Research-Based Reform of University Physics

PERC 2008

Volume 1 « Reviews in PER «

Research-Based Reform of University Physics

E. F. Redish and P. J. Cooney, editors

Over the past two decades, the PER community has not only learned a great deal about how students learn and do not learn in the calculus-based (university) physics class, it has developed a number of effective instructional environments. (See references at the bottom of this page.) In this volume of invited review articles, the developers of some of these curricula present an overview of their work.

The authors of each article about a learning environment were asked to answer the following questions.

What is the learning goal of the environment?
What population is it for and what is expected of them?
What is the research on which it is based?
What resources are required to deliver it?
What are the difficulties in implementing it effectively?
What is the evidence that the environment achieves its goals?

These invited articles have been carefully peer reviewed by at least two senior reviewers.

Issue 1 (March 2007)

Research-Based Reform of University Physics

E. F. Redish and P. J. Cooney, editors
Volume 1 of Reviews in Physics Education Research

Investigative Science Learning Environment - A Science Process Approach to Learning Physics
E. Etkina and A Van Heuvelen
ISLE helps students learn physics by engaging in activities similar to those employed by physicists as they construct and apply knowledge.

Matter & Interactions
R. Chabay and B. Sherwood
Matter & Interactions emphasizes the power of fundamental principles and the use of these principles in analyzing physical systems on both the macroscopic and the microscopic level.

Peer Instruction: Engaging Students One-on-One, All At Once
C. H. Crouch, J. Watkins, A. P. Fagen, and E. Mazur
Peer Instruction is a strategy for engaging students during class through a structured questioning process that involves every student.

The Student-Centered Activities for Large Enrollment Undergraduate Programs (SCALE-UP) project
R. J. Beichner, J. M. Saul, D. S. Abbott, J. J. Morse, D. L. Deardorff, R. J. Allain, S. W. Bonham, M. H. Dancy, and J. S. Risley
The SCALE-UP classroom is a highly collaborative, hands-on, computer-rich, learning environment for large courses that folds together lecture and lab for an effective, economical alternative to traditional lecture-oriented instruction.

References:

Resource Letter PER-1: Physics Education Research: L. C. McDermott and E. F.Redish Am. J. Phys ., 67 (1999) 755-767.
Recent Advances in Classroom Physics: B. A. Thacker, Repts. on Prog. in Phys., 66 , 1833-1864 (2003)
Students' and Teachers' Conceptions in Science Education: R. Duit

If you would like to submit a comment on one of these articles, please email it to Edward Redish or Pat Cooney. It will be peer reviewed and, if accepted, will be published as an addendum to the articles in each issue.