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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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Volume XI, Number 1 |
September
2005 |
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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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Volume XI, Number 1 |
September
2005 |
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Video Demonstrations for Introdutory Physics Lab
The biggest challenge facing students in physics labs is often the technical details of the experiment. Once students have an experiment up and running, however, they typically have no problem collecting and analyzing the data. To help students get past the technical hurdles of operating the equipment and running the experiments, Russell Clark, Physics and Astronomy, will use his Innovation in Education grant for his project, Digital Video Demonstrations for Introductory Physics Lab Experiments, to produce approximately 50 one- to two-minute demonstration videos and make them accessible to students in algebra-based and calculus-based introductory physics laboratory courses. These videos should answer the most common questions that students ask and will be accessible to them on computers in the lab itself or online using CourseWeb. An obvious advantage of the in-lab accessibility is that students will be able to stop and immediately clarify a confusing point regarding a lab setup or experimental procedure, while the online availability allows them to scrutinize a demonstration before the actual lab session. With students better prepared for a lab and able to access just-in-time solutions to equipment or procedural problems, TAs will, therefore, be free to address more critical, detailed questions. Additionally, the videos will benefit the TAs themselves, serving as a training instrument for new TA lab instructors and as a refresher for current instructors. Clark is confident of the project’s success because, during summer ’04, he did a limited set of these demonstration videos, which were well received. At that time, he used equipment and software provided by the Center for Instructional Development & Distance Education (CIDDE). With the grant, he can purchase a digital video camera, video editing software, and screen video capture software, thereby enabling him to do the productions completely in-house. Jon Gaffney, graduate student assistant, will assist Clark in shooting and editing the videos into short tutorials as well as integrating them into data acquisition software used by the students in the lab. Furthermore, since the experiments remain relatively stable (and any changes are incremental), the videos should require only modest updates.
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A newsletter devoted to the support of teaching and learning at the University of Pittsburgh |
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