Agenda & Sessions

Thirty years of physics education research have produced truly remarkable insights into how students learn physics as well as the very nature of the learning process. Similar research is now underway in astronomy, biology, and chemistry. This talk will look broadly at the difficulties students face in all the sciences and at the lessons to be draw from research for improving science education.

Randy Knight: Professor of Physics and Director of the Minor in Environmental Studies at California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly). Ph.D. (1979) from the University of California, Berkeley. Postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Faculty positions at Ohio State University and California Polytechnic State University. Author of more than 25 research papers in atomic physics and laser spectroscopy. More recently, author of Five Easy Lessons: Strategies for Successful Physics Teaching; Physics for Scientists and Engineers: A Strategic Approach, and (with Brian Jones and Stuart Field) College Physics: A Strategic Approach (all Pearson Education).

1. Rethinking Our Goals: What Will Our Students Remember When They Forget Everything?
   

   The question of the purpose of education is similar to the question about the purpose of life: it is difficult to keep the answer in mind when one is submerged in everyday routines and minor distractions. But if we stop briefly while grading an exam, preparing a lab, or running a review session and ask ourselves what students will remember 20 years from now, the question and its answer might change completely what we do every day. Our PER group has tried to answer this question and as a result is changing our approach to teaching introductory physics. We still want students to understand electromagnetic induction and thin lenses; but a larger goal is to empower them with the understanding of reasoning processes that help them make independent decisions and solve complex problems in their future lives. I will share the successes and challenges of this work.

   Eugenia Etkina, Rutgers University

   Dr. Eugenia Etkina has 30 years of teaching experience in physics and astronomy instruction at middle school, high school and university levels. She earned her Ph.D. in physics education from Moscow State Pedagogical University. From 1995-1997 she taught physics courses for students at-risk at Rutgers University, for which she, together with Dr. Horton, developed a highly successful approach. In 1997, she was appointed an assistant professor at the GSE, became an associate professor in 2003 and a Full professor in 2010. She created a unique program of physics teacher preparation in which prospective teachers enroll in five teaching methods courses mastering the art and science of teaching physics. She also created an Investigative Science Learning Environment (with A. Van Heuvelen) - a comprehensive inquiry-based physics learning system that engages students in experiences similar to that of practicing physicists who construct and apply knowledge. The ISLE philosophy is now penetrating middle school and high school physics through PUM - Physics Union Mathematics curriculum developed at Rutgers that integrates ISLE and mathematical reasoning to help 6-12 students learn how to think like scientists while studying physics. She also developed a new approach to helping students acquire scientific abilities. Eugenia teaches all physics teaching methods courses in the physics teacher preparation program (one of the largest producers of physics teachers in the US) and conducts professional development program for in-service science teachers. Other methods developed by Dr. Etkina and used by university and high school physics instructors include teaching mechanics on rollerblades and reflective Weekly Reports. Her main research interest is in the cognitive and epistemological aspects of learning physics, acquisition and transfer of scientific abilities and the process of constructing physics teacher PCK. Her doctoral students earn Ph.Ds in Physics Education and Learning Sciences and Ed.Ds in Science Education in the GSE and PhDs in Physics Education Research in the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

2. Distracting or Helpful? Implementing Technology in the Classroom
   

   Students often engage in using technology while we lecture, from Facebook® to YouTube® to Twitter®. What would happen if we met them where they were at and used this technology to aid in learning instead of banning it because we think it is distracting? Because technology use can vary from simple (Twitter®) to something much more time-consuming in its creation (virtual labs, augmented reality models), having clear objectives from the start is important. I’ll be discussing the use of these specific technologies in the classroom, outlining the challenges and the benefits of each, as well as outlining how to practically implement these technologies in your own teaching.

   Anita Woods, Western University

   Anita Woods received her BSc in Genetics and Ph.D. in Physiology from the University of Western Ontario. As an assistant professor, she spends the majority of her time teaching students from first year to graduate school in Physiology. Anita is always looking for new and different ways to engage students in the classroom. Although not a technology maven, Anita has utilized a variety of technologies to aid in teaching both large and small physiology classes.

