Teaching and Learning of Physics in Cultural Contexts

Organizations

Conference Advisory Committee

Conference Organizing Committee

Paper Reviewers

Opening Address

Preface

Contents

Physics and physics education do not take place in a cultural vacuum, but rather within a geographical, historical, and social context. As “culture shock” is confronted when visiting other countries, students are forced to challenge a “cultural border-crossing” when they encounter the new culture of physicists while studying physics. Therefore, a more foundational and microscopic insight about culture is necessary when debating new issues, approaches, and visions related to the physics curriculum, instruction, and support system. The first cultural aspect is related to the renovation of the curriculum to include the ‘physics culture’ in balance and eventual establishment of a new culture. The second is related to learning and teaching in a cultural context, and the inclusion of “cultural validity” in assessment. The third is related to the issues, approaches, and future of a multi-cultural approach, as opposed to standardization, for the national curriculum and science education standards

Science Technology and Society education (STS) may seem to some people to have burst onto the stage in Europe during the 1970s and then to have died out, at least in Britain, in the late 1980s because of opposition from the government’s new educational policy, and possibly also from transnational industry. In fact neither of these statements is completely true. The roots of STS can be traced back to two different movements in the 1930s and 1950s respectively, but the social group which backed it during the 1970s was, in many ways, unlike any which had gone before. This makes it a very interesting development. And it is also true that STS is now recovering its strength, although it has now taken on yet another new form to suit the present times. This paper will attempt to define the original sponsors of STS by their special purpose and identity, perceived adversaries, and goals. From this we shall try to see the subsequent fortunes of this social component of science education as a conflict between educational utopianism on the one hand, and a realpolitik which includes industry and economics, on the other.

In considering “Physics Education into the 21st Century” I take the obvious strategy – I will begin by looking to the past to attempt to understand changes from this past to the present. Then I attempt to project to the future. In doing this I am limited by my cultural and language narrowness; I am only able to seriously consider developments in English language physics curriculum and teaching.

The first major and influential curriculum development in physics, PSSC in the late 1950s, was embedded in a cultural context (a very specific and limited cultural context). This narrow cultural context involved a very strong focus on the nature of physics, and derived from views in USA in the late 1950s about ways in which one could attract more high achieving students to the study of physics. Today, views of physics curriculum have not abandoned the central views underpinning PSSC. Rather, both the nature of physics and the ways in which one might attract students to the study of physics are now seen more broadly. The context of the classroom has become significant through greater understandings of the detail of student learning in physics and through concern with the “content context” in which physics is taught as a curriculum issue. The cultural context that is today considered has broadened, but is still narrow. In the future we need to expand much more our views of the extent to which cultural contexts should be considered in physics curriculum, and embrace a much wider range of socio cultural contexts in the curriculum. This will impact on both aspects of the content of physics programs and the ways in which this content is presented and assessed.

Since science began to be first taught in schools maybe during the 18th century, school science education has experienced many substantial changes in its goals and nature over the period. The historical changes are usually referred by some key terms, like, mechanics’ institutes, object lessons, heuristics, general science, inquiry, STS, misconceptions. To characterize these changes, science educators frequently use some slogan-like analogies referring parts of human body to indicate the movement of science education during a particular period of time: for example, ‘Hands-On’ for inquiry movement during 1960s-70s, ‘Minds-On’ for constructivist movement during 1980s-90s. In this paper, I briefly summarize the overall historical development of science education, then further expand the analogies to cover the overall process, that is, Ears-On → Eyes-On → Hands-On → Minds-On. In addition, to illustrate new directions of the 21st century, I propose a new analogy, ‘Hearts-On’ science education, and also discuss the meanings and implications of ‘Hearts-On’ analogy by illustrating how this analogy can be applied to reflect various current trends in science education.

