Provides insights regarding women students in physics. Also discusses how an external organization, the American Physical Society, acted as a catalyst for enhancing science education for women. (ZWH)

Describes a preliminary survey of the views held by second-year sixth form students (n=421) on a range of subjects at A level and degree level, with a particular focus on mathematics and physics. (ZWH)

Examines the following hypotheses: (1) a relationship exists between school achievement and success in first year university physics; (2) tertiary success is a function of the motivation and metacognitive strategies of the learners; and (3) a weighted combination of indicators will allow significant discrimination between levels of tertiary…

Focuses on the work of one experienced physics teacher and his attempts to come to grips with a new curriculum. This study confirms that change is not a linear process but is characterized by uncertainty, hesitancy, and gradualism. Strategies to help others change are provided. (ZWH)

A study involving 42 students enrolled in a physics course was conducted to document students' epistemologies and their concurrent views about knowing and learning. Analyses revealed a spectrum of epistemological commitments commensurable with positions from objectivism to relativism. Implications to classroom environment are discussed. (ZWH)

Describes a study designed to identify the various reasoning procedures used by students (n=229) in comparing the average velocities of two moving bodies; compare the differences among the procedures used by students at different school levels; and analyze the relationship between automatic and human diagnoses to identify diagnostic errors of the…

Discussed is the search for life on other planets similar to Earth based on the Drake equation. Described are search strategies and microwave searches. The reasons why people are searching are also discussed. (KR)

Discussed is the physics that underpins Schuster's technique for obtaining a parallel light beam for use in various prism and grating experiments. Basic physics concepts using geometrical optics of prism, together with elementary differential calculus are explained as well as the mechanics of Schuster's technique. (KR)

This study questions the effectiveness of a traditional teaching-by-example technique when used with students who hold misconceptions. Interview techniques were used to explore students' (n=21) responses to two different uses of examples and to provide indications of student reasoning. Results indicate that when students hold a misconception,…

Presents instructions to build a device that helps students see the effects of the ultraviolet radiation around them. Suggests ways to utilize the device. (MDH)

Portuguese researchers studied secondary teachers' conceptions of teaching physics. Subjects examined vignettes describing various plans for physics lessons, then reflected on the situations. Researchers analyzed subjects' pedagogical arguments and delimited types of science teaching conceptions. Most subjects appeared to work according to a…

The union of sophisticated computer and digital technology with musical instruments made out of recycled materials is discussed. Directions for making the instruments and interfacing the instruments with other equipment are included. Tuning of the instruments, customizing sounds, and sound processing are described. (KR)

By carefully watching and listening to his students explain how they solved simple physics problems, one college instructor gained insight into how students visualize problems and developed techniques to help students change perspective more easily. Student metacognitive skills, student confidence, and student-teacher communication have also…

Explains the chaos theory and its effect on education, relating it to quantum physics. The article suggests implications for education (predictions about student achievement are limited, the brain learns in nonlinear ways, and the knowledge base in teacher education needs modification to account for recent discoveries in science and mathematics).…

Eleven demonstrations of light polarization are presented. Each includes a brief description of the apparatus and the effect demonstrated. Illustrated are strain patterns, reflection, scattering, the Faraday Effect, interference, double refraction, the polarizing microscope, and optical activity. (CW)