Workshops

All workshop will take place on the campus of the University of Maryland, College Park.

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  • W01: Tour of the Neils Bohr Archive and Library

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 08:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

    Organizer

    Ruth Howes

    Cost

    • Members: $70
    • Non-members: $95

    Seats

    • Max: 12
    • Available: 3

    Participants will become familiar with the resources contained in this archive and library devoted to the history of physics. They will learn how to find materials from the collection online, how to use them, and what the rules are for classroom use. Emphasis will be placed on how to use the materials in teaching and for enriching instruction perhaps through science club activities. Participants will also learn about the History Programs’ teacher guides on women and underrepresented minorities in physics.

  • W02: (Cancelled) Astronomy for Special Learners: Hands on Strategies

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Julia Olsen

    Cost

    • Members: $75
    • Non-members: $100

    Seats

    • Max: 20
    • Available: 20

    Space Science is for Everyone. Most instructors are not experts in teaching students with a range of disabilities. This workshop is based in Universal Design for Learning, and we will also explore specific strategies for creating and using accessible materials and activities for your classroom that are based on NASA and other resources. You will gain expertise in teaching persons who are Learning Disabled, Orthopedically Impaired, Blind/Visually Impaired, and Deaf/Hard of Hearing (D/HH). Strategies will also be included for teaching students who have Attention Deficit and Disorders and Autism Spectrum Disorder. This workshop is appropriate for high school, community college and college instructors.

  • W03: FPGAs

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Kurt Wick

    Cost

    • Members: $80
    • Non-members: $105

    Seats

    • Max: 16
    • Available: 2

    In this workshop you will work with FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate-Arrays.) Unlike the older, traditional application specific standard products (ASSPs), such as the 4000 or 7400 series chips, FPGAs contain 100k or more logic gates which can be operated reliably in the MHz to GHz range. These properties make FPGAs ideally suited to be used in an advanced lab course teaching digital logic or to have them directly incorporated into lab projects. You will interface the Digilent’s FPGA hardware boards and learn how to implement combinational and sequential digital logic using a graphical approach and a hardware descriptive language, such as Verilog. You will build an interactive 4 bit adder. Pulse width modulation (PWM) technique will be applied to build a digital-to-analog converter to play music. Time permitting, additional exercises may be implemented such as using an IP core to create a sinusoidal frequency synthesizer or a successive-approximation analog-to-digital converter.

  • W04: Ramps Bungee Cords: Bringing It Together-Modeling, Assesment and Engineering

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Aaron Osowiecki

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 14

    The Next Generation Standards call for the integration of modeling, content and engineering within science classrooms. In our energy unit, students “discover” energy conservation by analyzing speed data obtained from rolling marbles down a series of ramps of different heights and slopes. After some significant practice applying the concept, students apply energy conservation to design and build a rubber band bungee cord to provide a safe, yet thrilling drop, for a raw egg. Participants in this session will explore this unit, collecting their own data and building their own bungee cord while seeing how we incorporate formative and summative assessment, as well as “5E” design, throughout the unit to ensure student success.

  • W05: Data Analysis for Astronomy Educators

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 08:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

    Organizer

    Kirk Borne

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 25
    • Available: 5

    In the same way that content-based marketing is the primary way that businesses use to engage with customers, we need content-based activities to engage with students... i.e., we must not simply try to "sell" scientific ideas to students outside of the context of those ideas (how they were discovered, what they mean), but we should show them the story that led to the scientific discovery, how scientific inquiry is done, and why it is done. This workshop will explore data activities in the classroom as a means to learning science content

  • W06: Integrating Physics and Geology into Engineering for STEM

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Evelyn Restivo

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Janie Head, John Taber

    Cost

    • Members: $70
    • Non-members: $95

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 10

    Designing STEM related activities to integrate Physics and Geology: STEM activities are designed and developed to relate subjects to career opportunities using engineering methods and technology. The focus on physics topics that integrate geological techniques allows an additional insight into careers that span across specific science areas and peer into the engineering and technological advances of the future that will be discovered and used by the students in our classrooms today. Design activities will include Energy of Wave Motion for Seismic Waves, Energy of Wave Motion in Different Materials, Energy in Cratering and Surface Composition, Techniques and Energy Associated with Core Sampling, Logging Processes of Drilling, and Energy Techniques Associated with Searching for Magnetic Field Patterns

  • W07: Learn Physics while Practicing Science: Introduction to ISLE

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Eugenia Etkina

    Co-Organizer(s)