Public understanding of physics and physical principles in the United States is at a low point. The term “physics” appears to be frightening and intimidating to average individuals, perhaps because of its mathematical connotations or because of an aura of mystery about how the world works. Many individuals turn to occult, paranormal and metaphysical beliefs about phenomena encountered in their daily lives. The rational ideas of science appear to be less attractive to the minds of many than the superstitious or non-rational explanations promoted by many groups in the United States. Professional scientists, including physicists, have not succeeded in communicating effectively their task of explicating the workings of the universe to the average public. As a result, these scientists are frequently viewed as “gurus” or “priests” of the unknown, dealing in ideas far removed from the daily lives of average persons. Teachers of physical sciences in the elementary school in the U. S. are generally poorly trained in understanding science. Consequently, they avoid or poorly present information about science to their charges. Children thus develop a negative look about science that carried into adult life. Certain programs have been developed in the past decades to overcome the problems cited above. Usually, these are rather formal modes of presentation to children in the schools. In some cases, they are successful but to this point have not had widespread effect on solving the problem of poor understanding of physics by the public. Many problems still persist in developing scientific literacy among the general American public. With increasing awareness, the proliferation of technological devices in most American homes, and attention to early education in sciences, there is hope that these may become a medium for raising the literacy level in the sciences for average persons.

No abstract received.

Playing with a ‘Jegi’, which involves kicking a shuttlecock-like object with the inside of the foot, is an interesting traditional Korean game. The current study examined the motion of a Jegi using a video analysis method. Then, an equation for the motion of a Jegi was developed using a velocity-time graph based on data from the video analysis. The physics concepts that can be taught using the motion of a Jegi include the rising or falling time, distance, displacement change, speed, velocity, terminal velocity, acceleration, and net force, etc.

No abstract received.

There is now considerable evidence [1] to suggest that “active learning” (AL) approaches are far superior to traditional passive learning modes for improving students’ conceptual understanding. Over the last 2 years (after the NSF Chautauqua Workshop [2,3] held in Australia) the Asian Physics Education Network (ASPEN) [4] has been actively introducing these new student-centred learning approaches via national physics education workshops (which to date have been held in Laos, Vietnam, South Korea, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines). Supported by UNESCO, these workshops are designed to expose Asian academics to the rationale behind AL and its implementation in the Asian context. The workshops also train Asian personnel to help organise and run future workshops.

Often AL workshops use sensors interfaced to computers so students can make quantitative measurements (from laboratory experiments or lecture demos) and develop their own understanding about the laws of physics. The ASPEN workshops have tried to adapt these AL techniques to local Asian cultures and the resource limitations that often exist in many developing countries [5]. This involves not only computer-interfaced equipment, but also inexpensive or traditional non-computer-based equipment, computer simulations, and demonstration video clips. The ASPEN workshops have been very successful and the feedback extremely positive. With the continuing support of UNESCO, ASPEN plans to expand its AL workshop actvities, especially in developing Asian countries.

Europe is a union of different national States which, at this moment, share the geographical position (with a somewhat undefined boundary toward Asia), a common market, a European parliament and a working language (english). It will also soon share a common money, the Euro. We must however acknowledge a large diversity of cultural contexts each one characterized by its language, history and social rules. Of course the cultural contexts influence education in general and therefore also physics education. The paper will present a perspective on physics education research and practice from Italy, one of the countries of Southern Europe with a root in the latin culture (Spain, Portugal, France and Italy). The paper will then focus similarities and differences in the approach to education among the latin countries (also with some reference to the latin-american ones), with southern-european countries of different roots (mainly Greece and the Jugoslavian ones) and with northern-european anglosaxon countries. In particular I will discuss the critical role of the choice of one particular language in the communication of the cultural contexts related to education.

Applications of quantum physics have played a major role in technological advances of the 20^th century and are certain to play a role in the developments of the 21^st. As a result, quantum physics is a topic of increasing interest to scientists and engineers outside of pure physics As it is traditionally taught, quantum physics is not well matched to the needs, backgrounds, and interests of students who are particularly interested in applications, such as electrical engineers. In the project “New Model Course in Applied Quantum Physics,” a group of researchers at many universities have researched student backgrounds and learning in a one semester upper division course in quantum physics. the group has developed a variety of materials have been developed for this course. One component, applied homework assignments, is described in detail here.

