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Because electric fields cannot be touched or seen, simulations are often utilized to enhance students&#39; understanding of them by providing them with a visual representation of electric fields and the motion of test charges within them. We built and tested an electric field &quot;sandbox&quot; simulation that dynamically represents the electric field lines, field vectors, equipotential lines, and the voltage of the charges that the user places anywhere on the screen. We then gamified the simulation with the intent of further improving motivation and engagement in the material. Everything we created was built in JavaScript, so they will run on most browsers on a computer or mobile device. Results and student feedback from a subsequent controlled study of the efficacy of these instructional tools will be discussed. The results indicated that no individual tool was significantly more effective than the others, but pre- to post-diagnostics were significant across all three groups.

AAPT SM 22

Gamifying Simulation to Improve Understanding and Attitudes Towards Electric Fields

The 2020 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting brought together physics educators from around the globe to learn about the latest in physics theory, research methodology and education from leaders in their field. The program featured plenary speakers, sessions, workshops and many special activities.

For more information please visit the 2020 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting page at: https://www.aapt.org/Conferences/SM2020/index.cfm.


AAPT SM 20

The 2020 AAPT Virtual Summer Meeting brought together physics educators from around the globe to learn about the latest in physics theory, research methodology and education from leaders in their field. 

Because electric fields cannot be touched or seen, simulations are often utilized to enhance students' understanding of them by providing them with a visual representation of electric fields and the motion of test charges within them. We built and tested an electric field "sandbox" simulation that dynamically represents the electric field lines, field vectors, equipotential lines, and the voltage of the charges that the user places anywhere on the screen. We then gamified the simulation with the intent of further improving motivation and engagement in the material. Everything we created was built in JavaScript, so they will run on most browsers on a computer or mobile device. Results and student feedback from a subsequent controlled study of the efficacy of these instructional tools will be discussed. The results indicated that no individual tool was significantly more effective than the others, but pre- to post-diagnostics were significant across all three groups.

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AAPT meetings are a great way to reflect on your teaching, recommit to best practices and re-energize your career with new research, products, and techniques. Listen to internationally known plenary speakers, attend sessions, workshops, and special activities. This meeting is an excellent opportunity to share your expertise and learn from and network with leaders in the field.



TopHat is a platform known for in-class quizzing, with students using their phones to respond to questions. However, in our two-semester introductory algebra-based physics sequence, we are leveraging the TopHat platform to do significantly more than that. In addition to the in-class clicker feature, we are using TopHat for (1) optional pre-class preparation, with quizzes that include videos, content, and feedback from the students to the instructor; (2) online homework; (3) an interactive e-book, with a significant number of embedded simulations; and (4) collecting and grading lab reports. The vast majority of the materials were created by us, with a goal of making high-quality content available to the students for a reasonable cost. The interactive e-book is available for adoption by others for $20/student/semester. For our students this puts the total cost of the course materials at $46/student/semester (e-book + TopHat fee).

Using the TopHat Platform to Minimize Costs for Students

In addition to its rigorous basic-research QISE agenda, the Q-SEnSE NSF Quantum Leap Challenge Institute oversees a number of educational and workforce development initiatives based in quantum education research and designed to help facilitate a diverse and prepared quantum workforce. In this talk we will present two of these initiatives, highlighting in particular the institutional partnerships that form the foundation for their fruitful implementation. We will also discuss current efforts to connect education stakeholders in QISE and open a conversation on ways to move the field forward in the best interests of students as well as members of the quantum industry.

Diverse Pathways to the Quantum Industry at Q-SEnSE

The second quantum revolution has prompted not only research in quantum science, but also research on how best to teach students who may enter this burgeoning field. Much of this conversation has focused around students’ conceptual learning or skills desired by potential employers, while research on how lab experiments can contribute to undergraduate quantum education has been largely absent. In a recent survey of instructors using lab experiments with single and entangled photons, one of the most important learning goals was to "'see' quantum mechanics in real life." To better understand this goal, we investigate what seeing quantum mechanics means to instructors and why they believe it is an important part of students’ education. We present emergent themes coming from a qualitative coding analysis of 15 instructor interviews, which begin to elucidate the role quantum lab experiments may play in undergraduate education.

What Does it Mean to See Quantum Mechanics?