    David Brookes, Gorazd Planinsic

    Cost

    • Members: $85
    • Non-members: $110

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 0

    Learn physics while practicing science: Introduction to ISLE. Participants* will learn how to modify introductory physics courses to help students acquire a good conceptual foundation, apply this knowledge effectively in problem solving, and develop the science process abilities needed for real life work using Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE). We provide tested curriculum materials including: The Physics Active Learning Guide and the Instructor Guide (ALG has 30 or more activities per textbook chapter for use with any textbook, including a new ISLE-based textbook); (b) a website with over 200 videotaped experiments and questions for use in the classroom, laboratories, and homework; and (c) a set of labs that can be used to construct, test and apply concepts to solve problems. During the workshop we will illustrate how to use the materials in in college and high school physics courses to have an explicit emphasis on using the processes of science and various cognitive strategies consistent with the NGSS. We will specifically focus on science practices and crosscutting concepts. *Please bring your own laptop to the workshop if you own one. Make sure it has Quicktime installed. If you do not own a computer, you will be paired with somebody who does.

  • W08: PIRA Lecture Demonstrations I

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Dale Stille

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Sam Sampere

    Cost

    • Members: $115
    • Non-members: $140

    Seats

    • Max: 55
    • Available: 38

    Individuals taking this workshop will be offered a unique one-time experience, as this year, we will be using the set of flagship physics demonstrations from the University of Maryland. Even if you have taken this workshop in the past you may wish to take it again just for this opportunity. The topics in this workshop cover the standard first semester of physics instruction from Mechanics to Thermal, and is presented by an experienced team of lecture demonstrators. The format allows for, and encourages dialogue between instructors and participants. It is recommended that both Lecture Demonstrations 1 and 2 be taken, as this will cover the complete year of demonstrations needed for a typical introductory course. The demonstrations used and exhibited will be based on, but not limited to, the PIRA top 200 list of demonstrations. See http://www.pira-online.org for more info on this list. Also see http://faraday.physics.uiowa.edu/pira_meeting_pictures.htm and click on the “2015 Additional PIRA Workshop” link for additional information about this workshop as well as some pictures and movies from past workshops.

  • W09: Activity Based Physics in the High School Classroom

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Steve Henning

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Priscilla Laws, Maxine Willis

    Cost

    • Members: $95
    • Non-members: $120

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 10

    This hands-on workshop is designed for teachers in advanced physics classes such as AP, International Baccalaureate and honors physics. Teachers attending should be interested in enabling their students to master physics concepts in mechanics by engaging in inquiry-based active learning. Participants will work with classroom-tested curricular materials drawn from the Activity Based Physics Suite materials. These curricula make creative use of flexible computer tools available from Vernier and PASCO. These materials have been developed in accordance with the outcomes of physics education research . Affordable access to the Suite materials for secondary school use is now available and will be discussed.

  • W10: Teaching Programming and Problem Solving using LEGO EV3 Robotics

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Jeremy Benson

    Cost

    • Members: $85
    • Non-members: $110

    Seats

    • Max: 16
    • Available: 10

    Kids love robots! And everyone loves playing with LEGOs, but did you know there's a lot we can learn from them too! This workshop will explore the potential for problem solving and critical thinking, as well as engineering and design concepts, all using everyone's favorite robotic building blocks. We'll also be exploring ideas of basic programming and logic, all using the brand new LEGO EV3 robots and software. If you've been curious about what all the excitement is about, here's your chance to find out!

  • W11: Teaching Graphical Solutions for Forces and Kinematics

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Kelly O'Shea

    Cost

    • Members: $80
    • Non-members: $105

    Seats

    • Max: 30
    • Available: 12

    Graphical methods for solving problems are elegant, connect to calculus, and support students who typically struggle with strict formulaic problem solving. In this workshop, we will practice methods for solving kinematics and dynamics problems graphically using velocity-vs-time graphs and force vector addition diagrams. These approaches emphasize conceptual understanding and allow students to use diagrams as sense-making tools while solving challenging quantitative problems. Students often enjoy thinking geometrically—and you’ve never seen as true a joy as when a student realizes she can use the Law of Sines outside of math class. We will also learn and practice student-centered discussion techniques through several modes of “whiteboarding” (http://kellyoshea.wordpress.com/whiteboarding/). Using table-sized whiteboards to facilitate small group work and large group discussions supports students as they voice and debate their ideas with their peers. We will try a variety of techniques that focus on normalizing mistakes in the classroom, thinking through other students’ work, and giving multiple opportunities for quieter students to engage their peers during class.