In Israel, the syllabus for Science and Technology in junior and senior high school was developed in the wake of the Harrari report, which recommended combining the study of science and technology. This recommendation reflects the relations and mutual influences between science and technology in modern society. In Korea, the 7^th National Curriculum from 2001 is currently taught in junior high school. This study reviews the junior and senior high school science education curricula in Korea and Israel. The analysis concentrates on the characteristics, objectives, time allocations, structures, and contents of the Korean Science subjects in the 7^th National Curriculum and Israel’s Science and Technology subjects for junior and senior high school. Various training programs and organizations for science teachers are also compared between Israel and Korea.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the current science education research trends in Korea and to discuss their significance, with a focus on constructivism. While traditional science education has been grounded on philosophical objectivism, a new paradigm of science education emerged in the late 20C converged on a constructivist theory, reflecting the short comings of science education to meet the needs of the post-industrial society. Constructivism is rooted in philosophical epistemology, which basically has two major traditions based in the psychological and sociological disciplines. However, the constructivist movement in current science education is more heterogeneous. A recent review identified various interpretations of constructivism (R. Matthews, 1994), and Fetherston (1997) has argued that the constructivism as applied to science teaching is undertheorised. Therefore, this lack of common meaning for most constructivist approaches can not contribute significantly to theory development. Furthermore a firm theory could lead to practical reform in science education. However, the Korean situation has not yet been investigated with regard to this problem. Accordingly, the current study analyzed research papers that appeared in the Journal of the Korean Association for Research in Science Education since 1978, which is the most popular and influential Journal published by the Korean Science Education Society. As a result, some hidden meanings concerning constructivism are discussed, the trends of science education research in terms of current themes are identified, and finally some implications and recommendations are suggested with regard to the basis of science education.

The developments of science education until the middle of the 20th century were often driven by personal ideas and achievements of some influential individual scientists (e.g. T. H. Huxley, H. E. Armstrong, L. Hogben, J. Conant), while that of the 2nd half of the 20th century can be characterized as collective efforts through various research groups of science educators (e.g. PSSC, HPP, Nuffield, SATIS). In this respect, John Tyndall (1820-1894), a physicist of the Victorian England best known as Tyndall’s Effect, can be considered as one of the great scientists who had a big influence on science teaching and the popularization of science before science secured its place in school curricula. Tyndall worked as a research scientist at the Royal Institution of London, where various lectures and demonstrations of physical sciences were regularly performed for general public, and he was particularly famous for his fascinating physics demonstrations. In this study, we will summarize his activities and achievements as a teacher as well as a popularizer of physics, illustrate some of his famous demonstrations and his ideas concerning physics teaching and discuss implications to today’s physics education.

The purpose of this study was to investigate students’ career choices related to science. After identifying the important factors related to choosing a career, the differences in the student responses were compared with their career choice, grade, and gender. ‘Perceptions about science-related careers’, ‘participation in science-related activities’, and a ‘preference for learning science’ were identified as the three main factors related to a career choice in science. The relative importance of these three main factors influencing a career choice related to science and the causal relationships between the career choice and these three factors were also investigated. The results showed that the relative importance of the three main factors was ‘participation in science-related activities’, a ‘preference for learning science’, and ‘perceptions about careers related to science’ in an order of magnitude of ß, yet differed with grade and gender. The choice of a science-related career was both directly and indirectly influenced by the ‘perceptions of careers related to science’, while a ‘preference for learning science’ and ‘participation in science-related activities’ only had an indirect effect.

The current paper investigates the factors affecting the procedure of becoming a scientist in Korea. Sixty-minute individual interviews with scientists were used to assess the main factors involved in personal career choices. The investigation was based on a framework composed of personal ability, home environment, school environment, and sociocultural environment. The personal ability included personal interest, aptitude, and achievement; the home environment included parents, brothers and sisters, relatives, and hobbies; the school environment included teachers, friends, and club activities; the socio-cultural environment included public events, mass media, social recognition, and social prospects.

