ERIC Number: ED396934
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1996-Apr-12
Pages: 33
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Innovation and Persistence: The Evaluation of the C.U.P.L.E. Studio Physics Course.
Cooper, Marie A.; O'Donnell, Angela M.
The last decade has seen the development of a number of computer-based interactive physics programs at the university level. Set in a cognitive apprenticeship framework, such programs view the instructor as a mentor, and the essential learning constructed in a collaborative process. It is expected that such programs, grounded as they are in educational research, will help students develop a more robust and accessible knowledge of fundamental concepts as well as a more positive attitude toward the subject matter in general and their own abilities. This paper considers the cognitive and affective outcomes of the initial implementation of one such program, the Comprehensive Unified Physics Learning Environment (C.U.P.L.E.) Studio Physics Program. Though results were encouraging, initially strong positive results, gathered informally during an earlier pilot implementation, were less so during the full and more formal evaluation. Early analysis indicates several possible reasons, including a gradual increase in the amount of time devoted to lecture and the elimination of whole-class discussion of laboratory activities and problem solutions. Contains 34 references. (Author)
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (New York, NY, April 12, 1996).