  • W12: Open Source Electronics For Laboratory Physics

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Zengqiang Liu

    Cost

    • Members: $140
    • Non-members: $165

    Seats

    • Max: 20
    • Available: 0

    Open-source electronic devices are transforming laboratory physics education in unprecedented ways. More and more physics instructors have found that open-source electronics, such as Arduino, can provide them with wonderful teaching and learning opportunities. They can develop new laboratory activities and demonstrations, as well as exploratory and advanced projects, often involving their students. The cost is usually low. Participants of this workshop will dive right into interfacing sensors with Arduino compatible platforms. They will acquire first-hand experience constructing circuits and interfacing with sonic rangers, photogates, temperature probes, force gauges, accelerometers, magnetometers, SD cards, displays, user interfaces, and other common sensors, devices, and useful software. The workshop also provides basic training on computer programming and soldering. Each participant will be provided sensors and a standalone data acquisition device for their workshop activities. They can take everything home, except for force gauges. Participants must bring a laptop.

  • W13: Research-based Reforms to Introductory Physics for the Life Sciences

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Joe Redish

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Ben Geller, Ben Dreyfus, Chandra Turpen

    Cost

    • Members: $65
    • Non-members: $90

    Seats

    • Max: 40
    • Available: 0

    As part of the National Experiment in Undergraduate Science education (NEXUS), the University of Maryland has designed a two-semester IPLS course in the Fundamentals of Physics for Biologists. Blending interdisciplinary learning spaces and epistemological commitments, this course uses research-based pedagogies and research-based instructional design elements to provide IPLS students with a reformed introductory physics experience. Come hear about our open source material: our wiki text; our recitations; our growing library of context-rich problems for homework, quizzes, and exams; our growing library of clicker questions; and our pedagogical tools for achieving student-centered learning in a large-enrollment learning environment.

  • W14: Physics Research Mentor Training

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Renee Michelle Goertzen

    Cost

    • Members: $75
    • Non-members: $100

    Seats

    • Max: 30
    • Available: 23

    Many faculty and graduate students are placed in mentorship roles, although they rarely receive formal training in how to be an effective mentor. The Physics Research Mentor Training Seminar provides training for physics faculty, postdocs, and graduate students who are in mentorship roles. Participants will work through a portion of a 10-week seminar that includes themes such as establishing expectations, maintaining effective communication, addressing diversity, and dealing with ethical issues. Participants will improve their own mentoring skills and will learn how to facilitate mentoring seminars using a facilitation guide. This guide was developed by physics researchers and researchers from the University of Wisconsin who have previously adapted several mentor training curricula. Within each topic, the guide provides learning objectives, suggested activities, and case studies for discussion. The workshop is intended to help physics researchers improve their mentoring skills and to improve the experiences of the next generation of physicists.

  • W15: Preparing Faculty to Mentor Physics Students for Careers: Using the Careers Toolbox

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Sean Bentley

    Cost

    • Members:
    • Non-members:

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 16

    This workshop will give faculty an introduction to the Careers Toolbox, a valuable professional development tool for physics undergraduates. Focus will be on knowledge transfer, training the faculty to effectively implement the toolbox in curricular/co-curricular settings. The toolbox, the corresponding website, materials for career's offices, and instructional materials will all be covered. Each participant will receive a copy of the toolbox and related materials.

  • W16: Integrating Direct-Measurement Videos into Physics Instruction

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Peter Bohacek

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Matthew Vonk

    Cost

    • Members: $65
    • Non-members: $90

    Seats

    • Max: 30
    • Available: 15

    Direct-measurement videos (DMVs) are carefully recorded videos that allow students to measure and analyze events using physics concepts and reasoning. New generation DMVs have user-selectable parameters and scalable, draggable measurement tools that allow for inquiry style exploration. Students learn to develop scientific questions and design experiments to explore relationships. We'll share our collection of videos and teaching methods for integrating DMVs in introductory physics.

  • W17: (Cancelled) Labs that May Appear at Many Levels

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Paul Dolan

    Cost

    • Members: $70
    • Non-members: $95

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 2

    Do your favorite lab at any level in the curriculum! This workshop will provide participants with hands-on experience working with equipment from several physics lab exercises that can be adapted to being done at many different levels of the curriculum, potentially from Middle School to the Advanced Lab, thus moving the ‘spiral curriculum’ from the lecture into the lab. Participants will cycle through the various stations to optimize their ‘hands-on’ time. Documentation will be provided for each experiment with sample data, equipment lists, and construction or purchase info. Possible topics include (but are not limited to): the pendulum (in its many various forms), the ballistic pendulum, granular materials, lenses & image formation, NanoTech, and examples of exponential growth & decay, such as population simulations & radiation/counting. The presentations will be active & interactive.

