Teaching Physics Effectively
New research in Britain prompts for change in teaching methods.
The BBC has an article describing how physics is being effectively and ineffectively taught in Britain:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/6467887.stm
Basically, they outline some research that has been done, and the conclusions are that physics can be taught more effectively when:
- It is not integrated with other sciences or disciplines so that students develop an understanding of physics on its own merits
- Involving toys and fun exercises to teach physics helps to spark interest
I think these strategies make sense. There has been a trend in education to integrate subjects across disciplines. I think this makes sense in certain cases, especially writing which seems tedious to most students just on it's own, but I can also see where it would hurt physics which is often less obvious as a distinct subject.
Personally I am very concerned about scientific literacy in the general population. Science is extremely important to our civilization, culture, and future progress. I think the general population has a feeling that science (and especially physics) is difficult to learn and understand, that it is best left to the experts. Frankly, it really isn't anymore difficult than most other areas of knowledge (heck, I haven't a clue about football - it's completely nonsensical to me). Teaching physics is a matter of generating interest and sparking the imaginations of the students so that they want to learn. What do you think?
