References to everyday life are important for teaching physics. Discussing polarization phenomena, liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and 3D cinemas provide such references. In this paper we describe experiments to support students' understanding of linearly polarized light as well as the phenomenon of inverted colors using a secret LCD screen.…

There is a plethora of concept inventories available for faculty to use, but it is not always clear exactly why you would use these tests, or how you should administer them and interpret the results. These research-based tests about physics and astronomy concepts are valuable because they allow for standardized comparisons among institutions,…

The understanding of many aspects of astronomy is closely linked with relativity and the finite speed of light, yet relativity is generally not discussed in great detail during planetarium shows for the general public. One reason may be the difficulty to visualize these phenomena in a way that is appropriate for planetariums; another may be their…

In Benjamin Franklin's one fluid theory of electrification, ordinary unelectrified matter consisted of a matrix of matter suffused with a certain amount of "electrical fluid." Electrical effects were due to an excess or deficit of electrical fluid, hence the terms positive and negative. Before the development of a modern view of the…

In this article, we discuss the behavior of high-temperature superconductors and how to demonstrate them safely and effectively in the high school or introductory physics classroom. Included here is a discussion of the most relevant physics topics that can be demonstrated, some safety tips, and a bit of the history of superconductors. In an effort…

In basic physics, often in their first year of study of the subject, students meet the concept of an image, for example when using pinhole cameras and finding the position of an image in a mirror. They are also familiar with the term in photography and design, through software which allows image manipulation, even "in-camera" on most…

Physics education aims to develop sophisticated thinking abilities and enhance conceptual depth, but student interest has decreased, emphasizing the importance of teacher quality in fostering success and positive attitudes. The aim of the study was to examine the physics teachers' self-efficacy, innovative teaching, and comprehensive teaching…

Subject selection is one of the key components in the new college entrance examination system. This study analyzed the data from a sample survey of college entrance examination participants in Zhejiang Province between 2017 and 2020 using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, cross analysis, and binary logistic regression in an effort to…

This paper explores a conflict a pre-service physics teacher experienced while completing a teaching practicum at a religious high school that supported creationism. As a result of the conflict, the pre-service teacher was scapegoated by the staff and students at the school. An analysis of the projective dynamics involved in this conflict are…

Analysing graphs, formulating covariational relationships, and hypothesizing systems' behaviour have emerged as frequent objectives of contemporary research in physics education. As such, these studies aim to help students achieve these objectives. While a consensus has been reached on the cognitive benefits of emphasizing the structural domain of…

We conducted a quasiexperimental study in order to investigate the effect of a teaching concept on quantum physics based on coincidence and correlation experiments with heralded photons on preuniversity students' conceptions of quantum physics (experimental group, N = 150). We compare the results with the traditional curriculum's effect (control…

The aim of this study is to find out the effects of micro-reflective teaching practices on the professional skill development of pre-service physics teachers. It was planned as an experimental study with one group pretestposttest and supported by the case study method. The data were collected by using professional skill scale, observation form and…

The COVID-19 Pandemic interrupted university activities at the beginning of the first semester of 2020, forcing the academic community to reinvent itself to meet the determinations of social isolation. The use of assistive technologies such as information and communication technologies has never been more welcome. However, for a college student…

Scholars have applied automatic content analysis to study computer-mediated communication in computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL). Since CSCL also takes place in face-to-face interactions, we studied the automatic coding accuracy of manually transcribed face-to-face communication. We conducted our study in an authentic higher-education…

The study is situated within a worldview theory as espoused by socio-cultural constructivists. Science classrooms in secondary schools in Swaziland are culturally largely homogeneous where learners and their teachers have a strong grounding in traditional Swazi culture. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the conceptions held by Grade…