skills Pre-Practicum Training at Guidance and Counseling Undergraduate Programs: A Qualitative Investigation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aladag, Mine

2013-01-01

This study was aimed to describe counseling skills pre-practicum training at guidance and counseling undergraduate programs in Turkey. A descriptive study was conducted based upon qualitative data. The research group of this study consisted of 11 guidance and counseling undergraduate programs voluntarily participate into study. The Survey Form…

Engaging undergraduate students in hadron physics research and instrumentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horn, Tanja

2017-09-01

Nuclear physics research is fundamental to our understanding of the visible universe and at the same time intertwined with our daily life. Nuclear physics studies the origin and structure of the atomic nuclei in terms of their basic constituents, the quarks and gluons. Atoms and molecules would not exist without underlying quark-gluon interactions, which build nearly all the mass of the visible universe from an assembly of massless gluons and nearly-massless quarks. The study of hadron structure with electromagnetic probes through exclusive and semi-inclusive scattering experiments carried out at the 12 GeV Jefferson Laboratory plays an important role in this effort. In particular, planned precision measurements of pion and kaon form factors and longitudinal-transverse separated deep exclusive pion and kaon electroproduction cross sections to the highest momentum transfers achievable play an important role in understanding hadron structure and masses and provide essential constraints for 3D hadron imaging. While a growing fraction of nuclear physics research is carried out at large international laboratories, individual university research groups play critical roles in the success of that research. These include data analysis projects and the development of state-of-the-art instrumentation demanded by increasingly sophisticated experiments. These efforts are empowered by the creativity of university faculty, staff, postdocs, and provide students with unique hands-on experience. As an example, an aerogel Cherenkov detector enabling strangeness physics research in Hall C at Jefferson Lab was constructed at the Catholic University of America with the help of 16 undergraduate and high school students. The ''Conference Experience for Undergraduates'' (CEU) provides a venue for these students who have conducted research in nuclear physics. This presentation will present the experiences of one of the participants in the first years of the CEU, her current research program in hadronic physics, and her current and former students who have been participating in more recent CEU events. Supported in part by NSF Grants PHY1714133, PHY1306227 and PHY1306418.

Advancing Space Sciences through Undergraduate Research Experiences at UC Berkeley's Space Sciences Laboratory - a novel approach to undergraduate internships for first generation community college students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raftery, C. L.; Davis, H. B.; Peticolas, L. M.; Paglierani, R.

2015-12-01

The Space Sciences Laboratory at UC Berkeley launched an NSF-funded Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program in the summer of 2015. The "Advancing Space Sciences through Undergraduate Research Experiences" (ASSURE) program recruited heavily from local community colleges and universities, and provided a multi-tiered mentorship program for students in the fields of space science and engineering. The program was focussed on providing a supportive environment for 2nd and 3rd year undergraduates, many of whom were first generation and underrepresented students. This model provides three levels of mentorship support for the participating interns: 1) the primary research advisor provides academic and professional support. 2) The program coordinator, who meets with the interns multiple times per week, provides personal support and helps the interns to assimilate into the highly competitive environment of the research laboratory. 3) Returning undergraduate interns provided peer support and guidance to the new cohort of students. The impacts of this program on the first generation students and the research mentors, as well as the lessons learned will be discussed.

The Rewards of Research at an Undergraduate Institution and Lessons Learned in Building Detector Systems that Work

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isenhower, Donald

2015-04-01

This talk addresses primary lessons learned during 28 years of work leading to the awarding of this prize for work on designing, building and operating detectors, with most of the work involving over 150 undergraduates during this time period. There are a wide range of skills and knowledge to be learned if a young scientist is interested in following this career route, so the most important subset of these will be described. Part will be how to involve undergraduate students at their fullest potential, and important differences of ACU from many programs, which has led to collaborators to make inquiries as to when will the ``ACU Army'' arrive so that they can time when their detector components will be shipped to the experiments for the testing and setup to be handed over to these students. The size of the detectors constructed have varied from small hodoscopes to the world's largest active cathode strip chambers. The science knowledge needed for detector construction is extremely multidisciplinary, and this must be learned by the professor directing the work as they will not have an engineering or support staff to lean on usually. This will include fields often considered unimportant to physics; however, ignorance of them can lead to failure. Knowing the primary question to ask will show where a significant area of concern will lie in what is being done by a person, group or company on a subsystem for a detector. Textbook descriptions of detectors, electronics, and materials can lead young experimenters astray. It has been learning the correct, fundamental physical processes that determine actual detector performance that has allowed the awardee to make his most important contributions over many years of research. A final lesson to be described will be how to make your undergraduate research program self-sustaining, so that critical knowledge is not lost as students graduate. Research supported in part by grants from the U.S. DOE Office of Science, the NSF, and NATO.

Geoscience Education Programs in the NSF Division of Undergraduate Education: Different Acronyms with Similar Intent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singer, J.; Ryan, J. G.

2014-12-01

For the past three decades, the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE) has administered a succession of programs intended to improve undergraduate STEM education for all students. The IUSE (Improving Undergraduate STEM Education) program is the latest program in this succession, and reflects an expanded, NSF-wide effort to make sustainable improvements in STEM education on a national scale. The origins and thinking behind IUSE can be in part traced back to precursor programs including: ILI (Instrumentation and Laboratory Improvement), CCD (Course and Curriculum Development), UFE (Undergraduate Faculty Enhancement), CCLI (Course, Curriculum and Laboratory Improvement), and TUES (Transforming Undergraduate Education in STEM), all of which sought to support faculty efforts to investigate and improve curriculum and instructional practice in undergraduate STEM education, and to disseminate effective STEM educational practices for broad adoption. IUSE, like its predecessor programs, is open to all STEM fields, and as such is intended to support improvements in geoscience education, spanning the atmospheric, ocean, and Earth sciences, as well as in environmental science, GIS science, climate change and sustainability/resilience. An emphasis on discipline-based research on learning that had origins in the CCLI and TUES programs is a new priority area in IUSE, with the ambition that projects will take advantage of the integrated expertise of domain scientists, educational practioners, and experts in learning science. We trace and describe the history of undergraduate education efforts with an emphasis placed on the recently introduced IUSE program. Understanding the origin of DUE's IUSE program can provide insights for faculty interested in developing proposals for submission and gain a greater appreciation of trends and priorities within the division.

The Associations of Physical and Sexual Assault with Suicide Risk in Nonclinical Military and Undergraduate Samples

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryan, Craig J.; McNaugton-Cassill, Mary; Osman, Augustine; Hernandez, Ann Marie

2013-01-01

The associations of various forms of sexual and physical assault with a history of suicide attempts and recent suicide ideation were studied in two distinct samples: active duty military and undergraduate students. A total of 273 active duty Air Force personnel and 309 undergraduate students anonymously completed self-report surveys of assault…

Social Cognitive Perspective of Gender Disparities in Undergraduate Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly, Angela M.

2016-01-01

This article synthesizes sociopsychological theories and empirical research to establish a framework for exploring causal pathways and targeted interventions for the low representation of women in post-secondary physics. The rationale for this article is based upon disproportionate representation among undergraduate physics majors in the United…

Undergraduates Talk about Their Choice to Study Physics at University: What was Key to their Participation?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodd, Melissa; Reiss, Michael; Mujtaba, Tamjid

2013-01-01

Background: The research on which this article is based was commissioned because of concerns about perceived shortages of willing and able young people choosing to study physics at university. Purpose: This article reports on first year physics undergraduates' narratives of why they are studying physics and uses these narratives to identify…

Undergraduates talk about their choice to study physics at university: what was key to their participation?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodd, Melissa; Reiss, Michael; Mujtaba, Tamjid

2013-07-01

Background . The research on which this article is based was commissioned because of concerns about perceived shortages of willing and able young people choosing to study physics at university. Purpose This article reports on first year physics undergraduates' narratives of why they are studying physics and uses these narratives to identify reasons for their choice. Design and method Narrative-style interviewing with a purposive sample of first year undergraduates yielded data that revealed complexities around decision making, including choice of university course. Analysis of the texts was informed by psychoanalytical notions rooted in the work of Sigmund Freud. These psychoanalytical notions were used both in generating the interview data - the undergraduate volunteer interviewees were conceptualised as 'defended subjects' - and in analysing these interviews in order to conjecture how unconscious forces might figure in young people's decision making. Results After analysing the interviews with physics undergraduates, with respect to the question 'why are they reading physics?', the claim is that identification with a key adult is an important element in an individual's participation. On the other hand, we discerned no evidence that experience of the sorts of innovation typically designed to increase physics uptake - for example 'fun projects' or competitions - had been key with respect to a desire to read physics. Conclusion Attempts to recruit more students to university to study physics should note that a young person who identifies with a significant adult associated with physics, typically a teacher or family member, is in a good position to believe that physics is a subject that is worth studying.

Physics Enrollments in Two-Year Colleges: Results from the 2012 Survey of Physics in Two-Year Colleges. Focus On

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Susan; Chu, Raymond

2013-01-01

This "Focus On" first considers the role two-year colleges (TYCs) play in post-secondary physics education. In their 2007 Survey of Undergraduate Seniors in degree-granting physics departments, the authors asked students if they had begun their post-secondary education at a TYC. Nine percent of the physics undergraduate seniors in 2007…

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.

Physics in ;Real Life;: Accelerator-based Research with Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klay, J. L.

All undergraduates in physics and astronomy should have access to significant research experiences. When given the opportunity to tackle challenging open-ended problems outside the classroom, students build their problem-solving skills in ways that better prepare them for the workplace or future research in graduate school. Accelerator-based research on fundamental nuclear and particle physics can provide a myriad of opportunities for undergraduate involvement in hardware and software development as well as ;big data; analysis. The collaborative nature of large experiments exposes students to scientists of every culture and helps them begin to build their professional network even before they graduate. This paper presents an overview of my experiences - the good, the bad, and the ugly - engaging undergraduates in particle and nuclear physics research at the CERN Large Hadron Collider and the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center.

Predicting Physical Activity and Healthy Nutrition Behaviors Using Social Cognitive Theory: Cross-Sectional Survey among Undergraduate Students in Chongqing, China.

PubMed

Xu, Xianglong; Pu, Yang; Sharma, Manoj; Rao, Yunshuang; Cai, Yilin; Zhao, Yong

2017-11-05

(1) Background: Generally suggested public health measures to reduce obesity were to limit television (TV) viewing, enhance daily physical activities, enable the consumption of fruit and vegetables, and reduce sugar-sweetened beverage intake. This study analyzed the extent to which selected social cognitive theory constructs can predict these behaviors among Chinese undergraduate students. (2) Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1976 undergraduate students from six universities in Chongqing, China. A self-administered five-point Likert common physical activity and nutrition behavior scale based on social cognitive theory was utilized. (3) Results: This study included 687 (34.77%) males and 1289 (65.23%) females. A total of 60.14% of the students engaged in exercise for less than 30 min per day. Approximately 16.5%of the participants spent at least 4 h watching TV and sitting in front of a computer daily. Approximately 79% of the participants consumed less than five cups of fruit and vegetables daily. Undergraduate students who had high self-efficacy scores had more leisure time physical activities. Those who have high expectation scores had considerable time watching TV and sitting in front of a computer. Undergraduate students who had high expectation and self-efficacy scores had substantially low consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. Those who had high self-efficacy scores consumed considerable amounts of fruit and vegetables. Furthermore, the type of university, BMI group, gender, age, lack of siblings, and grade level were associated with the aforementioned four behaviors. (4) Conclusion: Physical inactivity and unhealthy nutrition behaviors are common among undergraduate students. This study used social cognitive theory to provide several implications for limiting the TV viewing, enhancing daily physical activities, consuming fruit and vegetables, and reducing sugar-sweetened beverage intake among undergraduate students.

Predicting Physical Activity and Healthy Nutrition Behaviors Using Social Cognitive Theory: Cross-Sectional Survey among Undergraduate Students in Chongqing, China

PubMed Central

Pu, Yang; Sharma, Manoj; Rao, Yunshuang; Cai, Yilin; Zhao, Yong

2017-01-01

(1) Background: Generally suggested public health measures to reduce obesity were to limit television (TV) viewing, enhance daily physical activities, enable the consumption of fruit and vegetables, and reduce sugar-sweetened beverage intake. This study analyzed the extent to which selected social cognitive theory constructs can predict these behaviors among Chinese undergraduate students. (2) Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1976 undergraduate students from six universities in Chongqing, China. A self-administered five-point Likert common physical activity and nutrition behavior scale based on social cognitive theory was utilized. (3) Results: This study included 687 (34.77%) males and 1289 (65.23%) females. A total of 60.14% of the students engaged in exercise for less than 30 min per day. Approximately 16.5% of the participants spent at least 4 h watching TV and sitting in front of a computer daily. Approximately 79% of the participants consumed less than five cups of fruit and vegetables daily. Undergraduate students who had high self-efficacy scores had more leisure time physical activities. Those who have high expectation scores had considerable time watching TV and sitting in front of a computer. Undergraduate students who had high expectation and self-efficacy scores had substantially low consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. Those who had high self-efficacy scores consumed considerable amounts of fruit and vegetables. Furthermore, the type of university, BMI group, gender, age, lack of siblings, and grade level were associated with the aforementioned four behaviors. (4) Conclusion: Physical inactivity and unhealthy nutrition behaviors are common among undergraduate students. This study used social cognitive theory to provide several implications for limiting the TV viewing, enhancing daily physical activities, consuming fruit and vegetables, and reducing sugar-sweetened beverage intake among undergraduate students. PMID:29113089

An Internship Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students in Polymer-Based Nanocomposites

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

Cebe,P.; Cherdack, D.; Guertin, R.

2006-01-01

We report on our summer internship program in Polymer-Based Nanocomposites, for deaf and hard of hearing undergraduates who engage in classroom and laboratory research work in polymer physics. The unique attributes of this program are its emphasis on: 1. Teamwork; 2. Performance of a start-to-finish research project; 3. Physics of materials approach; and 4. Diversity. Students of all disability levels have participated in this program, including students who neither hear nor voice. The classroom and laboratory components address the materials chemistry and physics of polymer-based nanocomposites, crystallization and melting of polymers, the interaction of X-rays and light with polymers, mechanicalmore » properties of polymers, and the connection between thermal processing, structure, and ultimate properties of polymers. A set of Best Practices is developed for accommodating deaf and hard of hearing students into the laboratory setting. The goal is to bring deaf and hard of hearing students into the larger scientific community as professionals, by providing positive scientific experiences at a formative time in their educational lives.« less

Nationwide Survey of the Undergraduate Physical Chemistry Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fox, Laura J.; Roehrig, Gillian H.

2015-01-01

A nationwide survey of the undergraduate physical chemistry course was conducted to investigate the depth and breadth of content that is covered, how content is delivered, how student understanding is assessed, and the experiences and beliefs of instructors. The survey was administered to instructors of physical chemistry (N = 331) at American…

Examining Problem Solving in Physics-Intensive Ph.D. Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leak, Anne E.; Rothwell, Susan L.; Olivera, Javier; Zwickl, Benjamin; Vosburg, Jarrett; Martin, Kelly Norris

2017-01-01

Problem-solving strategies learned by physics undergraduates should prepare them for real-world contexts as they transition from students to professionals. Yet, graduate students in physics-intensive research face problems that go beyond problem sets they experienced as undergraduates and are solved by different strategies than are typically…

Strengthening programs in science, engineering and mathematics. Third annual progress report

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

Sandhu, S.S.

1997-09-30

The Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at Claflin College consists of the Departments of Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Physics, Engineering and Mathematics. It offers a variety of major and minor academic programs designed to meet the mission and objectives of the college. The division`s pursuit to achieve excellence in science education is adversely impacted by the poor academic preparation of entering students and the lack of equipment, facilities and research participation, required to impart adequate academic training and laboratory skills to the students. Funds were received from the US Department of Energy to improve the divisional facilities and laboratorymore » equipment and establish mechanism at pre-college and college levels to increase (1) the pool of high school students who will enroll in Science and Mathematics courses (2) the pool of well qualified college freshmen who will seek careers in Science, Engineering and Mathematics (3) the graduation rate in Science,engineering and Mathematics at the undergraduate level and (4) the pool of well-qualified students who can successfully compete to enter the graduate schools of their choice in the fields of science, engineering, and mathematics. The strategies that were used to achieve the mentioned objectives include: (1) Improved Mentoring and Advisement, (2) Summer Science Camp for 7th and 8th graders, (3) Summer Research Internships for Claflin SEM Seniors, (4) Summer Internships for Rising High School Seniors, (5) Development of Mathematical Skills at Pre-college/Post-secondary Levels, (6) Expansion of Undergraduate Seminars, (7) Exposure of Undergraduates to Guest Speakers/Roll Models, (8) Visitations by Undergraduate Students to Graduate Schools, and (9) Expanded Academic Program in Environmental Chemistry.« less

A New Norm: Using Social Science to Create Disruptive Innovations for Broadening Participation in Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Jessi L.

