In this paper, we describe the development and preliminary assessment of ACORN Physics Tutorials, which are designed to elicit and build on common conceptual resources for understanding physics. We articulate our design principles and instructional commitments and how these bear out in the specifics of one ACORN Physics Tutorial about electric circuits. We describe preliminary results from research on the implementation of the circuits ACORN Physics Tutorials. Namely, we observe students’ sensemaking in real time as they complete worksheets; we document shifts in students’ performance and use of specific conceptual resources from pre- to postinstruction using ACORN Physics Tutorials; and we show that students generally perceive their ideas to have mattered as they work with their peers on these worksheets. We hope these results can inform instructor decision making about the appropriateness of ACORN Physics Tutorials for their local contexts.

Trigonometric derivatives are fundamental in both mathematics and physics, yet their correct application, particularly the distinction between radians and degrees, remains a significant challenge for college students worldwide. This study identifies a widespread “blind spot” in understanding trigonometric derivatives and their implications for physical systems, highlighting a critical gap in physics education. A multinational survey of 769 college students, primarily undergraduate and graduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (majors, from Israel, the United States, China, and India assessed their ability to differentiate between radians and degrees in mathematical and physical contexts, focusing on harmonic motion. Results reveal that only 26.3% of students correctly identified that the well-known expressions for trigonometric derivatives hold exclusively in radians, while 70.7% incorrectly assumed that both radians and degrees are valid. Notably, students demonstrated improved recognition of radians in physical contexts (59% correct responses) compared to mathematical ones, suggesting that students rely on familiar physical equations as cognitive reference points when applying mathematical concepts. These misunderstandings appear globally, suggesting a universal challenge. The findings highlight the need for curriculum reforms to better connect mathematical formalism with physical application.

Embodied forms of representation like gesture have been shown to play an important role in how learners conceptualize phenomena in physics; however, we know little about how students use gesture to capture the idea of instantaneity. Drawing on multimodal microanalysis of interaction, we examine how undergraduate physics students use representational gesture to make sense of instants or single moments in time while modeling energy dynamics. Our analysis demonstrates how students use four different forms of representational gesture to capture instantaneity: These include (i) looping and replaying a physical action, (ii) showing a tiny subinterval of time, (iii) freezing a frame of an action, and (iv) marking a boundary location on an imaginary timeline. Implications for physics learning are discussed.

Given the widespread presence of competition in educational settings and its complex impact on science learning, how students complete tasks in competitive environments has attracted a wide range of attention. The purpose of this study is to compare students’ performance on physics conceptual questions in noncompetitive and competitive environments, focusing on both task outcomes and cognitive processing during task completion. There were 66 undergraduate students randomly assigned to one of two conditions (a noncompetitive group and a competitive group) to complete physics multiple-choice questions. The results displayed differences in undergraduate students’ outcomes and eye movement behaviors when they completed physics conceptual questions under noncompetitive and competitive conditions. The noncompetitive group outperformed the competitive group in completing physics conceptual questions, while the competitive group spent less fixation time completing physics conceptual questions than the noncompetitive group. Additionally, the noncompetitive group displayed a larger number of revisits to the entire question than the competitive group. In summary, although students in a competitive environment completed physics conceptual questions more quickly, the accuracy was low, which could be described as “haste makes waste.” Eyetracking data suggested that these differences might result from a greater emphasis on speed and reduced cognitive engagement in the competitive group.

Previous research has suggested that changing the percentage of the course grade associated with exam grades in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics courses can change the gender gap in the course. It has also been shown that high-stakes assessments yield the lowest (relative) scores for female students. Previous research by the authors has shown that implementing retake exams can eliminate the gender gap in introductory physics courses. This paper explores several different hypotheses for why retake exams are associated with a zeroed gender gap. Two independent measurements comparing exams with different stakes are used in support of the argument that the entire gender gap on introductory physics exams may be due to the stakes associated with those exams. In other words, these data support the idea that a gender grade gap on exams does not measure a gender difference in the physics knowledge or physics ability of these students. Implications suggest that instructors should choose lower stakes assessment options if they are interested in exam measurements that are not influenced by differences in students’ performance related to exam stakes.

The Partnership for Integration of Computation into Undergraduate Physics (PICUP) was founded in the mid-2010s to assist educators with the challenges of integrating computation into physics curricula. In addition to in-person trainings and hosted educational materials, PICUP uses a Slack Workspace to continue collaboration and discussion off-line. In this work, we use social network analysis (SNA) to study the communication patterns of PICUP and assess if PICUP is meeting their goals in the Slack environment. Through our analysis, we discuss PICUP’s community structure and define a conceptual framework to evaluate if the goals are being met through SNA metrics. We present a comprehensive analysis of eight channels in the Slack Workspace using various SNA metrics, identifying three distinct levels of user engagement. We conclude with implications for PICUP and provide recommendations for the community.

