1. Thematic Group 3 Recommendations and proposed future work

2. Group 3: Topics reported at EGF2007 Survey of new teaching methods among STEPS members Survey of associated software tools among STEPS members Survey of alumni of EG3 members on software and transferable skills Evaluation of use of recommended multimedia within EG3 members’ departments

3. Group 3: New teaching methods Widely variable use of new methods and scale of adoption Probably a wide range of interpretation of the different categories of teaching methods STEPS is a vehicle that can assist the physics community in becoming familiar with new teaching methods

4. Group 3:New teaching methods - recommendation STEPS to provide unbiased overview of new teaching methods Present educational research results showing impact on understanding and student retention Disseminate resources Provide examples of good practice Highlight problems faced including resources and inertia More than a single talk – session/workshop?

5. Group 3: Software tools – future activity Most popular choices identified Next, identify –usefulness of various software –how the software is taught, i.e. standalone or imbedded –what has been its impact on ‘mathematics for physics’/’mathematical physics’/’modelling’

6. Group 3: Alumni – future activity Software and transferable skills identified Effectively only surveyed alumni from EG3’s departments Expand to alumni of all STEPS departments Additionally –How do they value their own skills? –What skills have they needed in employment that were not taught in the course?

7. Transferable skill: Keeping an open mind? “There is nothing new to be discovered in physics now. All that remains is more and more precise measurement” Lord Kelvin (Sir William Thomson) 1824 - 1907

8. Group 3: Multimedia – future activity Interested in assessing the quality and evaluating the use of multimedia Multimedia for mechanics and optics evaluated in 2006-07 academic year but only by EG3’s colleagues Recruit STEPS members to assess multimedia and separately evaluate the effectiveness of recommended titles during teaching in 2007-08 academic year

9. Group 3: Summary Recommendation to STEPS Provide overview of new teaching methods to provide examples of good practice, effectiveness and implementation. Future activities of Group 3 Software – how taught and used in physics courses? Alumni – expand to STEPS members and ask additional questions Multimedia – expand to STEPS members and recruit additional assessors and reviewers