Workshop: Creating a Guide for Programmatic Assessment, Review, and Improvement in Undergraduate Physics Programs

American Physical Society, College Park MD

Investigators

Abstract

In the United States there is a growing emphasis on accountability in higher education, and departments are increasingly asked to set and assess learning goals. At the same time, physics departments face several challenges: Physics acts as a gateway for physics and engineering careers, yet it is among the least diverse of all science disciplines and widely used traditional teaching methods do not yield learning increases commonly obtained with newer methods. There is an abundance of research-based pedagogies that have demonstrated improvement in learning gains and student retention - especially of underrepresented groups, but unfortunately there are obstacles that can make it difficult for physics departments to implement these learning strategies. Furthermore, there is a need for physics programs to better prepare graduates for a diverse range of non-research careers, and to educate more well-prepared high school physics teachers to meet national demand. To address these concerns, the American Physical Society (APS) recognizes that there is a unique opportunity to develop meaningful assessments of physics programs required of nearly every department, while fulfilling their desire to improve the education of their students by implementing known best practices. APS leadership has formed and formally charged a nationally recognized task force of leaders in physics program evaluation and revitalization to create a guide for programmatic assessment, review, and improvement, and to undertake the training of departmental reviewers and department chairs in using the guide. The guide will be an operational document designed to be immediately useful to a department chair or faculty member engaging in programmatic assessment, review, or improvement. The workshops funded through this award will allow the APS to lay the groundwork to ensure that APS can achieve national impact. An initial workshop for the task force to meet in person will be held May 18-19, 2017 in College Park, MD to plan project phases, and to construct a comprehensive plan for engaging community leaders in adopting and shaping guide practices. Outcomes of this workshop will include specific written plans for each phase of the project, and clearly articulated positions on the underlying framework of the guide and its implementation. In addition, the APS Committee on Minorities will hold a special workshop with leaders from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in Atlanta, prior to their fall 2017 in-person meeting to explore potential actions by the APS to address the devastating reduction of African American participation in undergraduate physics. Specific outcomes of this event will include recommendations to the task force, and plans for synergistic efforts by the APS, the Committee on Minorities, and their programs.