“You have to convince people that there are limits to their knowledge,” said Jerry Rosiek, education studies department head at University of Oregon’s College of Education. “Generally, it’s assumed that the best way to do that is to get students involved in an inquiry or some sort of a dialogue, where their own knowledge of the topic is revealed to be inadequate,” said Rosiek. “They’ve already done physics, but here’s a physics problem,” and what they already know “doesn’t solve the problem.” https://lnkd.in/gEdusyzN #K12 #Curriculum
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Physics helps us understand the world around us, why things move, why they resist movement, why systems become disordered, why small changes compound, and why behaviour changes at scale. And my slightly nerdy brain started wondering: What happens if we use some of those same ideas to understand education? After spending the better part of 17 years in education, I realised that some of the most interesting questions about the system appear when you look at it from outside the usual education lens. It is also a question that sits close to what we think about at CRIATIVO. If technology is going to play a meaningful role in education, it cannot just make the existing system faster or more digital. Sometimes we have to question the assumptions underneath the system itself. So I started putting my thoughts into a new series of articles Using Physics to Rethink Education Not to turn education into equations, but to borrow concepts from physics as a different way of questioning assumptions we have become comfortable with. The first article begins with first principles and one simple question: If schools did not already exist, would we invent them the way they exist today? Read the article here https://lnkd.in/dibh7y_V
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🚀 New opinion piece in #AARE: We must save physics now. Heres how 📢 I’m pleased to share a new opinion piece co-authored with Professor Alan Duffy and Matt Dodds examining one of the biggest challenges facing STEM education in Australia. 📉 Year 12 physics participation has fallen from 14.9% to 12.1%, leaving around 5,000 fewer physics students than a decade ago. At the same time, shortages of specialist physics teachers are creating a self-reinforcing cycle that threatens Australias future STEM workforce. 🔬 In the article, we argue that the solution is not simply more promotion of physics. Instead, we need: ✅ Sustained outreach programs ✅ Stronger school-university partnerships ✅ Better support for teachers ✅ Greater investment in regional and rural communities Together, these can help rebuild Australias physics pipeline and future STEM capability. 🔗 Read the article: https://lnkd.in/g7Vga46U 💬 We'd love to hear your thoughts on how we can inspire more students to engage with physics and STEM. #PhysicsEducation #STEMEducation #Physics #ScienceEducation #STEM #TeacherEducation #PhysicsOutreach #RegionalEducation #EducationalResearch #AARE Wade Naylor (MInstP, SFHEA), Alan Duffy, Matt Dodds
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🪀Bringing Physics to Life: The Power of Hands-On Learning! 💡 Today, our brilliant 7th-grade students stepped out of the textbook and into the fascinating world of physics with a practical pendulum experiment. It is truly inspiring to watch these young minds actively engage with scientific concepts like motion, frequency, and gravity in a real-world classroom setting. Watching them observe, ask questions, and learn through this hands-on activity reminds me why experiential learning is so crucial. When students see science in action, it does more than just clear their doubts—it sparks a lifelong curiosity for STEM! Key takeaways from today's session: 🔹 Experiential learning builds stronger conceptual foundations. 🔹 Hands-on experiments encourage critical thinking, observation, and teamwork. 🔹 Practical applications make science fun and accessible for everyone. Incredibly proud of their enthusiasm and eager participation. Here's to nurturing the next generation of scientists, thinkers, and innovators! 🌍🔬 #STEMEducation #PhysicsInAction #HandsOnLearning #Class8Science #FutureScientists #Education #InnovativeTeaching #StudentEngagement
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A small question can change the perspective of the students and that of the teachers. A simple add-on to the book being pushed on the table, clarifies a piece which would otherwise carry through years of learning.
We spend years teaching students the half-truth that friction is a force that stops motion. Then we wonder why they completely hit a wall in Grade 11 physics In 8th grade, every science textbook prints the exact same definition: "Static friction is a self-adjusting force." Students memorize the sentence for exams. Yet almost no classroom ever explains what it actually means in reality. Because textbooks only ever show one example, a book sliding across a desk, students internalize a massive misconception: they believe friction is purely a brake that opposes movement. They never learn that "self-adjusting" means friction can point forward, backward, left, or right depending on the context. When you walk forward, your foot pushes backward on the floor. Ground friction pushes your shoe forward. Friction is not stopping you; it is the sole engine propelling you across the room. The consequence of this narrow teaching shows up three years later in Grade 11. When students reach advanced physics and encounter rotational mechanics, like analyzing a wheel rolling without slipping, they are suddenly shown friction acting forward. The class completely freezes. Because their early foundation was built on memorizing one sterile textbook rule, they cannot reconcile the physics. So they give up on real understanding. They say, "My teacher says it points forward, so I'll just memorize the formula and solve the problem." They stop thinking physically and start blindly manipulating algebra. This is why a pluralistic approach to practical science matters. If we want students to master advanced STEM, we cannot rely on one-dimensional textbook clichés. We have to expose them to diverse, real-world mechanical contexts from middle school onward.
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More than 300 public school students from New Haven, West Haven, and Orange have just begun their journey with Yale Pathways to Science. Since 2012, Pathways has provided local middle and high school students with free, hands-on STEM experiences alongside Yale faculty and students. It now hosts more than 250 events each year. Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering Member Nilay Hazari, the John Randolph Huffman Professor of Chemistry and chair of the Department of Chemistry at Yale University, told the new cohort, "I wasn't always this big and didn't always do science!" He said Pathways is a place to follow your curiosity and that these students belong here. https://lnkd.in/gamzg9qQ #stem #stemm #science #technology #engineering #mathematics #medicine #connecticut
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Introducing advanced math concepts like Algebra in middle school or even earlier can set students up for success. Similarly, early exposure to subjects like physics can foster critical thinking and problem-solving skills from a young age. Prioritizing these foundational subjects can unlock greater academic potential. What are your thoughts on early access to advanced STEM education? #Education #STEM #MathEducation #Physics #Learning
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Results for 2025 Texas high school STEM course-taking. This graph shows cohorts of Texas high school graduates by graduation year, and displays what percentage of them took at least one course in each of the categories in the preceding six years. Algebra 1, Biology, and Geometry are essentially at 100%. Algebra II is at 93%, displaying remarkable persistence although the Texas legislature tried to spare students from it in 2013. Chemistry remains up at 92%. Physics continues its long slow drop from the peak of 91% in 2015 and is now down to 56%. Precal has fallen from a 2015 peak of 53% to 39%. Calculus peaked at 12% around 2015 and is now down to 9%. The only one of these STEM courses to show a notable increase is Computer Science, which increased from 5% in 2015 to 10%. My best guess is that the drops in Physics and Calculus have more to do with teacher shortages than with student interest, as argued here https://lnkd.in/gYCT_mvb . I am still thinking about how to make this more convincing. Data from Texas Education Research Center
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Transitioning from traditional physics research into Physics Education Research (PER) or SoTL doesn't have to mean starting from scratch. As a Fellow of the American Physical Society and longtime physics professor, I love helping physics faculty translate their passion for teaching into rigorous, publishable research. Bring a tailored masterclass or workshop series to your department: - Participant-Centered: We skip generic lectures—faculty bring their active teaching ideas and draft projects directly into the room. - Interactive & High-Energy: We align research questions, theoretical frameworks, and data collection tools in real time. - Project Progress: Everyone leaves with a clear, actionable path from classroom innovation to PER project execution. Let's bring a custom workshop to your department or regional physics community: https://lnkd.in/erW7hkwx #Physics #PER #SoTL #FacultyDevelopment #HigherEd #Zaposa
