Concerning Physics Aptitudes

The search for physics aptitudes extends back to 1926 when eight were tentatively listed. The checking and rechecking of these have resulted in discarding of six. Of the many new aptitudes suggested and studied, four new ones have been discovered

A Repetition of the Experiment on Teaching the Vernier

A year ago a report was made on an experiment in teaching the vernier. The findings were so unexpected that the experiment was repeated in September, 1936, with almost the same results

A Suggestion for the Teaching of Electrical Potential

Electrical potential is one of the basic concepts in elementary theory. Without a clear understanding of it, electrical theory is difficult. The writer has been experimenting for six years on the presentation of this topic with little success. It was finally decided that the inherent difficulty of the concept was much greater than had been previously thought. This year a new method was tried. It took into account the great inherent difficulty of the concept and produced the best results of any method tried to date. The potential was presented in terms of both the water and the heat analogues

A Study of the Effectiveness of Problem Solving on Achievement in College Physics

A study was made between matched pairs of students from two separate years. One year the students were assigned problems but no check-up was made as to whether the problems were solved. The next year the same textbook and lessons were used, but the students were required to hand in six solved problems three times per week. The criterion of success was the scores made on the Coöperative Physics Test. Approximately 130 matched pairs of students were studied consisting of various levels of ability

A Study of an Objective Achievement Examination in Physics

80. A study of an objective achievement A carefully prepared objective achievement examination in physics was given to a class of freshmen for their final examination at the end of the first semester. To compare with these results, there was available twenty-seven ten-minute, and fifty-minute examinations. The correlation between these two sets of data for about 230 students was extremely high

New Charts for the Radioactive Series

Very little that is new has been contributed to the arrangement of the three radioactive series in the past fifteen years. Recently Gamow and others have pointed out the desirability for a fourth series. Fred Allison and his co-workers have recently examined radioactive matter by a magneto-optical technique and report that they find 90 radioactive electrons and isotopes. These are arranged in four series. Substantial changes are made in arrangements of the three old series, particularly the actinium and the thorium series

A Study on the Effectiveness of a Motion Picture on Immediate and Long-Time Retention

During the school year 1935-36 the subject of sound was taught to one group of students by motion picture and to another group by lectures and demonstration. The effectiveness of the two methods has been measured by two objective and one essay examination for immediate learning and by one objective and one essay for long-time retention. The methods are compared

A Study in Examination Methods

A carefully set-up experiment in methods of conducting examinations in physics is being carried out. All of the variable human factors have been eliminated as far as possible. Students hearing the same lectures, studying the same textbook, and writing the same examinations are pitted against each other: one group using their books and any notes which they care to bring to class with them, the other group using no notes or helps of any kind. The results obtained in this experiment are expected to shed definite light upon the much discussed problem of the aid or hindrance of books during examinations

A Study in Learning Electrodynamics by Motion Pictures

The experimental sound picture on electrodynamics has recently been released. The principles illustrated were inventoried before and after the picture was shown. A study was made on the ability of students to transfer the principles to a new situation. Two sections were studied, one using the picture alone and the other using the picture with study aids. The findings are studied statistically

Some Laboratory Experiments That Can Be Better Performed in the Library

Using matched groups of students, experiments have been performed on the relative learning over specific skills in physics of groups working in a library vs. a similar group working in the laboratory. Several distinct cases stand out in which the library method appears to be the more effective