2016-03-01

Norms often operate outside conscious awareness and limit broad participation in physics and STEM fields more generally. This presentation identifies several of these norms and provides empirically tested disruptions at three academic points: faculty, graduate, and undergraduate. First, is a focus on broadening the participation of women science faculty through an intervention aimed at supporting faculty search committees. Using a randomized control trail design, results show searches in the intervention were 6.3 times more likely to make an offer to a woman candidate, and these women were 5.8 times more likely to accept the offer from an intervention search. A diverse faculty can help disrupt the norms of their field's understanding about brilliance and effort, which can appeal to -or repel- potential graduate students. Using a randomized control trial design, recruitment materials for a science graduate program were manipulated to emphasize effort versus innate ability as the norm. Results show emphasizing effort as normal to achieve success in the male-dominated graduate program elevated women's motivation to purse and persist in graduate studies. Of course, before a student will consider graduate school, they must see themselves as a scientist. Data from a survey at three universities showed undergraduate women in physics lab classes were less likely to identify as a scientist when they were concerned about being stereotyped and could not see how physics was useful or helpful to society. Identifying and disrupting social norms can help create an inclusive learning and working context with far-reaching benefits. National Science Foundation Award HRD-1208831 and HRD-1036767.

Diagnostic Tests for Entering and Departing Undergraduate Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waltham, Chris; Kotlicki, A.

2006-12-01

A diagnostic test administered at the start of a class should test basic concepts which are recognized as course prerequisites. The questions should not be over-packaged: e.g. students should be required to create models, rather than this being done for them each time. Students should be allowed great latitude in their answers, so we can discover what they are thinking. When administered at the end of a class the goals should be similar: testing concepts taught in the class itself and the retention of necessary concepts from previous classes. Great care has to be taken to avoid teaching to the test. In assessing an entire program, for example an undergraduate majors degree in physics, then one looks for very general skills and knowledge not specific to any one course. The purpose of an undergraduate degree in physics (or indeed any science) is to equip the students with a set of problem-solving skills and basic knowledge which can be applied in a large variety of workplace settings and to allow that student to contribute to civic society as a science-literate person. The creator of any diagnostic test should always have these big goals in mind. We have developed a set of questions which we think fulfill these criteria, yet are not specific to any particular level of science education. They have been administered to students in secondary schools across Canada, incoming first-year science students and final-year physics students at the University of British Columbia. The results will be presented.

Recruitment Strategies Aiming to Attract Females into Undergraduate Engineering Programs: Examining Their Role and Use

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howenstine, Julie Anne

2013-01-01

By 2009, the percentage of women who graduated with general undergraduate degrees had increased to almost 58% of all students who completed 4-year degree programs (National Center for Education Statistics, 2009a). These percentages, however, have not been reflected in the enrollment rates of females into undergraduate engineering programs. In…

Undergraduates' Perceived Gains and Ideas about Teaching and Learning Science from Participating in Science Education Outreach Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carpenter, Stacey L.

2015-01-01

This study examined what undergraduate students gain and the ideas about science teaching and learning they develop from participating in K-12 science education outreach programs. Eleven undergraduates from seven outreach programs were interviewed individually about their experiences with outreach and what they learned about science teaching and…

The Physics of Life: A Biophysics Course for Non-science Major Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parthasarathy, Raghuveer

2014-03-01

Enhancing the scientific literacy of non-scientists is an important goal, both because of the ever-increasing impact of science and technology on people's lives, and because understanding contemporary science enables enriching insights into the workings of nature. One route to improving scientific literacy is via general education undergraduate courses - i.e. courses intended for students not majoring in the sciences or engineering - which in many cases provide these students' last formal exposure to science. I describe here a course on biophysics for non-science-major undergraduates recently developed at the University of Oregon. Biophysics, I claim, is a particularly useful vehicle for addressing scientific literacy. It involves important and general scientific concepts, demonstrates connections between basic science and tangible, familiar phenomena related to health and disease, and illustrates how scientific insights proceed not in predictable paths, but rather by applying tools and perspectives from disparate fields in creative ways. In addition, it highlights the far-reaching impact of physics research. I describe the general design of this course and the specific content of a few of its modules, as well as noting aspects of enrollment and evaluation. This work is affiliated with the University of Oregon's Science Literacy Program, supported by a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Growing Physics and Astronomy at James Madison University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whisnant, C. Steven

2010-02-01

James Madison University is a public, primarily undergraduate institution with a student enrollment of over 18,000. We have a 10.8% minority population and a 60:40 female/male ratio. Drawing 29% of its students from other states, JMU serves a diverse student body. Since the mid '90's, the Department of Physics and Astronomy has grown to 110 majors. There are 15 tenured/tenure-track and 6 non-tenure-track full-time faculty in the department. Graduation rates have grown from five or fewer/year to typically 15-20/year. Eleven faculty are currently engaged in externally funded research with undergraduates. In the 2007-2008 academic year, 45 students were engaged in research. We produced a total of 89 publications and presentations that included 27 students as authors or co-authors. The growth of our department over the last decade is due to a variety of reforms. Foremost among the changes under the control of the department are the initiation of our multi-track BS and BA degree programs and a renewed focus on undergraduate research. These and other significant factors contributing to our success such as student recruiting, outreach, teaching and research integration/balance, promotion of a department culture, visibility on-and off-campus, and university support will be discussed. )

What Does a Physics Undergraduate Education Give You? A Perspective from Australian Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharma, Manjula; Pollard, Judith; Mendez, Alberto; Mills, David; O'Byrne, John; Scott, Dale; Hagon, Sue; Gribble, Joan; Kirkup, Les; Livett, Michelle; Low, David; Merchant, Alex; Rayner, Anton; Swan, Geoff; Zadnik, Marjan; Zealey, Willam

2008-01-01

In a study to assess how effectively undergraduate physics studies have prepared students for the workplace, we attempted to locate and interview traditional 3-year or 4-year physics students who had graduated in the past five years (2000 to 2004), and the employers of these graduates. The study was limited to recent graduates who have majored in…

Tsinghua-Johns Hopkins Joint Center for Biomedical Engineering Research: scientific and cultural exchange in undergraduate engineering.

PubMed

Wisneski, Andrew D; Huang, Lixia; Hong, Bo; Wang, Xiaoqin

2011-01-01

A model for an international undergraduate biomedical engineering research exchange program is outlined. In 2008, the Johns Hopkins University in collaboration with Tsinghua University in Beijing, China established the Tsinghua-Johns Hopkins Joint Center for Biomedical Engineering Research. Undergraduate biomedical engineering students from both universities are offered the opportunity to participate in research at the overseas institution. Programs such as these will not only provide research experiences for undergraduates but valuable cultural exchange and enrichment as well. Currently, strict course scheduling and rigorous curricula in most biomedical engineering programs may present obstacles for students to partake in study abroad opportunities. Universities are encouraged to harbor abroad opportunities for undergraduate engineering students, for which this particular program can serve as a model.

SPS Internship: Working With Physics To Go

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hancock, Logan

2008-10-01

The Physics To Go website (www.physicstogo.com) is one of many collections of ComPADRE, an online library of electronic resources devoted to physics and astronomy education, funded by the National Science Foundation. Physics To Go, produced by the American Physical Society (APS), is a collection focused on informal physics learning, targeted towards self-motivated learners and the general public. My contributions to the site this summer consisted of obtaining useful materials to add to the collection and working to update the homepage's ``mini-magazine'' every two weeks. I was selected for this position at APS by the Society of Physics Students (SPS) summer internship program, hosted by the American Institute of Physics (AIP) in College Park, MD. This internship is presented to a number of physics undergraduates each year and offers opportunities in research and science policy/outreach positions at SPS, APS, AAPT, NASA, and NIST.

Collaborative, Early-undergraduate-focused REU Programs at Savannah State University have been Vital to Growing a Demographically Diverse Ocean Science Community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gilligan, M. R.; Cox, T. M.; Hintz, C. J.

2011-12-01

Formal support for undergraduates to participate in marine/ocean science research at Savannah State University (SSU), a historically-Black unit of the University System of Georgia, began in 1989 with funding from the National Science Foundation for an unsolicited proposal (OCE-8919102, 34,935). Today SSU, which has offered B.S degrees since 1979 and M.S. degrees since 2001 in Marine Sciences, is making major contributions nationally to demographic diversity in ocean sciences. 33% of Master's degrees in marine/ocean sciences earned by African Americans in the U.S. from 2004-2007 were earned at SSU. 10% of African American Master's and Doctoral students in marine/ ocean sciences in 2007 were either enrolled in the Master's program at SSU or were former SSU students enrolled in Doctoral programs elsewhere. Collaborative REU programs that focus on early (freshman and sophomore) undergraduate students have been a consistent and vital part of that success. In the most recent iteration of our summer REU program we used six of the best practices outlined in the literature to increase success and retention of underrepresented minority students in STEM fields: early intervention, strong mentoring, research experience, career counseling, financial support, workshops and seminars. The early intervention with strong mentoring has proven successful in several metrics: retention in STEM majors (96%), progression to graduate school (50%), and continuation to later research experiences (75%). Research mentors include faculty at staff at SSU, the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary and Georgia Tech-Savannah. Formal collaborative and cooperative agreements, externally-funded grants, and contracts in support of student research training have proven to be critical in providing resources for growth and improvement marine science curricular options at the University. Since 1981 the program has had four formal partnerships and 36 funded grant awards and contracts totaling 11.7 million. HBCUs are disproportionately more effective in training significant numbers of African American students in the sciences. Although they enrolled only 11.1% of African-American undergraduates and 9.4% of African American graduate students in fall 2007 in the U.S., they awarded 33.3% of undergraduate and 24% of master's degrees earned by African-Americans in Biological, biomedical and, physical sciences, and science technologies in 2006 and 2007. Commitments to the development of non-traditional academic and research programs at HBCUs and other minority serving institutions should be expanded to increase demographic diversity in the ocean sciences.

Losing and Saving and Losing Physics in Texas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marder, Michael

2015-03-01

Texas has the second-largest population of the states, and played even a larger role in education reform movements of the past 15 years than its size would indicate. In the Fall of 2011, physicists across the country were surprised to learn that six university physics programs in Texas were threatened with closure because of small graduation numbers. Five of them ultimately closed. Many of the faculty at the institutions losing programs came together and formed a consortium that eventually made it possible to continue offering physics,by unconventional means, to their undergraduates. In the Spring of 2013 came an even larger change. Physics had been part of the recommended high school graduation plan in Texas. As part of a bill making sweeping changes to high school graduation requirements and accountability, the physics requirement was removed. Physics may partly be falling victim to the national focus on STEM, which suggests that the various disciplines of science are interchangeable and not individually important. None of the changes in Texas are hard to imagine coming to other states as well.

A qualitative examination of perceptions of physical activity guidelines and preferences for format.

PubMed

Berry, Tanya R; Witcher, Chad; Holt, Nicholas L; Plotnikoff, Ronald C

2010-11-01

A descriptive exploratory study was conducted to gain an understanding of public perceptions of physical activity guidelines and to discover what formats appeal to participants. Canada's Physical Activity Guide (CPAG) was used as an example of such guidelines. Data were collected from 22 participants in five focus groups (composed of female undergraduate students, female office workers, male office workers, participants in a Type II diabetes rehabilitation program, and participants in a cardiovascular rehabilitation program). Cross-case qualitative analyses were conducted. Six themes emerged under the general categories of familiarity and preferences for PA promotional materials. In terms of familiarity, participants lacked awareness of CPAG and criticized its format. In terms of preferences, participants encouraged the use of stylistically similar messaging to those used by commercial advertisers, wanted personal stories, Internet-based media, and the use of celebrities' success stories. There was little awareness of CPAG and the current format was unappealing.

Expressive writing promotes self-reported physical, social and psychological health among Chinese undergraduates.

PubMed

Yang, Zhihan; Tang, Xiaoqing; Duan, Wenjie; Zhang, Yonghong

2015-03-01

The present study examines the efficacy of expressive writing among Chinese undergraduates. The sample comprised of 74 undergraduates enrolled in a 9-week intervention (35 in experimental class vs. 39 in control class). The writing exercises were well-embedded in an elective course for the two classes. The 46-item simplified Chinese Self-Rated Health Measurement Scale, which assesses psychological, physical and social health, was adopted to measure the outcome of this study. Baseline (second week) and post-test (ninth week) scores were obtained during the classes. After the intervention on the eighth week, the self-reported psychological, social and physical health of the experimental class improved. Psychological health obtained the maximum degree of improvement, followed by social and physical health. Furthermore, female participants gained more psychological improvement than males. These results demonstrated that the expressive writing approach could improve the physical, social and psychological health of Chinese undergraduates, and the method can be applied in university psychological consulting settings in Mainland China. © 2014 International Union of Psychological Science.

Medical Physics Education at the University of Novi Sad - Serbia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanković, Slobodanka; Vesković, Miroslav; Klisurić, Olivera; Spasić, Vesna

2007-04-01

Overview of new educational program and training in Medical Physics at the University of Novi Sad is presented, where the medical physics education from undergraduate to doctoral study is established in the last decade. Necessity for basic and additional education and hospital training for medical physicists becomes the evident subject in clinical practice in which physicists and physicians are in close collaboration to ensure high quality of patient care. Learning objectives: to incorporate the latest scientific and professional findings in the field of medical physics, medical diagnostics, therapy and instruments; to accomodate students' pursuits of individual fields by offering elective courses from different areas of current medical practice; to reflect the multidisciplinary spirit of the studies, since teaching is performed by experts from diverse fields.

Informal science participation positively affects the communication and pedagogical skills of university physics students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hinko, Kathleen; Finkelstein, Noah

2013-04-01

Many undergraduate and graduate physics students choose to participate in an informal science program at the University of Colorado Boulder (Partnerships for Informal Science Education in the Community (PISEC)). They coach elementary and middle school students in inquiry-based physics activities during weekly, afterschool sessions. Observations from the afterschool sessions, field notes from the students, and pre/post surveys are collected. University students are also pre/post- videotaped explaining a textbook passage on a physics concept to an imagined audience for the Communications in Everyday Language assessment (CELA). We present findings from these data that indicate informal experiences improve the communication and pedagogical skills of the university student as well as positively influence their self-efficacy as scientific communicators and teachers.

HBCU Summer Undergraduate Training Program in Prostate Cancer: A Partnership Between USU-CPDR and UDC

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-10-02

conferences. 3 BODY Task 1: Selection Process: USU-CPDR summer internship program announcements for 2015 were made at the UDC through...AD_________________ Award Number: W81XWH-14-2-0142 TITLE: HBCU Summer Undergraduate Training Program in Prostate Cancer: A Partnership Between...DATES COVERED (From - To) 30 Sep 2014 - 29 Sep 2015 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE: HBCU Summer Undergraduate Training Program in Prostate Cancer: A Partnership

Current Mexican-American and Chicano Studies Undergraduate College Programs in the United States.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jaramillo, James A.

This study conducted a library literature search of college guides, directories, and catalogs to determine the number of undergraduate level Chicano/a Studies and Mexican-American Studies programs in the U.S. The analysis found that there were 76 undergraduate programs in these fields, including 20 at two-year colleges and 56 at four-year…

Students' Understanding of Mathematical Expressions in Physical Chemistry Contexts: An Analysis Using Sherin's Symbolic Forms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Becker, Nicole; Towns, Marcy

2012-01-01

Undergraduate physical chemistry courses require students to be proficient in calculus in order to develop an understanding of thermodynamics concepts. Here we present the findings of a study that examines student understanding of mathematical expressions, including partial derivative expressions, in two undergraduate physical chemistry courses.…

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.

Overview of the University of Washington's Pre-Major in Astronomy Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haggard, Daryl; Pre-Major in Astronomy Program

2015-01-01

The fraction of science PhDs awarded to women, African American, Latino, and other minority students is currently far smaller than the fraction of the general population that these groups constitute (NSF 06-320, NSF 04-317). The future of Physics and Astronomy in the United States depends on recruiting and retaining these students in STEM majors and careers (Norman et al., 2009). The greatest obstacles for persistence in science reported by students are loss of interest, intimidation, poor advising, and lack of acceptance (Seymour & Hewitt, 1997). In 2005, a group of University of Washington graduate students created the Pre-Major in Astronomy Program (Pre-MAP) to connect incoming undergraduate students to authentic research experiences as a means of recruiting and retaining them in STEM. Pre-MAP was one of only 13 initiatives supported by the President's Diversity Appraisal Implementation Fund and has proved to be one of its greatest success stories. At its core is a 10-week seminar in which undergraduates learn astronomical research techniques (e.g., computing, data analysis, documentation, statistics, and literature review) and apply them to projects conducted in small groups, under the supervision of faculty and postdocs. Now in its tenth year, Pre-MAP has engaged more than 100 undergraduates — its ongoing success has made it a model for similar programs at UW and other universities.I will outline the beginnings, funding streams, and structure of this long-running diversity program. The Pre-MAP sessions that follow will highlight our best practices and lessons learned, and feature first-hand accounts from several of our fantastic Pre-MAP alumni.