Thirty scientists that had received science awards in Korea during 1990-2001 were sampled. Nineteen scientists (63.3%) stated that they had a specific dream before entering high school, yet only 5 scientists (17%) dreamed of becoming a scientist. Twenty-one scientists (70%) said that they decided on their future career in 12th grade or as a freshman at university, which is related to the Korean educational system. However, this decision time is relatively late.

The results were analyzed based on the interview transcripts. According to the career choice procedures, personal ability, home environment, school environment, and socio-cultural environment were found to be almost equally important. In particular, personal interest and scientific aptitude, paternal influence, teachers (especially science teachers and professors), and social prospects were all emphasized. The younger scientists were more influenced by their personal aptitude and social prospects, while chemists and engineers were more influenced by their parents and social prospects. The qualitative research results are presented in detail.

In current educational programs, environmental issues are not discussed from the viewpoint of physics. Plus, physics education does not demonstrate that the laws of physics can be usefully applied to understand various environmental phenomena. The current study revealed that most high school and undergraduate students are unaware that environmental phenomena can be explained by the laws of physics that they have already studied. Accordingly, a program of physics education is proposed that emphasizes the relation between the laws of physics and environmental phenomena. In particular, the program focuses on issues that can be understood based on the Second Law of Thermodynamics, such as an urban heat island.

Traditional physics instruction, as embodied in traditional physics textbooks, presents a physicist’s understanding of the world. In this situation, students are passive learners and their conceptual difficulties are rarely addressed, thereby contributing to the development of new preconceptions. In many cases, preconceptions are often misconceptions or alternative conceptions, which impede the learning of appropriate physics concepts. Consequently, student preconceptions of scientific phenomena have recently become a focal point in physics education research. The current paper focuses on three problems: identifying students’ understanding of basic physics concepts, establishing the students’ degree of certainty, and distinguishing between a lack of knowledge and preconceptions for students across several grade levels. The investigation was conducted with female high school students in Incheon.

A survey was conducted on students’ conceptions about polarized electromagnetic waves. Three research methods were used, including written responses, drawings, and interviews based on a questionnaire. As a result, students were found to have alternative conceptions of a plane wave related to the basic concepts of linear polarization. There was also a tendency to link an invisible EM wave with a visible water wave or rope wave. Furthermore, although most students were able to calculate the intensities of waves transmitted through two linear polarizers with an arbitrary angle between the transmission axes, they did not distinguish the mechanical structures from the polarization axes. As such, a slit was equated with a polarizer due to its similar geometrical description. Accordingly, the current results suggest that instruction on polarization should be based on the interaction between matter and light.

Graphs, especially line graphs, are one of the most important vehicles in science, as they provide information at a glance within a small amount of space and can highlight relationships between variables. However, there are some important cognitive and educational questions that have been raised by the current use of graphs in many textbooks and articles. In addition, although line graphs are frequently used to communicate all kinds of data in science classroom activities, little has been reported on the student cognitive process based on empirical research, except for Jones et al. (1999).

Accordingly, the current study was intended to empirically investigate this cognitive process. First, the forms and contents of line graphs were compiled from many kinds of secondary school textbooks, especially physics related. Second, a computer program was created to determine the order in which the readers viewed the various components (Title, X-scale, X-label, Y-scale, Y-label, Data region, Legend) of a line graph and the time they examined each component. Third, the viewing order and times were examined in terms of each component using the SPSSWIN statistic program. Consequently, the results explicity identify the student cognitive process for a line graph. Finally, various educational and theoretical implications are presented with regards to the student cognitive process of a line graph.

In a deterministic system, solving equations of motion with certain initial conditions gives a unique trajectory according to causality. In a periodic system, like a harmonic oscillator, the trajectory does not depend so much on the initial conditions, as a small change in the initial conditions only leads to a small change in the trajectory. However, in a chaotic system, a small change in the initial conditions significantly modifies the time evolution thereafter. The current paper reveals that few physics-major undergraduate students understand the importance of the initial conditions when solving equations of motion. In particular, no one could perceive the existence of a chaotic motion. Accordingly, an experimental program is proposed that demonstrates the basic nature of chaos using a double pendulum, a well-known chaotic oscillator. Observation of the motion intuitively teaches that its sensitive dependence on the initial conditions makes it difficult to predict a chaotic time evolution over a long period of time.

