Author(s):
Need – Challenges shared by students studying physics, especially those dependent on prior preparation from under-resourced school districts, include underdeveloped abstract analytical and problem-solving skills, difficulty making connections with previous knowledge in mathematics, insufficient experience in scientific reading, writing and oral presentations, all creating discomfort and lack of self-efficacy when approaching the subject matter. These issues are often attributable to students, especially from underrepresented and marginalized populations, not considering STEM careers as professional options despite the great demand in the United States for potential scientists and engineers. Guiding Question – To address this, we have recently created the NSF IUSE funded SPARC – Strengthening Physics Achievement via Research and Collaboration Project. SPARC is designed to improve STEM education by focusing on methods that facilitate deep learning of content and transferable reasoning abilities in students enrolled in a General Physics class that is required for all STEM students at Hostos Community College (HCC) of The City University of New York. SPARC Project’s overarching goal is to improve undergraduate student outcomes in a calculus-based General Physics I (PHY 210) course, and thus better prepare them for subsequent science and engineering curricula. Here, we present our “Doing Physics” (DP) learning intervention which is designed to improve the current gateway General Physics (PHY 210) curriculum by emphasizing problem-solving, scientific and transferable reasoning, and collaborative skills. DP employs inquiry-based science, Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs), mentored research, and collaborative and game-based learning strategies. Outcomes – SPARC will serve as a bridge to increase the number and diversity of students pursuing, persisting, and being credentialed in STEM disciplines. Preliminary results indicate that SPARC is positively impacting students’ preparation and outcomes and has improved the course pass rate of PHY 210 from 48% previous years on average to 58% in Spring 2023 during its first year of creation. Broader Impacts – SPARC, as intervention model, has the potential to improve Physics education in Community Colleges by impacting on pass and retention rates for those enrolled in General Physics courses and positively effect on every STEM major as well as to be expanded to other STEM courses and colleges.
Coauthors
Antonios Varelas, Hostos Community College of CUNY, Bronx, NY; Anna Ivanova, Hostos Community College of CUNY, Bronx, NY; DePass Academic Consulting, Freehold, NJ
