Brokk Toggerson – Page 3

A Quote that I think Applies to the Different Problem Solving Schemas of Novice and Expert Physicists

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few”
Shunryu Suzuki

While this quote is meant to encourage folks to keep the sense of open mindedness in the face of advancing knowledge, I think an alternative interpretation works well for physics instruction.

As Chi et al discuss in their work¹, novice and expert physics students approach analyzing problems in wildly different ways:

Novices tend to focus on the surface features of the problem: ramps, friction, pulleys, ropes, etc. In their “beginner’s mind” these are all simply different types of problems – there are “ramp problems,” “friction problems,” etc.
In the “expert’s mind,” however, there are a lot fewer options: all problems begin from a small set of universal principles: Newton’s Laws, Conservation of Energy, etc.

Perhaps this quote can help students cement their knowledge?

Footnotes

Chi, Michelene T. H., Paul J. Feltovich, and Robert Glaser. “Categorization and Representation of Physics Problems by Experts and Novices*.” Cognitive Science 5, no. 2 (April 1, 1981): 121–52. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15516709cog0502_2.

Adding Biological and Chemical Authenticity to the 131 Textbook

Another year has past and with it a lot of changes to my 131 efforts. This year has represented the first time I have taught P131 since Spring 2017 and coming back at it with fresh eyes has been very illuminating. There will probably be a lot of discussion on what I did this past year and how it can inform where I am going in the next iterations during the 2023-2024 school year.

One thing, which has become apparent as I publish my 132 Textbook: What is an Electron? What is Light? to the Living Physics Portal has been the inclusion of sections from OpenStax Biology, OpenStax Chemistry – Atoms First 2e, and the occasional selection from some of my peers in the disciplines here at UMass Amherst into that text. These sections are, almost by definition, authentic representations of the language and modes of thinking which characterize these disciplines. Including them in the physics text serves a two main purposes:

Such sections help ensure that students see the physics material as connected to their majors’ courses. After all, right there, in the text, is some information straight out of a biology or chemistry class.
Such sections also provide an equity role: not all students in 131/132 have the same major background; some students may have not been required to take certain classes for example while others may, due to the differences in the semesters in which different majors take physics, have taken these courses several years ago. By including them in the text, I am making sure that the needed biology or chemistry information is fresh in each person’s mind.

As I said, such sections are already exist in the 132 textbook, and submitting it for review has re-impressed on me the importance of such materials. Also important are homework questions that test the material. I remember as a student skipping these introductory/motivational chapters in my intro texts (Young and Freedman’s Sears and Zemansky’s University Physics with Modern Physics 13th ed.). Simple economic factors were at play: I had a limited amount of time and the material in these sections was never assessed in any way. Thus, I skipped them. Recalling this economic thinking shows the importance of having homework assessment of the material.

So, what am I thinking with regards to such biology/chemistry sections? Which should I perhaps include? Well, I am sure that this list will change as I go this summer developing the materials for fall, but a few already come to mind:

Entropy – Some discussion on the importance of entropy to biology and chemistry? Perhaps more on the Gibbs Free Energy? Also some comments about some of the examples we work such as the alignment of cytoskeletal fibers in cell division?
Energy – Some overview of the ideas of energy from a biology text?
The ATP reaction – I use this a lot in my discussion of microscopic energy and during the past semester a few students’ comments demonstrated that a review of this material would probably be beneficial.
Some discussion on ground reaction forces for when we get to simulations etc from a kinesiology resource? A discussion of force plates could also be good.

Just a few thoughts I figured I would get down.

How to manage groups more efficiently – from “Get Better Faster”

I am currently reading a book entitled Get Better Faster: A 90-Day Plan for Coaching New Teachers by Paul Bambrick-Santoyo. While a more detailed review will come later, there is one point that is of particular interest. The author suggests that, when monitoring student work, the monitors (in my case myself and the TAs) should go to the fastest groups first. At first glance, this seems counterintuitive: shouldn’t the in-class assistants spend the most time with those groups who struggle the most? Bambrick-Santoyo, however, points out that going to the fastest groups first has two benefits:

The in-class assistants get a good sense of where the students are likely to struggle and what alternative conceptions students have. While I always encourage my TAs to work the problems in advance and while we discuss them in our weekly meetings, these efforts are not always sufficient. By attending to the fastest groups first, TAs in particular get a in-the-trenches sense of where students are likely to stumble.
Attending to the fastest groups first gives those groups who need a little more time the time they need to progress to the point where they are in a position to ask a question or get feedback.

Again, I am sure there will be more to come from this book, but I wanted to share that out.

Reflections on Physics 132 Spring ’22 Part III – Added this semester: A problem solving “process”

Another addition this semester was a “problem solving process.” While most physics textbooks include problems solving processes, I have a fundamental disagreement with the philosophical underpinnings implied by these published sequences. Many of these processes implicitly suggest that students should be able to look at a problem and see all the steps before beginning work; that they should be able to “outline a solution” before even beginning the math. In my experience, this is not how physicists solve problems. Frankly, a situation is not really a problem if you know all the steps upon setting out. I want students to learn to sit with the discomfort of not knowing all of the steps at the outset and to develop the confidence needed to figure out problems as they go.

Reflections on Physics 132 Spring ’22 Part II – Something that has been evolving for a few semesters: After-class broadcasts

One of the biggest challenges in any course is managing the limited time available. The UMass semester is configured so that there are always 13 Mondays, 13 Tuesdays, 13 Wednesdays, etc. For a course that meets MWF, this schedule means there are 36 class sessions of 50min each. This is a really short amount of time to cover optics, electricity, magnetism, and modern physics as prescribed by the Physics 132 official course description. One way to save a little time each day, while simultaneously making the course more equitable is through the use of daily “broadcasts.” These emails, which I have been sending after each class since the start of the pandemic, contain both a summary of the day’s material and any announcements. After five-semesters of refinement, I feel I have a sense of the key features.

Author: Brokk Toggerson