Educational aspects of molecular simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, Michael P.

This article addresses some aspects of teaching simulation methods to undergraduates and graduate students. Simulation is increasingly a cross-disciplinary activity, which means that the students who need to learn about simulation methods may have widely differing backgrounds. Also, they may have a wide range of views on what constitutes an interesting application of simulation methods. Almost always, a successful simulation course includes an element of practical, hands-on activity: a balance always needs to be struck between treating the simulation software as a 'black box', and becoming bogged down in programming issues. With notebook computers becoming widely available, students often wish to take away the programs to run themselves, and access to raw computer power is not the limiting factor that it once was; on the other hand, the software should be portable and, if possible, free. Examples will be drawn from the author's experience in three different contexts. (1) An annual simulation summer school for graduate students, run by the UK CCP5 organization, in which practical sessions are combined with an intensive programme of lectures describing the methodology. (2) A molecular modelling module, given as part of a doctoral training centre in the Life Sciences at Warwick, for students who might not have a first degree in the physical sciences. (3) An undergraduate module in Physics at Warwick, also taken by students from other disciplines, teaching high performance computing, visualization, and scripting in the context of a physical application such as Monte Carlo simulation.

Pathway to STEM: Using Outreach Initiatives as a Method of Identifying, Educating and Recruiting the Next Generation of Scientists and Engineers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ortiz-Arias, Deedee; Zwicker, Andrew; Dominguez, Arturo; Greco, Shannon

2017-10-01

The Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) uses a host of outreach initiatives to inform the general population: the Young Women's Conference, Science Bowl, Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship, My Brother's Keeper, a variety of workshops for university faculty and undergraduate students, public and scheduled lab tours, school and community interactive plasma science demonstrations. In addition to informing and educating the public about the laboratory's important work in the areas of Plasma and Fusion, these outreach initiatives, are also used as an opportunity to identify/educate/recruit the next generation of the STEM workforce. These programs provide the laboratory with the ability to: engage the next generation at different paths along their development (K-12, undergraduate, graduate, professional), at different levels of scientific content (science demonstrations, remote experiments, lectures, tours), in some instances, targeting underrepresented groups in STEM (women and minorities), and train additional STEM educators to take learned content into their own classrooms.

Undergraduate Research as Engaged Student Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wolf, Lorraine W.

2018-01-01

This chapter discusses the impact of undergraduate research as a form of engaged student learning. It summarizes the gains reported in post-fellowship assessment essays acquired from students participating in the Auburn University Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program. The chapter also discusses the program's efforts to increase opportunities…

Program Setup Time and Learning Curves associated with "ready to fly" Drone Mapping Hardware and Software.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilcox, T.

2016-12-01

How quickly can students (and educators) get started using a "ready to fly" UAS and popular publicly available photogrammetric mapping software for student research at the undergraduate level? This poster presentation focuses on the challenges of starting up your own drone-mapping program for undergraduate research in a compressed timescale of three months. Particular focus will be given to learning the operation of the platforms, hardware and software interface challenges, and using these electronic systems in real-world field settings that pose a range of physical challenges to both operators and equipment. We will be using a combination of the popular DJI Phantom UAS and Pix4D mapping software to investigate mass wasting processes and potential hazards present in public lands popular with recreational users. Projects are aimed at characterizing active geological hazards that operate on short timescales and may include gully headwall erosion in Flaming Geyser State Park and potential landslide instability within Capital State Forest, both in the Puget Sound region of Washington State.

DEEP: Discover, Explore, and Enjoy Physics & Engineering via High Impact Educational Experiences at Texas A&M and Beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erukhimova, Tatiana; Fry, Edward

2014-03-01

We will present the first results of an innovative program at Texas A&M University that aims to enhance the learning and research experiences of undergraduate and graduate students through their participation in high-profile outreach activities: principally the Texas A&M Physics and Engineering Festival and the Physics Shows. The goals are to enhance students' knowledge of fundamental physics concepts through collaborative hands-on research and educational activities, to teach them effective communication skills and responsibility, and to enhance their opportunities for interactions with their peers and professors outside the classroom. The program activities include (i) students working side-by-side with their peers and professors on research, concept, design, and fabrication of physics demonstration experiments, (ii) presentation of these exhibits during the Festival and Shows in teams of several students and faculty members, (iii) assessment of students teamwork, and (iv) incorporation of new demonstrations in core curriculum classes. Texas A&M Physics and Engineering Festival is a major annual outreach event at TAMU attracting over 4000 visitors and featuring over 100 interactive exhibits, public lectures by prominent scientists, and various hands-on activities. This program is supported by Tier One Grant from Texas A&M University.

DoD Educational Intervention Programs for Scientists and Engineers.

DTIC Science & Technology

1995-10-01

Nabeel , ed. The Condition of Education: 1993. Washington, D.C.: U.S.Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES 93-290), p...Naval Facilities I Undergraduate Academic Program Undergraduate Navy Naval Ocean Sy Cooperative Education Program (COOP) Undergraduate Navy Naval... Nabeel , ed. The Condition of Education: 1993. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES 93-290

An Undergraduate Research Experience on Studying Variable Stars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amaral, A.; Percy, J. R.

2016-06-01

We describe and evaluate a summer undergraduate research project and experience by one of us (AA), under the supervision of the other (JP). The aim of the project was to sample current approaches to analyzing variable star data, and topics related to the study of Mira variable stars and their astrophysical importance. This project was done through the Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) in astronomy at the University of Toronto. SURP allowed undergraduate students to explore and learn about many topics within astronomy and astrophysics, from instrumentation to cosmology. SURP introduced students to key skills which are essential for students hoping to pursue graduate studies in any scientific field. Variable stars proved to be an excellent topic for a research project. For beginners to independent research, it introduces key concepts in research such as critical thinking and problem solving, while illuminating previously learned topics in stellar physics. The focus of this summer project was to compare observations with structural and evolutionary models, including modelling the random walk behavior exhibited in the (O-C) diagrams of most Mira stars. We found that the random walk could be modelled by using random fluctuations of the period. This explanation agreed well with observations.

The Undergraduate Research Resources at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cline, J. Donald; Castelaz, Michael W.

2016-01-01

Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI), a former NASA tracking station located in western North Carolina, has been offering programs, campus, and instrument use for undergraduate research and learning experiences since 2000. Over these years, PARI has collaborated with universities and colleges in the Southeastern U.S. Sharing its campus with institutions of higher learning is a priority for PARI as part of its mission to "to providing hands-on educational and research opportunities for a broad cross-section of users in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines."PARI is a 200 acre campus for environmental, earth, geological, physical, and astronomical sciences. For example, the PARI 26-m and 4.6-m radio telescopes are excellent for teaching electromagnetic theory, spectroscopy, atomic and molecular emission processes, and general physics and astronomy concepts. The PARI campus has lab and office space, data centers with high speed internet, distance learning capabilities, radio and optical telescopes, earth science sensors, housing and cafeteria.Also, the campus is in an excellent spot for environmental and biological sciences lab and classroom experiences for students. The campus has the capability to put power and Internet access almost anywhere on its 200 acre campus so experiments can be set up in a protected area of a national forest. For example, Earthscope operates a Plate Boundary Observatory sensor on campus to measure plate tectonic motion. And, Clemson University has an instrument measuring winds and temperatures in the Thermsophere. The use of thePARI campus is limited only by the creativity faculty to provide a rich educational environment for their students. An overview of PARI will be presented along with a summary of programs, and a summary of undergraduate research experiences over the past 15 years. Access to PARI and collaboration possibilities will be presented.

The Health Frontiers in Tijuana Undergraduate Internship Program: A Novel Global Health Experience in Mexico for Pre-medical/Pre-health Undergraduates.

PubMed

Burgos, Jose L; Yee, Daniel C; Vargas-Ojeda, Adriana Carolina; Ojeda, Victoria D

2016-01-01

We describe the creation of the Health Frontiers in Tijuana (HFiT) Undergraduate Internship Program (UIP), a novel global health experience for U.S. and Mexican undergraduate students based at the binational HFiT student-run free clinic. The UIP introduces students to a diverse underserved patient population, and U.S.-Mexico border public health.

Pharmacology and biochemistry undergraduate students' concern for a healthy diet and nutrition knowledge.

PubMed

Bernardes Spexoto, Maria Claudia; Garcia Ferin, Giovana; Duarte Bonini Campos, Juliana Alvares

2015-04-01

To estimate the concern for a healthy diet and the nutrition knowledge of undergraduate students of a pharmacology and biochemistry program and their associations with the variables of interest. This cross-sectional study administered the Nutrition Knowledge Scale and the How is your diet? questionnaire to 381 students. The associations between concern for a healthy diet and nutrition knowledge and between these two factors and the demographic variables were measured by the chi-square test (χ2) or Fisher's exact test. The significance level was set at 5%. The mean age of the students was 20.6 (standard deviation [SD] = 2.7) years; 78.2% were female students; their mean body mass index was 22.6 (SD = 3.7) kg/m²; and 73.5% had an appropriate body mass index-related nutritional status. Most students fell within the category "pay attention to your diet" (77.1%) and "moderate nutrition knowledge" (79.7%). Concern for a healthy diet was significantly associated with program year (p = 0.024), socioeconomic class (p = 0.012), and physical activity (p <0.001). Nutrition knowledge was associated only with program year (p < 0.001). Concern for a healthy diet was not associated with nutrition knowledge (p = 0.808). Physically inactive, first-year students from socioeconomic class B (US$ 1,046 - 1,872) were less concerned with a healthy diet. Such concern was not related to the students' nutrition knowledge. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

Advantages and Challenges of Using Physics Curricula as a Model for Reforming an Undergraduate Biology Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Donovan, D. A.; Atkins, L. J.; Salter, I. Y.; Gallagher, D. J.; Kratz, R. F.; Rousseau, J. V.; Nelson, G. D.

2013-01-01

We report on the development of a life sciences curriculum, targeted to undergraduate students, which was modeled after a commercially available physics curriculum and based on aspects of how people learn. Our paper describes the collaborative development process and necessary modifications required to apply a physics pedagogical model in a life…

Physics and Astronomy Senior Report: Class of 1998. AIP Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neuschatz, Michael; Mulvey, Patrick J.; Nicholson, Starr

This report provides data on students earning physics and astronomy bachelor's degrees for the 1997-98 academic year. The report notes that: (1) after many years of steady decline, the number of undergraduates earning physics bachelor's degrees has stabilized, with 3,821 degrees awarded in l997-98; (2) declines in undergraduate degrees persist at…

Report of the Polymer Core Course Committee: Polymer Principles in the Undergraduate Physical Chemistry Course, Part 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Journal of Chemical Education, 1985

1985-01-01

Demonstrates, with a set of definitive examples, how polymer principles can be introduced into the first undergraduate physical chemistry course in a very natural way. The intent is to encourage introduction of polymer-related material into conventional physical chemistry courses without sacrificing any rigor associated with such courses. (JN)

Prospective Elementary Teachers' Analysis of Children's Science Talk in an Undergraduate Physics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harlow, Danielle B.; Swanson, Lauren H.; Otero, Valerie K.

2014-01-01

We investigated how prospective teachers used physics content knowledge when analyzing the talk of elementary children during special activities in an undergraduate physics content course designed for prospective teachers. We found that prospective teachers used content knowledge to reflect on their own learning and to identify students'…

Big Physics at Small Places: The Mongol Horde Model of Undergraduate Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Voss, Philip J.; Finck, Joseph E.; Howes, Ruth H.; Brown, James; Baumann, Thomas; Schiller, Andreas; Thoennessen, Michael; DeYoung, Paul A.; Peaslee, Graham F.; Hinnefeld, Jerry; Luther, Bryan; Pancella, Paul V.; Rogers, Warren F.

2008-01-01

A model for engaging undergraduates in cutting-edge experimental nuclear physics research at a national user facility is discussed. Methods to involve students and examples of their success are presented. (Contains 2 figures and 3 tables.)

University of Maryland MRSEC - Research: Highlights

Science.gov Websites

; National Labs International Educational Education Pre-College Programs Homeschool Programs Undergraduate Perspective at UMD MRSEC Nanoscience Camp Annual Middle School Student Science Conference (SSC) Pre ) Activities UMD-MRSEC Research Experience for Undergraduates Program (REU) Pre-Engineering Program

Interdisciplinary training in mathematical biology through team-based undergraduate research and courses.

PubMed

Miller, Jason E; Walston, Timothy

2010-01-01

Inspired by BIO2010 and leveraging institutional and external funding, Truman State University built an undergraduate program in mathematical biology with high-quality, faculty-mentored interdisciplinary research experiences at its core. These experiences taught faculty and students to bridge the epistemological gap between the mathematical and life sciences. Together they created the infrastructure that currently supports several interdisciplinary courses, an innovative minor degree, and long-term interdepartmental research collaborations. This article describes how the program was built with support from the National Science Foundation's Interdisciplinary Training for Undergraduates in Biology and Mathematics program, and it shares lessons learned that will help other undergraduate institutions build their own program.

Integrating Research and Extension for the Nsf-Reu Program in Water Resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Judge, J.; Migliaccio, K.; Gao, B.; Shukla, S.; Ehsani, R.; McLamore, E.

2011-12-01

Providing positive and meaningful research experiences to students in their undergraduate years is critical for motivating them to pursue advanced degrees or research careers in science and engineering. Such experiences not only offer training for the students in problem solving and critical thinking via hands-on projects, but also offer excellent mentoring and recruiting opportunities for the faculty advisors. The goal of the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Program in the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department (ABE) at the University of Florida (UF) is to provide eight undergraduate students a unique opportunity to conduct research in water resources using interdisciplinary approaches, integrating research and extension. The students are selected from diverse cultural and educational backgrounds. The eight-week REU Program utilizes the extensive infrastructure of UF - Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) through the Research and Education Centers (RECs). Two students are paired to participate in their own project under the direct supervision of one of the four research mentors. Four of the eight students are located at the main campus, in Gainesville, Fl, and four remaining students are located off-campus, at the RECs, where some of the ABE faculty are located. The students achieve an enriching cohort experience through social networking, daily blogs, and weekly video conferences to share their research and other REU experiences. The students are co-located during the Orientation week and also during the 5-day Florida Waters Tour. Weekly group meetings and guest lectures are conducted via synchronously through video conferencing. The integration of research and extension is naturally achieved through the projects at the RECs, the guest lectures, Extension workshops, and visits to the Water Management Districts in Florida. In the last two years of the Program, we have received over 80 applicants, from four-year and advanced degree offering institutions and a variety of majors such as Geology, Meteorology, Environmental Sciences & Engineering, Civil Engineering, Water Resources, Agricultural Engineering, Physics, Geography, Chemical Engineering, to name a few. This model of providing integrated research and extension opportunities in hydrology where not all the REU participants are physically co-located, is unique and can be extended to other disciplines.

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.

Intimate examination teaching with volunteers: implementation and assessment at the University of Antwerp.

PubMed

Hendrickx, Kristin; De Winter, Benedicte Y; Wyndaele, Jean-Jacques; Tjalma, Wiebren A A; Debaene, Luc; Selleslags, Bert; Mast, Frieda; Buytaert, Philippe; Bossaert, Leo

2006-10-01

Teaching intimate physical examinations in medical schools generates practical, didactical and ethical problems. At the University of Antwerp, a unique program with intimate examination assistants (IEA) was implemented for fifth year's undergraduate students. They learn gynaecological and urological skills in healthy volunteers. Technical, communicative and attitude aspects are taken into account. Description of the implementation of the project. Assessment of the project by questionnaires, written reflections and round table conferences. The results provide detailed information about the student's perceptions of each component of the program as well as the perceptions of the IEA's and the teachers. The multilevel evaluation of the program supports the surplus value of working with IEA's in medical education. The eye-catcher in this program is the integration of clinical skills with communicative skills and attention for students' attitude. Working with IEA's for intimate examinations represents a benefit in medical education by lowering the student's threshold to perform the intimate physical examination on both men and women during their fulltime clerkships.

