PERC 2016 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | Physics Teaching for Social Justice: Resource-Sharing and Co-Thinking |
|---|---|
| Abstract: | This collaborative discussion session will provide opportunities for physics instructors and physics education researchers to co-think about what it would look like to "teach physics for social justice." We will explore what "physics teaching for social justice" means to participants; brainstorm, share resources and form collaborations around questions about what we should be reading, what we should be asking, what instructional approaches we should be trying, and how we can communicate our work to others; and close with a discussion across questions. |
| Abstract Type: | Discussion Symposium |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Amy D. Robertson Seattle Pacific University 3307 Third Avenue West Suite 307 Seattle, WA 98119-1997 Phone: (206) 286-7347 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Abigail R. Daane (Seattle Pacific University, daanea -at- spu.edu), Moses Rifkin (University Prep, MRifkin -at- universityprep.org) |
Parallel Session Information | |
| Proposed Discussion Questions: | This session will provide an opportunity for physics instructors and physics education researchers to co-think about how to apply social justice lenses to physics teaching and learning. Robertson, Daane, and Rifkin will facilitate the session as co-learners; the aim will be to brainstorm, share resources and form collaborations. (The extent to which the substance of the session takes up or fleshes out methodological perspectives will depend on the interests of the participants.) Structure of session: The session will start (10-15 minutes) with a reflection about what "physics teaching for social justice" means to various participants. Participants will then self-select into three groups, with each group brainstorming responses to one of the following questions (30 minutes): 1. What research questions should we be asking, what claims should we be making, and where should we be looking for evidence? 2. What instructional approaches or interventions should we be trying? 3. How can we communicate what we are learning with physics instructors, and how might we bring others (researchers and instructors) into this conversation? Groups will take notes on their conversations in Google docs that will be freely accessible to conference participants during and after the session. There will be a short time (15 minutes) for sharing answers across groups, and then we will spend about 15 minutes reflecting on the session itself, thinking about what questions we feel able to answer, what questions arose during the session, etc. The final 10-15 minutes of the session will be spent compiling a list (using a Google doc) of possible social-justice-oriented readings that participants think would be useful to others, exchanging contact information within budding collaborations, and formally sharing the artifacts created during the session (e.g., Google docs) with participants. |
