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Building Undergraduate Physics Programs for the 21st Century

Join our regional workshops to learn how to enhance undergraduate physics learning for both majors and non-majors. Supported by leading physics organizations, our goal is to implement significant improvements in 80 physics departments in the U.S.

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Building Undergraduate Physics Programs for the 21st Century

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  1. SPIN-UP Regional Workshops: Building Undergraduate Physics Programs for the 21st Century Robert C. Hilborn University of Texas at Dallas Support from American Association of Physics Teachers American Physical Society American Institute of Physics National Science Foundation

  2. What do we propose to do? • Four regional workshops: Marquette North Carolina State Rutgers Cal Poly San Luis Obispo • About 20 participating departments per workshop

  3. Project Management • Bob Hilborn and Warren Hein, PIs • Ruth Howes, Project Director • Karen Johnston, external evaluator • Steering Committee

  4. Goals and Objectives • Goal: enhance undergraduate physics learning for both majors and non-majors • Project Objective: Have 80 physics departments in the U.S. implement significant improvements in their undergraduate programs. • Long-term Objective: Have 50% of physics departments do the same.

  5. Overview of the Schedule

  6. Planning Sessions Consultants David Griffiths Jack Hehn Bob Hilborn Ruth Howes Randy Knight Corrine Manogue Matthew Moelter Rich Saenz Steve Turley

  7. Planning Sessions - Overview Saturday • 11:15 am – First Session: Clarify department’s current situation, define issues and goals • 1:30 pm - Second Session – first draft of planned actions, identify key players and resources, outline of timeline • 3:30 pm -Third Session – focus plans, measures of success Sunday • 9:15 am - Fourth Session – lists of resources, how to get broad support, prep 5 minute report back to the group • 10:15 Five minute oral reports

  8. First Session – facing the facts • Clarify current departmental situation • What do we know and what is the evidence? • Nature of the institution • Where do our students come from? • How do they find their way to physics? • Why do they leave? • What do our majors do after graduation? • How is the department viewed by the rest of the institution? • How does the department’s program fit into the institutional mission?

  9. First Session: Facing the facts • What are the crucial issues facing the department? • Is there agreement within the department about the importance of these issues? • Where does the department want to go? Are those goals consistent with the institutional mission? • Is there agreement within the department about these goals? • Use the AAPT Guide to Self-Study ……. Undergraduate Physics as a source of questions

  10. Second Session – What should be done, by whom, and by when? • Identify short-term (six months) and long-term (3-5 years) goals and what needs to be done to meet those goals. • Think broadly and “outside the box”. • Identify similar departments that can be used as models. • What is the evidence that what you propose to do might work?

  11. Second Session – What should be done, by whom, and by when? • Who are the key players – both in the department and outside the department? • What resources will be needed to reach the goals? • What can be done quickly without major resources? • Think about a consulting site visit. • How do you engage the administration in supporting your efforts? • Develop a draft timeline, including important targets.

  12. Third Session • Focus plans – what gets done first, what needs to get done to set the stage for subsequent developments • Where to look for resources? • Identify “measures of success” • Build in feedback for corrective action as the program develops

  13. Fourth Session • Departmental leadership – who will lead the charge? How to distribute leadership? How to sustain faculty focus? • Prepare 5 minute oral report to share with other departments at 10:15 Sunday morning.

  14. Goals for the Consultations • Departments leave with a set of preliminary plans • Short term (six months to a year) and long term (three-five years). • Plans may include gathering more information about the department • The team has a sense of how to engage the rest of the department in this effort • Reasonable draft timeline • May want to visit other “thriving” departments • May want to arrange for a consulting site visit

  15. Common Concerns • Increasing the number of majors • Increasing the number of majors • Increasing the number of majors • Building a 21st century physics curriculum, interdisciplinary work, diversity of student preparations, serving students other than physics majors, producing more high school physics teachers, …

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