Although it is difficult to understand the role that students’ knowledge about the nature of science plays in their daily learning of science in school, the current study focuses on the important interplay between students’ scientific epistemological beliefs, their learning behavior, and conceptions of mechanical energy. To explore this topic, the epistemological beliefs of six sophomores on the nature of physics knowledge in textbooks and their beliefs on the nature of the larger body of scientific knowledge were investigated through interviews. All participants were majoring in physics education and all thought that the larger body of scientific knowledge could be changed. Three categories were then introduced that classified how the students’ understanding of the nature of scientific knowledge was linked with their learning behavior: ‘receiving physics knowledge based on authority’, ‘receiving physics knowledge based on extrinsic motivation’, and ‘authentic understanding’. These categories were concerned with the acquisition of personal conceptions of mechanical energy. In particular, those students who pursued a superficial consistency and held a belief concerned with a definition of energy experienced a cognitive conflict with the conceptions of negative mechanical energy and a standard position. They received physics knowledge from textbooks based on authority.

The purpose of the current study was to develop a course on the practice of the cognitive conflict strategy for physics teachers. As such, a graduate-level course was designed and twenty-one physics teachers were enrolled. During the course, each teacher developed two cognitive conflict materials for demonstration along with teaching plans to apply the materials. To improve the course, the participants were given a questionnaire and interviewed to discern their opinions about the cognitive conflict strategy. Data was collected based on the questionnaires, interviews, and videotapes. Most physics teachers confirmed that the cognitive conflict strategy is important and has a good effect on changing students’ conceptions when learning physics. However, difficulties were experienced when developing cognitive conflict materials and applying then to a classroom context. Accordingly, the current article suggests certain implications for the science pedagogical curriculum including the development and application of cognitive conflict materials.

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the relationship between students’ attributions and cognitive conflict, and identify the characteristics of cognitive conflict resolution in physics learning. Twenty-nine college students attending a basic general physics course took an attribution test and conceptual pre-test related to action-reaction concepts. As a result, twenty students with alternative conceptions were selected. Next, these students were confronted with a discrepant demonstration that contradicted their existing conceptions, then given a cognitive conflict level test (CCLT), post-test, and delayed post-test to determine their conceptual change. Those students who experienced high levels of cognitive conflict were also interviewed to find out what kinds of attribution and motivational belief affected their resolution of the conflict and successful/unsuccessful understanding of the concepts. When confronted with a discrepant event, the students who attributed successful outcomes to “effort” seemed to experience higher levels of cognitive conflict, compared to those students who attributed successful outcomes to “task difficulty”. The different attribution profiles exhibited for resolving conflict and successful/unsuccessful understanding of physics concepts were found to have a strong influence on the resolution of cognitive conflict and process of conceptual change. In addition, the profiles also appeared to be related to metacognitive and volitional strategies. High levels of cognitive conflict did not always produce conceptual change. For the conflicts to lead to change, students needed to have a perspective on effort that implied the use of a self-regulated learning strategy. Accordingly, the current findings highlighted the importance of a self-regulated cognitive conflict strategy (SRCCS) or management strategy of cognitive conflict (MSCC), indicating the need for a model of a self-regulated cognitive conflict strategy for a classroom context

The current study investigates the rate of conceptual change according to the level of conflict between students’ preconceptions and given experimental data about a simple electric circuit. As such, a pre-test was given to determine students’ preconceptions as regards current changes in an electric bulb when the applied voltage is increased. Those students who answered that the current would increase linearly as the applied voltage increased due to Ohm’s law were selected and divided into six groups. Each group was then given different virtual experimental data with a specific mean value of percent error, thereby creating six conflict levels. The students were asked to plot the current as a function of the voltage using the given data, then answer questions about changes in their preconception after interpreting the graph. In general, the rate of conceptual change gradually increased as the conflict level increased, plus a threshold value for the conflict level in relation to the conceptual change rate was also observed.

