In this paper we develop knowledge of the discourse that takes place between teacher and students in two large undergraduate classes which use a flipped, active learning approach. In flipped classes students encounter the content through pre-class resources, freeing up class time for more active engagement with the material. This results in…

This study reports on the development, validation, and administration of a 48-item multiple-choice test to assess students' representational fluency of linear functions in a physics context (1D kinematics) and a mathematics context. The test includes three external representations: graphs, tables, and formulas, which result in six possible…

Based on the flipped-classroom model and the potential motivational and instructional benefits of digital games, we describe a flipped game-based learning (FGBL) strategy focused on preclass and overall learning outcomes. A secondary goal is to determine the effects, if any, of the classroom aspects of the FGBL strategy on learning efficiency. Our…

Problem solving is lauded as beneficial, but students do not all learn well by solving problems. Using the resources framework, Tuminaro J., and Redish E. F., (2007), Elements of a cognitive model of physics problem solving: Epistemic games, "Physical Review Special Topics-Physics Education Research," 3(2), 020101 suggested that, for…

English learners (ELs) constitute one of the largest subgroups enrolled in the US public education system. The state of California has an estimated 1.5 million ELs in kindergarten through Grade 12. This mixed methods study employed improvement science principles to understand how three high school physics teachers implemented project-based…

This dissertation is the product of several individual multi-disciplinary investigations that cover a variety of topics in mathematics, physics, geology, and geoscience education. The first chapter formulates a better understanding of the timings, magma source, and relationships between dikes and associated magmatic bodies of the Red Bluff…

Dimensional analysis is often a subject reserved for students of fluid mechanics. However, the principles of scaling and dimensional analysis are applicable to various physical problems, many of which can be introduced early on in a university physics curriculum. Here, we revisit one of the best-known examples from a first course in classic…

They say that there is no such thing as a stupid question. In a pedagogically pure sense, that's probably true. But some questions do seem to flirt dangerously close to being really quite ridiculous. One such question might well be, "How many dimensions of space are there?" I mean, it's pretty obvious that there are three:…

This paper examines the notion of laws in chemistry. Vihalemm ("Found Chem" 5(1):7-22, 2003) argues that the laws of chemistry are fundamentally the same as the laws of physics they are all "ceteris paribus" laws which are true "in ideal conditions". In contrast, Scerri (2000) contends that the laws of chemistry are…

On October 14,2012, Felix Baumgartner, an Austrian sky-diver, set some new world records for his discipline. Jumping from a height of about 39 km, he reached a top speed of 1342 km/h, becoming the first human being to break the sound barrier in free fall. In order to understand some essential physics aspects of this remarkable feat, we wonder why…

In popular accounts of the time dilation effect in Einstein's special relativity, one often encounters the statement that moving clocks run slow. For instance, in the acclaimed PBS program "NOVA," Professor Brian Greene says, "[I]f I walk toward that guy... he'll perceive my watch ticking slower." Also in his earlier piece for The New York Times,…

For those in the profession of teaching physics who reside in or plan to visit the Los Angeles area, I would highly recommend a trip to the Huntington Library in San Marino, specifically to a permanent exhibit entitled "Beautiful Science: Ideas that Changed the World" in the Dibner Hall of the History of Science. The exhibit contains…

A science video blog, which has gone viral, shows a wooden block shot by a vertically aimed rifle. The video shows that the block hit dead center goes exactly as high as the one shot off-center. (Fig. 1). The puzzle is that the block shot off-center carries rotational kinetic energy in addition to the gravitational potential energy. This leads a…

This activity is designed to illustrate an application of resistive forces in the introductory physics curriculum with an interdisciplinary twist. Students are asked to examine images of riverbed boulders after a flood and estimate the water flow that was needed to push the boulders downstream. The activity provides an opportunity for students to…

Education Research in Indonesia has begun to lead to the development of character education and is no longer fixated on the outcomes of cognitive learning. This study purposed to produce character education based general physics learning model (CEBGP Learning Model) and with valid, effective and practical peripheral devices to improve character…