Student Perceptions of an Introductory Laboratory Course

We surveyed students taking an introductory university physics laboratory course over the summer. These students are science majors, but not physics majors. Eighteen students were interviewed, asked what they thought the purpose of the laboratory course was. Student perceptions of the purpose of the laboratory course and about what they liked and did not like about the course will be shared. These student responses lead to implications for instruction and implications for improving communication among faculty, teaching assistants, and students

Using Matched Samples to Look for Sex Differences

The reasons for observed differences in physics performance between men and women have yet to be clearly determined. This study asks the question: if men and women have a similar background at the start of an introductory physics course, will there be differences in how much physics they learn by the end of the course? To answer the question, a matched sample of men and women was studied. Statistical analysis of the post-tests reveals no significant differences between the men and women in the matched sample

Tempered Radicalism and Intersectionality: Scholar-Activism in the Neoliberal University

Using a collaborative critical personal narrative methodology grounded in intersectionality, we interrogated tensions in identifying ourselves as tempered radicals and scholar-activists who were involved in a local university-community activist organization. We assert the value of informal activist spaces within the university and identify issues related to the lack of recognition of scholar-activism as legitimate scholarship, including the paradox of universities as colonizing and liberatory spaces for community engagement and activism. Our themes highlight how mentorship affects scholar-activism and how activism transforms and disrupts the neoliberal university. Yet, activism is rendered invisible, making homeplaces for scholar-activism critical for students, faculty, staff, and the community to address structural inequalities within and outside of the university. We conclude with recommendations to improve mentorship for scholar-activists, to revise tenure and promotion policies to include scholar-activism, and to recognize spaces within the academy that honor scholar-activism as a critical form of praxis informed by intersectionality

Full-Cycle Assessment of Critical Thinking in an Ethics and Science Course

Enhancing critical thinking skills for undergraduate students is important across the curriculum and between disciplines. We report on a method of improving critical thinking skills, which was studied through an Ethics and Science First-Year Seminar course. We used full cycle assessment over a three-year period to assess students’ development and to modify the course teaching and assignments with the goal of increasing student development of critical thinking skills. Data were obtained from student writing throughout the semester during each offering. Modest, but significant, overall gains of ~0.7 on a 4 point scale are reported between early and midterm assignments in the course using a seven trait assessment rubric. Key factors that contribute to the increase in critical thinking skills are identified including peer review, scaffolded assignments, and the use of a grading rubric for each assignment

Self-Efficacy in Introductory Physics in Students at Single-Sex and Coeducational Colleges

We surveyed 88 students at four colleges: one men’s college, two women’s colleges, and one coeducational college. The questions, modified from Reid (2007), asked about in-class participation, how fulfilled they were by their achievement in their calc-based physics class, their attitude toward their class, and their self-efficacy (Bandura 1994) in the class. While a t-test showed no difference between men and women, an ANOVA showed a significant interaction between sex and type of school. Detailed results will be presented and discussed

Creating, implementing, and sustaining an advanced optical spectroscopy laboratory course

An upper-division laboratory course in atomic and molecular spectroscopy is described. Examples of outcomes that also benefit second-year physics laboratories and demonstrations in introductory courses are presented. The overarching goal that drove the development of the course was to assist students in understanding the fundamental connections between atomic and molecular spectra and the underlying structures. A selection of laboratory experiences supporting this goal, and the equipment and techniques necessary to provide them, are outlined

What Do Students Want? Small Group Instructional Diagnoses of STEM Faculty

Small Group Instructional Diagnoses (SGIDs) are informal, mid-semester evaluations of courses, which the instructors request voluntarily. The facilitator of the SGID comes into a class, the instructor leaves, and the facilitator spends about 30 minutes with the students. The first part of the SGID is done in small groups of students. The facilitator asks students to consider two questions, "What are the strengths of this course?" and "What suggestions do you have to improve the course?" After students work in groups for 10 minutes to compose lists of strengths and suggestions, the facilitator calls the class back together as a whole, records the most important strengths and suggestions, and has the class vote on them. These results are then shared privately with the instructor of the course. We collected and analyzed student comments from 45 courses taught by 27 STEM instructors. We found that students value clear lecture and hands-on learning, fair and frequent feedback, flexible and caring instructors, organized classes and resources, and clear alignment between instruction and evaluation. Looking in more detail, we found that students perceived small classes to be more organized than large ones. Students in introductory classes provided the least amount of feedback. Students in introductory classes placed the most value on instructor characteristics such as support and caring about their success, while graduate students placed the least value on instructor characteristics. Finally, female STEM instructors received a disproportionately high number of comments