Re: Who are we helping...

["Richard W. Tarara" <rtarara@saintmarys.edu>]

Seems to me we had this discussion a year or so ago.  Clearly there are
many different clientele for our courses, especially at the College level
where we have liberal arts students taking a science requirement,
engineers, bio and chem majors, math majors, and ultimately physics majors.
 I thought the point made then was that the 'physics majors' curriculum IS
NOT necessarily the best for all these groups.

At the HS level there are also different clientele, but it seems that the
groups are more limited.  There are the 'AP' students looking EITHER to
test out of their intro physics or trying to get a 'head start' on their
college physics.  This group needs a 'college level' course (and what that
IS, is operationally defined by the AP test--for the B level, its a
standard Algebra level course along the lines of the most popular texts,
with plenty of problem solving).  If we all change the nature of the
College Intro course tomorrow, then MAYBE in a couple more years the AP
test would adjust--but for now the status-quo rules.

What about the rest (AND I would hope the AP students in a FIRST physics
course--AP being a second)?  Here is were the kinds of interactive, highly
conceptual, PER (physics educational research) driven courses should shine.
 As others have said, if the College and University instructors could get
students with a strong conceptual understanding of the basics, we could
then do a better job of working on the 'other half' of the equation,
critical thinking and problem solving.  Of course, some of the College
clientele could benefit from such courses (almost all if they haven't had
such an experience in HS) but then the burden of fixed curricula (pre-med,
engineering, etc.)  and what I'll call the 'inefficiency' of some PER
techniques (meaning only that it takes more time to do some things than has
been traditionally allotted)  conspires to keep many 'trapped' in more
traditional curricula and instructional formats.

My $.02

Rick Tarara
----------
> From: Dewey Dykstra, Jr. <dykstrad@varney.idbsu.edu>

> BUT, I'm still looking for responses to the issue of just who do we think
> we are teaching physics and what do we think we are teaching physics for.
>
> Dewey
>
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> Dewey I. Dykstra, Jr.                   Phone: (208)385-3105
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