1. Getting Them Thinking: Evidence-Based Techniques to Support Students in a Large Lecture
   

   I believe that students should be working harder than the instructor during class time. It’s tempting for students to avoid thinking during a well-delivered lecture, despite the hard work an instructor is doing. Carefully prepared in-class activities encourage students to think about the course content and learn more during class time. During this session I will describe the techniques I use to motivate students to attempt to solve problems, discuss concepts with each other, and uncover what they know and don’t know about a topic.

   Jackie Stewart, University of British Columbia
   

   Jackie Stewart is an instructor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of British Columbia. She has been teaching general and organic chemistry since 2005. Jackie’s research interests span the areas of self-regulated learning, problem solving, and assessment of learning. She is passionate about helping students learn through innovative instructional methods and by motivating them to use research-tested study techniques. Jackie received the UBC Killam Teaching Award in 2006 and 2010, as well as the Science Undergraduate Society Teaching Excellence Award in 2010.

2. Peer Discussion & Clickers: Using Wrong Answers to Get the Right Reactions
   

   The best clicker questions are the ones in which the majority of students do not answer correctly. Moreover, when students split their vote among several choices, their answers can be used to guide peer and whole class discussion. In this workshop, we will focus on writing challenging clicker questions and ways to structure discussions so that incorrect answers become teachable moments.

   Michelle Smith, University of Maine

   Michelle Smith is an Assistant Professor at the University of Maine. Her work focuses on how to help students learn biology and teachers adopt promising educational practices in their classrooms. Specifically, she is interested in investigating conceptual difficulties in genetics, determining what makes peer discussion an effective learning tool in both large-lecture and small-enrollment courses, and collaborating with biology instructors on science education research questions in an effort to facilitate course transformation.

1. Problem-solving in (and out of!) First Year Classes
   

   Learning chemistry requires both the assimilation of many new concepts and the development of analytical skills, and many students lack ability in this fundamental area, having been trained only for algorithmic problem solving by their previous (high school) chemistry experiences. In lectures, we try to provide rich opportunities for engagement through videos, interactive websites, demonstrations, clickers etc, and we also spend time teaching them problem solving skills. But how do we consistently reinforce the methodology without boring the strongest students and leaving the weakest students far behind? We’ve settled on using narrated, animated videos through which the students can progress at their own pace. The different phases of problem solving - READ, PLAN, SOLVE, CHECK – are consistently colour-coded for clarity. Questions are integrated directly into the students’ lecture books, and the answers can be accessed via QR-codes, which are hyperlinked directly to the YouTube solutions.

   Scott McIndoe, University of Victoria
   

   Scott McIndoe completed his DPhil at the University of Waikato (NZ) in 1998, then took up a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Cambridge (UK). In 2000, he began a college lectureship, delivering >250 tutorial classes per year (“supervisions”) at Trinity and Newnham Colleges, Cambridge, while lecturing, supervising labs and conducting independent research in the Department of Chemistry. Three years later, he moved to the chemistry department at UVic, where his research group investigates organometallic catalytic systems whose mechanisms have proved intractable to traditional approaches. Scott’s teaching interests are focused on getting large classes engaged, enthused and thinking.

2. There’s More to First-year Science Than Just Medical School Prep: Promote Research and Programs at Your University
   

   Please join us in this session to hear strategies that we have employed in our department to show students how they can get involved in our program and to highlight different types of research at the university. We were able to reach out to students in class and directly in the textbook. We created 24 pages that emphasized the role of research at the university and how students can become involved. We introduced our undergraduate honors and specialization programs, and possible careers in biology that were accompanied by brief biographies of successful alumni.

   Maggie Haag and Cindy Paszkowski both at University of Alberta

   Maggie Haag coordinates the undergraduate laboratory curriculum, graduate teaching program and the undergraduate research program in Biological Sciences at the University of Alberta. She earned her MSc in Zoology from the University of Alberta. Research interests have focused on creating authentic undergraduate research experiences, writing to learn in biology and effective training of Graduate Teaching Assistants.

   Cindy Paszkowski is a professor in Biological Sciences at University of Alberta. She earned a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Cindy and her students conduct research on the ecology and conservation of freshwater fishes, amphibians, and birds.

