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Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Against Realist Instruction: Superficial Success Masking Catastrophic Failure And An Alternative, Dewey I. Dykstra Jan 2005

Against Realist Instruction: Superficial Success Masking Catastrophic Failure And An Alternative, Dewey I. Dykstra

Physics Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose: Often radical constructivists are confronted with arguments why radical constructivism is wrong. The present work presents a radical constructivist alternative to such arguments: a comparison of the results of two instructional practices, the standard, realistbased instruction and a radical constructivist-based instruction, both in physics courses. Design: Evidence from many studies of student conceptions in standard instruction (Duit 2004) is taken into account. In addition, diagnostic data, pre and post instruction, were collected from over 1,000 students in multiple institutions across the U. S. over a period of about 15 years via an established diagnostic of conceptual understanding of motion …


How We Think About And Prepare To Teach Physics, Dewey I. Dykstra Aug 2004

How We Think About And Prepare To Teach Physics, Dewey I. Dykstra

Physics Faculty Publications and Presentations

We have been preparing physics teachers in the same manner for many decades. Yet, physics education research reveals for some observers disturbing evidence of little or no change in understanding the phenomena occurs as a direct result of physics instruction from elementary school through the college years. The apparent compatibility between these learning results and prevailing paradigm enables the construction of a description the paradigm. If it can be demonstrated that there is even just one alternative paradigm from which powerful alternative pedagogical practice is derived, are we not obligated to change how we prepare to teach physics?