Re: PER vs EdD (SciEd)

[Joseph Bellina <jbellina@SAINTMARYS.EDU>]

The Physics Education Research (PER) folks are for the most part in
physics departments.  As I see it, that is the way they keep their
credibility with the physics community...and thats very important.

Ithink that if you want to be part of a college or university physics
department, the safest way would be to earn a Ph.D. in a physics
department doing conventional physics research. Of course after tenure you
can choose to work in whatever area you can find support. If you choose to
do PER graduate work in a department that has such a program, then the
situation becomes a bit more complicated, since in the end, it depends on
whether you can get hired and then be granted tenure.

The PER field has not reached the point that many young Ph.D's have earned
tenure.  I believe that it is essential that they do, and that those of
us who are tenured do whatever we can to help that process.  Since,
unless Ph.D's from PER programs are tenured, the "program" will collapse
on itself.  Without tenured positions there is no way for the needed
research to expand beyond the existing ones where were generally started
by already tenured faculty.

cheers,

joe

On Mon, 19 Jan 2004, jwatsonvax wrote:

> I'm getting confused academically. 30 yrs ago, I wanted to teach coll=
> ege level physics and was STRONGLY advised to get a PhD., NOT an EdD =
> or this 'new' degree - D.A.=20
>
> I now have students asking the difference between a "PER" degree and =
> EdD / SciEd.
>
> What do I tell them?
>
>
>
>
>
> James Watson
> Dept Physics & Astronomy
> Ball State University

Joseph J. Bellina, Jr.               574-284-4662
Associate Professor of Physics
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, IN 46556