  • W18: Creating Interactive Web Simulations Using HTML5 and Javascript

    Date/Time

    • Sat, Jul 25
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Andrew Duffy

    Cost

    • Members: $70
    • Non-members: $95

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 9

    HTML5 and JavaScript have replaced Java and Flash as the leading technology for in-browser software, with the ability to deliver high-performance, graphics-intensive simulations over the web to both personal computers and mobile devices. Participants in this workshop will learn to use this technology to create educational physics simulations that students can run on almost any computer, tablet, or smartphone that can browse the web. The workshop will cover HTML basics, the JavaScript programming language, graphics using the HTML5 canvas element, and essential user-interface controls. Participants should have some prior programming experience (in any language) and must bring their own laptop computers with up-to-date versions of Firefox, Chrome, and a programmer’s text editor such as Notepad++ or TextWrangler. Participants are also encouraged to bring ideas for simulations they would like to create.

  • W19: Demo Kit in a Box

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Steve Lindaas

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Adam Beehler

    Cost

    • Members: $75
    • Non-members: $100

    Seats

    • Max: 30
    • Available: 22

    Are you looking for easy ways to infuse inquiry into your classroom? Don't have a demo manager? We will help you establish having several small demos conveniently packed into one box, ready for the classroom at any moment. You may bring your box to your class and use the demos to highlight lecture points, or use them when a student asks a question. Use a "Just-In-Time" teaching approach but with a demo twist! We will show you how to pack small demo kit boxes that pack a large instructional punch. The theme at this workshop will be electricity and magnetism. This workshop is valuable for all educators – pre-HS through college. Participants will leave with demos and a box!

  • W20: Making Interactive Video Vignettes and Interactive Web Lectures

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Bob Teese

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Priscilla W. Laws, Patrick J. Cooney, Kathleen Koenig, Maxine C. Willis

    Cost

    • Members: $65
    • Non-members: $90

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 10

    The LivePhoto Physics Project is creating online activities that combine narrative videos with interactive, hands-on elements for the user including video analysis or making predictions based on replaying a short video (http://www.compadre.org/ivv). They can contain branching questions, where the user's answer affects the sequence of elements that follow. They are delivered over the Internet and run in a normal browser on the user's device. The same software runs both short Interactive Video Vignettes and Interactive Web Lectures for flipped classrooms or online courses. You will learn how to make vignettes and interactive web lectures using a free Java application. We will demonstrate the impact of select online activities on student learning. You need access to a web server to host your activities. Visit http://ivv.rit.edu/workshop to see detailed requirements for the web server and video equipment you will need. (Supported by NSF grants DUE-1122828 and DUE-1123118.)

  • W21: Just-in-Time Teaching

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Andy Gavrin

    Cost

    • Members: $20
    • Non-members: $45

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 5

    For more than 15 years, faculty members in physics, math, engineering and many other fields have used Just-in-Time Teaching, also known as "JiTT." By creating a short time scale feedback loop between homework and the classroom, JiTT improves students' engagement with the course, promotes active learning in the classroom, and helps students to stay caught up in the class. JiTT also provides faculty with greater insight to their students' thinking about the subject. This workshop will introduce JiTT methods, and show how they can be implemented in a variety of educational settings. Participants will learn to implement JiTT using their LMS or free technology, and will be introduced to an online library of assignments that they can use or adapt. By the end of the session, participants will have several JiTT assignments usable in their own classes. We will also discuss tips and tricks for a successful implementation.

  • W22: Explorations in Arduino Physics: Ideas and Experiments that Integrate this Low-cost 8-bit Microcontroller into your Classroom!

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Brian Huang

    Cost

    • Members: $120
    • Non-members: $145

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 3

    Using the simplicity and power of the open-source community, we have created several tools and hands-on demonstrations of physics experiments. For many years, data collection devices from Pasco and Vernier have helped classrooms gain a better insight to physical phenomena. We feel like the Arduino environment can take this to the next level and help students model and build an understanding around data measurement, uncertainty, and calibration. I’d like to present a variety of projects around teaching circuits, capacitance, and other fun physics areas using Arduino.

  • W23: Authentic Experimentation in Labs Using Structured Quantitative Inquiry

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Joss Ives and Natasha Holmes

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Joss Ives, Doug Bonn

    Cost

    • Members: $70
    • Non-members: $95

    Seats

    • Max: 25
    • Available: 8

    The Structured Quantitative Inquiry Labs (SQILabs) are a new pedagogy for teaching data analysis, modelling, and experimentation skills and concepts in physics labs. In this workshop, participants will learn about the SQILab structure and work through sample experiments in groups. Participants will explore quantitative tools students can use to compare measurements with uncertainty (internally, rather than to ‘true’ values) and use those tools to promote iterative experimentation cycles, where students reflect on comparisons and iterate to improve measurements. Several examples of these cycles will be applied to specific experiments and participants will also reflect on their own teaching labs and adapt the SQILab structure to an experiment of their choice. Participants can expect to learn about a new pedagogical approach to physics labs and leave the workshop with tools, ideas, and structure to implement the approach in their own courses, whether or not labs are attached to lecture or lecture content.