1. Getting Students to Read the Textbook Before Class: It Can Be Done!
   

   The main purpose of a pre-reading assignment is to prepare students for learning in your next class. Similar to Just-In-Time-Teaching, students are first introduced to the material by reading the textbook, so that lecture becomes their second exposure. Students will get more out of lectures if they come to class knowing the basic definitions and physics vocabulary, as well as having had the chance to work through simple examples of concepts at their own pace.
   
   Assigning reading from a textbook is not new. However, students often do not take the time to actually read the assigned text on a regular basis. So what is different with the pre-reading approach? There are two key components for the successful implementation of pre-reading assignments: (1) the reading is very specific, and (2) a follow-up online quiz has questions which explicitly refer to the textbook, that is, the questions force students to open the textbook.
   
   In order for you to become familiar with the format, this hands-on workshop will provide the participants a chance to make a targeted pre-reading at the end of the workshop. I will also present evidence that students using such pre-reading assignments begin to recognize the textbook as being helpful to their learning.

   Cynthia Heiner, University of British Columbia
   

   Cynthia Heiner earned her B.S. degree in physics at the University of New Hampshire in 2002. She continued to study physics in Berlin, Germany. Cynthia finished her Master’s thesis in solid state physics at the Max Born Institute in 2004. She then joined the molecular physics department of Gerard Meijer at the Fritz Haber Institute (FHI) of the Max Planck Society, Berlin, for her doctoral research on a molecular synchrotron. After receiving her Ph.D. in 2009, Cynthia continued her work with cold molecules as a post-doctoral fellow, and in November 2009, she took on the additional role of Scientific Press Officer at the FHI, preparing press reports and organizing various science outreach programs.
   
   In 2010, after almost a decade in the lab, Cynthia turned her attention towards the classroom and began doing physics education research with the Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative at the University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver. She currently works as a post-doctoral fellow and sessional lecturer in the Physics and Astronomy department at UBC. In her large lectures for first-year physics, Cynthia uses pre-reading assignments as well as in-class active learning elements, such as worksheets and clicker questions, to engage the students and increase their understanding of physics concepts. Her research interests include investigating students’ long-term retention of fundamental physics as well as the development of active learning course materials for use in large lectures.

2. The Joy of… Teaching Science
   

   In today's society, the teaching of science can be a challenge. Our students are already bombarded with a flow of information from a variety of sources via the most advanced technologies. This is information that often needs only a minimum of attention and reflection and is characteristic of our students' multi-tasking way of life. To respond to this challenge, we have developed an approach at McGill that makes science, and most particularly chemistry, both accessible and relevant to today's students.
   We use similar tools the students are familiar with, such as web access through our COOL (COursesOnLine) lecture recording system. Our lectures are highly visual with pictures and animations. We make science relevant by bringing in topics of societal concerns from global warming to environmental toxins. We also aim at stimulating critical thinking by exposing our students to dubious marketing gimmicks, exaggerated health claims and unwarranted scares. The introduction of magic to highlight scientific principles is another way that characterizes our approach to teaching. When the magic is exposed, the science is revealed.
   We live in a society where science, for many, has become a dirty word. This is why as part of our teaching we give our students the tools to sort out facts from fiction. We want them to understand that the real dangers in life are not always where they are thought to be. Essentially we aim to convey to our students the joy of science thorough our joy of teaching it.

   Ariel Fenster, McGill University
   

   Ariel Fenster teaches at McGill University, where he is a founding member of the Office for Science and Society, an organization dedicated to disseminating up-to-date information in the areas of food, food issues, medications, and the environment and health topics in general. Dr. Fenster is well known as an outstanding communicator and an exceptional promoter of science with an extensive program, developed over three decades. In that period he has given well over 800 public presentations in English and in French across North America and Overseas. He appears regularly on TV and radio to discuss health, environmental and technology issues and has presented numerous science segments for children’s television. His contributions to teaching, and to the popularization of science, have been recognized by numerous awards. Among them: the "McNeil Medal for the Public Awareness of Science" from the Royal Society of Canada (1992, inaugural award) and the Michael Smith Award for the Promotion of science in Canada from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (2005). Ariel Fenster, who is a native of the wine-growing region of Bergerac, France, holds a Master's degree from the University of Paris and a Ph.D. from McGill University.