This chapter provides guidelines for effective learning and teaching of the Physics Curriculum. It is to be read in conjunction with Booklet 3 in the Senior Secondary Curriculum Guide (CDC, 2009), which provides the basis for the suggestions set out below.
4.1 Knowledge and Learning
As discussed in Chapter 1, students have to adapt to a highly competitive and integrated economy, ongoing scientific and technological innovation, and a rapidly growing knowledge base. Even though Physics is a well-established discipline, the knowledge of physics is continuously evolving. This is well demonstrated by, for example, the discovery of the atomic structure, starting from J. J. Thomson’s discovery of electrons at the end of the nineteenth century and the breakthrough of Ernest Rutherford’s atomic model in early twentieth century to the recent discoveries in particle physics.
Learning may take place in various ways, for example through direct instruction, involvement in a learning process or co-construction of knowledge. For instance, in an authentic investigation of means to verify the independence of vertical and horizontal motions of an object under projectile motion, much of the learning can take place through direct instruction in combination with co-construction. Students can learn about common methods used for verification through direct instruction by the teacher; while new knowledge can be co-constructed through interaction between students and teacher to explore innovative methods and tools used for this purpose.
The roles of teachers and students change in accordance with the objectives and types of learning activities. Teachers’ roles can range from being transmitters of knowledge to acting as resource persons, facilitators, consultants, counsellors, assessors, and very often a mixture of some of these. In some contexts, students may be attentive listeners, while in others they need to be active, independent and self-directed learners.
4.2 Guiding Principles
Some key guidelines for learning and teaching the subject are listed below, which take into account the recommendations in Booklet 3 of the Senior Secondary Curriculum Guide (CDC, 2009) and the emphases in the Science Education KLA.
(1) Building on strengths
In learning science, most Hong Kong students are strong in memorising content knowledge, analysing numerical data and understanding scientific concepts. Many local teachers view these processes as interlocking. The strengths of Hong Kong students and teachers should be acknowledged and treasured.
(2) Prior knowledge and experiences
Learning and teaching activities should be planned with due consideration given to students’
prior knowledge and experiences.
(3) Understanding learning targets
Activities should be designed and deployed in such a way that the learning targets are clear to both the teacher and the students.
(4) Teaching for understanding
Activities should aim at enabling students to act and think flexibly with what they know.
(5) A wide range of learning and teaching activities
A variety of activities which involve different pedagogies should be deployed so that different learning targets can be attained effectively. There is more discussion on pedagogy later in this chapter.
(6) Promoting independent learning
Activities that nurture generic skills and thinking skills should be used in appropriate learning contexts of the curriculum to enhance students’ capacity for independent learning.
(7) Motivation
(8) Engagement
Activities should aim to engage all students actively in the learning process. Examples and topics related to daily life and familiar contexts help students to see the relevance of their learning.
(9) Feedback and assessment
Providing immediate, effective feedback to students should be an integral part of learning and teaching. In addition, strategies for “assessment for learning” and “assessment of learning”
should be used where appropriate.
(10) Resources
A variety of resources can be employed flexibly as tools for learning. Suggestions on resources which can be used to enhance the quality of learning are given in Chapter 6.
(11) Catering for learner diversity
Students have different characteristics and strengths. Appropriate learning and teaching strategies should be used to cater for learner diversity.
4.3 Approaches and Strategies
4.3.1 Approaches to Learning and Teaching
Broadly speaking, there are three different common and intertwined approaches to learning and teaching Physics.
(1) “Teaching as direct instruction”
“Teaching as direct instruction” is perhaps the best known approach. It involves teachers transmitting knowledge directly to their students. This kind of learning and teaching approach is common in Hong Kong classrooms, where students in general like to get considerable guidance from their teachers. Direct instruction, if appropriately used in an interactive manner, is a powerful tool to help learning. Well organised content, contextualised examples and a vivid interactive presentation with clear focuses are important features of successful direct instruction. It can be used in many situations in physics lessons, e.g. introducing symbols of physical quantities, exposition of abstract physics theories and sophisticated debriefings of difficult topics at the end of a lesson.