  • W24: Creating Invention Tasks that Develop Flexible Mathematical Reasoning Skills in Physics

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Suzanne White Brahmia

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Andrew Boudreaux, Stephen Kanim

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 5

    Physics Invention Tasks, a set of supplemental curricular materials appropriate for high school and college, provide students with opportunities for the generative and flexible use of mathematics. Through sequences of tasks, students make sense of physical quantities and laws, work which prepares them for future instruction and learning. An important feature is students' invention of algebraic descriptions of systems and phenomena. Participants will learn about the theoretical underpinnings of invention instruction1 and gain experience with tested and freely, web-available Physics Invention Tasks. Participants will also develop their own invention tasks and learn to modify large and small group activities to explicitly promote flexible and generative mathematical reasoning. Such reasoning is consistent with the NGSS science practices, but is often not well developed in traditional courses. 1. D. Schwartz and J. Bransford, A Time for Telling, Cog. Instr. 16 (4), 475 (1998)

  • W25: Beyond the Atom

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Karen Jo Matsler

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Jan Mader, Janie Head, Evelyn Restivo

    Cost

    • Members: $75
    • Non-members: $100

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 19

    Using materials developed by the Perimeter Institute, this session will show you how to engage students in learning about particle physics. Activities include helping students with concepts regarding Rutherford's scattering experiment, conservation of charge and momentum to analyze images from CERN, exploring a quark model while taming the particle zoo, and analyzing data from Fermilab's D-Zero accelerator. Recommended for educators involved with students in grades 8-16.

  • W26: Research-based Tools for Teaching Quantum Mechanics

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Chandralekha Singh

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Emily Marshman

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 25
    • Available: 18

    We have been engaged in research to improve students' understanding of upper-level quantum mechanics. In this workshop, we will discuss the common difficulties students have in learning quantum mechanics and how the use of research-based learning tools can reduce these difficulties. These learning tools include Quantum interactive learning tutorials (QuILTs), concept-tests for peer instruction, and reflective problems which are conceptual in nature. QuILTs are based upon research in physics education and employ active-learning strategies and Open Source Physics visualization tools. They attempt to bridge the gap between the abstract quantitative formalism of quantum mechanics and the qualitative understanding necessary to explain and predict diverse physical phenomena. This workshop is targeted to instructors who would like to supplement their existing course material with research-based field tested tools. Participants will work in small groups on research-based interactive tools that incorporate paper-pencil tasks and computer simulations. We will discuss the general pedagogical issues in the design of the learning tools and how they can be adapted to individualized curricula. Some learning tools deal with contemporary topics such as quantum teleportation that can be taught using simple two level systems. Participants are encouraged to bring their own laptops. This work is supported by the National Science Foundation.

  • W27: Computational Physics

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Greg Mulder

    Cost

    • Members: $70
    • Non-members: $95

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 6

    In this workshop I will focus on using VPython in a first-year Physics with Calculus sequence. There are three main ways that physicists solve problems: analytically, empirically and computationally. The exercises that I will present represent 20 minute per week classroom activities that have allowed us to introduce computational problem solving into the first-year physics classroom experience. No prior programming or VPython experience is required. Please bring your own laptop preferably with VPython already downloaded by going to http://vpython.org

  • W28: Interactive Engagement in the Upper-division: Methods and Materials from CU-Boulder

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Steven Pollock

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Marcos (Danny) Caballero, Charles Baily, Bethany Wilcox

    Cost

    • Members: $72
    • Non-members: $97

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 8

    The physics department at the University of Colorado Boulder has been developing active-learning materials and research based assessments for courses beyond the introductory level: Modern Physics, Math Methods/Classical Mechanics, Quantum Mechanics, Electrostatics & Electrodynamics. We have shown that improved student learning can be achieved in advanced courses by adopting and adapting student-centered pedagogies and instructional techniques proven effective in introductory courses. This workshop will provide participants with an overview of the research base and course transformation process, along with a guided exploration of our online resources. Discussions of how learning goals for advanced courses differ from those for introductory courses will help you to adapt these resources to your classroom. We will provide practical demonstrations of how clicker questions and activities can be incorporated into advanced courses. Please bring a laptop. (You will also receive a flash drive containing a complete collection of our latest materials and assessments. See http://www.colorado.edu/sei/physics)

