Physics Education Research (PER) is a global endeavour, with a wealth of work performed at a variety of institutions worldwide. However, results from research into undergraduate physics laboratory courses is often difficult to compare due to the broad variations in courses. We have created a survey to help classify these courses to compare and contrast them, which will be useful in two key endeavours: comparisons between PER studies and providing useful data for individual instructors hoping to improve their courses, thus providing information relevant to both researchers and instructors. While we are still in the process of collecting sufficient data to create a full taxonomy of laboratory courses, we present here details of the survey creation itself, as well as a first look at the data collected, which includes a broad landscape of lab courses in 41 countries. We used both quantitative and qualitative methods in analyzing the data collected. Some of these results include similarities between courses, such as students often using pre-constructed apparatuses and that instructors hope for students to learn technical skills. We also find differences in courses, such as in the number and types of goals of the course, as well as the activities students participate in.
Modeling Instruction (MI), an active-learning introductory physics curriculum, has been shown to improve student academic success. Peer-to-peer interactions play a salient role in the MI classroom. Their impact on student interest and self-efficacy -- preeminent constructs of various career theories -- has not been thoroughly explored. Our examination of three undergraduate MI courses (N=221) revealed a decrease in students' physics self-efficacy, physics interest, and general science interest. We found a positive link from physics interest to self-efficacy, and a negative relationship between…
We present results on a multiple-optical-path quantum interference project suitable for the advanced undergraduate laboratory. The experiments combine a conceptually rich set of atomic physics experiments which may be economically developed at a technical level accessible to undergraduate physics or engineering majors. In the experiments, diode-laser driven two-quantum, two-color excitation of cesium atoms in a vapor cell is investigated and relative strengths of the individual hyperfine components in the $6s^{2}S_{1/2} \rightarrow 7s^{2}S_{1/2}$ transition are determined. Measurement and anal…
Design and Initial Evaluation of a Photovoltaics-focused Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience in Physics
University of Colorado Boulder（科罗拉多大学博尔德分校）；JILA, National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Colorado（JILA，美国国家标准与技术研究院与科罗拉多大学）
We developed and validated a conceptual survey that focuses on the formalism and postulates of quantum mechanics covered in upper-level undergraduate quantum mechanics courses. The concepts included in the Quantum Mechanics Formalism and Postulate Survey (QMFPS) focus on Dirac notation, the Hilbert space, state vectors, physical observables and their corresponding Hermitian operators, compatible and incompatible observables, quantum measurement, time-dependence of quantum states and expectation values, and spin angular momenta. Here we describe the validation and administration of the survey, …
An experiment for the advanced undergraduate laboratory allowing students to directly observe the effect of photon polarisation on Compton scattering is described. An initially unpolarised beam of photons is polarised via Compton scattering and analysed through a subsequent scattering. The experiment is designed to use equipment typically available at an undergraduate physics laboratory. The experimental results are compared with a Geant4 simulation and geometry effects are discussed.
An experiment for the advanced undergraduate laboratory which allows students to study the effect of photon polarisation in Compton scattering and to explore q\ uantum entanglement is described. The quantum entangled photons are produced through electron-positron annihilation in the $S$-state, and their polarisations a\ re analysed using the Compton scattering cross-section dependence on the photon polarisation. The equipment necessary for this experiment is available at a typ\ ical undergraduate physics laboratory. Finite geometry effects are discussed and investigated with the use of a Geant…
This paper describes some of the results of a National Science Foundation Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education project that aims to establish a nanoscience and nanotechnology program at the University of North Dakota. The goal is to generate new interest in nanoscience and nanotechnology among engineering and science students and prepare them with the knowledge and skills necessary for the next generation of graduates to compete in the global market and contribute to the nanoscience and nanotechnology field. The project explored several aspects of student learning, including students motivat…
We introduce a newly designed undergraduate-level interdisciplinary course in scientific computing that aims to prepare students as the next generation of research-oriented computational scientists and engineers. The course offers students opportunities to explore a diverse set of projects and develop the necessary programming skills to implement ideas and algorithms within high performance computing environments. The training includes how to think about, formulate, organize, and implement programs in scientific computing. The emphasis of the course is on problem solving within a wide range of…
Research experience and mentoring has been identified as an effective intervention for increasing student engagement and retention in the STEM fields, with high impact on students from undeserved populations. However, one-on-one mentoring is limited by the number of available faculty, and in certain cases also by the availability of funding for stipend. One-on-one mentoring is further limited by the selection and self-selection of students. Since research positions are often competitive, they are often taken by the best-performing students. More importantly, many students who do not see themse…
Cultural Astronomy is interdisciplinary connecting the arts, humanities, social & physical sciences. Data collection methods and theories are used from many disciplines and meld with methods and theories within cultural astronomy. The burden on the student is that to do cultural astronomy research it is necessary to be widely read within and across disciplines. I developed a series of courses that divided cultural astronomy content into broad regions such as Africa, North America, and the Pacific. The courses were structured to accommodate students from all parts of the university, but had to …
We investigated physics students' learning experience and behaviour in a second-year laboratory by analyzing transcribed audio recordings of laboratory sessions. One student group was given both a problem and procedure and asked to analyze and explain their results. Another was provided with only the problem and asked to design and execute the experiment, interpret the data, and draw conclusions. These two approaches involved different levels of student inquiry and they have been described as guided and open inquiry respectively. The latter gave students more opportunities to practice "designi…
As quantum information science and technology (QIST) is becoming more prevalent and occurring not only in research labs but also in industry, many educators are considering how best to incorporate learning about quantum mechanics into various levels of education. Although much of the focus has been on quantum concepts in non-lab courses, current work in QIST has a substantial experimental component. Many instructors of undergraduate lab courses want to provide their students the opportunity to work with quantum experiments. One common way this is done is through a sequence of quantum optics ex…
There is a significant underrepresentation of women in many Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) majors and careers. Prior research has shown that self-efficacy can be a critical factor in student learning, and that there is a tendency for women to have lower self-efficacy than men in STEM disciplines. This study investigates gender differences in the relationship between engineering students' self-efficacy and course grades in foundational courses. By focusing on engineering students, we examined these gender differences simultaneously in four STEM disciplines (mathematics…
This article reports on a study investigating how computational essays can be used to redistribute epistemic agency--cognitive control and responsibility over one's own learning--to students in higher education STEM. Computational essays are a genre of scientific writing that combine live, executable computer code with narrative text to present a computational model or analysis. The study took place across two contrasting university contexts: an interdisciplinary data science and modeling course at Michigan State University, USA, and a third-semester physics course at the University of Oslo, N…
A national survey of physics faculty was conducted to investigate the prevalence and nature of computational instruction in physics courses across the United States. 1246 faculty from 357 unique institutions responded to the survey. The results suggest that more faculty have some form of computational teaching experience than a decade ago, but it appears that this experience does not necessarily translate to computational instruction in undergraduate students' formal course work. Further, we find that formal programs in computational physics are absent from most departments. A majority of facu…
Authentic research as a method of teaching science is gaining popularity in high schools and colleges. To make this research experience most efficient, students need adequate preparation in traditional science courses. Existing materials available for inquiry-based teaching methods are not intended to prepare a student for independent research. We discuss principles for organization of laboratory classes with this goal in mind and provide examples that we have implemented for algebra-based physics, calculus-based physics, and honors chemistry for high school students.