(2) “Teaching as inquiry”
“Teaching as inquiry” is advocated by many educators who believe that knowledge is best constructed through individual learners’ effort and activity. This is a more student-centred approach. It advocates the use of learning activities such as simple problem-solving tasks which require various cognitive abilities, and inquiry-based experiments which involve hypothesis testing, designing working procedures, gathering data, performing calculations and drawing conclusions. The “Investigative Study in Physics” discussed in Chapter 2 is an example on how “teaching as inquiry” can be implemented in classrooms.
(3) “Teaching as co-construction”
“Teaching as co-construction” is an approach which sees learning as a social interactive process in which teachers may also act as learners. This view stresses the value of students sharing their knowledge and generating new knowledge through group work, with the teacher as a learner partner providing support. Students work together to perform tasks such as examining quantitative relations between physical quantities in a science article, and communicating experimental findings through written reports, posters or oral presentations.
Teachers provide opportunities for students to work collaboratively with them to build up knowledge and skills.
These three learning and teaching approaches can be represented as a continuum along which the roles of teachers and students vary. For instance, as illustrated in Figure 4.1, a teacher is more of a resource person than a transmitter of knowledge in a learning co-construction process.
Direct instruction Interactive
teaching Individualisation Inquiry Co-construction
Demonstration
Explanation
Video show
Questioning
Visits
Using IT and multimedia packages
Whole-class discussion
Constructing concept maps
Information searching
Reading
Writing learning journals/
note-taking
Practical work
Problem- solving
Scientific investigations
Simulation and modelling
Debates
Discussion forums
Group discussion
Project work
Role-play
A wide variety of approaches and strategies should be adopted to meet the specific learning objectives of individual lessons and the needs and learning styles of students. Teachers should note that a learning target may be attained by using more than one type of strategy and multiple learning targets can be achieved during the same learning process.
4.3.2 Variety and Flexibility in Learning and Teaching Activities
This curriculum has an in-built flexibility to cater for the interests, abilities and needs of students. This flexibility in the design of the expected learning targets serves as a way for teachers to strike a balance between the quality and quantity of learning. Teachers should provide ample opportunities for students to engage in a variety of learning activities to attain different learning targets. Learning and teaching activities such as questioning, reading, discussions, model-making, demonstrations, practical work, field studies, investigations, oral reporting, assignments, debates, information search and role-play are commonly used. For some learning targets, the activities can be selected to suit students’ different learning styles.
The learning and teaching activities employed should aim to promote learning for understanding, not the surface learning of unconnected facts. Effective learning is more likely to be achieved when students are active rather than passive, when ideas are discussed and negotiated with others rather than learned alone, and when the content is learned as an integrated whole rather than in small separate pieces. In short, activities that encourage meaningful learning should be used as far as possible.
4.3.3 From Curriculum to Pedagogy: How to start
Teachers have to make informed decisions about the approaches and activities which are most appropriate for achieving specific learning targets. Guidelines on this have been suggested in Section 4.2 for teachers’ reference. In the learning of physics, where possible, activities should be made relevant to daily life, so that students will experience physics as interesting, relevant and important to them.
The success of learning and teaching activities depends to a large extent on whether or not the intended learning objectives are met. Some useful learning and teaching strategies in physics are suggested below. However, teachers should note that the suggestions made here are by no means the only approaches/strategies for teaching the topics in the examples. The examples given under the different strategies in this chapter aim at illustrating the more significant learning outcomes that can be achieved, but others may of course also be achieved.
(1) Constructing concept maps
Concept maps are visual aids to thinking and discussion. They help students to describe the links between important concepts. They can be used as tools to generate ideas, communicate complex ideas, aid learning by explicitly integrating new and old knowledge and assess understanding or diagnose misconceptions. Students should be encouraged to construct concept maps of their understanding of a topic, and subsequently refine them in the light of teachers’ comments, peer review and self-evaluation in the course of learning. To familiarise students with this way of representing information, they may first be asked to add the links between concepts or label the links on a partially prepared concept map. Apart from drawing them by hand, a wide range of computer programs for concept mapping are available which enable users to create and revise concept maps easily.