  • W29: Activities for Learning About Climate and Climate Change

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Brian Jones

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 17

    During the day, the earth is warmed by sunlight that shines on it. This is something that your students can see, something that they can feel. But, over the course of a day, the surface of the earth receives more radiant energy from clouds and the lower atmosphere than it does from the sun. The influence of this thermal radiation is critically important for an understanding of the earth’s climate and how it is changing. In this workshop we’ll share activities that make this invisible form of energy transfer tangible. We’ll also share activities that illuminate other important but complex concepts, such as how climate models work, how feedbacks—both positive and negative—affect the climate. Our goal is to give you a set of tools to give your students a real understanding of the earth’s climate and how scientists predict its development in the future.

  • W30: NEXUS Physics Labs for Biology Students

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Kim Moore

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Wolfgang Losert, Nawal Benmouna, James Vesenka, Simon Capstick

    Cost

    • Members: $87
    • Non-members: $112

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 0

    A recent focus in the Physics Education community has been reinventing/revising the Introductory Physics for Life Sciences curriculum in order to better serve the evolving needs of these students (e.g., the May 2014 IPLS Conference and the June 2014 Gordon Research Conference). In response to these concerns, the University of Maryland Physics Education Research Group has developed (2012-2013) and tested (2012-2015) a year-long, open-ended, interdisciplinary laboratory curriculum (read more about this in the most recent special issue of AJP: K. Moore, J. Giannini & W. Losert "Toward better physics labs for future biologists," Am. J. Phys. 82 (5), May 2014, http://dx.doi.org/10.1119/1.4870388). This day-long workshop will provide an introduction to this lab curriculum, including the educational design, the pedagogical and epistemological philosophies, and the high-tech. equipment used. Additionally, a variety of “first-users” from institutions adopting this curriculum (incl. Two-Year Colleges) will discuss the challenges and successes for adapting this curriculum to work in their local educational setting. If you are interested in seeing some high-tech., data rich investigations at the intersection of physics and biology, please join us!

  • W31: Creating JavaScript Simulations and Electronic Books for Computers and Tablets

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Mario Belloni

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Francisco Esquembre, Larry Engelhardt

    Cost

    • Members: $80
    • Non-members: $105

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 7

    In this full-day workshop we will describe the pedagogy and technology necessary to use, modify, and create HTML5 and JavaScript based simulations that run on both computers and tablets. Our approach uses the Easy Java Simulations (now renamed Easy Java/JavaScript Simulations, EjsS) Modeling Tool to create, explore and deliver JavaScript simulations. In the morning you will learn how to use the EjsS program to download one of the 100 existing simulations from the ComPADRE digital library, and inspect and modify it using EjsS. You will also learn how to export the modified simulation for distribution and run it on an independent computer and on a tablet using the EjsS Reader App (Android or iOS). In the afternoon you will learn how to create an electronic book from several existing simulations and will have time to work on a project of your choice to practice your learning in a hands-on project.

  • W32: Preparing to Teach Physics to the Next Generation

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Bradford Hill

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Heather Moore, Scott Murphy, Jordan Pasqualin

    Cost

    • Members: $80
    • Non-members: $105

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 16

    This hands-on workshop is driven by the recurring question: “How do we find and use patterns in nature to predict the future and understand the past?” By utilizing the ideas described in NGSS, Patterns guide participants to make predictions, plan and conduct experiments, collect data, analyze the results, argue from evidence, and evaluate their conclusions. Participants engage in the practices of science throughout the workshop, starting with anchoring experiments that contextualize four common patterns in physics: linear, quadratic, inverse and inverse square. Inquiry and engineering experiences serve to spiral the anchoring patterns with new physics concepts, developing conceptual, graphical, and symbolic understanding. An integral component of the course is continued use of evidence-based reasoning and data-informed decision-making. Each experiment begins with an initial guess that is contrasted with a data-informed prediction, found by extrapolation of the pattern in the data. This allows students to explicitly compare low-to-high evidence predictions and builds a strong case for why we engage in scientific practices. Creating models and explicitly discussing their limitations is also key. The Patterns Approach has been used within freshman and IB courses and is published in the NGSS issue of The Science Teacher, March, 2013.

