Physics Education Research in the Classroom
We know physics has a reputation for brutal lectures and sink-or-swim grading. That's not how we teach here. How you learn matters as much as what you learn, so our department actively uses evidence-based teaching practices grounded in physics and astronomy education research. Some examples of what this looks like in our classrooms:
- Learning Assistants (LAs): our department pioneered the use of Learning Assistants at CSUSB, modeled on the program developed at the University of Colorado Boulder. LAs are undergraduate students who complete a dedicated pedagogy course and then help facilitate active learning and group discussion in courses like Intro and General Physics. Nearly all sections of our introductory physics sequence, and many upper-division courses, use LAs.
- Active learning in the classroom: faculty use techniques like Think-Pair-Share, iClickers, flipped classrooms, in-class group problem-solving, and "ungrading" (where students help evaluate their own progress) across courses from Tools for Physicists through Senior Thesis.
- Department-wide investment in pedagogy training: multiple faculty were PIs or co-PIs on CSUSB's NSF-funded ISSUES-X grant (2017-2023), which trained faculty across the College of Natural Sciences in evidence-based teaching. Nearly every tenure-track faculty member has participated in at least one professional development opportunity in teaching and learning.