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Statistics educators recommend teaching with real data with relevant contexts, but defining relevancy is challenging and varies by student. We investigated whether providing student choice of data context increases engagement through a…
As part of a larger research project into massively open online courses (MOOCs), we have investigated student background, as well as student participation in a physics MOOC with a laboratory component. Students completed a demographic…
Many instructors choose to assess their students using open-ended written exam items that require students to show their understanding of physics by solving a problem and/or explaining a concept. Grading these items is fairly time…
The abilities of Generative-Artificial Intelligence (AI) to produce real-time, sophisticated responses across diverse contexts has promised a huge potential in physics education, particularly in providing customized feedback. In this study,…
Contribution: This study examined student effort and performance in an introductory programming course with respect to student-held implicit theories and self-efficacy. Background: Implicit theories and self-efficacy shed a light into…
This work aims to understand how effective the typical admissions criteria used in physics are at identifying students who will complete the PhD. Through a multivariate statistical analysis of a sample that includes roughly one in eight…
Evidence is presented that offering introductory physics courses with an explicit focus on mastery can reduce the gender gap to zero. Taken together with a previous study showing that a concepts-first course may zero out another demographic…
As research-based self-paced e-learning tools become increasingly available, a critical issue educators encounter is implementing strategies to ensure that all students engage with them as intended. Here, we discuss the effectiveness of…
There is an increasing recognition regarding of the importance of introducing modern Einsteinian concepts early in science education. This study investigates the efficacy of an innovative educational programme "Einstein-First", which…
We present outcomes from curricular changes made to an introductory calculus-based physics course whose audience is primarily life science majors, the majority of whom plan to pursue post-baccalaureate studies in medical and scientific…
Students' attitudes and approaches to problem solving in physics can profoundly influence their motivation to learn and development of expertise. We developed and validated an Attitudes and Approaches to Problem Solving survey by expanding…
We describe the development of a junior-senior level course for Physics majors designed to teach Mathematica skills in support of their undergraduate coursework, but also to introduce students to modern research level results. Standard…
For many students, introductory college science courses are often the only opportunity in their formal higher education to be exposed to science, shaping their view of the subject, their scientific literacy, and their attitudes towards…
The rising demand for higher education has led universities to offer courses in multiple formats, including Intensive Instruction Courses (IICs), to meet the needs of a diverse student body. While active teaching methods improve physics…
Helping students learn to think like a physicist is an important goal of many introductory physics courses. One characteristic distinguishing more experienced physicists from novice students is that they make better use of problem solving…
We report the results of statistical analysis performed on course grades for calculus-based introductory physics for data collected over a four-year period. We consider two important categories of scores: proctored (in-class proctored exams…
For many students, college physics courses have little or even negative impact on their beliefs about the connection between physics and the everyday world. One way to help students see this connection is to incorporate analysis of science…
Extensive research has demonstrated that active learning methods are more effective than traditional lecturing at improving student conceptual understanding and reducing failure rates in undergraduate physics courses. Researchers have…
We describe how graduate students categorize introductory mechanics problems based on the similarity of their solutions. Graduate students were asked at the end of a teaching assistant training class to categorize problems from their own…
Machine learning algorithms have recently been used to predict students' performance in an introductory physics class. The prediction model classified students as those likely to receive an A or B or students likely to receive a grade of C,…