Pedagogical aspects when teaching Physics

1. Pedagogical aspects when teaching Physics Grzegorz Karwasz Andrzej Karbowski Didactics of Physics Division University Nicolaus Copernicus, Toruń

2. Physics: not much wanted When I get into taxi in Sao Paulo, the taxi driver …

3. http://www.edweek.org/ew/section/multimedia/no-child-left-behind-overview-definition-summary.htmlhttp://www.edweek.org/ew/section/multimedia/no-child-left-behind-overview-definition-summary.html S. Goldman (1999): teaching that includes active involvement of pupils,previously reserved only for selected schools, become available to all.

4. OECD: „AHELO” Testing student and university performance globally: OECD’s AHELO, OECD 2010 http://www.oecd.org/document/22/0,3746,en_2649_35961291_40624662_1_1_1_1,00.html

5. Polish school (XX/XXI century): educational & pedagogical problems Lower secondary school: too late, too short Outcome: no individual visibility, no responsability

6. Interactive pedagogy: an outburst Paris Daejeon Canberra Foto: Maria Karwasz

7. „Handy” Physics: Toys & Physics - Słupsk, Warsaw 1998 G. Karwasz, J. Kruk, Idee i implementacje dydaktyki interaktywnej, Wyd. Nauk UMK, 2011

8. „Toys & Physics”: an explosion, thanks to the virtual mirrors

9. Cognitive didactics (Piero Crispiani) Cognitive options: - Valorisation of cognitive processes (learning & knowledge - Linking cognitive processes with culture - Recognising mental presence and motivation of pupil - Recognising mental presence and motivation of teacher - Valorisation of links between cognition and language - Linking didactical action with educational instruments - Understanding cultural contents of teaching - Orientation on knowledge as constructing the meaning - Understanding the individuality and pluralism of cognitive processes - Valorisation of the personality - Multiplicity of didactical styles - Valorisation of the relation between teacher & pupil, etc.

10. Cognitive pedagogy (Bronek Siemieniecki) • Pedagogical options: • Importance of communication processes • for all pedagogical actions • - Information as the basis pedagogical concept • - Language as stimulating factor in all processes within pedagogy understood both as science and practice • - Lack or weak stimulation of general creative abilities and formulating intentions and ideas induce too concrete, schematics and repetitive actions • - A need to implement in education the sitution inducing emotions • - Introduction into communication of electronic media shows only partially the surrounding world • - An adult (pupil) linking in her/his activity creative and analytic thinking is more effective

11. Didactical & Pedagogical strategy: Hyper-constructivism = walking (a) Hyper-constructivism resembles walking on the lake, knowing that under its surface there are closely (at a step distance) planted trunks (b) In neolithic times such closely spaced trunks served to assure security for settlers (Lago di Ledro, Trentino, foto MK).

12. Strategies for Cognitive Pedagogy: Neo-realism GK ↔ Einstein: Everything that can be shown should be shown, and even more.

13. Guided participation: theory (Barbara Rogoff) „Structuring a problem in guiding participation may involve teachers providing children with the chance to participate in a meaningful subgoal of an activity that embodied the process of the activity as a whole. Structuring does not focus on breaking a task into minutely ordered steps to be measured in a lockstep fashion. Rather, effective structuring – in my view – maintains children involvement with the purpose of the activity, integrating varying aspects of the taks in a managable chunk. Involvement in the overall process and purpose of the activity, in a managable and supported form, gives children a chance to see how the steps fit together and to participate in aspects of the activity that reflect the overall goal, gaining both skill and a vision of how an why the activity works” Barbara Rogoff, Apprenticeship in Thinking, Oxford, 1990, p. 95

14. Guided participation: implementation at school • Problem • Solution • Development GK, Fiat Lux Interactive exhibition, 2010 (foto MK)

15. Guided experiment: implementations in all ambients • Concept • Explanation • Experiment GK, Galileo Interactive lecture, Leszno 2012 (foto MK)

16. Experiment does not substitute participation Through this discussion of science as the production of socially constructedknowledge, we have indicated that the argumentative practices of the scientificcommunity are pivotal in the establishment of knowledge claims. Observationand experiment are not the bedrock upon which science is built; rather they arehandmaidens to the rational activity of constituting knowledge claims throughargument.It is on the apparent strength of arguments that scientists judge competingknowledge claims and work out whether to accept or reject them. […] It is not enough for students just to hear explanations from experts (e.g.teachers, books, films, computers); they also need to practise using the ideas forthemselves. ’The’ answers to ’the’ questions need to become ’their’ answers to’their’ questions. Paul Newton, Rosalind Driver & Jonathan Osborne (1999): The place of argumentation in the pedagogy of school science, International Journal of Science Education, 21:5, 553-576

17. A sequence of experiments becomes a narrative story The teacher is happy that smbd undertook the pedagogical function Hewelianum, Gdańsk, 2011, foto MK

18. Interactive physics for children: carefully shaped pedagogy Universities for children: Pedagogy is the main goal • Why? • Partially because of defects of the school system: • Parents search for complementary education • But this easily leads to deviations in conduct (self-adoring) • Why not to teach physics, instead of „playing”?: • Physics they will learn at school • Physics is so simple (if well understood) that it is an ideal playground for developing interactivity • Playing is better remembered

19. Universities for children (UniKids) highly demanding „users”

20. Hyper-constructivism and pedagogical goals

21. Pedagogical aspects: in-dividuality & personality Individual decision - making Individual responsability Individual visibility In-dividual personality (=role playing) Canberra – Questacom UniKids – Gorzów, Katowice (foto MK)

22. Social competences: group collaboration, task division A proper technical goal (and equipment) induces self-division of tasks

23. Individual visibility: splendors & risks In Polish system it is much easier to get interactivity at early level then in lower secondary school.

