Physics Education
The need for highly qualified physics teachers in the U.S. is well established, and reform efforts are underway to develop novel and innovative teacher professional development experiences to improve the quality of K-12 physics education.…
We developed the Learning About STEM Student Outcomes (LASSO) online assessment platform to increase instructor use of research-based assessments (RBAs). LASSO does this by making it easy to collect and analyze high-quality evidence about…
Great physics breakthroughs are rarely included in the introductory physics or astronomy course. General relativity and binary black hole coalescence are no different, and can be included in the introductory course only in a very limited…
This study investigates differences in student responses to in-class and online administrations of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM), and the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science…
This study investigates how Learning Assistants (LAs) and related course features are associated with inequities in student learning in introductory university physics courses. 2,868 physics students' paired pre- and post-test scores on…
The authors' design for a M\"ossbauer spectroscopy unit accessed via the Internet is presented. The spectrometer's configuration, operational peculiarities, key specifications, and remote access procedures are described. More detailed…
This study investigates how faculty, student, and course features are linked to student outcomes in Learning Assistant (LA) supported courses. Over 4,500 students and 17 instructors from 13 LA Alliance member institutions participated in…
This study utilizes a sociocultural interpretation of Self-Determination Theory to better understand the role that learning contexts play in generating student motivation, engagement, and identity. By drawing on previous motivation research…
Students who serve as Learning Assistants (LAs) and have the opportunity to teach the content they are learning, while also studying effective teaching pedagogy, have demonstrated achievement gains in advanced content courses and positive…
Resonance is an ubiquitous phenomenon present in many systems. In particular, air resonance in cavities was studied by Hermann von Helmholtz in the 1850s. Originally used as acoustic filters, Helmholtz resonators are rigid-wall cavities…
Sector models are tools that make it possible to teach the basic principles of the general theory of relativity without going beyond elementary mathematics. This contribution shows how sector models can be used to determine geodesics. We…
Sector models permit a model-based approach to the general theory of relativity. The approach has its focus on the geometric concepts and uses no more than elementary mathematics. This contribution shows how to construct the paths of light…
We report on a project undertaken in Summer 2017 by pre-university student interns at Haus der Astronomie: point-particle simulations of galaxy collisions with the aim of reproducing observational data from such collisions. We succeeded in…
A wireless power transfer experiment suitable for senior physics undergraduates that operates between 3 and 4 MHz is described and demonstrated in detail. The apparatus consists of a pair of identical resonant coils that can be moved…
Using SCM higher mathematics course allows you to: more clearly understandable apply theoretical material; deprive students of routine calculations; provide multilevel learning process, and therefore enhances cognitive interest and most…
The article deals with the problem of intellectual development of students in learning of physics by means of computer simulation. The main objectives of teaching computer simulation in learning of physics is the general outlook…
While other fields such as statistics and education have examined various issues with quantitative work, few studies in physics education research (PER) have done so. We conducted a two-phase study to identify and to understand the extent…
The Longitudinal Study of Astronomy Graduate Students (LSAGS) arose from the 2003 Women in Astronomy Conference, where it was noted that a majority of young members of the American Astronomical Society were women. The astronomy community…
Smartphones may be seen as miniature toolboxs to perform Physics experiments. In this paper, we present three different "optics workbenches" mainly based on the light meter of a smartphone. One is aimed at the precise study of Malus law and…
Modern physics is now a regular course for non-physics majors who do not have to take the accompanying laboratory. This lack of an experimental component puts the engineering students at a disadvantage. A possible solution is the use of…