Re: [Phys-l] A Question: Where Does Current Reform Come From?

[Marty Weiss <martweiss@comcast.net>]

On Jun 26, 2011, at 7:17 PM, Richard Hake wrote:

> Some subscribers to AP-Physics and Physhare might be interested in a discussion-list post "Re: A Question: Where Does Current Reform Come From? " [Hake (2011)].
>
> The abstract reads:
>
> ***************************************
> ABSTRACT: Joshua Fisher (2011) in his Math-Teach post "A Question: Where Does Current Reform Come From?" wrote (paraphrasing): "How does one enable middle school kids to know the formula for the area of a sphere as required by the standards? . . . .So just give it to 'em, right? Yet, my supervisor tried to avoid this consequence. My question is . . . . "What is the incentive to promote Not Telling over Telling?"
>
> For physics education, Fisher's last question might be better posed as "What is the incentive to promote "Interactive Engagement" (IE) over "Direct Instruction" (DI). The answer is that over 40-years worth of physics education research has demonstrated that IE is far more effective in promoting students' conceptual understanding of physics than DI.


>
That's not an incentive for promoting interactive engagement.   The incentive in today's pro-testing, anti-teacher atmosphere is to keep your job and make the parents, board of ed, and politicians happy!  And how do you keep your job and make everyone happy?  By promoting the method that best enables the students to answer the questions on the test, which is any method that promotes immediate gratification.  And what gives immediate gratification?  That means that the students pass the test... they are happy, the parents and politicians are happy, and you get to teach another year.  Conceptual understanding is a secondary consideration to passing the test for the majority of parents, board members, and politicians; so if it is more likely that telling them the equations and having them do practice problems will enable students to pass the test, then by all means let's do it that way!   
Try this... stand up in a school board meeting and say,  "I need to interact with the kids and have them work out the conceptual understanding of why and how the formula works."   And do you know what some parent or board member will reply?  "Is that going to follow the curriculum in the easiest, quickest way with the least amount of time and money spent, and will they have time to cover all the material necessary to pass the test?"   And, someone else will ask?  "My son is going to be a football player (banker, salesman, etc.).  Why does he have to know why and how these physics equations work?  On second thought, why the heck does he have to take physics anyway?  Just give him what he needs to pass the da-- test and get it overwith."

(Reality tv shows are among the highest rated shows.     Passing the state exams and looking good on paper is the new reality.  This is the new world we live in, folks.) 

Marty