Sustainably Integrating Computation Throughout the Physics Major Degree

在整个物理专业学位中可持续地整合计算

• 批准号: 2236244
• 负责人: Shaul Hanany
• 金额: $ 29.59万
• 依托单位: University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-10-01 至 2026-09-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2236244&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Sustainably; Integrating; Computation; Throughout; Physics

This project aims to serve the national interest by investigating the integration of computation throughout the curricula in the undergraduate physics major. Acknowledging the significant role that computation plays in student knowledge and skills, academic programs of study, and careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), the project initiates a wide-ranging effort to integrate computation into all levels of the undergraduate physics program. Recognizing the importance of broad-based efforts in higher education to foster the success of students with diverse talents and experiences, the project integrates this perspective in its approach to establish, integrate, and sustain computation in physics. Guided by national reports, this department-level multi-year structured change effort - led by a departmental Computation Implementation Task Force - has strategically selected two mid-level courses for initial implementation. The project aims to (1) integrate computation as a standard tool to solve physics problems into the undergraduate physics curriculum and (2) establish a departmental process for sustaining changes to the curriculum and teaching practices. In alignment with the department-wide effort, the project is mapped to Kotter’s Eight Stage Model of Institutional Change with a specific focus on communicating the change vision, empowering broad-based action, and generating short-term successes. Importantly, this effort has intentionally integrated evidence to guide the change process. Project inputs are aligned with proposed activities, deliverables, expected outcomes, vision of change, and targeted/broad dissemination activities. Data collected relating to students’ performance and experiences include information from student records, course assessments, surveys, and semi-structured interviews with a subset of students. These are compared to historical and pre-post data. Data collected from faculty through quasi-ethnographic interviews will probe their experience and perceptions of the curricula modifications and the change process. The team will conduct thematic analyses of qualitative data and descriptive comparative analyses of quantitative data and the findings will be disseminated to internal audiences (to guide department change efforts) and external audiences (to contribute to knowledge and understanding of the effectiveness of establishing computation as a problem-solving tool into the physics curriculum). The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through its Institutional and Community Transformation track the program supports efforts to transform and improve STEM education across institutions of higher education and disciplinary communities.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目旨在通过研究计算在本科物理专业课程中的整合来服务于国家利益。该项目认识到计算在学生知识和技能、学术研究项目以及科学、技术、工程和数学 (STEM) 领域的职业中发挥的重要作用，因此发起了广泛的努力，将计算整合到本科物理课程的各个级别中。该项目认识到高等教育中广泛努力对于培养具有不同才能和经验的学生取得成功的重要性，因此将这一观点融入到建立、整合和维持物理学计算的方法中。在国家报告的指导下，这项由部门计算实施工作组领导的部门级多年结构化变革工作战略性地选择了两门中级课程进行初步实施。该项目的目标是（1）将计算作为解决物理问题的标准工具纳入本科物理课程中；（2）建立一个部门流程来维持课程和教学实践的变化。为了与部门范围内的努力保持一致，该项目符合科特的制度变革八阶段模型，特别注重传达变革愿景、授权广泛的行动并取得短期成功。重要的是，这项工作有意整合证据来指导变革过程。项目投入与拟议的活动、可交付成果、预期成果、变革愿景以及有针对性/广泛的传播活动保持一致。收集的与学生表现和经历相关的数据包括来自学生记录、课程评估、调查以及对一部分学生的半结构化访谈的信息。这些数据与历史数据和事前数据进行比较。通过准民族志访谈从教师那里收集的数据将探讨他们对课程修改和变革过程的经验和看法。该团队将对定性数据进行主题分析，并对定量数据进行描述性比较分析，并将研究结果传播给内部受众（以指导部门变革工作）和外部受众（以有助于了解和理解将计算作为物理课程中解决问题的工具的有效性）。 NSF IUSE：EDU 计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生 STEM 教育的有效性。通过其机构和社区转型轨道，该计划支持高等教育机构和学科界的 STEM 教育转型和改进工作。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。