The Trouble with Online Undergraduate Business Degrees In Traditional Regional Universities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, M. Keith

2014-01-01

Because of the surging demand for undergraduate business degrees and the increasing availability of effective online educational content, many traditional regional universities have added, or are now considering adding, online undergraduate business degree programs to their classroom programs. Through a review of the literature bearing on that…

Teaching Undergraduate Research: The One-Room Schoolhouse Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henderson, LaRhee; Buising, Charisse; Wall, Piper

2008-01-01

Undergraduate research in the biochemistry, cell, and molecular biology program at Drake University uses apprenticeship, cooperative-style learning, and peer mentoring in a cross-disciplinary and cross-community educational program. We call it the one-room schoolhouse approach to teaching undergraduate research. This approach is cost effective,…

HBCU Summer Undergraduate Training Program in Prostate Cancer: A Partnership Between USU-CPDR and UDC

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-10-01

Award Number: W81XWH-14-2-0142 TITLE: HBCU Summer Undergraduate Training Program in Prostate Cancer : A Partnership Between USU-CPDR and UDC... Cancer : A Partnership Between USU-CPDR and UDC 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER: 5b. GRANT NUMBER: W81XWH-14-2-0142 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER: 6. AUTHOR(S...second year of the award (2016), 4 meritorious students were selected under HBCU Summer Undergraduate Training Program in Prostate Cancer by USU-CPDR

Making a Difference in Science Education: The Impact of Undergraduate Research Programs

PubMed Central

Eagan, M. Kevin; Hurtado, Sylvia; Chang, Mitchell J.; Garcia, Gina A.; Herrera, Felisha A.; Garibay, Juan C.

2014-01-01

To increase the numbers of underrepresented racial minority students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), federal and private agencies have allocated significant funding to undergraduate research programs, which have been shown to students’ intentions of enrolling in graduate or professional school. Analyzing a longitudinal sample of 4,152 aspiring STEM majors who completed the 2004 Freshman Survey and 2008 College Senior Survey, this study utilizes multinomial hierarchical generalized linear modeling (HGLM) and propensity score matching techniques to examine how participation in undergraduate research affects STEM students’ intentions to enroll in STEM and non-STEM graduate and professional programs. Findings indicate that participation in an undergraduate research program significantly improved students’ probability of indicating plans to enroll in a STEM graduate program. PMID:25190821

Alive and aware: Undergraduate research as a mechanism for program vitalization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rohs, C.

2013-12-01

Undergraduate research is a vital component of many geoscience programs across the United States. It is especially critical at those institutions that do not have graduate students or graduate programs in the geosciences. This paper presents findings associated with undergraduate research in four specific areas: The success of students that pursue undergraduate research both in the workforce and in graduate studies; the connections that are generated through undergraduate research and publication; the application of undergraduate research data and materials in the classroom; and the development of lasting connections between faculty and students to construct a strong alumni base to support the corresponding programs. Students that complete undergraduate research have the opportunity to develop research proposals, construct budgets, become familiar with equipment or software, write and defend their results. This skill set translates directly to graduate studies; however, it is also extremely valuable for self-marketing when seeking employment as a geoscientist. When transitioning from higher education into the workforce, a network of professional connections facilitates and expedites the process. When completing undergraduate research, students have a direct link to the faculty member that they are working with, and potentially, the network of that faculty member. Even more important, the student begins to build their own professional network as they present their findings and receive feedback on their research. Another area that benefits from undergraduate research is the classroom. A cyclical model is developed where new data and information are brought into the classroom by the faculty member, current students see the impact of undergraduate research and have the desire to participate, and a few of those students elect to participate in a project of their own. It turns into a positive feedback loop that is beneficial for both the students and the faculty members. Finally, it is important to look at the long-range benefit of undergraduate research as an investment that pays off through alumni in the years to come. These alumni have the potential to become the pillars in support of the geoscience program. With their support, the program and associated department becomes strengthened and continues to develop in order to provide for the geoscience workforce needs of the future.

Time and space: undergraduate Mexican physics in motion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Candela, Antonia

2010-09-01

This is an ethnographic study of the trajectories and itineraries of undergraduate physics students at a Mexican university. In this work learning is understood as being able to move oneself and, other things (cultural tools), through the space-time networks of a discipline (Nespor in Knowledge in motion: space, time and curriculum in undergraduate physics and management. Routledge Farmer, London, 1994). The potential of this socio-cultural perspective allows an analysis of how students are connected through extended spaces and times with an international core discipline as well as with cultural features related to local networks of power and construction. Through an example, I show that, from an actor-network-theory (Latour in Science in action. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1987), that in order to understand the complexities of undergraduate physics processes of learning you have to break classroom walls and take into account students' movements through complex spatial and temporal traces of the discipline of physics. Mexican professors do not give classes following one textbook but in a moment-to-moment open dynamism tending to include undergraduate students as actors in classroom events extending the teaching space-time of the classroom to the disciplinary research work of physics. I also find that Mexican undergraduate students show initiative and display some autonomy and power in the construction of their itineraries as they are encouraged to examine a variety of sources including contemporary research articles, unsolved physics problems, and even to participate in several physicists' spaces, as for example being speakers at the national congresses of physics. Their itineraries also open up new spaces of cultural and social practices, creating more extensive networks beyond those associated with a discipline. Some economic, historical and cultural contextual features of this school of sciences are analyzed in order to help understanding the particular way students are encouraged to develop their autonomy.

Mississippi CaP HBCU Undergraduate Research Training Program

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-11-01

AWARD NUMBER: W81XWH-14-1-0151 TITLE: Mississippi CaP HBCU Undergraduate Research Training Program PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Christian Gomez...Final PREPARED FOR: U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command Fort Detrick, Maryland 21702-5012 DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: Approved for...2017 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Mississippi CaP HBCU Undergraduate Research Training Program 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER W81XWH-14-1-0151 5c

The Robert E. Hopkins Center for Optical Design and Engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zavislan, James M.; Brown, Thomas G.

2008-08-01

In 1929, a grant from Eastman Kodak and Bausch and Lomb established The Institute of Optics as the nation's first academic institution devoted to training optical scientists and engineers. The mission was 'to study light in all its phases', and the curriculum was designed to educate students in the fundamentals of optical science and build essential skills in applied optics and optical engineering. Indeed, our historic strength has been a balance between optical science and engineering--we have alumni who are carrying out prize-winning research in optical physics, alumni who are innovative optical engineers, and still other alumni who are leaders in the business community. Faculty who are top-notch optical engineers are an important resource to optical physics research groups -- likewise, teaching and modeling excellent optical science provides a strong underpinning for students on the applied/engineering end of the spectrum. This model -an undergraduate and graduate program that balances fundamental optics, applied optics, and optical engineering- has served us well. The impressive and diverse range of opportunities for our BS graduates has withstood economic cycles, and the students graduate with a healthy dose of practical experience. Undergraduate advisors, with considerable initiative from the program coordinator, are very aggressive in pointing students toward summer research and engineering opportunities. The vast majority of our undergraduate students graduate with at least one summer of experience in a company or a research laboratory. For example, 95% of the class of 2008 spent the summer of 2007 at companies and/or research laboratories: These include Zygo, NRL, Bausch and Lomb, The University of Rochester(The Institute of Optics, Medical Center, and Laboratory for Laser Energetics), QED, ARL Night Vision laboratories, JPL, Kollsman, OptiMax, Northrup Grumman, and at least two other companies. It is an impressive list, and bodes well for the career preparation for these students. While this extracurricular experience is truly world-class, an integrated design experience defined within our academic program is increasingly necessary for those going on to professional careers in engineering. This paper describes the philosophy behind a revision to our undergraduate curriculum that integrates a design experience and describes the engineering laboratory that has been established to make it a reality. The laboratory and design center has been named in honor of Robert E. Hopkins, former director and professor, co-founder of Tropel corporation, and a lifelong devotee to engineering innovation.

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.

Development of an undergraduate bioinformatics degree program at a liberal arts college.

PubMed

Bagga, Paramjeet S

2012-09-01

The highly interdisciplinary field of bioinformatics has emerged as a powerful modern science. There has been a great demand for undergraduate- and graduate-level trained bioinformaticists in the industry as well in the academia. In order to address the needs for trained bioinformaticists, its curriculum must be offered at the undergraduate level, especially at four-year colleges, where a majority of the United States gets its education. There are many challenges in developing an undergraduate-level bioinformatics program that needs to be carefully designed as a well-integrated and cohesive interdisciplinary curriculum that prepares the students for a wide variety of career options. This article describes the challenges of establishing a highly interdisciplinary undergraduate major, the development of an undergraduate bioinformatics degree program at Ramapo College of New Jersey, and lessons learned in the last 10 years during its management.

The challenges of developing computational physics: the case of South Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salagaram, T.; Chetty, N.

2013-08-01

Most modern scientific research problems are complex and interdisciplinary in nature. It is impossible to study such problems in detail without the use of computation in addition to theory and experiment. Although it is widely agreed that students should be introduced to computational methods at the undergraduate level, it remains a challenge to do this in a full traditional undergraduate curriculum. In this paper, we report on a survey that we conducted of undergraduate physics curricula in South Africa to determine the content and the approach taken in the teaching of computational physics. We also considered the pedagogy of computational physics at the postgraduate and research levels at various South African universities, research facilities and institutions. We conclude that the state of computational physics training in South Africa, especially at the undergraduate teaching level, is generally weak and needs to be given more attention at all universities. Failure to do so will impact negatively on the countrys capacity to grow its endeavours generally in the field of computational sciences, with negative impacts on research, and in commerce and industry.

Increasing Diversity in STEM through Ka Hikina O Ka Lā Summer Bridge Program for Native Hawaiian Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coopersmith, A.; Cie, D. K.; Calder, S.; Naho`olewa, D.; Rai, B.

2014-12-01

The Advanced Technology Solar Telescope (ATST) Mitigation Initiative and the Kahikina O Ka Lā Program are NSF-funded projects at the University of Hawai`i Maui College. These projects offer instruction and activities intended to increase diversity in STEM careers. Ke Alahaka, the 2014 summer bridge program, was offered to Native Hawaiian high-school students who indicated an interest in STEM areas. Content workshops were offered in Marine Science, Physics, Biotechnology, and Computer Science and Engineering as well as a Hawaiian Studies course designed to provide a cultural context for the STEM instruction. Focus groups and other program assessments indicate that 50% of the students attending the workshops intend to pursue a STEM major during their undergraduate studies.

Interactive Computation for Undergraduates: The Next Generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kolan, Amy J.

2017-05-01

A generation ago (29 years ago), Leo Kadanoff and Michael Vinson created the Computers, Chaos, and Physics course. A major pedagogical thrust of this course was to help students form and test hypotheses via computer simulation of small problems in physics. Recently, this aspect of the 1987 course has been revived for use with first year physics undergraduate students at St. Olaf College.

Research and education at the NASA Fisk University Center for Photonic Materials and Devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silberman, Enrique

1996-07-01

In 1992, NASA awarded Fisk University a 5 year grant to establish a center for research and education on photonic materials are synthesized, characterized and, in some cases, developed into devices with applications in the fields of radiation detectors and nonlinear optical crystals, glasses and nanomaterials. The educational components include participation in the research by 3 types of students majoring in Physics, Chemistry and Biology: 1) Fisk undergraduates participating during the academic year. 2) Fisk graduates performing their Maser Thesis research. 3) Fisk and other HBCU's and Minority Institutions' undergraduates attending a 10 week summer workshop with a very rigorous program of study, research and progress reporting. Funds are available for supporting participating students. Prerequisite, schedules of activities, evaluation procedures and typical examples of the outcome are presented.

Simulating the Physical World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berendsen, Herman J. C.

2004-06-01

The simulation of physical systems requires a simplified, hierarchical approach which models each level from the atomistic to the macroscopic scale. From quantum mechanics to fluid dynamics, this book systematically treats the broad scope of computer modeling and simulations, describing the fundamental theory behind each level of approximation. Berendsen evaluates each stage in relation to its applications giving the reader insight into the possibilities and limitations of the models. Practical guidance for applications and sample programs in Python are provided. With a strong emphasis on molecular models in chemistry and biochemistry, this book will be suitable for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses on molecular modeling and simulation within physics, biophysics, physical chemistry and materials science. It will also be a useful reference to all those working in the field. Additional resources for this title including solutions for instructors and programs are available online at www.cambridge.org/9780521835275. The first book to cover the wide range of modeling and simulations, from atomistic to the macroscopic scale, in a systematic fashion Providing a wealth of background material, it does not assume advanced knowledge and is eminently suitable for course use Contains practical examples and sample programs in Python

From Inquiry-Based Learning to Student Research in an Undergraduate Mathematics Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Das, Kumer

2013-01-01

As an extension to various sponsored summer undergraduate research programs, academic year research for undergraduate students is becoming popular. Mathematics faculty around the country are getting involved with this type of research and administrators are encouraging this effort. Since 2007, we have been conducting academic year research at…

A Research Based Sport Management Curricular Model: Undergraduate and Graduate Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelley, Dennie R.; And Others

This paper brings to closure a series of evaluation/action research studies on needs assessment by: (1) sport management personnel in sport business/agencies; (2) faculty in charge of curriculum in all known undergraduate and graduate sport management programs in higher education; and (3) undergraduate and graduate majors in sport management from…

Student Experiences of High-Stakes Testing for Progression in One Undergraduate Nursing Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McClenny, Tammy

2016-01-01

High-stakes testing in undergraduate nursing education are those assessments used to make critical decisions for student progression and graduation. The purpose of this study was to explore the different ways students experience multiple high-stakes tests for progression in one undergraduate BSN program. Research participants were prelicensure…

Introducing Ethics to Chemistry Students in a "Research Experiences for Undergraduates" (REU) Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Mark J.

2015-01-01

A three-day ethics seminar introduced ethics to undergraduate environmental chemistry students in the Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. The seminar helped students become sensitive to and understand the ethical and values dimensions of their work as researchers. It utilized a variety of resources to supplement lectures and…

Light: A Spectrum of Utility, the 2014-2015 Society of Physics Students Science Outreach Catalyst Kit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sellers, Mark; Louis-Jean, Kearns; Society of Physics Students Collaboration; National Institute of Standards; Technology Collaboration

2015-03-01

The Science Outreach Catalyst Kit (SOCK) is a set of activities and demonstrations designed to bolster the outreach programs of undergraduate Society of Physics Students (SPS) chapters, creating the framework for a lasting outreach program. Targeted for students ranging from kindergarten to high school, the SOCK allows students to actively engage in hands-on activities that teach them scientific skills and allow them to exercise their natural curiosity. The 2014-2015 SOCK united themes from the 2014 International Year of Crystallography and the 2015 International Year of Light to explore how light is used as a tool every day. This presentation will discuss the contents of the SOCK, which contains a large assortment of materials, such as diffraction glasses, polarizers, ultraviolet flashlights, etc. and describe the research and development of the activities. Each activity explores a different light phenomenon, such as diffraction, polarization, reflection, or fluorescence. These activities will promote critical thinking and analysis of data. This work was supported by the Society of Physics Students summer intern program and by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Improving undergraduate biology education in a large research university.

PubMed Central

Bender, C; Ward, S; Wells, M A

1994-01-01

The campus-wide Undergraduate Biology Research Program (UBRP) at the University of Arizona improves undergraduate science education by expanding student opportunities for independent research in faculty laboratories. Within the supportive community of a research laboratory, underclassmen, nonscience majors, and those aspiring to scientific careers all learn to appreciate the process of science. The Program impacts more than the students, promoting departmental cooperation, interdisciplinary collaborations, and improvements in undergraduate science education throughout a Research I University. PMID:8018999

Impact of a visual programming experience on the attitude toward programming of introductory undergraduate students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Godbole, Saurabh

Traditionally, textual tools have been utilized to teach basic programming languages and paradigms. Research has shown that students tend to be visual learners. Using flowcharts, students can quickly understand the logic of their programs and visualize the flow of commands in the algorithm. Moreover, applying programming to physical systems through the use of a microcontroller to facilitate this type of learning can spark an interest in students to advance their programming knowledge to create novel applications. This study examined if freshmen college students' attitudes towards programming changed after completing a graphical programming lesson. Various attributes about students' attitudes were examined including confidence, interest, stereotypes, and their belief in the usefulness of acquiring programming skills. The study found that there were no statistically significant differences in attitudes either immediately following the session or after a period of four weeks.

Assessment! The Foundation to This Performance/Field-Based Teacher Preparation Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmitz, Steve; Veilbig, Cindy; Fitch, Lanny; Alawiye, Osman

This report describes the assessment practices of the undergraduate performance and field-based teacher preparation programs of Central Washington University. The undergraduate program involves 2-year programs for elementary school teacher candidates in 3 school districts. Portfolios are used in this program as a means of authentic assessment and…

Education for Action: Undergraduate and Graduate Programs That Focus on Social Change. Fourth Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Powell, Joan, Ed.

This book provides graduates and undergraduates with detailed information about progressive programs for current and future activities in a variety of fields. Each entry contains a description of the program with faculty and program contact information. Listings include programs in agriculture, anthropology, area studies, development studies,…

[Undergraduate and postgraduate studies in the biological sciences in Chile (1985)].