Example
Students are asked to design a cooker using solar energy. Students first discuss what they already know about the concepts of energy transfer which are related to the design of a solar cooker. The concepts may include the three modes of energy transfer, i.e. radiation, convection and conduction, and ways to gain maximum solar energy by using an effective collecting system for sun rays and minimise energy loss by proper insulation. Then they organise and connect their own concepts into a coherent concept map, as shown in Figure 4.2. This is followed by reflection on the concepts by discussing the concept map with others. Suggestions on the design of the solar cooker and the advantages and disadvantages of solar cooking are gathered after discussion. Finally, completion of the concept map serves to consolidate the relevant concepts learned and extend students’
learning on energy transfer.
Construction of a solar cooker
Design specification
Advantages / disadvantage of solar cooking
Minimise energy lost from a solar cooker Maximise
energy gain from the solar energy
Factors affecting energy transfer
Conduction Radiation Convection
Figure 4.2 Concept Map on designing a Solar Cooker
(2) Searching for and presenting information
Searching for information is an important skill in the information era. Students can gather information from various sources such as books, newspapers, magazines, scientific publications, multimedia, digital media and the Internet. Information can be turned by students into knowledge and can be drawn upon for making informed judgments.
Information should not simply be collected selectively by students but must be categorised, analysed and put to some use, for example in a presentation of findings. Teachers may set questions, topics, discussion areas, issues for debate and project titles for students and then encourage them to look for relevant information in the library and on the Internet.
It is desirable for students to have experience of how to work with information in diverse environments, especially with imperfect and vague information from sources that may be doubtful. Students can easily be overwhelmed with information, and so it is very important for them to be guided or to have to learn how to filter information according to their needs.
(3) Reading to learn
Reading to learn can be used to promote independent learning and achieve the objectives of the curriculum. In particular, it can help students to understand various aspects of the past, present and possible future development of physics.
Students should be given opportunities to read physics articles of appropriate breadth and depth independently. This will develop their ability to read, interpret, analyse and communicate new scientific concepts and ideas. Meaningful discussions on good physics articles among students and with teachers may be used both to co-construct knowledge and to strengthen students’ general communication skills. Development of the capacity for self-directed learning will be invaluable in preparing students to become active lifelong learners.
Articles which emphasise the interconnections among science, technology, society and the environment can reinforce and enrich the curriculum by bringing in current developments and relevant issues, and so arouse students’ interest in learning. Teachers should select articles suited to the interests and abilities of their students; and students should be encouraged to search for articles themselves from newspapers, science magazines, the Internet, and library books.
The main purpose of this strategy is to encourage reading for meaning. This can be promoted through a wide variety of after-reading activities such as simple and/or open-ended questions to help students to relate what they have read to their experience, the writing of a summary or short report about an article, the making of a poster, or the creation of a story to stimulate imaginative thinking. They should also be encouraged to share what they have read with their classmates in order to cultivate the habit of reading physics articles.
Example
In topic VII “Atomic World”, it is suggested that students should read articles on the development of atomic physics in the twentieth century (e.g. the article on “How physicists study the structure of matter?” in the website “Enhancing Science Learning through Electronic Library” http://resources.edb.gov.hk/physics). Knowing about the historical advances in physics provides students with a better understanding of the nature of science.
The stories of famous physicists always motivate students to appreciate the ways they approached a problem, the work they did and the joy and frustration they experienced. This activity not only helps students to understand the major trends in the development of atomic physics, but also to appreciate the efforts of physicists in searching for the ultimate structure of matter (e.g. man-made carbon nano tubes and their applications). It also helps teachers to assess what their students have learned after reading, through activities such as presentations, discussion, questions and summaries.
(4) Discussion
Questioning and discussion in the classroom promote students’ understanding, and help them to develop higher-order thinking skills and an active approach to learning. Also, presenting arguments enables them to develop the following skills: extracting useful information from a variety of sources; organising and presenting ideas in a clear and logical way; and making judgments based on valid arguments.
Teachers must avoid discouraging discussion in the classroom by insisting too much and too soon on the use of an impersonal and formal scientific language. It is vital to accept relevant discussion in students’ own language during the early stages of concept learning, and then move progressively towards the more formal objectivity, precision and accuracy of scientific usage.
One of the effective ways to motivate students is to make discussion and debate relevant to their everyday lives. For example, in topic V, the use of nuclear power is an interesting subject for discussion. It increases students’ awareness of effective ways to match the high demand for energy use nowadays, with its potential hazards to our bodies and the environment.
