In spring, I’m teaching “Teaching of Physics” again. Here is my stab at trying to organize my thinking about that course around 3 big questions:
Understanding Physics: What does it mean to understand physics content in deep and meaningful ways? What do such understandings look like in general? What does this look like in particular with respect to the specific domains of physics content that I will likely teach?
Learning Physics: How does meaningful physics learning develop? What do my students need to be engaged in for this to happen? In what ways are exemplary physics curricula / instructional practices organized to engage students in these ways?
Teaching Physics: What do I as a teachers need to know and to be able to do to effectively orchestrate exemplary instruction that supports students in meaningful learning? What practices and habits of mind should I consider high-leverage and generative for me in developing as a teacher?
I’ve tried lots of other ways of organizing it, but this is where I’m at now.
Next steps:
(i) What specific learning outcomes do I think are most important?
(ii) What would count as evidence that students have learned those things?
….
Teach. Brian. Teach. 