PubMed

Niemeyer, H

1986-01-01

A study group of scientists was convened by the Sociedad de Biología de Chile (Biological Society of Chile) and the Regional Program for Graduate Training in Biological Sciences, PNUD-Unesco, RLA 78/024, to assess undergraduate and graduate studies in life sciences in Chile. The group presented this report at the 28th Annual Meeting of the Society. Discussion centered on the features that should characterize the studies leading to the academic degrees of Licenciado (Licenciate), Magíster (Master) and Doctor (Ph. D) in Sciences, and also on the qualifications that the universities should satisfy in order to grant them. After analyzing the present situation of undergraduate and graduate studies in Biological Sciences in Chilean universities, the group made the following main suggestions: 1. It is recommended that Chilean universities agree on a 4-year plan for the Licenciado degree, without the requirement of a thesis. The importance of providing the students with good laboratory exercises and field experience and with the opportunity to perform short research projects is stressed. In addition, a sound theoretical training on mathematics, physics and chemistry in the education of a modern Biologist is important. Licenciate studies ought to be the basis for professional careers and the universities should offer to the Licenciados free access to their professional schools. 2. It is considered appropriate for Chile and its universities to develop graduate programs in those disciplines that have reached a level of excellence. To accomplish this aim, adequate finance of the universities is necessary to permit them to provide the essential facilities for doing research, and to create a wide system of fellowships for graduate students. Direct government support for research and graduate student fellowships is requested. 3. Research experience of the kind needed for the preparation of a doctoral thesis is recommended as the academic level appropriate for those engaged in teaching undergraduate students in sciences. Teachers in graduate programs should be qualified active researchers. 4. The creation is proposed of a Consejo Nacional de Universidades (National Council of Universities), to be autonomous and composed primarily of outstanding scientists. One of the main functions of this Council would be to licence universities to grant undergraduate and graduate academic degrees in science. 5. The Sociedad de Biología de Chile must maintain an interest in the evaluation of undergraduate and graduate studies in life sciences.

Minority undergraduate programs intended to increase participation in biomedical careers.

PubMed

MacLachlan, Anne J

2012-01-01

This article reviews a selection of undergraduate programs intended to increase successful minority participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics majors, potentially leading to biomedical careers. The object is to examine their structure, consider how well they address the issues of the target population, and assess the extent to which they have met/meet their goals. As a means of conducting this review, the first step is to examine the concepts used as the building blocks for program design. These concepts are found in a shared, yet often undefined, vocabulary used in most undergraduate programs for minority students. The hypothesis is that a shared vocabulary obscures a broad range of meaning and interpretation that has serious ramifications affecting student success. How these building blocks are understood and implemented strongly reflects the institution where the program is housed. The discussion further considers the nature of a number of programs created by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health specifically for underrepresented minority students and examines one program in detail, the University of California Berkeley's National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates Program in Molecular, Cell, and Evolutionary Biology. The characteristics of federally organized programs and the Research Experience for Undergraduates are contrasted with 2 very successful student-centered local programs based on a different conceptual model. © 2012 Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

Greek Undergraduate Physical Education Students' Basic Computer Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adamakis, Manolis; Zounhia, Katerina

2013-01-01

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

Rethinking Undergraduate Physical Chemistry Curricula

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Stephen R.

2016-01-01

A summary of fundamental changes made to the undergraduate physical chemistry curriculum in the Chemistry Department at Gustavus Adolphus College (beginning in the 2013-2014 academic year) is presented. The yearlong sequence now consists of an introductory semester covering both quantum mechanics and thermodynamics/kinetics, followed by a second…

A Practical and Convenient Diffusion Apparatus: An Undergraduate Physical Chemistry Experiment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clifford, Ben; Ochiai, E. I.

1980-01-01

Described is a diffusion apparatus to be used in an undergraduate physical chemistry laboratory experiment to determine the diffusion coefficients of aqueous solutions of sucrose and potassium dichromate. Included is the principle of the method, apparatus design and description, and experimental procedure. (Author/DS)

Hirsch's index: a case study conducted atthe Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo.

PubMed

Torro-Alves, N; Herculano, R D; Terçariol, C A S; Kinouchi Filho, O; Graeff, C F O

2007-11-01

An analysis of scientific bibliographic productivity using the Hirsch h-index, information from the Institute of Scientific Information database and the Curriculum Lattes (CNPq, Brazil) was performed at the Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo (FFCLRP-USP) that has four departments in natural, biological and social sciences. Bibliometric evaluations of undergraduate programs showed a better performance of the departments of Chemistry (P < 0.001) and Biology (P < 0.001) when compared to the departments of Physics and Mathematics and Psychology and Education. We also analyzed the scientific output of the six graduate programs of FFCLRP: Psychology, Psychobiology, Chemistry, Physics Applied to Medicine and Biology, Comparative Biology, and Entomology. The graduate program in Psychology presented a lower h-index (P < 0.001) and had fewer papers indexed by the ISI web of science (P < 0.001) when compared to the other graduate programs. The poorer performance of the Psychology program may be associated with the limited coverage by the Thompson Institute of Scientific Information database.

Building a visionary astrophysics program from the ground up

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mathews, Geoffrey S.; Barnes, Joshua Edward; Coleman, Paul; Gal, Roy R.; Meech, Karen J.; Mendez, Roberto Hugo; Nassir, Michael A.; Sanders, David B.

2015-08-01

The University of Hawaii’s Institute for Astronomy is in the process of implementing a new Bachelor of Science in Astrophysics at UH Manoa. This requires a significant adjustment in the role of the IfA, which has long been at the forefront of modern astronomy in Hawaii and is now broadening its educational mission. The IfA’s history of excellence in research and access to observational resources are expected to draw students from around the nation and the world. These factors have inspired our programmatic focus culminating in a senior year research experience. We expect that the program will produce many undergraduate astrophysics majors, making it an ideal testbed to apply modern theories of learning to the teaching of astrophysics. We have explicitly designed the major around three pillars: physical theory, the application of physics to astrophysical phenomena, and the development of core observational astronomy skills. We describe our cooperative approach to developing a program-level curriculum map of key concepts and skills, as well as descriptors of student success throughout the program. These are central tools for course design, program assessment, and professional development.

Systemic Mentoring for Competitiveness: The Model of the Timbuktu Academy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bagayoko, Diola

2010-02-01

The Timbuktu Academy is a comprehensive, systemic mentoring program at Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge (SUBR), Louisiana. We define systemic mentoring as one that is woven into the core functions of an organization. For most universities, those functions include instruction, research, and service. While the Academy has programs for pre-college and graduate students, its Ten-Strand Systemic Mentoring Model was specifically tailored to undergraduate education. We discuss basic considerations that led to the paradigm, programs, activities, and results of the Timbuktu Academy. The proper implementation of the Ten-Strand Systemic Mentoring Model couples teaching and superior learning, on the one hand, and integrates research and education, on the other hand. For undergraduate education, key strands include support (financially or otherwise), scientific advisement, research participation (academic year or summer), immersion in a professional culture, monitoring, and guidance to graduate school. From the summer of 1994 to 2009, the Academy has engaged 2,093 pre-college scholars in its summer programs. To date, the Academy has assisted in the production of one hundred seventy (170) minority undergraduate scholars who have earned a Bachelor of Science degree. Seventy (70) of 83 physics graduates, twenty (20) of 29 chemistry graduates, and twenty-two (22) of 49 engineering graduates have earned graduate degrees or are successfully enrolled in graduate school, with emphasis on the pursuit of the Ph.D. For the above model and results, the Timbuktu Academy received the 2002 U.S. Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring. Its director was among the first individual recipients of this award in 1996. The handouts accompanying this presentation are intended to facilitate the adaptive replication of the Timbuktu Academy by individuals, departments, colleges and universities, and other organizations. )

Evaluating an interdisciplinary undergraduate training program in health promotion research.

PubMed

Misra, Shalini; Harvey, Richard H; Stokols, Daniel; Pine, Kathleen H; Fuqua, Juliana; Shokair, Said M; Whiteley, John M

2009-04-01

The University of California at Irvine Interdisciplinary Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (ID-SURE) program had three objectives: (1) designing an interdisciplinary health promotion training curriculum for undergraduate research fellows; (2) developing measures for evaluating and assessing program-related educational processes and products; and (3) comparing these educational process and product measures between groups of students who did or did not receive the training. A total of 101 students participated in the ID-SURE program during 2005, 2006, and 2007. A longitudinal research design was employed whereby students' interdisciplinary attitudes and behaviors were assessed at the beginning and end of the training program. The interdisciplinary and intellectual qualities of students' academic and research products were assessed at the conclusion of the training activities. In addition, ID-SURE participants' interdisciplinary attitudes, behaviors, and research products were compared to those of 70 participants in another fellowship program that did not have an interdisciplinary training component. Exposing undergraduate research fellows to the interdisciplinary curriculum led to increased participation in, and positive attitudes about, interdisciplinary classroom and laboratory activities. Products, such as the integrative and interdisciplinary quality of student research projects, showed no differences when compared to those of undergraduates who were not exposed to the interdisciplinary curriculum. However, undergraduates exposed to the training engaged in more interdisciplinary behaviors at the end of the program than students who were not trained in interdisciplinary research techniques. The findings from this study offer evidence for the efficacy of the ID-SURE program for training undergraduate students in transdisciplinary concepts, methods, and skills that are needed for effective scientific collaboration. Additionally, this study makes two important contributions to the development and evaluation of interdisciplinary health research training programs: (1) It presents and evaluates a novel curriculum for training undergraduate students in interdisciplinary theories, concepts, and methods of health promotion that can be replicated in other settings and contexts; (2) It provides and tests the reliability of new measures for evaluating interdisciplinary collaborative processes and develops objective criteria for rating the integrative and intellectual quality of students' research products.

A Survey of Library Support for Formal Undergraduate Research Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hensley, Merinda Kaye; Shreeves, Sarah L.; Davis-Kahl, Stephanie

2014-01-01

Undergraduate research is defined by the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) as "an inquiry or investigation conducted by an undergraduate student that makes an original intellectual or creative contribution to the discipline." This study serves as a snapshot of current library practices in relation to formal undergraduate research…

The State of Enrollment Management in Journalism and Mass Communication Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rawlins, Brad L.; Soenksen, Roger; Jensen, Matt

Some programs in journalism and mass communication have been forced to incorporate limited enrollment strategies, as undergraduate interest in these programs continues to grow. After 4 years of moderate growth, undergraduate enrollments in journalism and mass communication programs increased dramatically in the year 2000. Some of the limited…

Reputation Cycles: The Value of Accreditation for Undergraduate Journalism Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blom, Robin; Davenport, Lucinda D.; Bowe, Brian J.

2012-01-01

Accreditation is among various outside influences when developing an ideal journalism curriculum. The value of journalism accreditation standards for undergraduate programs has been studied and is still debated. This study discovers views of opinion leaders in U.S. journalism programs, as surveyed program directors give reasons for being…

Understanding Interdisciplinarity: Curricular and Organizational Features of Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knight, David B.; Lattuca, Lisa R.; Kimball, Ezekiel W.; Reason, Robert D.

2013-01-01

Though the number of interdisciplinary undergraduate programs has increased rapidly over the past several decades, little empirical research has characterized such programs. In this article we report on our investigation of the characteristics of interdisciplinary programs and develop typologies to describe the multiple ways in which such programs…

The UCAR SOARS Program: Strategies for Supplementing Undergraduate Research Experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandya, R. E.

2005-12-01

Many REU programs have a goal of recruiting students to continue in the sciences. Undergraduate research is a successful strategy for engaging talented undergraduates to think about a career in science, encouraging them to purse graduate degrees, and for preparing them to succeed in graduate school. In the Significant Opportunities for Atmospheric Research (SOARS) program, we supplement undergraduate research with several strategies as part of an undergraduate-to-graduate bridge program aimed at broadening participation in the atmospheric and related sciences. In addition to a 10-week research program, SOARS also includes a formal mentoring program, writing workshop, vigorous learning community, and extensive professional development opportunities. Our presentation will describe these research-extending strategies in SOARS in more detail, with an eye toward how such strategies might be adapted for other programs. To do this, we will draw on the results of a major, independent evaluation of the SOARS program to determine the relative importance of these strategies in the overall success of the SOARS program. In the 10 yeas since SOARS creations, 98 students have participated in the program. Of those participants, 18 are still enrolled as undergraduates, and 55 have gone on to purse graduate school in the atmospheric sciences. Overall, this represents a graduate school placement rate of 69% and an overall retention rate of 82%. Of the 27 SOARS participants who have entered the workforce, 23 are in STEM related disciplines. Finally, 3 SOARS participants have already earned their PhD, and 32 have earned Master's. These numbers are especially significant given that SOARS participants come from groups that have been historically under-represented in the atmospheric sciences.

Influences on Faculty Willingness to Mentor Undergraduate Students from Another University as Part of an Interinstitutional Research Training Program

PubMed Central

Morales, Danielle X.; Grineski, Sara E.; Collins, Timothy W.

2016-01-01

In 2014, the National Institutes of Health invested $31 million in 10 primary institutions across the United States through the Building Undergraduate Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) program; one requirement of BUILD is sending undergraduate trainees from those primary institutions to partner institutions for research experiences. Mechanisms like BUILD are designed to broaden research opportunities for students, especially those from underrepresented backgrounds. However, to our knowledge, no studies have examined faculty willingness to mentor undergraduates from other institutions through structured training programs. Survey data from 536 faculty members at 13 institutions were collected in Fall 2013 and analyzed using multiple statistical techniques. Results show that faculty who valued the opportunity to increase diversity in the academy and those who believed that mentoring undergraduates benefited their own research expressed greater willingness to serve as research mentors to visiting undergraduates, and faculty who perceived that they did not have the ability to accommodate additional students expressed less willingness to do so. Most respondents viewed student and faculty incentives as motivating factors in their willingness to mentor, but their perspectives on different types of incentives varied based on faculty career stage, discipline, and research funding status. Results have important implications for designing multi-institutional undergraduate research training programs. PMID:27521237

Preparing Astronomy Majors for the Job Market of the New Millennium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Migenes, Victor

2000-08-01

In the past few years the American Physical Society (APS) has conducted a number of surveys among the graduate student population in the US and also among young researchers. The purpose was to get an idea of the career expectations of the students and how these are met later on in their life. Two of the conclusions were: (1) students want to work in a research environment, preferably academic, and (2) graduate and undergraduate programs are not preparing them well for the different challenges and goals found in industry, the private sector and national laboratories. Jobs in academia, especially tenured positions, have been difficult to obtain forcing many students to give up on their goals after one or two postdoctoral positions. Some have found jobs in other sectors but others feel frustrated that their careers have not met their expectations and are poorly `prepared' for other options. In the areas of Physics and Astronomy there is not much of a job market without graduate studies. So most students must continue graduate work, in these or other fields, in order to compete well in the job market. Graduate and undergraduate programs must become more responsible for the present state of affairs and for implementing improvements. This can be done by broadening the scope of the present programs so that a student is better prepared to face the challenges of other job opportunities. We present here a BSc program designed by astronomers and physicists, at the University of Guanajuato, to try to address some of these concerns and better prepare the students for either continuing with graduate studies or finding employment in an ever-changing job market.

Undergraduate environmental health education: preparing for the future.

PubMed

Adams, W; Davis, T; Rossignol, A; Silverman, G; Simmons, T; Smith, G; Stern, B

2001-03-01

Attendees indicated that the workshop was beneficial and that the opportunity to communicate with faculty representing 23 programs accredited by EHAC and nine programs not accredited by EHAC was extremely useful. There was general agreement on a number of points: There is a need for undergraduate environmental health programs to collaborate on matters related to distance learning. Topics related to women, gender, diversity, ethics, and international environmental health should be incorporated into the environmental health curriculum. There are no major problems with current EHAC curricular guidelines, but the guidelines should be evaluated on a regular basis. Field experience or internship is an essential component in the academic preparation of undergraduate environmental health students. There is a significant need for increased funding for undergraduate environmental health programs. There is a need to increase the visibility and recognition of environmental health programs. There is a need to solidify ties with traditional partners and to establish new linkages at the local, regional, and national levels in the government, community, and private sector. It is essential that undergraduate faculty communicate with each other on matters relating to the preparation of environment health practitioners. There is a need for an association of undergraduate academic programs to provide leadership and a focal point for identification and resolution of issues common to all. The establishment of an association was viewed as the most practical and effective way to address these issues and to pursue related opportunities.

Incorporating Biological Mass Spectrometry into Undergraduate Teaching Labs, Part 2: Peptide Identification via Molecular Mass Determination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arnquist, Isaac J.; Beussman, Douglas J.

2009-01-01

Mass spectrometry has become a routine analytical tool in the undergraduate curriculum in the form of GC-MS. While relatively few undergraduate programs have incorporated biological mass spectrometry into their programs, the importance of these techniques, as demonstrated by their recognition with the 2002 Nobel Prize, will hopefully lead to…

Psychology Students' Interest in Graduate Training: A Need for Partnership among Undergraduate Psychology and Graduate School Psychology Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stinnett, Terry A.; Solomon, Benjamin G.

