ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY News Release
Danika Painter
February 1, 2001
Contact: Jim Hathaway, 480-965-6375, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sources: David Hestenes, 480-965-6277
Jane Jackson, 480-965-8438
Physics Instruction Program Wins Recognition from U. S. Department of
Education
For many high school students, getting through physics class is a test of
their ability to memorize facts, plug numbers into equations, and resist the
temptation to snooze. But a teaching program developed in ASU's Department
of Physics is awakening student interest and achievement by making physics a
more dynamic subject. The program, called Modeling Instruction in High
School Physics, recently earned the U. S. Department of Education's highest
honor for its success in reforming the way high school physics is taught.
The Department of Education designated the Modeling Program as one of two
exemplary science education programs, out of 27 programs submitted to the
agency. Last year, the Modeling Program was also recognized for its
outstanding integration of technology into the classroom. This year's list
of exemplary and promising programs can be viewed on the Department's web
site at
<http://www.ed.gov/offices/OERI/ORAD/KAD/expert_panel/newscience_progs.html>
Modeling instruction engages students with simple scenarios, such as the
movement of a falling object, to learn to model the physical world. Instead
of relying on lectures and textbooks, the Modeling Program emphasizes active
student exploration of these models in an interactive "learning community,"
says the program's developer, David Hestenes, now Professor Emeritus of
physics at ASU. Hestenes has based the program on more than 20 years of
research, implementation, and testing.
Classroom activities start with a demonstration by the teacher - of the
swinging of a pendulum, for example - followed by a group brainstorming
session in which the students identify factors that might influence the
pendulum's motion. The students then work in small groups to develop models
describing the motion and conduct self-designed experiments to test their
ideas. A comparison of the experimental data with the model provides a focus
for continued discussions, in which the students present their conclusions
to the rest of the class.
Hestenes stresses that instruction centered around models provides "a
conceptual structure with models as units of coherently organized knowledge.
It is a framework that students can use to organize information about the
physical world in many different situations." In this respect, the Modeling
Method differs substantially from more typical "fact collecting" approaches
to science teaching.
Hands-on student exploration of phenomena is also an integral feature of
modeling because it makes what they've learned in the classroom more
meaningful. "Instead of just presenting lectures, we involve students in
activities that stimulate them to build the structure themselves, so that
this becomes incorporated in the structure of their own thinking," says
Hestenes.
Hestenes particularly emphasizes the value of the student presentations, not
only in understanding physics but also in lifelong learning. "We teach
students to articulate what they've learned in a coherent way. The aim of
the program is to enable people to articulate their own views clearly and
defend them with argument and evidence. That goes along with being able to
interpret other people's claims and evaluate those claims."
The Modeling Method has a proven track record of improving student learning.
Data on some 20,000 students show that those who have been through the
Modeling program typically learn twice as much as other students. Hestenes
attributes much of the program's success to the fact that it explicitly
addresses common student misconceptions about physical processes.
Most students come into physics class with naïve beliefs that they must
overcome before they can truly understand the principles of physics.
"Standard physics instruction does not deal with students' views, so the
students systematically misunderstand what is going on in class. Modeling
instruction addresses this problem expressly with the change in perspective
that is necessary for understanding," Hestenes explains.
The Modeling program is implemented by training physics teachers during
intensive summer workshops. Teachers complete two four-week workshops, which
equip them to train other teachers in the Modeling Method. Modeling
instruction has been widely adopted nationwide, and is used by more than
half of the physics teachers in Arizona.
ASU
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