  • W33: PIRA Lecture Demonstrations II

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Dale Stille

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Sam Sampere

    Cost

    • Members: $115
    • Non-members: $140

    Seats

    • Max: 55
    • Available: 42

    Individuals taking this workshop will be offered a unique one-time experience, as this year, we will be using the set of flagship physics demonstrations from the University of Maryland. Even if you have taken this workshop in the past you may wish to take it again just for this opportunity. The topics in this workshop cover the standard first semester of physics instruction from E&M to Modern plus Astronomy, and is presented by an experienced team of lecture demonstrators. The format allows for, and encourages dialogue between instructors and participants. It is recommended that both Lecture Demonstrations 1 and 2 be taken, as this will cover the complete year of demonstrations needed for a typical introductory course. The demonstrations used and exhibited will be based on, but not limited to, the PIRA top 200 list of demonstrations. See http://www.pira-online.org for more info on this list. Also see http://faraday.physics.uiowa.edu/pira_meeting_pictures.htm and click on the “2015 Additional PIRA Workshop” link for additional information about this workshop as well as some pictures and movies from past workshops.

  • W34: Modeling Instruction for University Physics

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Eric Brewe

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 30
    • Available: 0

    This workshop will provide participants an opportunity to engage with the Modeling Instruction for University Physics materials. These materials have been used to consistently improve students conceptual understanding and attitudes toward learning science. Features of the Modeling Instruction curriculum and pedagogy include integrated lab and "lecture" class components, focus on use of and interpretation of multiple representations, and the role of conceptual models for understanding physics. Participants will gain access to all materials developed to support Modeling Instruction.

  • W35: Metacognition and Reasoning in Physics

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Mackenzie Stetzer

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Andrew Boudreaux, Sara Julin, Mila Kryjevskaia

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 0

    Experts tend to consciously monitor and evaluate their own progress when confronted with a new challenge, while novices often persist in using unproductive approaches. We have been investigating the relationships among student metacognition, conceptual understanding, and qualitative reasoning in introductory and upper-division physics courses. The two primary goals of this project are to develop classroom activities that explicitly promote student metacognition in the context of specific physics content and to design and test methodologies capable of assessing student metacognition in physics. During this workshop, we will describe the research base on student metacognition in physics, and participants will gain firsthand experience working through selected activities. In addition, methods for assessing students’ metacognitive abilities will be discussed.

  • W36: Physics Union Mathematics

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Eugenia Etkina

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Suzanne Brahmia, Robert Zisk

    Cost

    • Members: $65
    • Non-members: $90

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 11

    Physics Union Mathematics (PUM) is a set of supplemental curricular materials spanning middle school through high school designed to develop the Science and Engineering Practices outlined in the NGSS. The philosophical foundation of PUM is Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE). An important emphasis of PUM is the implicit development of mathematical thinking and the explicit and appropriate use of grade-level mathematics in the context of science practices. Using the PUM curricular materials, participants will learn how to modify physical science and physics courses to incorporate Science Practices and the Crosscutting Concepts outlined in the NGSS. We provide tested curriculum materials including: Sample materials from the PUM website (curriculum/solutions/assessments freely available after the completion of workshop) (b) a website with over 100 short invention activities designed to develop mathematical reasoning; and (c) a website with over 200 videotaped experiments and questions for use in classwork/laboratories/homework. The workshop is intended for middle and high school physics teachers and teacher educators. Please bring a laptop with Quicktime if you have one. We recommend taking ISLE workshop prior to taking PUM workshop.

  • W37: Fun, Engaging and Effective Labs and Demos with Clickers, Video Analysis and Computer-Based Tools

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    David Sokoloff

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Priscilla Laws, Ronald Thornton

    Cost

    • Members: $75
    • Non-members: $100

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 2

    RealTime Physics and Interactive Lecture Demonstrations have been available for over 15 years—so what’s new? Participants in this workshop will have hands-on experience with some of the new activities in RTP and ILD using clickers, video analysis and computer-based tools. The topics will be mechanics and optics. These active learning approaches for lectures, labs, and recitations (tutorials) are fun, engaging and validated by physics education research (PER). Research results demonstrating the effectiveness of these curricula will be presented. These materials are also available for high schools in the Activity Based Physics High School e-dition. The following will be distributed: Modules from the Third Edition of RTP, the ILD book, the Physics with Video Analysis book and CD, and Teaching Physics with the Physics Suite by E.F. Redish.

  • W38: Physics of Toys I: Force, Motion, Light, and Sound

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Beverley Taylor

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Stephen Luzader

    Cost

    • Members: $70
    • Non-members: $95

    Seats

    • Max: 36
    • Available: 0

    This hands-on workshop is designed for teachers at all levels in search of fun physics demonstrations, lab experiments, and interactive materials through the use of ordinary children's toys. More than 50 toys will be demonstrated, and the physical principles related to these toys will be discussed. This workshop will concentrate on toys that illustrate the concepts of force, equilibrium, linear and rotational motion, optics and light, sound, and waves. You will have the opportunity to participate in both qualitative and quantitative investigations using some of these toys. The workshop leaders have found that toys can be utilized at all grade levels from kindergarten through college by varying the sophistication of the analysis. These same toys can also be used for informal presentations to public groups of all ages, whether children or adults.