More student-centred strategies can be adopted in addressing issues related to science, technology, society and the environment. For example, in topic VIII, environmental issues related to the use of different energy sources are discussed. Teachers can start by raising the issues of energy efficiency, energy auditing in schools and being a smart energy consumer.
In the discussion, students should be free to express their opinions, and then suggest methods for saving energy and reducing pollution, and the difficulties of putting these into practice.
Lastly, students can present their ideas to the whole class for their classmates and the teacher to comment on.
(5) Practical work
As Physics is a practical subject, it is essential for students to gain personal experience of science through activities involving doing and finding out. In the curriculum, designing and performing experiments are given due emphasis. Students should also come to be aware of the importance of being careful and accurate when doing practical work and handling measurements.
As students develop their practical skills, teachers can gradually provide less and less guidance. Inquiry-based experiments are recommended to promote independent learning.
In an inquiry-based approach, students have to design all or part of the experimental
Experiments include
designing and planning
prediction of results
manipulation of apparatus
collection of data
consideration of safety
procedures, decide on what data to record, and to analyse and interpret the data. In this process, students will show more curiosity and a greater sense of responsibility in their own experiments, leading to significant gains in their development of science process skills.
Moreover, it is better to design experiments to “find out” rather than to “verify”. Teachers should avoid telling students the results before they engage in practical work, and students should try to draw their own conclusions from the experiments. Gradually students will be guided towards independent scientific investigation. The following figure illustrates how students build up their knowledge of scientific principles and skills through practical work.
Figure 4.3 The Development of Understanding of Scientific Principles and Skills through Practical Work
(6) Investigative Study
Investigative Study, which is a powerful strategy for promoting self-directed learning and reflection, enables students to connect knowledge, skills and values and attitudes through a variety of learning experiences. In the Investigative Study of this curriculum, students work in small groups to plan, collect information and make decisions. This develops a variety of skills such as scientific problem-solving, critical thinking, communication and collaboration skills, practical skills and important science process skills.
Conclusions and interpretations include
analysis of experimental results
evaluation of predictions
explanation for deviations from predictions
Scientific principles include
generating patterns and rules from conclusions and interpretations
investigation (e.g. a solar cooker, the speed of sound, energy audits or plotting an electric field). By so doing, students will progress from “cook-book” type experiments to more open-ended investigations which involve finding answers to the questions they have formulated themselves.
Example
A short investigation, a “solar cooker competition”, can be organised after covering the topics in “Transfer processes”. Students are expected to apply their physics knowledge of conduction, convection and radiation, and skills acquired in previous topics, to design and conduct a short investigation on energy transfer in constructing a solar cooker. Students can investigate the effects of different materials and designs on the temperature in the cooker. Students can be given about two 40-minute periods for planning the investigation, for example, one period for drafting a brief plan in small groups and one period for whole-class discussion. They can form working groups to construct the solar cookers after school, followed by two to three periods for them to conduct temperature measurements of cookers under direct sun rays. They can be asked to discuss and make an appropriate choice of temperature-measuring instruments before the experiment. A more in-depth version of the investigation could require students to determine the power rating of the designed solar cooker and relate it to the solar constant obtained from the literature.
In general, the activities in Investigative Study involve several levels of inquiry, depending on students’ skills and needs, and the amount of information given to them. They can be broadly categorised into four levels. For instance, in level one, students are provided with a problem to be investigated with prescribed procedures and the expected results known in advance. Students need to verify the results according to the procedures given. In level two, students investigate a problem set by the teacher through a prescribed procedure but the results are unknown to them. In level three, students investigate a teacher-set question using procedures which they design or select by themselves. Finally, in level four, both the problem and investigative methods are formulated and designed by students. This four-level model also shows how the investigative nature of the activities may vary from highly teacher-directed to highly student-centred. The model allows teachers to tailor the Investigative Study to the level of readiness of the class.
(7) Problem-based learning
Problem-based learning (PBL) is an instructional method driven by a problem. PBL is most commonly used in professional courses where students are given authentic problems of the kind they will face at work, but it is being used increasingly in many disciplines. The