PER Topical Group - Archive: Spring 2016

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Archive: Spring 2016

Spring 2016 Awards

Strand: Duncan McBride PER Conference Award

Engaging with the PER community around issues of representation in physics: gender, race, and departmental change
Katherine D. Rainey, Advisor Melissa Dancy

As a second-year graduate student at the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU), I am beginning to integrate into the PER community. I have started to participate in the PER community in four ways: (1) organizing with CU-Prime, a student-led, diversity-oriented organization in the physics department at CU, (2) contributing an article for the PERCoGS newsletter, (3) doing research focused on academic belonging in STEM, and (4) contributing to a Departmental Action Team (DAT) in the physical sciences. I am requesting funding to allow me to travel to the Summer 2016 AAPT and PERC meetings.

Strand: Organizer

Addressing Race and Ethnicity: Travel Support for Invited Speakers
Dimitri Dounas-Frazer, Postdoctoral Advisor: Heather Lewandowski

At the 2015 AAPT Summer Meeting, the Committee on Diversity in Physics (CoDP) and the Committee on Research in Physics Education (RiPE) agreed to cosponsor an invited session called "Addressing Race and Ethnicity," to be held the following summer. The session will highlight obstacles to, and best practices for, addressing race, ethnicity, gender, and intersections of these identities in the physics education literature. In addition, the session will provide space for researchers to present about racially conscious efforts in PER. This proposal seeks travel support for A my Parks, Angela Johnson, and Apriel Hodari - researchers in STEM education who will present in the "Addressing Race and Ethnicity" session at the 2016 AAPT Summer Meeting.

Engaging Graduate Students in Thoughtful Discourse About Equity in Physics Education
Gina Quan, Daryl McPadden, Abigail Daane, Lindsay Owens, Claudia Fracchiolla, Advisors: Andrew Elby, Eric Brewe, Kathy Koenig

The PER Consortium of Graduate Students (PERCoGS) is seeking travel funding for invited speakers at the Winter 2017 AAPT Meeting. Our session, Professional Skills for Graduate Students, will focus on equity in PER. This session is intended to support students who are interested in conducting equity-related research as well as students who are interested in helping their local institutions and research groups think about equity. These funds will support travel for three invited speakers with a diverse set of skills related to supporting equity.

A Session Integrating Social Justice and Physics Education
Moses Rifkin, Advisor Amy Robertson

This grant will help bring together physics teachers and physics education researchers to lead a PERC parallel session that integrates physics teaching and social justice. The session will capitalize on the growing interest in this integration among physics educators and physics education researchers, with the aim of brainstorming ways forward. These funds will play a significant role in defraying the costs inherent in bringing one organizer -- Moses Rifkin, a high school physics teacher who has years of experience integrating social justice into his physics classroom -- to AAPT and PERC.

Research Methodologies Guided by Theories of Identity: Travel support for invited speaker
Idaykis Rodriguez

In response to the Physics Education Research Conference 2016 theme on "A Methodological Approach to PER" and the community's interest in identity research, we are organizing an invited session on "Research methodologies guided by theories of identity." This session will have a collection works in physics education research with varying analytical interpretive theories of identity ranging from communities of practice, critical race theory and intersectional identity theories. The purpose of the session is to give an overview of how an identity theoretical framework guides methodological choices in research and characterizes the research paradigm and the researchers' own worldview. This proposal seeks travel support for an international invited speaker, Katemari Rosa from Universidade Federal de Campina Grande in Brazil.

Leveraging the strengths of diverse populations in the STEM classroom
Mel Sabella

While much of the work on instructional reform in diverse communities focuses on deficit models, a number of researchers are pushing back on this narrative and instead focusing on the resources of these student communities and how instructors, partnering with students, can leverage these resources to create effective, friendly, classroom environments. This proposal seeks funding to support a session, and provide travel support to one of our speakers, on this topic at the 2016 Summer AAPT Meeting, and aligns with the AAPT's goals of fostering diversity and inclusion in the Physics and Science Community.

Strand: Innovation and Community Resources

Promoting an inclusive and safe climate with the Physics Allies program
Melissa Dancy

This PERTG grant will support the initiation of the Physics Allies program, modeled after a similar program in Astronomy. Physics Allies support an inclusive and safe professional environment. In July 2016, a group of 10-12 Allies will serve as a first point of contact for those who experience harassment at the AAPT/PERC meeting. In the fall, these Allies will receive training to diffuse unwelcome interactions, to act as respectful listeners, and to help attendees consider potential next steps (if desired). Harassment can include, but is not limited to, unwelcome interactions related to a person's gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, international status, and ability status. The Physics Allies will also establish a broad, visible presence to proactively influence the culture of our profession.

What is the hiring process for PER postdocs?
Alexis Knaub, Raina Khatri, Advisor Charles Henderson

Nearly 20 years ago (January 1997), the NSF launched an innovative postdoctoral fellowship program to prepared STEM PhD graduates to work in STEM education. Since that time, programs and projects intended to improve undergraduate STEM learning have been increasingly staffed by postdoctoral researchers. Yet, there is little research on the postdocs themselves. PER postdocs hail from both education and traditional STEM backgrounds meaning that PIs may not be able to rely on typical signs that an applicant will flourish. We are interested in drawing upon the experiences of PIs and PER postdocs by conducting a study on the PER postdoctoral hiring practices. The goal of this study is to ensure that PIs have the tools to hire diverse and talented candidates for these important roles.

Fostering collaborative qualitative research in emerging researchers
Mary Bridget Kustusch

This proposal seeks to engage emerging members of the physics education research community in learning and conducting qualitative observation?based studies as a part of a multi?institutional and diverse research team. Through an initial summer research experience, modeled after Seattle Pacific University's I-RISE, and ongoing virtual meetings, our goals are to: (a) foster development of qualitative research methodology, including acquiring, cataloging, transcribing, and analyzing video data; (b) work toward a more diverse research community, both within PER and across disciplines; and develop a model experience that promotes publication and dissemination of results, with tangible benefits to faculty for tenure and promotion. Our context is RIT's project IMPRESS (Integrating Metacognitive Practice and Research to Ensure Student Success), a two-week experience for first-generation and deaf/hard-of-hearing incoming majors involving reflective, metacognitive scientific practice. As students ask questions, design and conduct experiments, and reflect, the resulting group discussions provide a fertile environment for new research questions.