TEACHING INNOVATION
A seminar series delving into the evolving landscape of higher education and physics instruction.
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Date: from 22 May 2024 at 00:00 to 31 May 2024 at 00:00
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Event location: Physics and Astronomy Department
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Access Details: Free admission
May 22nd, 4 p.m., Room A
via Irnerio 46, Bologna
Claudia De Grandi, University of Utah
Title: Teaching through the Being Human in STEM lens
Abstract: The course Being Human in STEM is a unique setting where STEM students and faculty come together to discuss and understand how everyone’s identities shape their experience in STEM. The class includes readings and discussions on topics such as implicit bias, stereotype threat, imposter syndrome, antiracism, intersectionality, and the roles that gender, race, LGBTQIA+ identity, dis/ability, and many others play in STEM. In addition, students lead and implement team projects with the goal of improving the experience of STEM students at their University. I will give an overview of the course and summarize how facilitating this course for the past eight years has shaped and informed my teaching practices to promote learning, belonging, and success for all students in introductory physics courses.
Short biography: Associate Professor of Educational Practice in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Utah. She is involved in several projects aimed at fostering a more inclusive and welcoming environment for students in STEM fields.
May 30th, 3 p.m.
Physics Ed. Lab. Room, via Irnerio 46, Bologna
Leslie Atkins, Boise State University
Title: Students as conceptual engineers
Abstract:Most entities in scientific models (e.g., energy, gene, acid) are not physical objects that are readily discovered but theoretical objects that are iteratively and contingently designed in the pursuit of models of phenomena. And these concepts, once designed, don’t stay fixed; as with any engineered design, changing contexts (e.g., theoretical advancement, novel discoveries, new applications) can require further iterations on that design or a radical reconsideration of the concept altogether. This work of designing concepts, described in philosophy as “conceptual engineering,” while ubiquitous among scientists, is often lacking in science classes. In this talk, I will describe conceptual engineering in the context of students’ scientific inquiry — including awareness, intention, and epistemic action students take in designing and evaluating the concepts that populate their scientific models.
Short biography: Leslie Atkins is a professor of science education at Boise State University. She completed a Ph.D. in physics, a postdoc in Cognitive Science, and has taught widely outside of academia. Her commitment to science education stems from a love of physics and a conviction that liberal education, publicly-funded research, and academic debate are critical to a thriving democracy. Her research focuses on the epistemic practices of science, particularly the idiosyncratic, aesthetic and cultural nature of those practices.
May 31st, 11 a.m., ROOM A
via Irnerio 46, Bologna
Noah Finkelstein, University of Colorado Boulder
Title: How to think of novel technologies for physics education: from virtual worlds to generative AI
Abstract: We are in the midst of a significant transformation in the landscape of higher education, and have the opportunity to improve access to, approaches for, and impacts of physics instruction. Advances in technologies are one of the drivers of this change. Meanwhile, the hype around generative artificial intelligence has ranged from predicting the end of humanity to the elimination of many jobs, to addressing all human diseases, to utopian forms of democracy and collective welfare. Rather than play into such framing, as we consider the implications for higher education, we will benefit from applying and understanding how humans use technologies and the nature of cultural systems. Building on decades of theoretical and experimental research on how people learn, organizational change in higher education, and the development of new technologies, this talk shares studies of and explores implications for our teaching practice and educational environments in physics.
Short biography: Professor of Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder and conducts research in physics education. He is a co-director of the Center for STEM Learning on campus and serves as a PI of the Physics Education Research (PER) group at Colorado and as Co-Director of the National Network of STEM Education Centers.