2014-01-01

An initial point of contact for recruitment of qualified persons into school psychology is undergraduate psychology degree programs. Unfortunately, the discipline of school psychology appears to receive at best only cursory coverage in undergraduate psychology texts, curriculum, and discussion by psychology department faculty even though school…

Library List: A Suggested Library Collection for Undergraduate Linguistics Programs. Linguistics in the Undergraduate Curriculum, Appendix 6.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Linguistic Society of America, Washington, DC.

A list of linguistics-related holdings in the Middlebury College (Vermont) library is presented as an example of a well-developed library collection for an undergraduate linguistics program. The materials are listed under 10 headings corresponding to the best-represented subareas in the collection: linguistics, semantics, grammar (comparative and…

An Outline of a Proposed Five- plus Three-Year Combined Undergraduate-Master's Degree for Clinical Medicine Majors at Nanjing Medical University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gao, Xing-Ya; Yu, Rong-Bin; Shen, Hong-Bing; Chen, Qi

2014-01-01

To build an effective model to train excellent doctors, Nanjing Medical University has proposed a five- plus three-year combined undergraduate-master's clinical medicine degree program. The program integrates undergraduate education, the education of research students, and standardized doctor residency training into a single system, allowing…

Communicating across the Curriculum in an Undergraduate Business Program: Management 100--Leadership and Communication in Groups

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tuleja, Elizabeth A.; Greenhalgh, Anne M.

2008-01-01

Educating undergraduate business students in the 21st century requires more than addressing the quantitative side of business; rather, it calls for including the more qualitative "soft skills," such as speaking and writing. This article examines the design, delivery, and effectiveness of an undergraduate program dedicated to leadership,…

Graduate and Undergraduate Students Together: An Experiential Learning Model for Teaching Student Development Theory in Student Personnel Preparation Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Champagne, Delight E.

Undergraduates on college campuses are one of the best resources for learning about college student development. Nonetheless, graduate programs which prepare student personnel professionals have typically neglected to involve undergraduates in courses which attempt to teach student development theory and research. Without input and feedback from…

Influences on Faculty Willingness to Mentor Undergraduate Students from Another University as Part of an Interinstitutional Research Training Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morales, Danielle X.; Grineski, Sara E.; Collins, Timothy W.

2016-01-01

In 2014, the National Institutes of Health invested $31 million in 10 primary institutions across the United States through the Building Undergraduate Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) program; one requirement of BUILD is sending undergraduate trainees from those primary institutions to partner institutions for research experiences.…

Cultivating Minority Scientists: Undergraduate Research Increases Self-Efficacy and Career Ambitions for Underrepresented Students in STEM

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carpi, Anthony; Ronan, Darcy M.; Falconer, Heather M.; Lents, Nathan H.

2017-01-01

In this study, Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) is used to explore changes in the career intentions of students in an undergraduate research experience (URE) program at a large public minority-serving college. Our URE model addresses the challenges of establishing an undergraduate research program within an urban, commuter, underfunded,…

Explorations: A Research-Based Program Introducing Undergraduates to Diverse Biology Research Topics Taught by Grad Students and Postdocs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brownell, Sara E.; Khalfan, Waheeda; Bergmann, Dominique; Simoni, Robert

2013-01-01

Undergraduate biology majors are often overwhelmed by and underinformed about the diversity and complexity of biological research that is conducted on research-intensive campuses. We present a program that introduces undergraduates to the diversity and scope of biological research and also provides unique teaching opportunities for graduate…

A Career Needs Comparison of Elementary School Teachers and Undergraduate Students in an Elementary School Teacher Preparation Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fitzgerald, Sheila M.

To determine if the career needs of undergraduate students entering a teacher preparation program would be similar to the needs expressed by experienced teachers on the Minnesota Importance Questionnaire (MIP), the responses of 100 undergraduate elementary education students at Michigan State University were compared to those of 178 career…

Physics education research: A research subfield of physics with gender parity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barthelemy, Ramón S.; Van Dusen, Ben; Henderson, Charles

2015-12-01

Women currently outnumber men in obtaining undergraduate degrees but are underrepresented within STEM fields. However, women's representation varies by STEM field, and even further by STEM subfield. One field that has held a persistent low representation of women is physics. This paper seeks to uncover the truth behind an anecdotal claim that the subfield of physics education research (PER) has a higher representation of women than physics as a whole. Graduate students in PER completed an online survey to assess their demographics, trajectory in PER, climate experiences, and goals for their research. The response rate for the survey was 68%, yielding 125 total respondents. This paper will focus on the 91 respondents enrolled in U.S. graduate programs. It was found that women make up 51% of the U.S. PER graduate students in this sample, as compared to only 19% of physics graduate students overall. Survey findings also revealed that both women and men in PER graduate programs experience similarly positive working relationships with faculty and fellow students. Last, both men and women reported building a stronger scientific workforce and becoming better teachers as goals for their PER research.

Education programs of the Institute for Optical Sciences at the University of Toronto

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Istrate, Emanuel; Miller, R. J. Dwayne

2009-06-01

The Institute for Optical Sciences at the University of Toronto is an association of faculty members from various departments with research interests in optics. The institute has an extensive program of academic activities, for graduate and undergraduate students, as well as public outreach. For undergraduate students, we have a course on holography. We provide opportunities for students to gain optics experience through research by providing access to summer research positions and by enrolling them in the Research Skills Program, a summer course teaching the basic skills needed in research. For graduate students, we offer the Distinguished Visiting Scientists program, where world-renowned researchers come for a week, giving a series of 3 lectures and interacting closely with students and professors. The extended stay allows the program to run like a mini-course. We launched a Collaborative Master's Program in Optics, where students earn a degree from their home department, along with a certification of participation in the collaborative program. Physics, Chemistry and Engineering students attending together are exposed to the various points of view on optics, ranging from the pure to the applied sciences. For the general public, we offer the Stoicheff Lecture, a yearly public lecture on optics, organized with the Royal Canadian Institute. Our institute also initiated Science Rendezvous, a yearly public celebration of science across the Greater Toronto Area, with lab tours, demonstrations, and other opportunities to learn about science and those who are actively advancing it. This year, this event attracted over 20,000 attendees.

Oceanography and Geoscience Scholars at Texas A&M University Funded through the NSF S-STEM (Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richardson, M. J.; Gardner, W. D.

2016-02-01

Over the last seven years we have led the creation and implementation of the Oceanography and Geoscience Scholars programs at Texas A&M University. Through these programs we have been able to provide scholarship support for 92 undergraduates in Geosciences and 29 graduate students in Oceanography. Fifty-seven undergraduate scholars have graduated in Geosciences: 30 undergraduate students in Meteorology, 7 in Geology, and 20 in Environmental Geosciences. Two students have graduated in other STEM disciplines. Twenty-four students are in the process of completing their undergraduate degrees in STEM disciplines. Twenty-three students have graduated with MS or PhD degrees in Oceanography and five PhD students are completing their dissertations. As specified in the program solicitation all of the scholars are academically talented students with demonstrated financial need as defined by the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). We have endeavored to recruit students from underrepresented groups. One-third of the undergraduate scholars were from underrepresented groups; 28% of the graduate students. We will present the challenges and successes of these programs.

The Effects of a Campus Forest-Walking Program on Undergraduate and Graduate Students' Physical and Psychological Health.

PubMed

Bang, Kyung-Sook; Lee, Insook; Kim, Sungjae; Lim, Chun Soo; Joh, Hee-Kyung; Park, Bum-Jin; Song, Min Kyung

2017-07-05

We conducted a campus forest-walking program targeting university and graduate students during their lunchtime and examined the physical and psychological effects of the program. We utilized a quasi-experimental design with a control group and a pretest-posttest design. Forty-seven men (M = 25.5 ± 3.8 years) and 52 women (M = 23.3 ± 4.3 years) volunteered to participate (experimental group n = 51, control group n = 48). The intervention group participated in campus forest-walking program once a week for six weeks; they were also asked to walk once a week additionally on an individual basis. Additionally, participants received one lecture on stress management. Post-tests were conducted both just after the program ended and three months after. A chi-square test, t -test, and repeated measures analysis of variance were used to evaluate the effects of the program. Health promoting behaviors ( F = 7.27, p = 0.001, ES = 0.27) and parasympathetic nerve activity ( F = 3.69, p = 0.027, ES = 0.20) significantly increased and depression ( F = 3.15, p = 0.045, ES = 0.18) significantly decreased in the experimental group after the intervention compared to the control group. In conclusion, using the campus walking program to target students during their lunchtime is an efficient strategy to promote their physical and psychological health.

Psychology of Physical Activity: What Should Students Know?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCullagh, Penny; Wilson, Gabriel

2007-01-01

The assignment for the 76th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education was to define the psychology subdiscipline of kinesiology. Ten undergraduate sport and exercise psychology textbooks, 27 undergraduate course syllabi, and three articles which examined the most popular contents of prominent journals were…

Developing Early Undergraduate Research at a Two-Year College

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sibbernsen, Kendra

2013-01-01

Two-year college (TYC) physics teachers are not often required to provide student research experiences as a part of their contracted duties. However, some TYC physics faculty members are interested in developing research opportunities for their freshman- and sophomore-level students, often called "early undergraduate research" (EUR).…

Research Projects for Undergraduates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Troncalli, Andra

2010-03-01

Physics majors, by enrolling in our research experience in physics course, have the opportunity to work in small groups on independent research projects. Over the last few years, I have directed a few of these research projects; some were closely related to my own research in the field of high temperature superconductivity, and students participated in growing and characterizing samples. Other projects involved nanotechnology, Hall probes, and programming in LabVIEW. For some students, this was their very first research project, while others had more experience. I will talk about the projects and about the particular type of challenges and benefits this type of course brings to both students and instructors.

A distance education in undergraduate dietetic education.

PubMed

Benton-King, Carrie; Webb, Derek F; Holmes, ZoeAnn

2005-01-01

Distance education is an exploding phenomenon that allows people to pursue higher education on their own time, at a pace that meets their needs, in locations where there are no colleges and universities, or where there is not a desired program of study. This study examined the use of distance education in undergraduate dietetic education programs and the opportunities for obtaining an undergraduate degree in dietetics solely via distance education. A survey was sent to all directors (n = 279) of undergraduate programs accredited/approved by the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education to determine the current status and projected future use of distance education in their institutions' on-campus programs. The survey had a 54% response rate. Approximately 32% (n = 150) of undergraduate dietetics programs offer distance education courses in some format. Institutions that offer nondietetics distance education courses were more likely to offer dietetics distance education courses. The most common distance education format utilized in dietetics was 100% Internet courses (48%). The most common distance education dietetics course offered was a basic or introductory nutrition course (31%). From the data of courses offered, or permitted to be transferred, it would not be possible for a student to complete an undergraduate degree in dietetics solely via distance education methodologies at the time this study was conducted.

The pipeline training program in maternal and child health: interdisciplinary preparation of undergraduate students from underrepresented groups.

PubMed

Pizur-Barnekow, Kris; Rhyner, Paula M; Lund, Shelley

2010-05-01

The Preparing Academically Successful Students in Maternal and Child Health (MCH PASS) training program provided financial support and specialized training to occupational therapy (OT) and speech-language pathology (SLP) undergraduate students from underrepresented groups in maternal and child health. The project assisted undergraduate trainees to matriculate into graduate programs in their respective fields and facilitated application into long-term maternal and child health training programs. Sixteen trainees (8 OT and 8 SLP) participated in an undergraduate training program with an emphasis on interdisciplinary teaming, family mentoring, leadership development, public health and population-based research. Instruction occurred in community and classroom settings through didactic instruction and small group discussions. Fifteen of the trainees applied to and were accepted in graduate programs in their respective fields. Two trainees applied to a long-term MCH training program. Students reported increased knowledge about programs that serve women and children, the effects of poverty on health, interdisciplinary teaming and the daily routines of families who have a child with a special health care need. The MCH PASS program provided a unique opportunity for undergraduate students in OT and SLP to learn about public health with an emphasis on maternal and child health. The specialized preparation enabled students to understand better the health concerns of underserved families whose children have special health care needs.

Introducing a Framework for Physics Innovation and Entrepreneurship (PIE) Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roughani, Bahram

A desired outcome for Physics Innovation and Entrepreneurship (PIE) education is preparing physics majors with an innovative and entrepreneurial mindset who are capable of opportunity recognition and adept in leveraging physics knowledge to address specific needs. Physics as a discipline is well-recognized to prepare students who become problem solvers and critical thinkers, gifted in dealing with abstract ideas and ambiguities in the context of complex and real-world problems. These characteristics when enhanced through appropriate combinations of curricular, co-curricular, and extra-curricular programs can prepare physics majors for careers and future challenges that may involve translating physics knowledge into useful products and services either as part of a technical team within an organization or through startups. A viable PIE education model prepares graduates for various career paths in addition to the traditional options such as pursuing graduate studies or becoming a science teacher. Having a well-defined ``third option'' for physics will benefit the robustness of the physics discipline through recruitment and retention of prospective students who in principle are interested in physics as a subject, but in practice they may overlook physics as their preferred major primarily because they are uncertain about a viable career path based on an undergraduate physics education. The ''Pathways to Innovation'' at Loyola is established based on the program developed by VentureWell and Epicenter (NSF Supported).

1985 Employment Outlook: Undergraduate Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chemical and Engineering News, 1984

1984-01-01

Provides data (obtained from an American Chemical Society survey) on undergraduate studies in chemistry. Lists and discusses chemistry, elective chemistry, and supporting courses (such as writing and physics) considered to be important by professional chemists. Also recommends that undergraduates pursue studies in biochemistry, polymer chemistry,…

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.

An assessment of the usability of undergraduate healthcare management program websites.

PubMed

Roggenkamp, Susan D

2005-01-01

Prospective students in higher education programs increasingly use the Internet as a source of information to assist in the selection of both university and major programs of study. Therefore, having an informative and well designed website is now an integral component of a higher education program's marketing mix. This article attempts to inform undergraduate health administration programs about the elements of good website design, namely content that is important and relevant to users, site layout appeal, and ease of navigation. Content analyses of undergraduate health administration program websites in 2002 and 2005 assessed both the extent of content from a standard list of twenty-five information elements and usability features of the sites. Implications for improvements to program websites are discussed.

Science Education & Advocacy: Tools to Support Better Education Policies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Donnell, Christine; Cunningham, B.; Hehn, J. G.

2014-01-01

Education is strongly affected by federal and local policies, such as testing requirements and program funding, and many scientists and science teachers are increasingly interested in becoming more engaged with the policy process. To address this need, I worked with the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) --- a professional membership society of scientists and science teachers that is dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of physics through teaching --- to create advocacy tools for its members to use, including one-page leave-behinds, guides for meeting with policymakers, and strategies for framing issues. In addition, I developed a general tutorial to aid AAPT members in developing effective advocacy strategies to support better education policies. This work was done through the Society for Physics Students (SPS) Internship program, which provides a range of opportunities for undergraduates, including research, education and public outreach, and public policy. In this presentation, I summarize these new advocacy tools and their application to astronomy education issues.

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

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

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

2011-06-01

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

Undergraduate Program Reviews at the University of Ottawa. Report of the UPRAC Auditors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Council of Ontario Universities, Toronto.

Pursuant to the Council of Ontario Universities' procedures for periodic quality reviews of undergraduate programs, auditors examined the policies and programs of the University of Ottawa (UO) during 1997. The English, Chemistry, and Physiotherapy departments were selected for audits of their program review procedures; the Environmental Studies…

Development of a geoscience curriculum in a small liberal arts college

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toteva, T.

2007-12-01

Geoscience programs with emphasis on geophysics are traditionally offered in research type of universities. Most small liberal arts colleges do not have the resources to offer geophysics education. Randolph College (Lynchburg, VA) is becoming one of the few small schools that provide a unique opportunity for undergraduate students to acquire basic knowledge and skills in geoscience methods, in particular in geophysics. One faculty member was hired a year ago and charged to offer a number of classes and labs in geoscience. As a result of that today the college has a geophysics lab with a 250 MHz GPR antenna, a 12 channel Geometrics Geode, three sets of geophones, and sieve equipment for geotechnical work. The above equipment was acquired with funds from the college and outside sponsors. In addition, collaboration with Virginia Tech led to the installation of a new seismological station, with a broad band seismograph, on college land. This alone triggered incredible interest in earthquake seismology, not only from students but from the campus community as well. All the equipment is used both for classes and undergraduate research. It has a significant contribution to the rapid increase in interest in the Environmental Studies and Physics programs in the school. It allows the offering of new field based classes. Such classes are always of great interest to students because they provide hands-on experience. As a result of offering these new classes, two new B.S. programs were added to the curriculum - B.S. in Environmental Science and B.S. in Physics.

