Colloquium Speaker Bradley Ambrose (Grand Valley State University) today, Tuesday, November 18, 2014 @ 4:00pm

[Patterson, Robin L.]

Please take note of Colloquium taking place today, Tuesday, November 18, 2014 at 4:00 PM in The Robert Smith Seminar Room. There will be a reception in the Atrium at 3:45PM. Details concerning the talk are as follows:

Speaker:              Bradley Ambrose (Grand Valley State University)
Date:                     Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Time:                     4:00 PM
Place:                    1080 Physics Research Building, The Robert Smith Seminar Room
Title:                     Using Research to Investigate and enhance Learning in Upper-Division Mechanics


Abstract: Over thirty years of research in physics education has demonstrated that traditionally taught introductory courses have minimal effect in developing conceptual understanding, problem solving skills, and scientific reasoning ability in most students. More recent research has shown that physics majors, who comprise a small percentage of students who take first-year physics, are not immune to such difficulties. One major area of this research is being conducted in the context of sophomore/junior level courses in intermediate mechanics, which often represent the first step that physics majors take beyond the introductory sequence. Results from this research suggest that intermediate mechanics students often hold deeply-seated alternate conceptions, while others suggest loosely or spontaneously connected intuitions. Furthermore, students often do not connect the physics to the more sophisticated mathematics they are expected to use. This presentation will highlight results from research conducted at Grand Valley State University, the University of Maine (by co-PI Michael Wittmann) and pilot sites in the Intermediate Mechanics Tutorials project. These results, taken from the analysis of pretests (ungraded quizzes), written exams, and classroom observations, will illustrate specific student difficulties as well as the development and refinement of guided-inquiry teaching strategies to address these difficulties. (Supported by NSF grants DUE-0441426 and DUE-0442388.)
The website for the colloquium is https://physics.osu.edu/physics-colloquium-schedule.


Robin
[The Ohio State University]
Robin Patterson
Undergraduate Program, Colloquium and Seminar Coordinator
Department of Physics
1040K Physics Research Building, 191 W. Woodruff Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210
(614) 292-8523 Office     (614) 292-7557 Fax
patterson.716 at osu.edu<mailto:patterson.716 at osu.edu> osu.edu<http://osu.edu/>

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