arXiv subjects

Peter S. Shaffer

Publications and source records attributed to Peter S. Shaffer.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2011

Examining student ability to interpret and use potential energy diagrams for classical systems

The Physics Education Group at the University of Washington is examining the extent to which students are able to use graphs of potential energy vs. position to infer kinematic and dynamic quantities for a system. The findings indicate that many students have difficulty in relating the graphs to real-world systems. Some problems seem to be graphical in nature (e.g., interpreting graphs of potential energy vs. position as graphs of position vs. time). Others involve relating the graphs to total, kinetic, and potential energies, especially when the potential energy is negative. The results have implications beyond the introductory level since graphs of potential energy are used in advanced courses on classical and quantum mechanics.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2002

Student understanding of time in special relativity: simultaneity and reference frames

This article reports on an investigation of student understanding of the concept of time in special relativity. A series of research tasks are discussed that illustrate, step-by-step, how student reasoning of fundamental concepts of relativity was probed. The results indicate that after standard instruction students at all academic levels have serious difficulties with the relativity of simultaneity and with the role of observers in inertial reference frames. Evidence is presented that suggests many students construct a conceptual framework in which the ideas of absolute simultaneity and the relativity of simultaneity harmoniously co-exist.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2002

The challenge of changing deeply-held student beliefs about the relativity of simultaneity

Previous research indicates that after standard instruction students at all academic levels often construct a conceptual framework in which the ideas of absolute simultaneity and the relativity of simultaneity co-exist. This article describes the development and assessment of instructional materials intended to improve student understanding of the concept of time in special relativity, the relativity of simultaneity, and the role of observers in inertial reference frames. Results from pretests and post-tests are presented to demonstrate the effect of the curriculum in helping students deepen their understanding of these topics. Excerpts from taped interviews and classroom interactions help illustrate the intense cognitive conflict that students encounter as they are led to confront the incompatibility of their deeply-held beliefs about simultaneity with the results of special relativity.

physics.ed-ph↗