All physics educators emphasize the importance of context, especially an everyday context, in physics learning, teaching, and problem solving. However, do students really want to learn physics in an everyday context? Do students think physics problems in an everyday context are better than de-contextualized problems, or prefer the former type of problem to the latter in a physics test? What do physics teachers or researchers think about the above questions? Accordingly, the current study was initiated from these questions. Students were asked to solve two types of physics problem, i.e. problems in an everyday context and de-contextualized problems, then an analysis was made of the additional cognitive or non-cognitive factors involved in the process of solving the two types of problem. Finally, it was ascertained whether physics teachers considered the additional factors identified in the above analysis to be important in physics learning or not. The main results and implications for physics teaching and learning in an everyday context are discussed in this paper.

To enlighten the relation between problem solving, critical thinking and conceptual change, a study was outlined to find out if enhancing conceptual change by developing critical thinking can be a strategy to promote better physics problem solvers. The research model adopted was a quasi-experimental pretest/posttest, control group design, no random. The experimental and control group were each one constituted by 93 students from the 8th grade with successful academic achievement and six pre-service teachers of physics. The experimental group performed during one and a half months a set of physics activities. They were developed and implemented taking into account some strategies considered promoters of conceptual change by being facilitators of the development of critical thinking. During the same time, the control group performed physics activities not intentionally developed with the same purpose but based on the same contents. Several sources of data were used to collect data. The results seem to point out that the teacher’s practices promoters of conceptual change by being facilitators of the development of critical thinking seem to be important factors that can influence if a pupil is a good or a week problem solver. Some implications of the study can be drawn for science education.

The current study investigated the effects of estimation activities, aimed at helping students compare and estimate, on problem-solving procedures. Previous research has reported that students solve physics problems without thinking about their physical meanings. Therefore, it was considered that if students could develop a better understanding of quantities and an ability to estimate them properly, this would help students solve problems while considering their physical implications. One hundred and ninety two 7th graders participated in the current study, and five students were individually interviewed. Before the estimation activities, most interviewees calculated the problems without understanding the related concepts. However, after the estimation activities, some of the students learned to relate the problems to the physical world. Furthermore, the estimation activities helped the students develop the ability to predict the results of the problems. Accordingly, estimation activities would appear to have the potential to enhance students’ problem-solving procedures.

Current research says that computer simulations help students create a bridge between physics and the real world. However, it is not yet understood which factors influence the effect of computer simulations. In a computer simulation, the learner, as the player, can control and create situations. Whereas in the real world, students can only engage in rule-based activities and practice their predictions. Furthermore, computer simulations allow the learner to visualize and test their thinking. In the current study, a student was asked to solve real-world problems by creating and practicing their own explanatory hypothesis in a computer simulation. Finally, the role of embodying the learner’s thinking in a computer simulation is discussed in the context of scientific inquiry.

As an academic discipline, physics has a basic structure that can be expressed and represented by basic and sequential concepts. Therefore, understanding these concepts in an appropriate sequential order is important for effective physics education. Accordingly, the current study examines the basic concepts and sequential order of electromotive force and voltage drop in high-school level electricity. Using the analytical results and simple experiments, sequential teaching/learning materials focusing on electromotive force and voltage drop are developed and tested on sophomore students majoring in physics education. The effectiveness of the new teaching-learning materials was demonstrated as they provided procedural steps for experiments and data collection.

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of explanations about physical phenomena given in non-physics textbooks on the formation of student physical conceptions. Two classes, 39 students in each, were sampled from two middle schools in Pusan, Korea, and two kinds of test tools for investigating student conceptions were developed for the study. The first test tool(a) investigated student conceptions after reading explanations about physical phenomena in non-physics textbooks, while the second(b) investigated student conceptions after reading explanations revised by physics education experts about the same physical phenomena. The two test tools were applied to each class, and for a fair invetigation, test(a) followed by test(b) was applied to one class, while test(b) followed by test(a) was applied to the other class. The results were as follows: In both classes, the students’ level of understanding from explanations revised by physics education experts was significantly (p < .01) higher than that from explanations in non-physics textbooks. As such, it is feasible that false or inappropriate explanations in non-physics textbooks can cause student misconceptions. Moreover, the improper expression of physical science concepts, improper choice of scientific terms, and incorrect grammatical structures, along with the use of unsuitable examples and improper model pictures can make it difficult for students to understand physics concepts. Furthermore, differences in the terms used in physics textbook and those used in other textbooks can also confuse students.

