Engage Your Students in the High School Physics Photo Contest

You have seen them at the summer meetings. Rows of student-taken pictures on display for members to view and vote on. The High School Physics Photo Contest has been an attraction at the meetings for years. The contest was established in 1998 commonly sponsored by Vernier Technology. High school physics students from around the country are given the opportunity to showcase their understanding of physics and their camera skills to turn physics into art. A student takes a picture showcasing a physics phenomenon and submits their image with a description of the applicable physics concepts. The entries are placed into one of three categories: Natural Photos, Contrived Photos or Photos with Multiple Images.

The judging then follows a two-step process beginning with a committee of teachers choosing the top 100. About 40% of the judgement will consider the essay description while the other 60% is on the photo itself. The second step is where the members and attendees of the AAPT Summer Meeting get involved. The boards displayed at the summer meeting consist of the top 100 for members to vote for the final winners. To view the 2017 winners, click here.

In the webinar on March 6th, coordinator of the High School Physics Photo Contest Tommi Holsenbeck will share more details on the photo contest with a highlight on the changes in the contest throughout the years. Tommi reflects, “The HS Photo Contest has been conducted by AAPT since 1998... If you look back at the beginning years, the contrast is striking. The advances in technology can be tracked by looking at the advancing years up until today.

To learn more, join our webinar at the link at the top of this post.