24. Social construction – emotions:group competition & support The language of thesocial interactions varies according to the settings in which it takes place; thus, asociocultural focus takes into account the institutional arrangements, the languagethat occurs, interpersonal relationships, and the impact of an individual’s motives,goals, values, and beliefs. Brenda R. Brand & Sandra J. Moore (2011): Enhancing Teachers’ Application of Inquiry‐Based Strategies Using a Constructivist Sociocultural Professional Development Model,International Journal of Science Education, 33:7, 889-913

25. Social collaboration: playing in orchestra, closing a loop It is much easier to obtain (in Poland) a group collaboration than an individual visibility. And the joy is immense!

26. Pedagogy: Learning is joyful (emotional) Comenius: „If we make school a pleasant place, boys will come there eagerly, like going to fairs” (Didattica Magna 1657)

27. „Inquiry-based teaching” However, the effectiveness of inquiry-based learning depends on the guidance providedby teachers. Unguided or minimally-guided inquiry may not work for students who have less previous knowledge orability in the subject area. When the demands of the learning activities exceed students’ abilities, their learning isblocked and they may develop misunderstandings about the topic. John Nesbit, Liu Qing https://www.edcan.ca/wp-content/uploads/CEA-FACTS-ON-ED_INQUIRY-BASED-LEARNING.pdf

28. Cognitive Pedagogy: Beyond „Inquiry-based teaching” - Free inquiring, - Spontaneous questions (but triggered by carefully selected educational objects) - Autonomous answering

29. Didactical tunnel: „Going downhill, or everything on the inclined plane of Galileo” - Motivation: sinβ and cosβ - A path, that „users” must follow. - Laconic (1/2 sentence) explanations - Growing level of complexity

30. Constraints & difficulties (UK): Teachers pedagogical skills Teachers’ skills and views of science Teachers in our interviews were clear that, because of the difficulty of using discussionin teaching, many teachers (usually but not always the less experienced)did not have the necessary pedagogical skills or the confidence that comes withthem. „We do have average and below average teachers who actually don’ t have the skills torun discussion groups. I think that it is quite a high level skill for teachers.” „Teachers need to be confident enough to accept that they may not know the answers,this may . . . discourage some teachers from allowing the situation to occur in the firstplace.” We call it Principle 9:1 (the proportion of subject knowledge and its explanations, between teacher and pupil) Paul Newton, Rosalind Driver & Jonathan Osborne (1999): The place of argumentation in the pedagogy of school science,

31. Teachers need support in „inquiry-based” methods This report includes teachers’ accounts of philosophical as well as instructionalchanges and how these changes shaped the learning environment. For the teachers in thisstudy, examining their teaching practices in learnercentered collaborative group settings encouragedthem to critically analyze their instructional practices, challenging their preconceived ideas oninquiry-based strategies. Additionally, other factors affecting teachers’ understanding and use ofinquiry-based strategies were highlighted, such as self-efficacy beliefs, prior experiences as studentsin science classrooms, teacher preparation programs, and expectations due to federal, state, andlocal mandates. These factors were discussed and reconciled, as they constructed new understandingsand adapted their strategies to become more student-centered and inquiry-based. Brenda R. Brand & Sandra J. Moore (2011): Enhancing Teachers’ Application of Inquiry‐Based Strategies Using a Constructivist Sociocultural Professional Development Model, International Journal of Science Education, 33:7, 889-913

32. Teachers:getting involved in interacive didactics Well known question: why do objects fall? • Exposing problem • Interactive experiment • Self-explained conclusions Macerata (2015)

33. Interactive experiments requirea matured pedagogy (also parents) Sopot, 2004, Arts Gallery An adult (teacher, instructor) should never substitute child in whatever the kid is able to do autonomously

34. Conclusions • Galloping virtuality, growing competition, time-stealing „social media” – all these need an urgent reaction • Coming back to the real world (nature, arts, real objects) allows to re-set thought categories, re-order thinking, re-organize the time arrow • Physics, being simple, can be easily adopted to the new pedagogy • But the essential message is: „teaching is like a sculpture in the most delicate matter – children souls” (Korczak?)

35. A whole variety of pedagogical goals - Individual roles - Self-division of tasks - Group collaboration - Respecting the rules - Solidarity of the class, etc.

36. Priority: Child, not physics Thank you for your attention! UniKids, Tuchola, 2008, foto MK