Cohort March 2023: Faculty of Science – Adele Ruosi, Mike Hasinoff, Janelle Van Dongen, Guy Leckenby, Elizabeth Belskiy, Tyler Wilson, Megan Bingham, Manuel Diaz
Course background
The introductory physics courses PHYS 157-158 are foundational for all first-year engineering students. This sequence aims to promote the understanding of physical concepts and the ability to solve problems essential for the students’ engagement with emerging issues in science and technology in all engineering disciplines.
Teaching PHYS 158 core subjects such as electricity and magnetism, circuits, and optics is a challenge. The abstract nature of these physics concepts and the math skills needed to solve problems make it quite difficult for many students to master the material. In addition, many applications of these subjects are evolving quickly, requiring continuous updates with real-world examples in research and industry.
Project details
The course redesign we propose here for PHYS 158 with “Students as Partners” aims to achieve the following outcomes:
- Students will increase their understanding of physical concepts and will sharpen problem-solving skills through the design of new pre-reading quizzes, homework and resources. Online resources will include a review of key math concepts, a series of key practice problems, a curated selection of videos on emerging applications in science and technology and study guides. Careful attention will be dedicated to the alignment of learning outcomes with lectures, activities, and assignments throughout the course and to the integration of inclusive teaching principles.
- Students will become more engaged and motivated to actively participate in lectures and tutorials by redesigning lecture slides, iClicker questions, new demos, and new student-centered activities.
- Students will feel empowered to apply their skills to current issues and to pursue career opportunities in a STEM field. As this course was designed 10 years ago, updated discussions of real-world applications in cutting-edge research and industry within lectures, tutorials, homework, and demos are necessary. These additions will not only inspire engineering students by demonstrating what their skills are capable of achieving, but will also better prepare them for the workforce.
For the success of this project, the PHYS 158 lead instructor and the Science Education Specialist in PHAS will partner with two undergraduate students who have taken the course and are currently working as teaching assistants in PHYS 158. These students’ unique perspective as both learners and facilitators will allow them to contribute to the intellectual direction of the project and have leadership roles in some areas of the redesign. Our team will also leverage support from a senior graduate student, the first-year course coordinator, the engineering technician in charge of designing in-classroom demos and an educational consultant.