Education research is our focus
Welcome to PER-Central, a resource collection for physics education researchers. Here you may find articles, theses and dissertations, research groups, curricular material, and news and events of interest to the PER Community. Learn more about PER-Central.
PER Literature
Search the literature by:
Or find an article by topic:
- Basic Research
- Achievement
- Alternative Conceptions
- Assessment
- Behavior
- Cognition
- Communication
- Learning Theory
- Problem Solving
- Research Design & Methodology
- Sample Population
- Societal Issues
- Student Characteristics
- Teacher Characteristics
- Applied Research
- Active Learning
- Careers
- Classroom Management
- Curriculum Development
- Informal Education
- Instructional Material Design
- Learning Environment
- Pedagogy
- Professional Development
- Recruitment
- School Improvement
- Teacher Preparation
- Technology
By Topic:
Astronomy, Classical Mechanics, Electricity & Magnetism, Fluid Mechanics, General Physics, Mathematical Tools, Modern Physics, Optics, Oscillations & Waves, Other Sciences, Quantum Physics, Relativity, Thermo & Stat Mech
Reviews in PER
Volume 2 of Reviews in PER is dedicated to helping researchers get started in Physics Education Research.
In this review article, a member of the PER community presents an overview of an area of PER:
Research in the Resources Framework: Changing environments, consistent exploration
by M. C. Wittmann.
Find more articles introducing PER research methods in Volume 2 of Reviews in PER.
Community Resources
PER Programs
Browse the different PER groups and their descriptions on the PER Program Map.
For the Classroom
University of Pittsburg E&M Tutorial Series
This set of research-based student tutorials cover the topics of Coulomb's Law, the superposition principle, and symmetry in electrostatics. The materials are appropriate for a calculus-based introductory physics course. Optional pre- and post-tests are available.
Find more PER-based Curricular Materials: Course Packages | Student Activities | Pedagogy Guides
Research Instruments
Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment
The Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA), developed by Chabay and Sherwood, assesses student understanding of basic electricity and magnetism concepts. It is written for college-level calculus-based introductory physics courses.
PER Events 
Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics! How to avoid the most common statistical issues that are seen in the statistical modeling review committee
A community conversation on quantitative research publishing and reviewing will be led by Tim Stelzer on November 19 at 6pm Eastern/3pm Pacific.
