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Re: Lost Lab Period

I have been in charge of classroom demonstrations at the Naval Academy Physics Department and am now asking the department to consider increasing the possibility of hands on demonstrations and mini-measurements, called studio learning in the literature. This might reduce your loss of play, experience and inductive learning that is the basis of the principles of physics that we use to deductively solve problems.

Students should also join faculty in research if possible, even if just for ten or twenty hours in a semester. This would allow them to learn the process of seeking new knowledge even better than in our normally over structured lab experiments.

Thanks for voicing your concern!

Carl Schneider


Dr. Carl S. Schneider
Professor of Physics, USNA
572 Holloway Road, Michelson 344
Annapolis, MD 21402
410-293-6663, schneide@nadn.navy.mil

David Simmons <dsimmon@UOFT02.UTOLEDO.EDU> 08/16/99 10:14PM >>>
Well, it's finally happened. The administration--to solve impossible
scheduling problems and over strenuous objections from the science
department--eliminated our science lab period this year. Instead of six
45-minute periods per week we now have five 50-minute periods. We lose
(can you do the math?) 20 minutes per week and our separate lab period.

We had a department meeting today and talked about identifying key
concepts, adding more short, hands-on activities, and making more
efficient use of lab time.

I'm wondering how others have adapted to a similar switch or what advice
some of you might have for us (short of going elsewhere).

Dave

--
David A. Simmons
St. John's Jesuit High School
Toledo OH
<dsimmon@uoft02.utoledo.edu>