PERC 2020 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | Characterizing and monitoring student discomfort in upper-division quantum mechanics |
|---|---|
| Abstract: | We investigate student comfort with the material in an upper-division spins-first quantum mechanics course. Pre-lecture surveys probing students' comfort were administered weekly, in which students assigned themselves a "discomfort level" on a scale of 0--10 and provided a written explanation for their choice. The weekly class-wide average discomfort level was effectively constant over the semester, suggesting that the class found no single unit especially jarring nor especially easy. Student written responses were coded according to their reported source of discomfort---math, math-physics connection, physics, and notation. The relative prevalence of these categories varied significantly over the semester, indicating that students find that different units present different challenges, and also that some of these challenges fade in importance as the semester progresses. Semi-structured interviews with students in a similar quantum mechanics course at a different institution provided additional context and insight into these results. |
| Abstract Type: | Contributed Poster Presentation |
| Session Time: | Poster Session I |
| Poster Number: | 1.N3 |
| Contributed Paper Record: | Contributed Paper Information |
| Contributed Paper Download: | Download Contributed Paper |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Giaco Corsiglia Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder Boulder, CO 80309 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Tyler Garcia - Department of Physics & Astronomy, California Polytechnic University Pomona, Pomona, California, 91768, USA Benjamin P. Schermerhorn - Department of Physics & Astronomy, California Polytechnic University Pomona, Pomona, California, 91768, USA - Department of Physics, California State University, Fullerton, Fullerton, California, 92831, USA Gina Passante - Department of Physics, California State University, Fullerton, Fullerton, California, 92831, USA Homeyra Sadaghiani - Department of Physics & Astronomy, California Polytechnic University Pomona, Pomona, California, 91768, USA Steve Pollock - Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, 80309, USA |