In this paper, we describe our extension of the action, process, object, schema (APOS) theory to capture the complex interplay of mathematics and physics. We do this in the context of the 2D heat equation. We describe a hypothetical learning trajectory of the 2D heat equation, a preliminary genetic decomposition that stresses the conceptual understanding of its mathematical formulation. In our extension of APOS to physics education, we highlight how our approach precisely captures the interplay between mathematics and physics in different mental constructions of the framework. In addition to this core focus, we consider other layers when designing the preliminary genetic decomposition: the key concepts and the necessary depth of students’ prerequisite knowledge of the chosen context, the challenges students commonly face with these concepts, and the use of multiple external representations. We conclude by giving an overview of future research to be done after the design of the preliminary genetic decomposition.

Quantum information science and engineering (QISE) is rapidly gaining interest from those within many disciplines, and higher education needs to adapt to the changing landscape. Although QISE education still has a strong presence and roots in physics, the field is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary. There is a need to understand the presence of QISE instruction and quantum-related instruction across all disciplines in order to figure out where QISE education is already happening and where it could be expanded. Although there is recent work that characterizes introductory QISE courses, there is no holistic picture of the landscape of QISE and quantum-related education in the United States. To understand how QISE education is evolving, we analyzed course catalogs from 1456 U.S. institutions. We found 61 institutions offering QISE degree programs, mostly at Ph.D.-granting schools, with interdisciplinary programs being the most common. Physics, electrical and computer engineering, and computer science are the primary contributors to these programs. Across all institutions, we identified over 8000 courses mentioning “quantum,” mainly in physics and chemistry departments, but about one-third of institutions in our study had none. We also found over 500 dedicated QISE courses, concentrated in Ph.D.-granting institutions, primarily in physics, electrical and computer engineering, and computer science. Physics leads in offering both general quantum-related courses ($\sim 4700$) and QISE-specific courses ($\sim 200$). While quantum knowledge is often a prerequisite for QISE, there are efforts to make QISE education more accessible to students with less background in quantum mechanics. Across multiple disciplines, we also see that QISE topics are being introduced in courses not fully dedicated to QISE, which may be a productive strategy for increasing students’ access to QISE education. Our dataset and analysis provide the most comprehensive overview to date of quantum education across U.S. higher education. Additionally, this work is the first to address, in detail, the landscape of quantum content in two-year and community colleges and examines the largest set of MSIs in this context. We hope these findings will support and guide future efforts in curriculum design, workforce development, and education policy across the quantum ecosystem.

As global interest in quantum mechanics grows, its inherent complexities continue to pose challenges for effective instruction. This study investigates the impact of Quantum Interactive Learning Tutorials (QuILTs) on enhancing conceptual understanding of quantum mechanics among preservice physics teachers in Korea. The QuILTs, consisting of pretests, tutorial worksheets, and post-tests, targeted the following five key concepts: possible wave functions, bound/scattering states, time evolution of wave functions, quantum measurement, and the uncertainty principle. To assess conceptual change, the Quantum Mechanics Survey (QMS) was administered to 20 preservice teachers before and after the completion of QuILTs instruction to assess conceptual change. Additionally, embedded quizzes and interviews provided deeper insights into persistent misconceptions. Results indicated a moderate to substantial overall improvement, with a Hake gain of 0.54. Significant gains were observed in understanding possible wave functions and time evolution, although challenges remained in areas such as normalization of free particle wave functions and interpretation of scattering states. Misconceptions related to quantum measurement and the uncertainty principle showed partial improvement. The findings demonstrate the effectiveness of QuILTs in enhancing conceptual understanding among preservice teachers, suggesting that research-based, concept-focused instructional strategies can support future educators in mastering complex quantum mechanics concepts. These results offer valuable insights into the development of teacher preparation curricula and instructional strategies in Korea.

Social network analysis (SNA) has been widely used in physics education research (PER) in recent years, but mostly in a limited range of the available modalities. This paper describes a unique approach to egocentric, mixed-methods SNA applied to qualitative network data obtained from 100 interviews with women and/or queer professional physicists. We focus on our methods for obtaining quantitative network data from these qualitative sources and present novel techniques for the analysis of the networks. We also examine the ways in which egocentric and mixed-methods SNA techniques are aligned with critical methods and well suited to the study of difference, non-normativity, and experiences of marginalization in physics spaces and communities. We explore the limitations and potential applications of these methods and situate this work in the larger context of our study of these interviews. This work bridges a methodological gap between SNA and qualitative work on identity in PER and begins to develop our understanding of the way gender and sexual minority physicists experience support.

The ability to accurately interpret mathematical functions is crucial for understanding complex physical and mathematical concepts. Differentiating isothermal from adiabatic change of state in $p\text{−}V$ diagrams respectively graphs of indirectly proportional functions from graphs of power functions in $x\text{−}y$ diagrams presents a common challenge for students. This study examines the gaze behavior of 80 10th-grade students to identify the processing strategies they use when distinguishing these graphs of functions in mathematical and thermodynamic contexts. The cluster analysis of the gaze data revealed two main strategies: focusing on the value pairs, often resulting in a higher number of correct responses, and focusing on the graph itself, often resulting in misunderstandings. Interviews indicated that students who relied on graph-focused strategies often followed intuitive and less effective approaches. These findings underscore the need for adaptive support measures to address individual learning challenges and improve students’ understanding of graphs of indirectly proportional functions. Beyond the specific focus on indirectly proportional and power functions, the methodology and results of this study offer a transferable framework for identifying learning difficulties across various function types and contexts, complementing existing research on students’ understanding of linear functions.

