PERC 2011 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | Transforming the advanced lab: Part I - Learning goals |
|---|---|
| Abstract: | Within PER relatively little attention has been given to laboratory courses, especially at the upper-division undergraduate level. As part of transforming our senior-level Optics and Modern Physics Lab at the University of Colorado Boulder we are developing learning goals, revising curricula, and creating assessments. In this paper we report on the establishment of our learning goals and a surrounding framework that have emerged from discussions with a wide variety of faculty, from a review of the literature on labs, and from identifying the goals of existing lab courses. Our goals go beyond those of specific physics content and apparatus, allowing instructors personalize them to their contexts. We report on five broad themes and associated learning goals: Design (of experiments, apparatus, programs, debugging), Modeling (of natural phenomena, engineered "black boxes", algorithms, systematic error), Math-physics-data connection, Communication and record keeping, and Lab skills (data analysis in Mathematica, LabVIEW, test and measurement equipment). |
| Abstract Type: | Contributed Poster |
Contributed Poster | |
| Contributed Poster: | Download the Contributed Poster |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Benjamin Zwickl University of Colorado Boulder Department of Physics University, of Colorado Boulder 390 UCB Boulder, CO 80309-0390 Phone: 303-492-6956 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Noah Finkelstein, Department of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder Heather Lewandowski, JILA and Department of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder |
