Development and Assessment of Quantum Mechanics Tutorials for Advanced Undergraduate Courses

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To better prepare future scientists and engineers for the demands of a high-tech workplace, development and assessment of guided tutorials for advanced undergraduate quantum mechanics courses will be undertaken. Although tutorials at the level of modern physics have been developed and have proved effective, there are presently no similar tools available for advanced undergraduate quantum mechanics courses. The tutorials will actively engage students in the learning of quantum physics. They will attempt to bridge the gap between the abstract quantitative formalism of quantum mechanics and the qualitative understanding necessary to explain and predict new phenomena. Based upon research in physics education, their development will be guided by a careful attention to cognitive issues. The tutorials will supplement lectures and standard homework assignments. Some tutorials will include design and adaptation of computer-based visualization tools to help students build physical intuition about quantum processes. In order to promote widespread use of these tutorials, information about the project will be disseminated through presentations at the American Association of Physics Teachers meetings, dedicated workshops and seminars in physics departments. After the modules have been thoroughly evaluated at several institutions and refined, the ultimate goal is to publish the tutorials as a quantum mechanics workbook.