No abstract received.

Education prepares people for the future and hence should have a feedback mechanism reflecting societal changes/needs, and physics education is no exception. Along with the ongoing transition to knowledge-based economies, equal access to scientific knowledge is a fundamental prerequisite for sustainable development and world peace. The use of current information and communication technology can significantly contribute to improving the quality of education by overcoming barriers, such as time and space, and promoting an active-learning mode of education, known to be superior to the traditional passive format. Accordingly, this paper briefly discusses the use of IT for improving physics education with an emphasis on resource sharing.

Borderless physics education faces constants and challenges in the 21^st century. Teaching and learning borderless physics can mean universal physics concepts, skills and values, physics in daily life, outdoor physics, physics, society, and Internet-based physics. Physics education constants like poverty, untrained teachers, rote learning, negative attitude towards physics are continuing challenges requiring creative solutions. Digital developments such as global laboratory, online courses, and rapid, multiple mass media inputs vying for students’ attention pose new challenges to teachers and all sectors involved in physics education. The paper examines issues and explores solutions.

Physics has much in common with the fine arts. Learning physics will greatly increase one’s understanding of art, and learning about applications of physics to the arts will enhance one’s understanding of physics. We discuss courses in physics and the arts, including textbooks, laboratory experiments, videos, and Internet sites

The current study presents a brief survey of the current status of IT-based Physics Education in Japan. As such, some of the activities and collaborative projects of the NEP (Network for Education of Physics) group and JAVA mailing list group in Japan intended to make university physics education a more attractive and active learning experience are introduced, resource sharing to make interesting educational materials using IT is dicussed, the modularized materials produced by collaboration between the NEP and JAVA mailing list groups are investigated, and some examples of IT-based education on the world of Aristoteles-Ptolemaios and Copernicus-Kepler, Galileo-Newtonian Mechanics, and Galileo-Einstein Relativity are presented.

The Virtual University (VU) project was conducted by Kyushu Institute of Technology (KIT) as a joint research and development effort with the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), National Institute of Multimedia Education (NIME), and Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) from 1999 to 2001. The role of KIT in this project was the production of educational materials for undergraduate science and engineering. The subjects are as follows: a) Physics; b) Introduction to LSI; c) Information Technology. The VU physics course includes introductory mechanics and electromagnetism. For the mechanics section, a digital textbook was prepared using Mathematica with the contents transcribed from the recently published book, “Mechanics Exercises with Mathematica” (1999, Baifukan Co. Ltd., Tokyo). Plus, significant emphasis is placed on the student conducting physics exercises using a computer. For the electromagnetism section, special attention was paid to providing a unified theory for application to practical problems involving various engineering situations. Accordingly, the current report gives an overview of the process used to develop the VU physics program, along with insights on the significance of a VU based on computers and communication networks as a new education system.

Virtual reality technology is now widely recognized as a major break through in the technological advance of science education. The use of computers in the physics classroom can increase student engagement, add realism to instruction, promote mastery and understanding of basic physics principles, augment laboratory experience, and encourage inferential learning. Accordingly, the current paper presents a recently developed computer-based virtual reality simulation that enables students to learn key physics concepts, such as wave propagation, ray optics, relative velocity, and electric machines, etc. in high school-level physics.

