Refined Characterization of Student Perspectives on Quantum Physics

The perspectives of introductory classical physics students can often negatively influence how those students later interpret quantum phenomena when taking an introductory course in modern physics. A detailed exploration of student perspectives on the interpretation of quantum physics is needed, both to characterize student understanding of physics concepts, and to inform how we might teach traditional content. Our previous investigations of student perspectives on quantum physics have indicated they can be highly nuanced, and may vary both within and across contexts. In order to better understand the contextual and often seemingly contradictory stances of students on matters of interpretation, we interviewed 19 students from four introductory modern physics courses taught at the University of Colorado. We find that students have attitudes and opinions that often parallel the stances of expert physicists when arguing for their favored interpretations of quantum mechanics, allowing for more nuanced characterizations of student perspectives in terms of three key interpretive themes. We present a framework for characterizing student perspectives on quantum mechanics, and demonstrate its utility in interpreting the sometimes-contradictory nature of student responses to previous surveys. We further find that students most often vacillate in their responses when what makes intuitive sense to them is not in agreement with what they consider to be a correct response, underscoring the need to distinguish between the personal and the public perspectives of introductory modern physics students.Comment: 24 pages, 31 references, 1 Appendix (5 pages

Teaching Quantum Interpretations: Revisiting the goals and practices of introductory quantum physics courses

Most introductory quantum physics instructors would agree that transitioning students from classical to quantum thinking is an important learning goal, but may disagree on whether or how this can be accomplished. Although (and perhaps because) physicists have long debated the physical interpretation of quantum theory, many instructors choose to avoid emphasizing interpretive themes; or they discuss the views of scientists in their classrooms, but do not adequately attend to student interpretations. In this synthesis and extension of prior work, we demonstrate: (1) instructors vary in their approaches to teaching interpretive themes; (2) different instructional approaches have differential impacts on student thinking; and (3) when student interpretations go unattended, they often develop their own (sometimes scientifically undesirable) views. We introduce here a new modern physics curriculum that explicitly attends to student interpretations, and provide evidence-based arguments that doing so helps them to develop more consistent interpretations of quantum phenomena, more sophisticated views of uncertainty, and greater interest in quantum physics.Comment: 14 pages, 11 figures; submitted to PRST-PER: Focused Collection on Upper-Division PER. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1409.849

Interpretive Themes in Quantum Physics: Curriculum Development and Outcomes

A common learning goal for modern physics instructors is for students to recognize a difference between the experimental uncertainty of classical physics and the fundamental uncertainty of quantum mechanics. Our prior work has shown that student perspectives on the physical interpretation of quantum mechanics can be characterized, and are differentially influenced by the myriad ways instructors approach interpretive themes in their introductory courses. We report how a transformed modern physics curriculum (recently implemented at the University of Colorado) has positively impacted student perspectives on quantum physics, by making questions of classical and quantum reality a central theme of the course, but also by making the beliefs of students (and not just those of scientists) an explicit topic of discussion.Comment: Supporting materials available at http://tinyurl.com/baily-dissertatio

Interpretation in Quantum Physics as Hidden Curriculum

Prior research has demonstrated how the realist perspectives of classical physics students can translate into specific beliefs about quantum phenomena when taking an introductory modern physics course. Student beliefs regarding the interpretation of quantum mechanics often vary by context, and are most often in alignment with instructional goals in topic areas where instructors are explicit in promoting a particular perspective. Moreover, students are more likely to maintain realist perspectives in topic areas where instructors are less explicit in addressing interpretive themes, thereby making such issues part of a hidden curriculum. We discuss various approaches to addressing student perspectives and interpretive themes in a modern physics course, and explore the associated impacts on student thinking

Research-based course materials and assessments for upper-division electrodynamics (E&M II)

Favorable outcomes from ongoing research at the University of Colorado Boulder on student learning in junior-level electrostatics (E&M I) have led us to extend this work to upper-division electrodynamics (E&M II). We describe here our development of a set of research-based instructional materials designed to actively engage students during lecture (including clicker questions and other in-class activities); and an instrument for assessing whether our faculty-consensus learning goals are being met. We also discuss preliminary results from several recent implementations of our transformed curriculum, plans for the dissemination and further refinement of these materials, and offer some insights into student difficulties in advanced undergraduate electromagnetism.Postprin

Optimization Of Simulations And Activities For A New Introductory Quantum Mechanics Curriculum

