Integrating computation into the undergraduate curriculum: A vision and guidelines for future developments

Chonacky, Norman; Winch, David M.

doi:10.1119/1.2837811

Cited by 40 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 5 publications

(3 reference statements)

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“…Given the central importance of computation to physics research, and hence the need for appropriately trained students and professionals to perform it, it is perhaps surprising that computing is often only weakly integrated into the physics curriculum. Several approaches have been tried to remedy this [7]: At the largest scale, whole majors on Computational Science have been created [8]; courses [9] or sequences of courses [10,11] have been created within departments; computational projects and homework problems have also been integrated into existing courses and laboratories, both for majors [12] and at the introductory level [13,14]. Encouragingly, a largescale survey performed about a decade ago [15], showed widespread support for these efforts.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developing a project-based computational physics course grounded in expert practice

Burke

Atherton

2017

American Journal of Physics

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We describe a project-based computational physics course developed using a backwards course design approach. From an initial competency-based model of problem solving in computational physics, we interviewed faculty who use these tools in their own research to determine indicators of expert practice. From these, a rubric was formulated that enabled us to design a course intended to allow students to learn these skills. We also report an initial implementation of the course and, by having the interviewees regrade student work, show that students acquired many of the expert practices identified.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developing a project-based computational physics course grounded in expert practice

Burke

Atherton

2017

American Journal of Physics

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“…Working to integrate computation into physics courses demands that we understand the nature of computational instruction including the current state of that instruction, what variations we observe in the implementation of computation, and what factors support or inhibit departments and faculty moving towards computational instruction. Chonacky and Winch conducted a survey of faculty over a decade ago [18,19]. The authors intended this survey to identify faculty early-adopters of computation, establish a detailed database of computational activities, confirm the importance attributed to computation in courses, and manifest how insular the beliefs that computation is important are within departments.…”

Section: Motivation and Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence and nature of computational instruction in undergraduate physics programs across the United States

Caballero

Merner

2018

Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res.

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A national survey of physics faculty was conducted to investigate the prevalence and nature of computational instruction in physics courses across the United States. 1246 faculty from 357 unique institutions responded to the survey. The results suggest that more faculty have some form of computational teaching experience than a decade ago, but it appears that this experience does not necessarily translate to computational instruction in undergraduate students' formal course work. Further, we find that formal programs in computational physics are absent from most departments. A majority of faculty do report using computation on homework and in projects, but few report using computation with interactive engagement methods in the classroom or on exams. Specific factors that underlie these results are the subject of future work, but we do find that there is a variation on the reported experience with computation and the highest degree that students can earn at the surveyed institutions.

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“…With advent of powerful computers as well as the development of high-level programming languages, we are capable of modeling phenomenon that a generation ago would have required sophisticated tools. And yet, many of our programs have not yet incorporated computation into the undergraduate experience [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Computation across the curriculum: What skills are needed?

Caballero¹

2015

2015 Physics Education Research Conference Proceedings

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Computation, the use of a computer to solve, simulate, or visualize a physical problem, has revolutionized how physics research is done. Computation is used widely to model systems, to simulate experiments, and to analyze data. Yet, in most undergraduate programs, students have little formal opportunity to engage with computation and, thus, are left to their own to develop their computational expertise. As part of a larger project to study how computation is incorporated in some undergraduate physics programs (and how it might be incorporated further), we convened a mini-conference and conducted a series of interviews with industry professionals, academic faculty, and employed bachelor's graduates who make use of computation in their everyday work. We present preliminary results that speak to how participants developed the requisite skills to do professional computational work and what skills they perceive are necessary to conduct such work.

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Integrating computation into the undergraduate curriculum: A vision and guidelines for future developments

Cited by 40 publications

References 5 publications

Developing a project-based computational physics course grounded in expert practice

Developing a project-based computational physics course grounded in expert practice

Prevalence and nature of computational instruction in undergraduate physics programs across the United States

Computation across the curriculum: What skills are needed?

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