Ball State University Project Report 2007
Course Reform
Successes
- The TIRs helped implement the new licensure requirements of the Indiana Professional Standards Board (IPSB).
- The TIRs joined Ball State’s Science Educators (housed in the Biology department) to develop the new introductory courses and to revise the science methods courses for the department’s preservice students to reflect the new licensure requirements.
- The TIR for 2006-2007 assisted faculty in developing materials to increase conceptual learning for topics associated with the Force-Concept Inventory FCI and Conceptual Survey in Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM).
- Some non-PhysTEC faculty have adopted interactive engagement techniques such as the Personal Response System (particularly in conceptual physics and calculus-based physics)
- The faculty trained graduate teaching assistants in the basic ideas of PER and its application in a classroom. This training was conducted at the beginning of fall semester and on a weekly basis in group meetings. Student assistants observed that teaching was taken seriously by the faculty and that they were also an important part of the department’s teaching mission.
- The TIRs’ daily supervision of this group fostered a sense of community and inspired the preservice teachers to teach for inquiry learning.
Challenges
- Changing the culture of a department and reforming courses is a long-term process; five years or longer may be required.
- New teaching strategies are sometimes met with resistance if a department is alone in using new PER methods.
- Young faculty may be hesitant to embrace reforms if such strategies negatively impact student evaluations. Other faculty may be reluctant to spend time on their teaching when the university reward system does not recognize the importance of instruction.
- Therefore, an aggressive faculty development program is necessary to bring lasting positive change in a department.
Sustainability/Institutional Buy-In
- When the departments are required by university administrators to establish strategic plans that include goals, objectives, action plans, measures, and timelines, to improve learning, there will be sustainability and department buy-in will be guaranteed. The PhysTEC model of course reform has been helpful in planning initiatives and assessing the learning that takes place in all programs and courses of the department.
Lessons Learned
- Physics faculty will be open to reforming courses and doing things differently in the classroom and laboratories when provided data that measurable improvements will occur when reforms are adopted. Therefore, assessment instruments agreed upon by the profession are vital in any reform effort.
- In addition, agreed-upon methods for conducting the assessment will be required in those instances when expertise in conducting assessment may not be currently available in the department. Working with colleagues in Science Education and/or the College of Education is of great value in developing methods for assessment.
Course Reform
- Course reform was conducted in the department’s algebra-based course (two-semester) and the conceptual physics course (one semester) for Elementary Education majors. In the algebra-based course that is taken by preservice middle-school and secondary life science and earth-space science teaching majors, laboratory instruction was revised to include a greater emphasis on inquiry and technology.
- The major revisions in the course for Elementary Education majors were the incorporation of inquiry activities into the daily classroom activities. In addition, each day the instructor provided students with in-class activities and simulations that were accessible from the web. Representative daily activities for Elementary Education majors
- Due to an implementation of the state’s new licensing requirements set for by the Indiana Professional Standards Board (IPSB), all of Ball State’s teaching programs were revised to meet the new standards. New program requirements went into effect in 2002.
- Descriptions of programs for science teaching majors and physics teaching majors
- More Descriptions
Here are summaries of the revisions of all courses.
- Modifications of algebra-based introductory physics course:
- Students take part in more guided-inquiry and discovery-type activities
- Personal response systems are now used
- Conceptual knowledge is now emphasized
- A 1-hr course was introduced for students that did not take high school physics to help them to develop problem-solving skills
- Use of Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs) in the lecture.
- Conceptual understanding in mechanics (FCI) and electricity (SCEM) was regularly tested.
- Physical Science Concepts for Teachers (primarily for students in elementary education programs.)
Classroom activities in the Physical Science Concepts for Teachers course have been reformed to include daily web simulations and inquiry activities. During academic year 2004-2005 the PET curriculum was offered at Ball State (24 students in a studio/laboratory format) and it was compared to the current curriculum which is offered in a large classroom environment (72 students per course). Assessment data indicated that the two methods of instruction produced comparable results. Results of this study.
- Science as Inquiry (forelementary education majors with the science concentration).
Another PhysTEC team member, Melissa Mitchell, Professor of Biology and science methods instructor, revised, “Science as Inquiry.” This science methods course is taken by elementary education majors who have chosen the science concentration as their area of specialization.
The revised Science Education methods courses draw heavily from the recommendations made in such science education reform documents as Science for All Americans and Benchmarks for Scientific Literacy published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Science Teachers Association's Framework for National Science Education Standards.
- Three science education courses are provided for all middle school and secondary science teaching majors and they are taught by Science Education specialists.
- A new course which serves as the introduction to all secondary science teaching programs.
- A two-semester sequence of courses for secondary science teachers on the philosophy, methodology, and issues specific to science teaching
- The early self-identification of the students in the new course for science teachers as prospective science educators is important in creating and reinforcing a sense of community. As students become comfortable as members of the science education community, they are more likely to accept support and mentoring from others within this group during pre-service training, student teaching, the first years of teaching, and their professional careers.
- To address the state’s new licensure program instituted in 2002, two new science courses were created, Basic Concepts in Science Education and Using Science Methods and Materials. Our TIRs worked closely with the Science Educators when these courses were introduced to include Physical Science content experiences.
- The TIR interacts strongly with the Science Education faculty who teach the above-mentioned courses for teachers. Typically the TIR presents brief descriptions of the PhysTEC program and the critical need for physics teachers, helps with physics demonstrations, participates in laboratory activities, discusses pedagogical techniques, makes presentations on inquiry, and gives input regarding students' practice teaching experiences. The TIR also meets with individual students in these courses to discuss science teaching ideas or science teaching projects.
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