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.

该项目旨在通过调查本科物理专业的整个课程中的计算整合来满足国家利益。该项目承认计算在学生知识和技能，学习学术课程以及科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）中发挥的重要作用，该项目启动了广泛的努力，以将计算整合到本科物理学的所有级别。认识到基于高等教育的广泛努力以促进具有不同才能和经验的学生的成功，该项目以建立，整合和维持物理学计算的方法将这一观点融合在一起。在国家报告的指导下，由部门计算实施工作组领导的该部门级的多年结构化变更工作策略性地选择了两门中层课程以进行初步实施。该项目旨在（1）集成计算作为将物理问题解决本科物理课程解决的标准工具，并且（2）建立了一个部门流程，以维持对课程和教学实践的更改。为了与部门范围的努力保持一致，该项目映射到了科特的八阶段机构变革模型，特别着眼于传达变化愿景，赋予广泛的行动并产生短期成功。重要的是，这项努力有意整合了指导变更过程的证据。项目投入与拟议的活动，可交付成果，预期结果，变革愿景以及有针对性/广泛的传播活动保持一致。与学生的表现和经验有关的数据包括来自学生记录的信息，课程评估，调查以及与一部分学生的半结构化访谈。将这些与历史和前数据进行比较。从教职员工到准人类学访谈收集的数据将探讨他们对课程修改和变更过程的经验和看法。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，结果将传播到内部受众（指导部门变更工作）和外部受众（有助于了解和理解将计算作为解决问题的工具中的有效性和理解为物理学课程中）。 NSF IUSE：EDU计划支持研发项目，以提高所有学生STEM教育的有效性。通过其机构和社区转型，该计划支持努力在高等教育和纪律社区的机构中转变和改善STEM教育的努力。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是值得通过基金会的知识分子和更广泛影响的评估评估来审查标准的。