A case study of the Physics Enhancement Project for Two Year Colleges, its effects and outcomes on the teaching of undergraduate physics at two year colleges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leif, Todd Robert

This dissertation reports on a naturalistic evaluation study of a series of NSF grant projects collectively known as PEPTYC -- Physics Enhancement Project for Two Year College Physics Instructors. The project encompassed seven different cycles of professional development occurring during the 1990's via May Institutes, held at Texas A&M University. Follow-up meetings were held at American Association of Physics Teachers - Texas Section Meetings. The research was conducted post hoc. The research evaluated the characteristics of effective professional development under an evaluation frame work designed by D.L. Kirkpatrick (1959) and adapted by the researcher to address issues that are pertinent to the professional development of faculty. This framework was adapted to be viewed through an educator's eye in an effort to ascertain the long term affects of the program and determine how the program affected the participants' attitudes, pedagogical knowledge, and instructional practices. The PEPTYC program philosophy was based on the premise, supported by research, that professional development programs addressing specific teaching practices are more successful than generic programs. Furthermore, professional development is more effective in helping teachers use alternative approaches when teachers are engaged in active learning experiences rather than passively listening to lectures or presentations. The naturalistic study was based on surveys and semi-structured interviews with 14 individuals who participated in PEPTYC workshops, as well as presenters of the PEPTYC program. The interviews were analyzed to describe how the PEPTYC project influenced the participants long after they had completed their training. This project can inform the development of similar evaluation studies of other professional development programs.

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.

Assessment Study of an Undergraduate Research Training Abroad Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nieto-Fernandez, Fernando; Race, Kathryn; Quarless, Duncan A.

2013-01-01

The Old Westbury Neuroscience International Research Program (OWNIP) encourages undergraduate students from health disparities populations and underrepresented minorities to pursue careers in basic science, biomedical, clinical, and behavioral health research fields. To evaluate this program, several measures were used tracked through an online…

76 FR 34683 - Withdrawal of Notices Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-06-14

... (FY) 2011; Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language (UISFL) Program; International Research and Studies (IRS) Program; et al. AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of...; Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language (UISFL) Program; International Research and Studies...

Physical and mental health perspectives of first year undergraduate rural university students.

PubMed

Hussain, Rafat; Guppy, Michelle; Robertson, Suzanne; Temple, Elizabeth

2013-09-15

University students are often perceived to have a privileged position in society and considered immune to ill-health and disability. There is growing evidence that a sizeable proportion experience poor physical health, and that the prevalence of psychological disorders is higher in university students than their community peers. This study examined the physical and mental health issues for first year Australian rural university students and their perception of access to available health and support services. Cross-sectional study design using an online survey form based on the Adolescent Screening Questionnaire modeled on the internationally recognised HEADSS survey tool. The target audience was all first-year undergraduate students enrolled in an on-campus degree program. The response rate was 41% comprising 355 students (244 females, 111 males). Data was analysed using standard statistical techniques including descriptive and inferential statistics; and thematic analysis of the open-ended responses. The mean age of the respondents was 20.2 years (SD 4.8). The majority of the students lived in on-campus residential college style accommodation, and a third combined part-time paid work with full-time study. Most students reported being in good physical health. However, on average two health conditions were reported over the past six months, with the most common being fatigue (56%), frequent headaches (26%) and allergies (24%). Mental health problems included anxiety (25%), coping difficulties (19.7%) and diagnosed depression (8%). Most respondents reported adequate access to medical doctors and support services for themselves (82%) and friends (78%). However the qualitative comments highlighted concerns about stigma, privacy and anonymity in seeking counselling. The present study adds to the limited literature of physical and mental health issues as well as barriers to service utilization by rural university students. It provides useful baseline data for the development of customised support programs at rural campuses. Future research using a longitudinal research design and multi-site studies are recommended to facilitate a deeper understanding of health issues affecting rural university students.

[Level of physical activity and smoking in undergraduate students].

PubMed

Rodrigues, Elizângela Sofia Ribeiro; Cheik, Nadia Carla; Mayer, Anamaria Fleig

2008-08-01

To evaluate the level of physical activity in undergraduate students and to investigate its potential association with smoking. A cross-sectional study with a stratified sample proportional to the total number of students was carried out in Gurupi, Central-West Brazil, in 2005. The sample comprised 871 subjects. The IPAQ-8 short version was applied to assess the level of physical activity. Smoking status was evaluated by a modified World Health Organization (WHO) questionnaire and the magnitude of smokers' nicotine dependence was quantified using the Fagerström nicotine dependence scale. The frequencies, prevalences and prevalence ratios were determined by Yates' chi-square test or Fisher's exact test in the entire sample and stratified by area, course, shift and gender, with a 5% statistical significance level. Mean age was 25 years old (SD+/-8) and mean age at first smoking experience was 17 years old (SD+/-4). The prevalence of physical inactivity and smoking was 29.9% and 7.2%, respectively. The overall prevalence of sedentary smokers and non-smokers was 8.5%, and 91.5%, respectively, but the difference was not statistically significant. A higher prevalence of smoking and physical inactivity was found in those over 25 (48.6%, p <0.05). Nicotine dependence was "very low" in most subjects (68.2%, p <0.05). Smoking was more prevalent in males (10.8%, p <0.05) and the level of physical inactivity was not different in both males and females (p >0.05). Physical inactivity was seen on both smokers and non-smokers in the same proportion and no association was found between these two variables. Low prevalences of physical inactivity and smoking found in the study may be explained by available ongoing preventive and education programs, which should be implemented in the long run.

An IDeA for enhancing undergraduate research at rural primarily undergraduate institutions.

PubMed

Sens, Donald A; Cisek, Karen L; Conway, Pat; Doze, Van A

2017-09-01

This study documents the efforts of the North Dakota (ND) IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) program to assist in the development of undergraduate research programs at four state-supported primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs) in ND. The study was initiated in the 2004-2005 academic year and continues to the present. The study shows that gaining initial institutional support for undergraduate research was assisted by providing salary support for faculty involved in undergraduate research. Once research was ongoing, each institution evolved their own unique plan for the use of support from the ND INBRE. Undergraduate student researchers have prepared, presented, and defended their research results on 188 unique posters since initiation of the program, with many posters being presented at more than one meeting. PUI faculty have authored 35 peer-reviewed manuscripts. Evaluation has shown that over 95% of the undergraduate students performing research matriculated with their bachelor's degree. Career choices of 77.2% of these graduates was determined, and 37% pursued a career in the health professions. Of the students not pursuing a post-baccalaureate degree, 81.2% chose careers directly linked to science. The study reinforces the concept that undergraduate research can be performed directly on the PUI campus and be of value in preparing the next generation of health professionals in research, service, and teaching. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Introduction of Entropy via the Boltzmann Distribution in Undergraduate Physical Chemistry: A Molecular Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kozliak, Evguenii I.

2004-01-01

A molecular approach for introducing entropy in undergraduate physical chemistry course and incorporating the features of Davies' treatment that meets the needs of the students but ignores the complexities of statistics and upgrades the qualitative, intuitive approach of Lambert for general chemistry to a semiquantitative treatment using Boltzmann…

Faculty Beliefs about the Purposes for Teaching Undergraduate Physical Chemistry Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mack, Michael R.; Towns, Marcy H.

2016-01-01

We report the results of a phenomenographic analysis of faculty beliefs about the purposes for teaching upper-division physical chemistry courses in the undergraduate curriculum. A purposeful sampling strategy was used to recruit a diverse group of faculty for interviews. Collectively, the participating faculty regularly teach or have taught…

The PASCO Wireless Smart Cart: A Game Changer in the Undergraduate Physics Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shakur, Asif; Connor, Rainor

2018-01-01

With the introduction of the Wireless Smart Cart by PASCO scientific in April 2016, we expect a paradigm shift in undergraduate physics laboratory instruction. We have evaluated the feasibility of using the smart cart by carrying out experiments that are usually performed using traditional PASCO equipment. The simplicity, convenience, and…

Time and Space: Undergraduate Mexican Physics in Motion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Candela, Antonia

2010-01-01

This is an ethnographic study of the trajectories and itineraries of undergraduate physics students at a Mexican university. In this work learning is understood as being able to move oneself and, other things (cultural tools), through the space-time networks of a discipline (Nespor in Knowledge in motion: space, time and curriculum in…

Perceptions of Environmental Supports on the Physical Activity Behaviors of University Men and Women: A Preliminary Investigation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Julian; Ainsworth, Barbara

2007-01-01

Objective: To examine perception differences between genders of university sidewalks and safety from crime on the physical activity (PA) behaviors of undergraduate students. Participants: Five hundred and sixty undergraduate students participated in this study. Methods: The authors derived questions from the South Carolina Environmental Supports…

Interaction Effects of Happiness and Physical Activity on Smoking Initiation.

PubMed

Torchyan, Armen A; BinSaeed, Abdulaziz A; Aleid, Yazeed S; Nagshbandi, Ahmed A; Almousa, Fahad; Papikyan, Satenik L; Gosadi, Ibrahim M

2016-11-01

Our aim was to assess the potential relationships among happiness, physical activity, and smoking initiation among undergraduate medical students in Saudi Arabia. We performed a cross-sectional study of randomly selected first- to fifth-year undergraduate medical students. Smoking initiation was defined as "ever trying smoking a cigarette, waterpipe, cigar/cigarillo, or other type of tobacco, even one or 2 puffs." The short scale Oxford Happiness Questionnaire was used to assess each student's happiness. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed. Of the 406 students surveyed (208 boys, 198 girls), 86 (21.1%) had initiated smoking. We found an interaction between physical activity (PA) and happiness on smoking initiation (p-interaction = .012). Among boys with low levels of PA, lower levels of happiness were associated with a greater likelihood of smoking initiation (OR = 5.8, 95%CI = 1.9 - 17.5). Also, high levels of PA increased the chance of smoking initiation among male students with high levels of happiness (OR = 5.6, 95%CI = 2.1 - 14.5). Our results suggest that young men with low levels of happiness and low levels of PA, as well as high levels of PA and high levels of happiness, may be targeted as a priority population in tobacco control intervention programs.

Growth and Characterization of III-V Semiconductors for Device Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, Michael D.

2000-01-01

The research goal was to achieve a fundamental understanding of the physical processes occurring at the surfaces and interfaces of epitaxially grown InGaAs/GaAs (100) heterostructures. This will facilitate the development of quantum well devices for infrared optical applications and provide quantitative descriptions of key phenomena which impact their performance. Devices impacted include high-speed laser diodes and modulators for fiber optic communications at 1.55 micron wavelengths and intersub-band lasers for longer infrared wavelengths. The phenomenon of interest studied was the migration of indium in InGaAs structures. This work centered on the molecular beam epitaxy reactor and characterization apparatus donated to CAU by AT&T Bell Laboratories. The material characterization tool employed was secondary ion mass spectrometry. The training of graduate and undergraduate students was an integral part of this program. The graduate students received a thorough exposure to state-of-the-art techniques and equipment for semiconductor materials analysis as part of the Master''s degree requirement in physics. The undergraduates were exposed to a minority scientist who has an excellent track record in this area. They also had the opportunity to explore surface physics as a career option. The results of the scientific work was published in a refereed journal and several talks were presented professional conferences and academic seminars.

Basic guidelines to introduce electric circuit simulation software in a general physics course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moya, A. A.

2018-05-01

The introduction of electric circuit simulation software for undergraduate students in a general physics course is proposed in order to contribute to the constructive learning of electric circuit theory. This work focuses on the lab exercises based on dc, transient and ac analysis in electric circuits found in introductory physics courses, and shows how students can use the simulation software to do simple activities associated with a lab exercise itself and with related topics. By introducing electric circuit simulation programs in a general physics course as a brief activitiy complementing lab exercise, students develop basic skills in using simulation software, improve their knowledge on the topology of electric circuits and perceive that the technology contributes to their learning, all without reducing the time spent on the actual content of the course.

Comparing the influence of physical and virtual manipulatives in the context of the Physics by Inquiry curriculum: The case of undergraduate students' conceptual understanding of heat and temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zacharia, Zacharias C.; Constantinou, Constantinos P.

2008-04-01

We compare the effect of experimenting with physical or virtual manipulatives on undergraduate students' conceptual understanding of heat and temperature. A pre-post comparison study design was used to replicate all aspects of a guided inquiry classroom except the mode in which students performed their experiments. This study is the first on physical and virtual manipulative experimentation in physics in which the curriculum, method of instruction, and resource capabilities were explicitly controlled. The participants were 68 undergraduates in an introductory course and were randomly assigned to an experimental or a control group. Conceptual tests were administered to both groups to assess students' understanding before, during, and after instruction. The result indicates that both modes of experimentation are equally effective in enhancing students' conceptual understanding. This result is discussed in the context of an ongoing debate on the relative importance of virtual and real laboratory work in physics education.

Preparing and Sustaining Teaching Assistants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heller, Kenneth

2008-04-01

For the past 15 years, we have developed and implemented a systemic approach to using the approximately 80 teaching assistants employed by the physics department. The goal of this program is to make the experience valuable for the teaching assistants, the undergraduate students they serve, the professors, the department, and the university. This operation puts teaching assistants into teaching situations in which they can be successful and then gives them the minimal support they need to be successful. The teaching situation emphasizes their role as coaches for their students. The minimal support includes five full days of orientation to get them ready for teaching, a weekly seminar program to address components of their teaching as they arise, mentor TAs to give personal feedback, and planned meetings with the course professor to make sure that their actions are integrated into a course. This talk will describe the features of this program. Some of the materials used can be found at http://groups.physics.umn.edu/physed/

Student decision making in large group discussion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kustusch, Mary Bridget; Ptak, Corey; Sayre, Eleanor C.; Franklin, Scott V.

2015-04-01

It is increasingly common in physics classes for students to work together to solve problems and perform laboratory experiments. When students work together, they need to negotiate the roles and decision making within the group. We examine how a large group of students negotiates authority as part of their two week summer College Readiness Program at Rochester Institute of Technology. The program is designed to develop metacognitive skills in first generation and Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) STEM undergraduates through cooperative group work, laboratory experimentation, and explicit reflection exercises. On the first full day of the program, the students collaboratively developed a sign for the word ``metacognition'' for which there is not a sign in American Sign Language. This presentation will focus on three aspects of the ensuing discussion: (1) how the instructor communicated expectations about decision making; (2) how the instructor promoted student-driven decision making rather than instructor-driven policy; and (3) one student's shifts in decision making behavior. We conclude by discussing implications of this research for activity-based physics instruction.

Impact of Maple(TM) on the design, instruction and performance in an undergraduate physics mathematical methods course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Runge, Alan Paul

1997-10-01

A traditional undergraduate physics course on mathematical methods has been redesigned to incorporate the use of Maplesp{sc {TM}}, a computer algebra program, during all aspects of the course. Topics covered were: complex number theory; series approximations; matrix theory; partial differentiation; vector algebra; and vector calculus. Five undergraduate students were enrolled, from sophomore to senior in academic class standing. A qualitative case study methodology was used to describe the changes in the course design resulting from the incorporation of Maplesp{sc {TM}} and their impact on the instruction of the course, and to determine the effects on the students' learning and development of problem solving skills in physics using Maplesp{sc {TM}} as a problem solving tool. The impact of using Maplesp{sc {TM}} on the number and types of interactions is presented. The entire semester long course was included in this study. Each class session is described in detail. Examples of the Maplesp{sc {TM}} materials used are given. The use of the Maplesp{sc {TM}} program was allowed on all homework and exams with each student having their own computer during class. Constraints were made so that the assessment emphasis remained on the mathematics and the conceptual understanding of the problem solving methods. All of the students demonstrated some level of proficiency in using Maplesp{TM} to solve the assigned problems. Strategies for effectively using Maplesp{TM} were presented and were individualized by the students. The students reported positive and negative impacts of using Maplesp{sc {TM}}. All of the students satisfactorily completed the course requirements, receiving final course grades from B to A+. All of them continued to voluntarily use Maplesp{sc {TM}} during the following semester. Instructional methods used included various lecture techniques without Maplesp{sc {TM}} assistance, lectures and demonstrations using only Maplesp{sc {TM}}, and student tasks assigned in class worked with the aid of Maplesp{sc {TM}}. Maplesp{sc {TM}} was used in one of these aspects in all but 3, out of 45, class periods. The use of Maplesp{sc {TM}} constituted about half of the overall class time.

C-MORE Scholars Program: Encouraging Hawaii`s Undergraduates to Explore the Ocean and Earth Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bruno, B. C.; Gibson, B.

