Reaching the Critical Mass
Subtitle: The Twenty Year Surge in High School Physics. Findings from the 2005 Nationwide Survey of High School Physics Teachers. AIP Report. Number R-442
By: Michael Neuschatz, Mark McFarling and Susan White
Contributors: McFarling, Mark, author; White, Susan, author; American Institute of Physics, Statistical Research Center
Publisher: Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse
Published: 2008
Place of publication: [Place of publication not identified]
Language: eng
Number of pages: 84
ISBN-13: 9780735405646
Subjects: Educational History; Enrollment Trends; Textbooks; Financial Support; Teacher Competencies; Academic Degrees; Teaching Experience; High Schools; Gender Differences; Secondary School Science; Federal Legislation; Physics; Course Selection (Students); Honors Curriculum; Science Teachers; Science Instruction; Racial Differences; Educational Finance; Advanced Placement; Public Schools; Ethnicity; Trend Analysis
Description: This report traces the growth of high school physics in American school over the past twenty years. Highlights of the report include: (1) Enrollments in high school physics continue to grow; (2) Increase in number and proportion of physics teachers; (3) Number of students taking honors, advance placement or second-year physics course has nearly tripled since 1990; (4) More than 70 percent of those teaching physics possess a physics degree or extensive physics teaching experience or both; (5) Enrollment gap across genders and ethnicities is decreasing; (6) Increased promotion and implementation of Physics First; (7) More than 80 percent of public school teachers feel that the testing and teacher qualification provision in the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation has not affected them or their physics classes and curriculum; (8) Decreased funding for equipment and supplies; and (9) Top four textbooks account for more than 85% of use in first-year physics. The report concludes that both achieved progress and persisting disparities are symptoms of an educational system that is both enormous and enormously complex. Four appendixes include: (1) Additional Tables of Findings: (b) Survey Methodology; (C) States Grouped by Geographic Region; and (D) Survey Instruments. (Contains 22 figures and 29 tables.).
Notes: Availability: Statistical Research Center of the American Institute of Physics. One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740. Tel: 301-209-3067; Fax: 301-209-0843; e-mail: stats@aip.org; Web site: http://www.aip.org/pubs/.

Abstractor: ERIC.

Educational level discussed: High Schools.

Statistical Research Center of the American Institute of Physics.