Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs

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written by Leanne Wells, Romona Valenzuela, Eric Brewe, Laird H. Kramer, George O'Brien, and Edgardo Zamalloa

We report results from a study of pre and post assessments of students enrolled in reformed and non-reformed introductory physics laboratories. This study assesses the impact of Florida International University's (FIU) PhysTEC (Physics Teacher Education Coalition) reform of introductory physics labs. Prospective pre-service teachers were trained and placed in six lab sections serving as undergraduate Learning Assistants (LAs) and implementing tutorial-based curriculum. LAs facilitated epistemological discussions designed to challenge and then refine student understanding of physics concepts. Students completed the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), the Maryland Physics Expectation Survey (MPEX 2), and common exam questions embedded in the exams for their physics classes. We find significant differences in normalized gain on the FCI and common exam questions in favor of students in the reformed labs. There was no significant difference in pre and post MPEX 2 scores for reformed lab students, generally agreed to be a positive outcome.

Physics Education Research Conference 2008
Part of the PER Conference series
Edmonton, Canada: July 23-24, 2008
Volume 1064, Pages 227-230

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Published: October 20, 2008
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Subjects	Levels	Resource Types
Education - Applied Research - Active Learning - Curriculum Development = Laboratory Education - Basic Research - Assessment = Instruments	- Lower Undergraduate - Graduate/Professional	- Reference Material = Research study

PER-Central Type	Intended Users	Ratings
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Format:: application/pdf
Mirror:: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3021261
Access Rights:: Free access and
Available for purchase
Restriction:: © 2008 American Institute of Physics
A hard copy of the PERC 2008 proceedings is available for purchase from the AIP.
DOI:: 10.1063/1.3021261
NSF Number:: 0312038
PACSs:: 01.40.Ha; 01.40.Fk; 01.40.gb; 01.50.F-; 02.60.Pn
Keywords:: Force Concept Inventory, Learning Assistants, MPEX 2, PERC 2008, PhysTEC, educational aids, educational courses, educational technology, learning (artificial intelligence), philosophical aspects, problem solving, reformed introductory physics laboratory
Record Cloner:: Metadata instance created September 29, 2008 by Jenny Rempel
Record Updated:: July 16, 2013 by Lyle Barbato
Last Update when Cataloged:: October 20, 2008

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<a href="https://www.per-central.org/items/detail.cfm?ID=8124">Wells, L, R. Valenzuela, E. Brewe, L. Kramer, G. O'Brien, and E. Zamalloa. "Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2008, Edmonton, Canada, July 23-24, 2008.</a>

AIP Format

L. Wells, R. Valenzuela, E. Brewe, L. Kramer, G. O'Brien, and E. Zamalloa, , presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2008, Edmonton, Canada, 2008, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8124&DocID=757).

AJP/PRST-PER

L. Wells, R. Valenzuela, E. Brewe, L. Kramer, G. O'Brien, and E. Zamalloa, Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs, presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2008, Edmonton, Canada, 2008, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8124&DocID=757>.

APA Format

Wells, L., Valenzuela, R., Brewe, E., Kramer, L., O'Brien, G., & Zamalloa, E. (2008, July 23-24). Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2008, Edmonton, Canada. Retrieved March 24, 2025, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8124&DocID=757

Chicago Format

Wells, L, R. Valenzuela, E. Brewe, L. Kramer, G. O'Brien, and E. Zamalloa. "Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2008, Edmonton, Canada, July 23-24, 2008. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8124&DocID=757 (accessed 24 March 2025).

MLA Format

Wells, Leanne, Romona Valenzuela, Eric Brewe, Laird Kramer, George O'Brien, and Edgardo Zamalloa. "Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs." Physics Education Research Conference 2008. Edmonton, Canada: 2008. 227-230 Vol. 1064 of PER Conference. 24 Mar. 2025 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8124&DocID=757>.

BibTeX Export Format

@inproceedings{ Author = "Leanne Wells and Romona Valenzuela and Eric Brewe and Laird Kramer and George O'Brien and Edgardo Zamalloa", Title = {Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs}, BookTitle = {Physics Education Research Conference 2008}, Pages = {227-230}, Address = {Edmonton, Canada}, Series = {PER Conference}, Volume = {1064}, Month = {July 23-24}, Year = {2008} }

Refer Export Format

%A Leanne Wells %A Romona Valenzuela %A Eric Brewe %A Laird Kramer %A George O'Brien %A Edgardo Zamalloa %T Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs %S PER Conference %V 1064 %D July 23-24 2008 %P 227-230 %C Edmonton, Canada %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8124&DocID=757 %O Physics Education Research Conference 2008 %O July 23-24 %O application/pdf

EndNote Export Format

%0 Conference Proceedings %A Wells, Leanne %A Valenzuela, Romona %A Brewe, Eric %A Kramer, Laird %A O'Brien, George %A Zamalloa, Edgardo %D July 23-24 2008 %T Impact of the FIU PhysTEC Reform of Introductory Physics Labs %B Physics Education Research Conference 2008 %C Edmonton, Canada %V 1064 %P 227-230 %S PER Conference %8 July 23-24 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8124&DocID=757

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