Teaching Einsteinian physics at schools: part 3, review of research outcomes

Abstract

This paper reviews research results obtained from Einsteinian physics programs run by different instructors with Years 6, 9, 10 and 11 students using the models and analogies described in Parts 1 and 2. The research aimed to determine whether it is possible to teach Einsteinian physics and to measure the changes in students attitudes to physics engendered by introducing the modern concepts that underpin technology today. Results showed that students easily coped with the concepts of Einsteinian physics, and considered that they were not too young for the material presented. Importantly, in all groups, girls improved their attitude to physics considerably more than the boys, generally achieving near parity with the boys.

General relativity in upper secondary school: Design and evaluation of an online learning environment using the model of educational reconstruction

“…Our findings corroborate earlier results reported in the literature [1,7,13,52] and have added to a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of students' challenges in learning GR. Specifically, we have presented first empirical results on students' understanding of curved spacetime, which is scarce in the literature.…”

“…Moreover, recent works on teaching relativity to preuniversity students focus usually on special as opposed to general relativity [8][9][10] or contribute to an important broader discussion on interpretations of GR [51] without suggesting actual learning goals that could guide the development of learning resources. Most of the publications that investigate learners' perspectives on GR study undergraduate instead of upper secondary students [11][12][13], an exception being Pitts et al [1] and Kaur et al [52] from the EinsteinFirst project [53]. The Einstein-First project aims to change the paradigm of school science teaching through the introduction of modern Einsteinian concepts of space and time, gravity and quanta at an early age.…”

“…The Einstein-First project aims to change the paradigm of school science teaching through the introduction of modern Einsteinian concepts of space and time, gravity and quanta at an early age. Through several so-called enrichment programs with Australian secondary school students, Einstein-First researchers found that already children of age 10-16 can understand basic principles of GR and are motivated by concepts of Einsteinian physics [1,52].…”

What are the Problem Representations and Assumptions About Gender Underlying Research on Gender in Physics and Physics Education? A Systematic Literature Review

“…Studies showed no significant statistical difference between male and female performance in relation, for example, to solutions of calculus-based force problems (Gülçiçek, 2019) or to the learning of magnetism concepts (Li & Singh, 2017). The teaching of Einsteinian concepts to middle school students showed to increase girls' scores in physics (Kaur et al, 2017). e) Active learning methodologies: fourteen studies evaluated the effects of active learning methodologies (including interactive engagement, active-engagement, active learning or collaborative learning) aiming to close the gender gap in students' performance in physics.…”

Analysis of secondary school quantum physics curricula of 15 different countries: Different perspectives on a challenging topic

“…Quantum physics (QP) is not all about calculating, and there are diverse reasons why it deserves a place in secondary school curricula. First of all, QP is crucial for our current scientific worldview; students should get the chance to learn this in high school and not be limited to 19th-century physics [1][2][3]. Furthermore, QP brought us devices like lasers, solar cells, and microchips that are indispensable for modern life and there is an increasing number of research fields where QP offers new possibilities (e.g., DNA decoding with tunneling, quantum computers, or cryptography).…”