2008-05-01

Hawaii residents make up 60% of the undergraduate student body at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM), but they are not studying ocean and earth science. The UHM School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology offers four undergraduate majors: Geology (22%), Geology & Geophysics (19%), Meteorology (16%), and Global Environmental Science (23%). The numbers in parentheses show the proportion of Hawaii residents in each major, based on 2006 data obtained from the UHM Institutional Research Office. The numbers of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (NHPI) are considerably smaller. The primary goal of the C-MORE Scholars Program, which will launch in Summer 2008, is to recruit and retain local Hawaii students (esp. NHPI) into earth and ocean science majors. To achieve this goal, the C-MORE Scholars Program will: 1. Actively recruit local students, partly by introducing them and their families to job opportunities in their community. Recruiting will be done in partnership with organizations that have successful track records in working with NHPI students; 2. Retain existing students through proactive counseling and course tutoring. Math and physics courses are stumbling blocks for many ocean and earth science majors, often delaying or even preventing graduation. By offering individual and group tutoring, we hope to help local students succeed in these courses; 3. Provide closely mentored, paid undergraduate research experiences at three different academic levels (trainee, intern, and fellow). This research is the cornerstone of the C-MORE Scholars Program. As students progress through the levels, they conduct higher level research with less supervision. Fellows (the highest level) may serve as peer advisors and tutors to underclassmen and assist with recruitment-related activities; and 4. Create a sense of community among the cohort of C-MORE scholars. A two-day summer residential experience will be instrumental in developing a strong cohort, emphasizing links between Hawaiian culture and science, and establishing pathways towards a science career. During the academic year, cohort-building activities will be scheduled each month or so, and will include career-oriented activities.

TA Professional Development: A Graduate Student's Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alicea-Munoz, Emily

Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) are essential for teaching large introductory physics classes. In such courses, undergraduates spend approximately half of their in-class contact time in instructional environments (e.g., labs and recitations) supervised by GTAs, which means GTAs can have a large impact on student learning. Therefore it is crucial to adequately prepare GTAs before they first enter the classroom, and to offer them continued support throughout. Since many of the skills required to become effective teachers will also be relevant to their future research careers, it is useful for a GTA preparation program to also include professional development strategies. But what exactly do GTAs get out of these programs? The School of Physics at Georgia Tech runs a preparation and mentoring program for GTAs that focuses on pedagogical knowledge, physics content, and professional development, as well as their intersections. Nearly seventy graduate students have gone through this program in the three years since it was established. Here we discuss the impact this program has had on our GTAs, from their own point of view: the program's effect on their teaching abilities, how it has influenced their attitudes towards teaching, what elements they have found useful, and what changes they have suggested to its curriculum. We find that, in general, GTAs are more receptive when the curriculum is more hands-on and they are presented with frequent opportunities for practice and feedback.

Assessment Practices in Undergraduate Accounting Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lusher, Anna L.

2010-01-01

This study examined accounting program assessment plans at 102 colleges and universities in the United States. The research focused on identifying assessment practices in undergraduate accounting programs by examining the skills and competencies assessed and determining the methods of assessment used. The study also investigated what course and/or…

Expanding undergraduate dietetic education through a health promotion internship program.

PubMed

Rye, J A; Weston, C

1987-05-01

The Lifestyle Assistant Program is a health promotion internship offered by the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Health Service. Students majoring in health-related disciplines (e.g., dietetics) gain skills in promoting the six dimensions of wellness: social, occupational, spiritual, physical, intellectual, and emotional. Thirteen competencies provide the basis for training Lifestyle Assistants, who develop, market, present, and evaluate wellness sessions for the university and residential communities. Assistants earn academic credit or a wage. Of particular benefit to assistants majoring in dietetics are studying and operating a self-testing physical assessment unit, which approximates body composition, cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, and flexibility; using a health hazard appraisal; assisting the University's Nutrition Task Force with its education campaign in the campus cafeterias; and presenting programs on popular nutrition topics (e.g., the athlete's diet). Program evaluation reveals that 84% of participants in programs conducted by assistants gained information of personal benefit. The Lifestyle Assistant competencies support The American Dietetic Association Plan IV minimum competencies in such areas as communication and education. The Lifestyle Assistant experience is in accordance with The American Dietetic Association's Dietetic Manpower Study recommendations: to provide student learning experiences in wellness programs and fitness settings.

Modifications to an interactive model of the human body during exercise: With special emphasis on thermoregulation. M.S. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scherb, Megan Kay

1993-01-01

Since 1988 an interactive computer model of the human body during exercise has been under development by a number of undergraduate students in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Iowa State University. The program, written under the direction of Dr. Richard C. Seagrave, uses physical characteristics of the user, environmental conditions and activity information to predict the onset of hypothermia, hyperthermia, dehydration, or exhaustion for various levels and durations of a specified exercise. The program however, was severely limited in predicting the onset of dehydration due to the lack of sophistication with which the program predicts sweat rate and its relationship to sensible water loss, degree of acclimatization, and level of physical training. Additionally, it was not known whether sweat rate also depended on age and gender. For these reasons, the goal of this creative component was to modify the program in the above mentioned areas by applying known information and empirical relationships from literature. Furthermore, a secondary goal was to improve the consistency with which the program was written by modifying user input statements and improving the efficiency and logic of the program calculations.

Undergraduate Research Summer Fellowships Undergo Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elgren, Timothy E.

2000-09-01

At the 22nd Annual Council Meeting of Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR), held this past June at the College of Wooster, the general council voted to make fundamental changes to the Undergraduate Research Summer Fellowship Program. The most important change is that awards will no longer be made to individual students. Instead, awards will be made to individual faculty member on the basis of applications written by faculty members comprised of a curriculum vitae, a description of the proposed research project, and the role of undergraduate collaborators in the proposed research activities. This change brings the program more in line with the overall CUR objective to support faculty in their efforts to provide research experiences for undergraduate students. Faculty members selected for awards will be asked to designate a student recipient at the time the funds are awarded, a key change to the fellowship program.

Mentored undergraduate research in the geosciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Judge, Shelley; Pollock, Meagen; Wiles, Greg; Wilson, Mark

2012-09-01

There is little argument about the merits of undergraduate research, but it can seem like a complex, resource-intensive endeavor [e.g., Laursen et al., 2010; Lopatto, 2009; Hunter et al., 2006]. Although mentored undergraduate research can be challenging, the authors of this feature have found that research programs are strengthened when students and faculty collaborate to build new knowledge. Faculty members in the geology department at The College of Wooster have conducted mentored undergraduate research with their students for more than 60 years and have developed a highly effective program that enhances the teaching, scholarship, and research of our faculty and provides life-changing experiences for our students. Other colleges and universities have also implemented successful mentored undergraduate research programs in the geosciences. For instance, the 18 Keck Geology Consortium schools (http://keckgeology.org/), Princeton University, and other institutions have been recognized for their senior capstone experiences by U.S. News & World Report.

An Exploration of the Experiences of Undergraduate Adult Learners in an Adult Degree Program from the Theoretical Framework of Self-Authorship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hernandez, Rocio Duran

2013-01-01

This study applies Baxter Magolda's theory of self-authorship (2001) from the literature of student development theory to examine the experiences of undergraduate adult learners. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of undergraduate adult learners enrolled in an adult degree program and whether their experiences were influenced…

Evaluation of the National Science Foundation Graduate Teaching Fellows in K-12 Education (GK-12) Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mitchell, Julia; Levine, Roger; Gonzalez, Raquel; Bitter, Catherine; Webb, Norman; White, Paul

The GK-12 program of the National Science Foundation is an innovative program for enriching the value of graduate and advanced undergraduate students' education while simultaneously enriching science and mathematics teaching at the K-12 level. GK-12 is a fellowship program that offers graduate students and advanced undergraduates the opportunity…

Anthropogenic Climate Change in Undergraduate Marine and Environmental Science Programs in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vlietstra, Lucy S.; Mrakovcich, Karina L.; Futch, Victoria C.; Stutzman, Brooke S.

2016-01-01

To develop a context for program-level design decisions pertaining to anthropogenic climate change, the authors studied the prevalence of courses focused on human-induced climate change in undergraduate marine science and environmental science degree programs in the United States. Of the 86 institutions and 125 programs the authors examined, 37%…

Fostering Culture Change in an Undergraduate Business Program: "Nudging" Students towards Greater Involvement in Extra-Curricular Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Elizabeth M.

2013-01-01

A report on a successfully implemented program to increase student participation in extra-curricular activities in an undergraduate business program with a high percentage of first-generation college students. A market-research study offered insight as to why students were not participating before the program was launched. Greater participation in…

The Status of Career and Technical Education Undergraduate and Graduate Programs in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fletcher, Edward C.; Gordon, Howard R. D.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine undergraduate and graduate student enrollments, course delivery modes, and curricular trends and issues of CTE programs. Based on findings from 139 program/department coordinators, results emphasized that although CTE programs within institutions of higher education have declined in number (Fletcher,…

Intimate partner violence, health, sexuality, and academic performance among a national sample of undergraduates.

PubMed

Brewer, Nathan; Thomas, Kristie A; Higdon, Julia

2018-03-22

To determine the association between intimate partner violence (IPV) and academic performance among heterosexual and sexual minority undergraduates, including whether health mediates this relationship. A national sample of undergraduate students aged 18-24 years old who completed the 2011-2014 National College Health Assessment IIb (N = 85,071). We used structural equation modeling to create a latent variable of IPV victimization (stalking, physical, sexual, and emotional violence) in order to test its relationship with health (physical and mental) and two indicators of academic performance (GPA and perceived academic difficulties), according to participants' sexual identity (heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and unsure). Regardless of sexual identity, undergraduates who reported IPV were more likely to have lower GPA and increased academic difficulties. Health mediates this relationship, such that IPV reduces health, which negatively affects performance. IPV poses a serious threat to undergraduates' health and educational success. Findings warrant universal prevention and intervention.

Preparing Physics Ph.D. Students as Instructors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manhart, Michael; Knapen, Simon

2012-03-01

As demand grows for education in STEM fields, there is an increasing need for Ph.D. physicists with a strong aptitude for and commitment to teaching. Development of these skills begins in graduate school, where most physicists are first exposed to teaching as TAs to undergraduate courses. The TA experience thus has considerable impact on the development of their teaching skills. Unfortunately, many graduate programs do not provide detailed training to their TAs. However, if departments hope to produce physicists who are also outstanding educators, they must create a culture of excellence in teaching that includes adequate training and incentives to excel for their graduate student TAs. As current Ph.D. students in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Rutgers University, we have designed and implemented a TA training program to achieve these goals. Our program, Developing Educational Leaders among TAs in Physics (DELTA P), is aimed at new physics TAs and consists of an intensive orientation followed by 10 weekly seminars during the semester. The orientation focuses on the essential practical issues relevant to TAs before they first step in the classroom, while the seminars delve into more specialized topics, ranging from motivating non-majors to physics education research. Students who complete the program are given an official credential by the department to certify their training. After two years DELTA P has begun to effect positive changes to our department's TA experience, and we believe DELTA P serves as a useful model for other departments. In this talk, we will present our program and hope to engage in an interactive discussion with the audience about these issues.

Research Ethics with Undergraduates in Summer Research Training Programs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheung, I.; Yalcin, K.

2016-02-01

Many undergraduate research training programs incorporate research ethics into their programs and some are required. Engaging students in conversations around challenging topics such as conflict of interest, cultural and gender biases, what is science and what is normative science can difficult in newly formed student cohorts. In addition, discussing topics with more distant impacts such as science and policy, intellectual property and authorship, can be difficult for students in their first research experience that have more immediate concerns about plagiarism, data manipulation, and the student/faculty relationship. Oregon State University's Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in Ocean Sciences: From Estuaries to the Deep Sea as one model for incorporating a research ethics component into summer undergraduate research training programs. Weaved into the 10-week REU program, undergraduate interns participate in a series of conversations and a faculty mentor panel focused on research ethics. Topics discussed are in a framework for sharing myths, knowledge and personal experiences on issues in research with ethical implications. The series follows guidelines and case studies outlined from the text, On Being A Scientist: Responsible Conduct In Research Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy, National Academy of Sciences.

MHA admission criteria and program performance: do they predict career performance?

PubMed

Porter, J; Galfano, V J

1987-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent admission criteria predict graduate school and career performance. The study also analyzed which objective and subjective criteria served as the best predictors. MHA graduates of the University of Minnesota from 1974 to 1977 were surveyed to assess career performance. Student files served as the data base on admission criteria and program performance. Career performance was measured by four variables: total compensation, satisfaction, fiscal responsibility, and level of authority. High levels of MHA program performance were associated with women who had high undergraduate GPAs from highly selective undergraduate colleges, were undergraduate business majors, and participated in extracurricular activities. High levels of compensation were associated with relatively low undergraduate GPAs, high levels of participation in undergraduate extracurricular activities, and being single at admission to graduate school. Admission to MHA programs should be based upon both objective and subjective criteria. Emphasis should be placed upon the selection process for MHA students since admission criteria are shown to explain 30 percent of the variability in graduate program performance, and as much as 65 percent of the variance in level of position authority.

Understanding Female Students' Physics Identity Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hazari, Zahra

2017-01-01

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

Promoting Ocean Literacy through American Meteorological Society Programs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Passow, Michael; Abshire, Wendy; Weinbeck, Robert; Geer, Ira; Mills, Elizabeth

2017-04-01

American Meteorological Society Education Programs provide course materials, online and physical resources, educator instruction, and specialized training in ocean, weather, and climate sciences (https://www.ametsoc.org/ams/index.cfm/education-careers/education-program/k-12-teachers/). Ocean Science literacy efforts are supported through the Maury Project, DataStreme Ocean, and AMS Ocean Studies. The Maury Project is a summer professional development program held at the US Naval Academy designed to enhance effective teaching of the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics of oceanography. DataStreme Ocean is a semester-long course offered twice a year to participants nationwide. Created and sustained with major support from NOAA, DS Ocean explores key concepts in marine geology, physical and chemical oceanography, marine biology, and climate change. It utilizes electronically-transmitted text readings, investigations and current environmental data. AMS Ocean Studies provides complete packages for undergraduate courses. These include online textbooks, investigations manuals, RealTime Ocean Portal (course website), and course management system-compatible files. It can be offered in traditional lecture/laboratory, completely online, and hybrid learning environments. Assistance from AMS staff and other course users is available.

Nuclear Science in the Undergraduate Curriculum: The New Nuclear Science Facility at San Jose State University.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ling, A. Campbell

1979-01-01

The following aspects of the radiochemistry program at San Jose State University in California are described: the undergraduate program in radiation chemistry, the new nuclear science facility, and academic programs in nuclear science for students not attending San Jose State University. (BT)

Development of an Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Bioengineering Program at Lehigh University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herz, Lori; Russo, M. Jean; Ou-Yang, H. Daniel; El-Aasser, Mohamed; Jagota, Anand; Tatic-Lucic, Svetlana; Ochs, John

2011-01-01

The undergraduate Bioengineering Program at Lehigh University was established as part of the university's Bioscience and Biotechnology Initiative with support from the National Science Foundation through a grant from its Division of Engineering Education and Centers (EEC). The objective here is to describe the program development and…

Guide to Selected Federal Assistance Programs for Undergraduate Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stedman, Jim; Scott, Marcia

Information is provided on 14 federal programs providing financial assistance to undergraduate students in universities, colleges, and vocational/technical schools. The programs provide three different types of assistance: grants (or scholarships), loans, and job earnings. Grants and scholarships do not have to be repaid, but loans do. Some of the…

Introductory Linear Regression Programs in Undergraduate Chemistry.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gale, Robert J.

1982-01-01

Presented are simple programs in BASIC and FORTRAN to apply the method of least squares. They calculate gradients and intercepts and express errors as standard deviations. An introduction of undergraduate students to such programs in a chemistry class is reviewed, and issues instructors should be aware of are noted. (MP)

"Underprepared" and "At-Risk": Disrupting Deficit Discourses in Undergraduate STEM Recruitment and Retention Programming

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Castro, Erin L.

2014-01-01

This paper highlights deficit-oriented descriptions of underrepresented undergraduate students in STEM intervention programs at large public 4-year universities. Drawing from interview data and using critical discourse analysis, the author identifies how deficit discourses are mobilized among program staff and argues that such descriptions…

Evaluating and Selecting Sport Management Undergraduate Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cuneen, Jacquelyn; Sidwell, M. Joy

1998-01-01

States that the accelerated growth of sport management undergraduate programs that began in the 1980s has continued into the current decade. There are currently 180 sport management major programs in American colleges and universities. Describes the sports management approval process and suggests useful strategies to evaluate sport management…

Tiered Internship Model for Undergraduate Students in Geospatial Science and Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kopteva, Irina A.; Arkowski, Donna; Craft, Elaine L.

2015-01-01

This article discusses the development, implementation, and evaluation of a tiered internship program for undergraduate students in geospatial science and technology (TIMSGeoTech). The internship program assists education programs in providing skill development that is relevant and useful, and it aligns graduates and their skills with industry…