The current paper describes several experiments using multiple colored LEDs for teaching introductory Quantum physics. These experiments are all simpler than the photoelectric effect. LEDs are engineered to drop an electron based on a fixed potential difference and emit a photon of a definite color. As such, a range of LEDs with different colors can be used to illustrate the relationship between energy and frequency for photons. The measurement results demonstrate that the energy E is proportional to the frequency f, E = hf with h being Planck’s constant. An experiment using three colored LEDs is effective for beginners, where the measured value is approximately 6 × 10⁻³⁴ Js. Whereas, an experiment using eight colored LEDs is preferable for a more detailed investigation, as a graph is produced with two straight lines from the origin and the slope represents Planck’s constant. The author is interested in exchanging opinions with other researchers.

Experiments are an essential part of science education for understanding natural phenomena and the related principles. Therefore, remote control experiments via the Internet are a key solution for distance learners in science education. Remote experiments can also be used for time-consuming experiments that take several days, collaborative experiments between distance learners, experiments involving expensive laboratory equipment that is unavailable to most students, and experimental procedures that are dangerous. Accordingly, the current study developed a general method for creating a remote control laboratory system using the Internet and interface techniques, thereby enabling physics students to control real instruments through the Internet and conduct remote physics experiments. A remote control nuclear experiment system is constructed as a sample application.

The current study developed a useful computer program for teaching optics in physics. The main advantage of the program is that students can gain an idea of the concept of wavelength from the RGB color data from photos that are easily obtainable from many CCD devices without the use of expensive spectroscopy. In addition, the temperature distribution of a light source can also be determined, assuming that it emits black body radiation.

Both the UK and Australia have long experience of distance learning and the problems which can emerge because of the students’ lack of social contact. In this paper the authors first consider the theoretical basis for the topic to be found in the work of Mead, Schutz and Kuhn. Then they consider the early research in both countries which show just how important this lack could be and how comparatively easily it could be repaired to provide a more genuine network-based experience. The authors present an account of some new work using on-line education, and the importance of synchronicity, including comments from the lecturer. In the final section the authors make links with the classic work of Perry in more traditional education. The difficulty of ambiguous information produces an urgent need for more social support, which can be satisfied by new computer intervention.

Science fiction(SF) movies have a variety of advantages that are usually lacking in school science. Previous studies have already shown that both students and teachers have a positive attitude toward the use of SF movies in school science lessons. However, despite the advantages, using SF movies is an extra burden on science teachers, because it is hard for individual teachers to analyse and edit SF movies and then develop the necessary teaching materials. Therefore, to reduce this burden, the current authors developed a multimedia CD, named ‘SF & Physics’, which can easily be used by ordinary teachers in their science lessons. The CD focuses on the mechanics part of high school physics and contains lots of interesting movie clips taken from a variety of SF movies. In the process of developing the CD, comments and advice were collected from physics teachers and science educators. The CD was then shown in two high school classes and the results closely observed. It was found that both teachers and students were satisfied with the use of the CD and insightful recommendations were collected for future classroom implementation.

The purpose of the current study was to develop simple and low cost devices for experimenting with the properties of light in an ordinary classroom. Although children have a high interest in investigating the properties of light, such experiments are difficult due to inappropriate light sources, poor equipment, and the costs of providing a darkroom. Accordingly, two new simple devices are developed for conducting light experiments in an ordinary classroom. The proposed equipment enables experiments related to the laws of reflection and refraction, total internal reflection in water, critical angle, and other basic properties of light.

It is almost impossible to exaggerate the role of friction phenomena in the history of human civilization. In an educational context, a variety of physical effects, innumerable technical devices and processes, and even some amazing toys – friction-reducing or friction-based - provide excellent topics for discussion with students learning physics. Accordingly, the current paper presents a series of class demonstrations and hands-on activities for high school and university students, with the particular intent that these topics can become introductory research studies. The proposed activities and experiments on sliding and rolling friction, triboelectricity, estimating the friction coefficient, and the unexpected (and frictionally explained) behavior of spinning tops, were found to stimulate students without exception, and certain students even became involved in co-authoring the current presentation. In particular, the proposed activities gave students an understanding of the physical nature of real-life phenomena, while appealing to their everyday experience and cultural background. The didactic aspects and educational impact of “science frictional” investigations are presented and analyzed.

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