A special collection highlighting the current state of the field of physics education research as it relates to upper-division physics courses. [Editorial]
A special collection highlighting the current state of the field of physics education research as it relates to upper-division physics courses. [Editorial]
Student learning gains are measured in upper level optics through the implementation of a new framework for curriculum development.
Examination of the structural features of common notation systems in quantum mechanics and their effect on student reasoning.
Detailed case study of the science education initiative model of course transformation, including upper-division physics courses.
Examination of thinking patterns exhibited by both undergraduates and graduate students in predicting or accounting for measurements on quantum states.
Investigation of student difficulties regarding the time dependence of wave functions and probability densities.
Motivation for and development of a model-based framework for student learning in upper division labs.
Using a resource-based framework to characterize how students develop expertise in solving first-order separable differential equations.
An overview and synthesis of the development and use of conceptual assessments in upper-division physics courses.
Written tasks and videorecorded classroom observations reveal difficulties with entropy in the context of heat engines.
A broad review of research characterizing the conceptual understanding, reasoning abilities, problem-solving skills, metacognitive skills, of quantum mechanics students.
Conceptions and resources used by thermal physics students long after finishing the course.
A review article that synthesizes many documented patterns of student thinking in quantum mechanics.
Phenomenographic study employing a communities of practice framework to explore student perceptions about their transition from student to practitioner.
Physics majors’ discourse during problem solving reveals evidence of students ‘thinking like a physicist.’
A qualitative study of student thinking about entropy and the second law of thermodynamics at both the macroscopic and microscopic levels.
Research to help students understand the physical significance and applicability of the Boltzmann factor.
The importance of explicitly attending to students’ interpretations of quantum mechanics.
Using the Colorado Upper-Divison Electrostatics Assessment in the context of the paradigms curriculum at Oregon State University.
An innovative device is used to probe how experts in physics, mathematics, and engineering understand and experimentally evaluate partial derivatives.
