Investigating the effectiveness of professional development on high school physics teachers\u27 conceptual understanding of Newtonian mechanics, instructional practices, and the conceptual growth of their students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a physics professional development program on secondary science teachers\u27 conceptual knowledge of Newtonian mechanics, instructional practices and the conceptual growth of their students. The University of Northern Iowa Physics Institute enabled a group of twenty-one Iowa high school and middle school science teachers to complete the physics coursework required to obtain the State of lowa 7-12 Grade Physics Teaching endorsement. The Institute provided experiences to improve physics content knowledge and proficiency of constructivist methodologies for teaching high school physics. Twelve Institute participants completed a two-year program during the 2002 and 2003 summers, and nine completed one of the two years. Background information, pre-test and post-test physics conceptual assessments and other data were collected from participants throughout the Institute. Participants collected pre and post-test conceptual assessment data from their students during the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 academic years. Initial and final conceptual assessments and two years of student assessment data revealed the Institute\u27s influence on participants\u27 and students\u27 conceptual understanding of Newtonian Mechanics. Participants\u27 previous physics and mathematics education correlated with learning and their continued conceptual understanding. The results show that participants who had completed at least six physics semester hours prior to the UNI-PI were most successful, therefore indicating physics background is necessary for participants involved in a future PI structured similar in content and focus as the UNI-PI. Participants\u27 journal reflection notes and instructional surveys revealed instructional practice improvements due to the Institute. Results indicated the Institute positively affected the majority of participants\u27 physics conceptual understanding of Newtonian mechanics and instructional practices. Although limitations and confounding factors prevented a thorough evaluation of the UNI Physics Institute\u27s affect upon participants\u27 students\u27 conceptual knowledge, participants\u27 students performed at levels suggesting greater knowledge gain compared to test results published in the literature. Overall, the UNI-Pi indicated a positive benefit and this investigation provided suggestions for future improvements to the program