PHY 310 -- Readings for Teaching High School
Physics
Illinois State University Physics Teacher Education
Carl J. Wenning, Program Coordinator
Spring Semester 2008
Students preparing to teach in physics are required to pass all sections of
a test of physics content knowledge before being admitted to Student Teaching
by the Physics Department. In partial fulfillment of this requirement, students
will take an Introductory Physics Examination during the firs day(s) of PHY
310. This is a standardized test prepared by the American Association of Physics
Teachers. It is a timed test, covering five areas of physics, using only one
format for questions -- multiple choice.
| Section A: | Mechanics | 24 questions | 25 minutes | Multiple choice |
| Section B: | Waves, Optics, and Sound | 16 questions | 20 minutes | Multiple choice |
| Section C: | Heat and Kinetic Theory | 8 questions | 10 minutes | Multiple choice |
| Section D: | Electricity and Magnetism | 20 questions | 25 minutes | Multiple choice |
| Section E: | Modern Physics | 12 questions | 15 minutes | Multiple choice |
A sheet of physical constants will be provided, as well as a sheet of formulas.
Following the completion and scoring of the standardized examination by the course instructor, the students will perform a self-assessment of physics content knowledge and skills, and prepare a Professional Development Plan to remediate the identified deficiencies. The Professional Development Plan will contain the following enumerated components:
Example
1A. Mechanics 45.9%
1B. Waves, Optics, and Sound: 63.3%
1C. Heat and Kinetic Theory: 36.7%
1D. Electricity and Magnetism: 39.5%
1E. Modern Physics: 49.5%
2A. I seem to have a fair understanding of the concepts, but had trouble identifying
the correct kinematics equation to use in many cases. I suspect that this is
just a result of not remembering as much as I should from my earlier course
work. I seem to be confused about the nature of elastic and inelastic collisions.
2B. I really thought I knew this stuff, and was surprised at the low score.
I suspect that the main reason is from a number of stupid errors I made -- probably
due to overconfidence in my ability in this area. My introductory physics courses did not include sound, so this will be a new area of study for me.
2C. I never really knew this stuff that well, and my grade in PHY 111 reflected
as much. It's clear that my poor score in this section stems from just not knowing
what I need to know.
2D. This area of study has always been a problem for me. I don't think that I have a good conceptual understanding of flux, and how it relates to induction.
2E. Many of these areas were entirely new to me, having never seen them before. Clearly, something has been missed in my education. It has mostly to do with my PHY 112 course where we only touched on a few topics included in this area.
3. I've decided that in order to prepare for the state competency exam, I really
need to review, re-learn, and even learn for the first time what evidently for me is new subject
matter. I plan to put 2-3 hours aside each weekend to review my PHY
110-112 physics textbook. I clearly need to spend most of the time in the areas of heat, and electricity and magnetism, but all areas would benefit from study. So, here is my plan for this semester in preparation for the ICTS content examination: Study 2-3 hours each Saturday between now and June 6th when I'm scheduled to take the content exam. I will focus on both conceptual understanding and numerical problem solving. I also think that I might want to spend some time with
the Physics Club tutoring program tutoring students to help serve as a refresher. I will use the state's content exam framework to guide my preparation for the state content examination.