  • W39: Facilitating Student Self-reflection & Personalized Instructor Feedback

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Dimitri R. Dounas-Frazer

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Daniel Reinholz, Danielle Champney, Gina Quan

    Cost

    • Members: $65
    • Non-members: $90

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 11

    As instructors, giving feedback to students is one of the most important parts of our jobs. This workshop highlights best practices for giving personalized feedback to students, tailored to the physics context. Additional topics include supporting students in peer-feedback activities and engaging them in self-reflection on peer and instructor feedback. The research-based tools and strategies presented here focus on students’ development of a wide range of skills, from problem-solving and communication skills to “soft skills” like perseverance on a challenging task and self-compassion in the face of failure. The target audience for this workshop includes secondary and post-secondary physics instructors, but the tools we present are broadly applicable beyond physics. The tools and strategies presented in this workshop have been developed by members of the Prism Network, a collaborative group of teachers and researchers committed to the use of reflection to promote holistic learning for students. This work has been supported by the AAPT Physics Education Research Leadership and Organizing Council (PERLOC) and the Cal Poly Center for Excellence in STEM Education (CESAME).

  • W40: Strategies to Help Women Succeed in Physics Related Professions

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Chandralekha Singh

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 20
    • Available: 13

    Women are severely under-represented in physics-related professions. This workshop will explore strategies to help women faculty members in K-12 education, colleges and universities understand and overcome barriers to their advancement in careers related to physics. A major focus of the workshop will be on strategies for navigating effectively in different situations in order to succeed despite the gender schema, stereotypes and subtle biases against women physicists. We will also examine case studies and learn effective strategies by role playing.

  • W41: Periscope: Looking into Learning in Best-practices University Physics Classrooms

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Renee Michelle Goertzen

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Rachel E. Scherr

    Cost

    • Members: $60
    • Non-members: $85

    Seats

    • Max: 30
    • Available: 23

    Periscope, a new resource under development, provides physics faculty, graduate teaching assistants, undergraduate learning assistants, and pre-service physics teachers with the opportunity to “look into learning” in best-practices university physics classrooms. Periscope is organized into short lessons that highlight significant topics in the teaching and learning of physics, such as formative assessment or cooperative learning. Topics are introduced through captioned video episodes of introductory physics students in the classroom, chosen to prompt collaborative discussion. This workshop will introduce participants to the resource and teach them how to adapt the materials for settings ranging from weekly meetings to all-day sessions.

  • W42: Intermediate and Advanced Laboratories

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Jeremiah Wiliams

    Cost

    • Members: $85
    • Non-members: $110

    Seats

    • Max: 24
    • Available: 10

    This workshop is appropriate for college and university instructional laboratory developers. At each of five stations, presenters will demonstrate an approach to an intermediate or advanced laboratory exercise. Each presenter will show and discuss the apparatus and techniques used. Attendees will cycle through the stations and have an opportunity to use each apparatus. Documentation will be provided for each experiment, with sample data, equipment lists, and construction or purchase information.

  • W43: Next Generation Physics and Everyday Thinking

    Date/Time

    • Sun, Jul 26
    • 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

    Organizer

    Fred Goldberg

    Co-Organizer(s)

    Stephen Robinson, Edward Price

    Cost

    • Members: $64
    • Non-members: $90

    Seats

    • Max: 30
    • Available: 15

    The project team who developed PET, PSET and LPS have made extensive revisions to those curricula, combining them into a new set of modules that offer flexibility in implementation and which are better aligned with the NGSS and other similarly aligned State Standards. This workshop will focus in on how students learn with the new materials, and will be organized for both faculty who already teach one of the previous curricula, as well as faculty who are considering the curriculum for the first time. Next Gen PET consists of six modules: (1) developing models for magnetism and static electricity; (2) energy; (3) forces; (4) waves; (5) matter and interactions; and (6) teaching and learning physical science. There is a major focus on scientific and engineering practices throughout the modules. The new design provides flexibility for different formats and content sequences to serve the needs of instructors and students in small-enrollment physics or physical science courses for prospective elementary or middle school teachers, large-enrollment general education courses offered in lecture-style settings, science methods courses, or workshops for in-service teachers. An extensive set of online tutorial-style homework assignments and video demonstrations accompany the in-class activities.

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