May 16, 2019 Filed in:
ArticlesBrian Lim, Teacher Rosedale Heights School of the Arts, Toronto
Brian.lim@tdsb.on.ca
“In the beginning…”
So starts one of the most famous and influential stories in Western civilization. Neil Degrasse Tyson continues the narrative this way:
“...sometime between 12 and 16 billion years ago, all the space and all the matter and all the energy of the known universe was contained in a volume less than one-trillionth the size of the point of a pin. Conditions were so hot, the basic forces of nature that collectively describe the universe were unified. For reasons unknown, this sub-pin-pint-size cosmos began to expand…” [1]
Read More...Tags: History, Pedagogy
May 09, 2019 Filed in:
AnnouncementsCourtesy of
Rolly Meisel we have a small gallery of photographs from the 2019 OAPT Conference at IQC in Waterloo. Check it out and relive memories (or see what you missed)!
See the gallery…Tags: Conference
May 08, 2019 Filed in:
AnnouncementsShawn Brooks, Manager of the OAPT Contest, teacher at UTS
sbrooks@utschools.ca
Sandy Evans, Editor of the OAPT Contest, teacher at Northview Heights Secondary School
Sandy.evans@tdsb.on.ca
This is a reminder about the upcoming FREE OAPT Physics Contest on May 22
nd. This year, for the first time, the contest will be open to BOTH Grade 11 AND Grade 12 students due to the generous support of the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering at the University of Toronto.
Read More...Tags: Contest
May 05, 2019 Filed in:
ArticlesTim McCarthy, Teacher, St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Secondary School
mccarthyt@hcdsb.org
Controlled experiments with three factors are a great way for physics students to practice identifying and testing factors that may affect a situation. They provide an excellent opportunity to practice the Scientific Investigation Skills found in Strand A. The students are provided with a situation, brainstorm possible factors that may affect the situation, reduce the list of factors to three that can be tested in the physics lab, develop hypotheses, design procedures to test the factors, test the factors, analyze the data, perform experimental error analysis, and draw conclusions on the effects the three factors have had on the original situation.
My struggle has been to find situations that easily fit this format and that also match the curriculum specific expectations. I have created one three-factor controlled experiment for each of the six units in my 12C physics course. The three-factor experiment in the first unit is used as assessment for learning (formative) to teach the students how to do a controlled experiment. The remaining five experiments are used as assessment of learning (summative). Simulations are used for some experiments as I do not have the necessary equipment to perform all them in the lab.
Read More...Tags: Assessment, College, Electricity, Fluids, Forces, Kinematics, Magnetism, Pedagogy, Pressure
April 26, 2019 Filed in:
ArticlesRobert Prior, teacher at Agincourt CI
robert.prior@tdsb.on.caMany of us find marking tests a necessary chore. It has to be done, but it’s drudgery. This article describes how I use an app and the Ontario Achievement Charts to mark tests 2-3 times faster, as well as analyze the results.
Read More...Tags: Pedagogy, Technology