As quantum technologies become more widespread, there is an increased need for engineers, scientists, and software developers who are "quantum aware". Rochester Institute of Technology has developed a new multidisciplinary minor in Quantum Information Science and Technology that is designed to serve students from over a dozen STEM majors. The minor involved the creation of two courses, one in physics and one in computer engineering. The physics course focuses on foundational concepts of quantum mechanics, quantum computer hardware implementation, and non-computing applications of quantum technology, such as quantum sensing. The computer engineering course uses qubits and quantum gates as a starting point and focuses on algorithms, cryptographic applications, and the software stack linking the application to the underlying hardware. In this talk I will describe the factors that influenced our program design and our efforts to make the minor accessible to a broad range of majors.

Creating a Quantum Information Science and Technology Minor at RIT

I will provide quantitative data on the improvement in student success rates caused by the use of a Student Success Coach at a large two-year college. The College of DuPage (COD) received a five-year grant from the National Science Foundation’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) program to provide support to approximately twenty STEM students per year. Selected students received full tuition scholarships, access to summer internships, guided study groups and STEM activities on campus. In addition, a key element of the support is the assignment of a Student Success Coach who provided close, personal attention to these particular students. In what is sometimes referred to as “intrusive advising”, the Success Coach worked to intervene early before small issues become larger ones. COD has completed this first grant and is applying for a second grant to expand the program to part-time students. (NSF DUE Award #1564720)

Using Intrusive Advising to Improve Student Success

A diverse physics workforce benefits society and the economy; yet, physics graduates do not re?ect an inclusive community. Over 18% of the American population identifies as non-white Hispanic, though American Institute of Physics data show that only 9% of physics bachelor degrees were awarded to Hispanic students as of 2018. Community colleges are more representative of community demographics with 27% of students identifying as Hispanic and over 200 colleges federally recognized as Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), but community colleges do not serve as many physics majors compared to baccalaureate-granting institutions. The TRAINS project supports physics URM transfer students in navigating cultural interfaces and the transition from a community college to a baccalaureate-granting institution. This study focuses specifically on Hispanic community college students’ early expectations for building relationships with mentors and peers. Understanding these expectations will help faculty support URM students through their undergraduate research experiences and transitions to baccalaureate-granting physics programs.

Understanding Hispanic Physics Majors’ Expectations of Relationship-Building at Community College

At the 2020 AAPT Winter Meeting, research on the effect of Community Building on underrepresented groups in an Introductory Physics course at San Diego Mesa College was presented. Data was presented showing an increase in success as these techniques were implemented. Then the pandemic hit. This presentation shows how these techniques were implemented in a remote setting and the effect on student success. It also reports on student success in different demographics in the aftermath of the pandemic and asks the question "How are our students doing?"

Community Building in Physics Classroom: A Pandemic Update

In 2018, I presented a poster on the number of women in leadership roles in physics education. In this poster I will update the data and include some new data. From 2018: I will share data about the numbers of women in various leadership positions in physics education: editors, research group directors, professional organization roles. This data is more difficult to gather because of the short-term nature of people's time in these roles. But a snapshot in time of this data provides important information for the discussion of under-representation in physics.

An Update on Women’s Leadership in Physics Education

Only about 20% of individuals earning bachelor’s degrees in physics are women, and roughly 13% are underrepresented racial minorities (URMs). These numbers have remained relatively steady for more than a decade, thus there is a need to investigate ways to improve their representation in physics. Out-of-class science and engineering activities have been shown to influence students’ career interests in physics. This study evaluates how a physics summer camp for high school girls influences the critical physics identities and career interests of the camp participants. We use a mixed-methods approach that includes conducting surveys and interviews. The survey results show overall positive shifts in critical physics identity. The interviews provide insight into which aspects of the physics camp contribute to these shifts as well as how the camp influences URMs.

Impact of a Physics Camp on Girls’ Critical Physics Identities

“Should a Nobel prize have been awarded to Annie Jump Cannon, Cecilia Payne Gaposchkin, Henrietta Leavitt, Vera Rubin, Margaret Geller, or Jocelyn Bell Burnell? Locate, read, and cite at least three separate sources to justify your response.” This assignment can be used at the beginning of a term to spark interest before students get deadened by their academic load, or can come at the end of the term as a capstone project. Providing a list makes the assignment appear more straightforward. However, since the top hits on the Internet pull up mostly female astronomers, to ask students to argue on behalf of any astronomer overlooked by the Nobel committee produces similar results while preventing any complaints that a social agenda is being pushed.

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Using the TopHat Platform to Minimize Costs for Students

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