The Institute of Physics New Quantum Curriculum (quantumphysics.iop.org) consists of online texts and interactive simulations with accompanying activities for an introductory course in quantum mechanics starting from two-level systems. Observation sessions and analysis of homework and survey responses from in-class trials were used to optimize the simulations and activities in terms of clarity, ease-of-use, promoting exploration, sense-making and linking of multiple representations. This work led to revisions of simulations and activities and general design principles which have been incorporated wherever applicable. This article describes the optimization of one of the simulation controls and the refinement of activities to help students make direct connections between multiple representations.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure; submitted to the Proceedings of the 2013 Physics Education Research Conference. appears in 2013 PERC Proceedings [Portland, OR, July 17-18, 2013], edited by P. V. Engelhardt, A. D. Churukian, and D. L. Jone

Investigating the Mental Health Needs of Unaccompanied Immigrant Children in Removal Proceedings: A Mixed Methods Study

In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in the number of children migrating to the United States without a parent. In Fiscal Year 2014 alone, U.S. immigration authorities apprehended and detained almost 70,000 unaccompanied children, compared to less than 9,000 in 2010. This rapid rise has been fueled primarily by children arriving from Central America, one of the world’s most violent regions. The available literature on unaccompanied children in the United States suggests that they are a vulnerable and underserved population, who are at risk for repeated exposure to extreme psychosocial adversities at every stage of their migration and frequently face many of these challenges alone. However, to date there has been little formal study of their mental health needs. The aim of this exploratory study was to obtain initial data regarding the psychosocial context, mental health presentation, and mental health service utilization of unaccompanied children released to guardians in the community pending immigration hearings to determine their eligibility to remain in the United States. The study employed a mixed methodology combining qualitative and quantitative data. The sample comprised 26 unaccompanied children and their guardians residing in the New York City metro area, interviewed between September 2013 and December 2014. Results showed that children in our sample had complex reasons for migration, frequently combining push factors such as fleeing gang violence and pull factors such as a desire for reunification with parents in the United States after long separations. Most had been exposed repeatedly to extreme psychosocial stressors prior to and during their migration, including almost two-thirds who had witnessed violence, serious injury, or death and over one-third who had witnessed domestic abuse or had been physically abused themselves. However, children also described benefitting from an array of supports that protected against stressors and promoted their wellbeing, and in their narratives they emphasized overcoming adversity rather than victimization. On a structured mental health diagnostic interview, the majority of children met criteria for one or more past-year anxiety and depressive disorders. Few received diagnoses for behavioral problems. Compared against these data, child-report measures screened more effectively for internalizing disorder diagnoses and guardian-report measures screened more effectively for externalizing disorder diagnoses. Despite the high rates of diagnosable disorders in the sample, most children appeared to be functioning well in family, social, and educational domains. No children were receiving formal mental health services at the time of their study interview, although several were being monitored by school counselors. Children presenting with mental health concerns were provided with referrals to mental health treatment services and contacted for a brief telephone follow-up interview three months later. At follow-up, a number of children had received counseling. Availability of school counselors and referral to therapists in the community through pediatricians were the primary facilitators of service access. Lack of knowledge of available, Spanish-speaking services and cost of treatment were common obstacles to seeking treatment. Some children and their guardians did not perceive a need for services, and most of these children appeared to be functioning well at follow-up. This study was designed to be largely descriptive and to provide data to inform future, theory-driven research. In the discussion section, social ecological models of risk and resilience and Hobfoll’s Conservation of Resources theory are presented as potential paradigms for understanding unaccompanied children’s migration processes, with stressors and supportive factors interacting across systemic levels and over time to determine children’s access to resources and their mental health, functioning, and wellbeing. Finally, the implications of the study’s findings for future research, psychosocial intervention, and rights-based advocacy with unaccompanied children are considered

Student Reasoning About the Divergence of a Vector Field

Expanding our knowledge of student difficulties in advanced undergraduate electromagnetism is essential if we are to develop effective instructional interventions. Drawing on an analysis of course materials, in-class observations and responses to conceptual questions, we document specific resources employed by students when reasoning about the divergence of a vector field. One common student error, which persisted in our course despite explicit instruction, is to misinterpret any "spreading out" of field lines in a diagram as representing a place of non-zero divergence. Some of these student difficulties can likely be attributed to having first learned about the divergence in a mathematical context, where there was little emphasis on graphical representations of vector fields and connections to physical situations.Comment: 4 pages, PERC Proceedings 2014 (accepted