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Thesis Detail Page

written by Thomas J. Bing
Mathematics is central to a professional physicist's work and, by extension, to a physics student's studies. It provides a language for abstraction, definition, computation, and connection to physical reality. This power of mathematics in physics is also the source of many of the difficulties it presents students. Simply put, many different activities could all be described as "using math in physics". Expertise entails a complicated coordination of these various activities. This work examines the many different kinds of thinking that are all facets of the use of mathematics in physics. It uses an epistemological lens, one that looks at the type of explanation a student presently sees as appropriate, to analyze the mathematical thinking of upper level physics undergraduates. Sometimes a student will turn to a detailed calculation to produce or justify an answer. Other times a physical argument is explicitly connected to the mathematics at hand. Still other times quoting a definition is seen as sufficient, and so on. Local coherencies evolve in students' thought around these various types of mathematical justifications. We use the cognitive process of framing to model students' navigation of these various facets of math use in physics.
University: University of Maryland
Academic Department:  Department of Physics
Pages 157
Subjects Levels Resource Types
Education - Basic Research
- Cognition
- Learning Theory
General Physics
- Physics Education Research
- Upper Undergraduate
- Graduate/Professional
- Reference Material
= Thesis/Dissertation
PER-Central Types Intended Users Ratings
- PER Literature
- Thesis/Dissertation
- Researchers
- Professional/Practitioners
- Educators
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Format:
application/pdf
Access Rights:
Free access
Restriction:
© 2008 Thomas Joseph Bing
Type:
Ph.D.
Keywords:
cognitive modeling, epistemological resources, epistemology, framing, mathematics, physics problem solving
Record Creator:
Metadata instance created August 31, 2009 by Joe Redish
Record Updated:
May 9, 2012 by Lyle Barbato
Last Update
when Cataloged:
August 17, 2008
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Record Link
AIP Format
T. Bing, , Ph.D., University of Maryland, 2008, WWW Document, (http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Bing/).
AJP/PRST-PER
T. Bing, An Epistemic Framing Analysis of Upper-Level Physics Students' Use of Mathematics, Ph.D., University of Maryland, 2008, <http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Bing/>.
APA Format
Bing, T. (2008, August 17). An Epistemic Framing Analysis of Upper-Level Physics Students' Use of Mathematics (Ph.D., University of Maryland, 2008). Retrieved November 1, 2024, from http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Bing/
Chicago Format
Bing, Thomas J.. "An Epistemic Framing Analysis of Upper-Level Physics Students' Use of Mathematics." Ph.D., University of Maryland, 2008. http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Bing/ (accessed 1 November 2024).
MLA Format
Bing, Thomas J.. "An Epistemic Framing Analysis of Upper-Level Physics Students' Use of Mathematics." Ph.D.. 17 Aug. 2008. University of Maryland, 2008. 1 Nov. 2024 <http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Bing/>.
BibTeX Export Format
@phdthesis{ Author = "Thomas J. Bing", Title = {An Epistemic Framing Analysis of Upper-Level Physics Students' Use of Mathematics}, School = {University of Maryland}, Type = {Ph.D.}, Month = {August}, Year = {2008} }
Refer Export Format

%A Thomas J. Bing %T An Epistemic Framing Analysis of Upper-Level Physics Students' Use of Mathematics %R Ph.D. %D August 17, 2008 %P 157 %I University of Maryland %U http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Bing/ %O Department of Physics %O application/pdf %O Ph.D.

EndNote Export Format

%0 Thesis %A Bing, Thomas J. %D August 17, 2008 %T An Epistemic Framing Analysis of Upper-Level Physics Students' Use of Mathematics %B Department of Physics %I University of Maryland %P 157 %8 August 17, 2008 %9 Ph.D. %U http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Bing/


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