Related papers: Project-based physics labs using low-cost open-sou…
In many upper-division lab courses, instructors implement multiweek student-led projects. During such projects, students may design and carry out experiments, collect and analyze data, document and report their findings, and collaborate…
New technology like the Arduino microcontroller platform presents an opportunity to transform Beyond the First Year (BFY) physics labs to better prepare physics students for work in research labs and beyond. The flexibility, low cost, and…
We show how builtin sensors in mobile devices can be used as portable laboratories at the service of teaching experimental sciences, especially physics, in the last years of high school and first years of university. We describe experiments…
We report results from a study designed to identify links between undergraduate students' views about experimental physics and their engagement in multiweek projects in lab courses. Using surveys and interviews, we explored whether students…
In this paper, the use of cost-effective, custom home experiment kits for remote teaching of first-semester introductory physics labs is described. The kit experiments were designed to match the existing onsite lab experiment learning goals…
We describe a project-based computational physics course developed using a backwards course design approach. From an initial competency-based model of problem solving in computational physics, we interviewed faculty who use these tools in…
Arduino microcontrollers are electronic devices that can be used in physics experiments, and they are both affordable and readily available in comparison to other experimental sets. Students in high school and college can acquire valuable…
We describe four classical undergraduate physics experiments that were done with everyday objects and low-cost sensors: mechanical oscillations, transmittance of light through a slab of matter, beam deformation under load, and thermal…
Open Source Physics (Brown, 2012; Christian, 2010; Esquembre, 2012; Hwang, 2010) empowers teachers and students to create and use these free tools with the associated intellectual property rights given to customise (Wee & Mak, 2009) the…
Particle physics, when taught in the classroom or lecture theatre, suffers from a lack of practical experience by students. Thus, we describe the construction of a fully working small particle physics detector using state of the art…
The objectives of physics laboratory courses include fostering conceptual understanding and development of several important cognitive, psycho-motor, attitudinal and affective abilities. In most of the Indian colleges and universities (and…
One of key goals of contemporary physics (and, realistically, STEM) education is to develop students' science literacy and critical thinking skills. In this paper, we present the construction and use of several versions of a simple…
Using smartphones in experimental physics teachings offers many advantages in term of engagement, pedagogy and flexibility. But it presents the drawbacks of possibly endangering the device and also facing the heterogeneity of available…
In this paper we discuss the use of sensors incorporated in mobile devices as possible mobile laboratories at the service of teaching experimental sciences. Mobile devices, smartphones, tablets, laptops, microbit cards, are a resource for…
Laboratory courses for upper-division undergraduates often involve sophisticated equipment, relatively small class sizes, and extended hands-on projects. These courses present distinct challenges and opportunities for the physics education…
The rapid evolution of intelligent electronic devices makes information technology, computer science and electronics strongly related to the teaching of natural sciences. Today almost everybody has a smart phone that can convert light,…
To enhance the undergraduate and graduate engineering education for nanoscale materials, devices and systems, we report a multi-disciplinary course based on the integration of theory, hands-on laboratory and hands-on computation into a…
Remote Controlled laboratories is a teaching and learning tool that increasingly becomes fundamental in the teaching and learning processes at all the levels. A study of available systems highlights a series of limitations on the used…
Instructional physics labs are critical junctures for many STEM majors to develop an understanding of experimentation in the sciences. Students can acquire useful experimental skills and grow their identities as scientists. However, many…
To deepen do-it-yourself (DIY) technology in the physics classroom, we seek to highlight the Open Source Physics (OSP) community of educators that engage, enable and empower teachers as learners so that we create DIY technology…