Lesson Study Project on Improving the Modern Physics Laboratory (PHYS 3100) M. Bautista (faculty), C. Hoffman (Labs. Manager), B. Man Rai, A. Ayyad, G. VanGyseghem (Grad. Students), A. Rosenthal, A. Beach (faculty)

Why working on labs. The Lab is what makes a science course a science course. The experience of doing lab is important, even more than the content knowledge that is acquired. Labs give students an opportunity to do science - to explore, to inquire, to investigate, and to collect, analyze, interpret and present data. Labs teach valuable practical skills, not easily transmitted by either lecture or textbooks.

2010 Survey of physics graduates

‘Development deficits’ for all graduates

‘Development deficits’ for graduates undertaking PhDs.

Conclusion from survey “With the physics knowledge/skills, the experimental skills were considered to be of most use”

The old lab manual

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Identified problems Students do not seem to understand why they do the “experiments”. Students often limit themselves to following the instructions in the lab manual without much understanding Students lack understanding of data handling and analysis. Students lack motivation.

The new lab

Pre-lab work Investigate what happens when the accelerated charge is subjected to a magnetic field perpendicular to the charge’s trajectory. What happens when a charge moving with constant velocity is subjected to a magnetic field?

Pre-lab work Ponder about the scientific question of your research. Your proposed research MUST be with the apparatus described below (figure 1) with only minor modifications. An example of the scientific question is: A flow of charged particles with constant speed forms a current. If that current is subjected to a perpendicular magnetic field it should create a force perpendicular to both the current and the magnetic field. If the magnitude of the magnetic field is known, could one measure the bending of the current to estimate the magnitude of the flowing charges?

Based on this investigation, write an Introduction to your lab report. Clearly state the hypothesis of your experiment. Study the experimental set-up and operation manual below and write the Experimental section of your Lab Report. Pay close attention to safety procedures. Consider the different sources of error in your experiment.

Grades (Fall 2011)

Grades (Spring 2012)

Student’s comments “I like knowing the reason for the experiment and the background to it.” “I am learning a very large amount of information in many of my classes and this course is comparable to them.” “I feel like I’m teaching myself, so it’s frustratingly inefficient sometimes, but the amount of work makes me learn a lot.”

Student’s comments “The lab reports make me investigate the experiment and know what is actually going on. I understand the interesting factor of each lab which has never previously happened in other labs.” “It is nice for once to be able to go out and try to figure out by other means than an instructor or professor.”

Unexpected positive result The PHYS 3100 lab is the most popular and desired course by our TAs

Summary Laboratories are essential in UG science programs. But, labs must be true labs, not merely support to lectures. Transforming labs often needs less work than one might think. Let students do work and have high expectations.