Gutiérrez’s equity framework, derived from mathematics education research, defines equity in terms of four dimensions: access, achievement, identity, and power. Access and achievement yield outcomes that reify the status quo while identity and power transform schooling to redistribute power. We use Gutiérrez’s equity framework to study discourse about equity from 36 high school physics teachers who participated in an equity-focused professional development workshop. We found that the teachers’ equity discourse often includes aspects of the identity dimension, yet teachers tend to frame identity using what we call a deficit lens. That is, although teachers agree that student identity matters in equity work, they often treat student identity as a way to support access and achievement and as a reflection of why students are not “successful.” In Gutiérrez’s words, this means centering equity work on teaching students to “play the game.” We also found that the power dimension, which supports students in “changing the game,” tends to be rare in teachers’ discourse about equity and is often presented with varied interpretations. Our findings then suggest that teachers’ equity framings of identity and power reflect physics education scholarship and dominant narratives, which leads to the call for a collective effort to challenge and reframe identity in physics in relation to power.

Mathematics plays many roles in physics and physics education. While these roles have previously been extensively discussed in the physics education research community, no systematic picture of the multifaceted considerations has yet been formed. To gain a comprehensive overview of the previous studies on the topic, we conducted a systematic literature review on 122 journal articles published between 2000 and 2023 that examine the role of mathematics in physics and physics learning. In the reviewed articles, we employed qualitative content analysis, coded each article for its characteristics, and used network maps for visualization. We identified eight thematic article categories, highlighting the complex integration of mathematics in, for example, physical reasoning, problem solving, modeling, and experiments. Additionally, the review examines theoretical frameworks and contexts, revealing an overemphasis on problem solving in mechanics and a limited exploration of advanced physics topics like quantum mechanics. A detailed inductive analysis further identified six overarching roles that mathematics plays in physics and physics education: (i) supporting learning and achievement, (ii) enabling mathematical manipulations, (iii) guiding reasoning and sensemaking, (iv) facilitating experiments and modeling, (v) serving as a language, and (vi) providing a structural foundation for physics as a science. Based on the analysis, we discuss how the roles assigned to mathematics have been conceptualized in the reviewed articles and provide an overall picture of the types and features of the reviewed corpus. Our findings suggest opportunities for future research, including deeper explorations of underrepresented physics contexts and targeted investigations into specific roles of mathematics in teaching and learning.

This research was a qualitative transcendental phenomenological exploration of astronomy identity formation among astronomy majors and physics majors engaged in astronomy research. Participants ($N=10$), all of whom identified with traditionally marginalized groups in astronomy, were recruited from two large universities in New York state at different stages in their undergraduate careers. Social cognitive career theory and several science, technology, engineering, and mathematics identity frameworks conceptually guided the analysis of astronomy identity for undergraduate majors and undergraduate astronomy researchers by exploring participants’ interest in, choice to study, and persistence in astronomy. Themes related to astronomy interest were popular culture and directly observing astronomical phenomena, while astronomy choice and persistence were facilitated by experiences in introductory coursework, recognition from faculty, and socializing with peers. The emergent astronomy identity framework was characterized by six distinct yet interrelated constructs: (1) interest in astronomy, typically rooted in observing naturally occurring phenomena and engaging with popular culture; (2) recognition from peers, experts, and families; (3) peer socialization about shared astronomy experiences; (4) competence or the belief one can do the work of an astronomer; (5) sense of belonging within the astronomical community; and (6) astronomy career expectations. Findings from this research provide insights on factors that influence undergraduates in four-year colleges to study astronomy, and how students’ past experiences may lead to a natural interest in astronomy that may be fostered in secondary and postsecondary contexts. Implications suggest departments and institutions may facilitate the accessibility of astronomy at the collegiate level by promoting a more inclusive astronomy community, fostering interactions with astronomy faculty and graduate students, providing opportunities for undergraduate research, and communicating expectancy for astronomy-related future careers.

Clustering methods are often used in physics education research (PER) to identify subgroups of individuals within a population who share similar response patterns or characteristics. Among these, $k$-means (or $k$-modes, for categorical data) is one of the most commonly used clustering methods in PER. This algorithm, however, is distance-based rather than model-based: it relies on algorithmic partitioning and assigns each individual to one subgroup through hard assignment. Researchers must also conduct post hoc analyses to relate subgroup membership to other variables. Mixture models are a model-based alternative that offers several statistical tools for choosing the optimal number of subgroups, accounts for classification errors by assigning individuals probabilities of belonging to each subgroup rather than hard assignment, and allows researchers to directly integrate subgroup membership into a broader latent variable framework. In this paper, we outline the theoretical similarities and differences between $k$-modes clustering and latent class analysis (one type of mixture model for categorical data). We also present parallel analyses using each method to address the same research questions in order to demonstrate these similarities and differences. We provide the data and r code to replicate the worked example presented in the paper for researchers interested in using mixture models.

This case study used individual interviews to investigate graduate students’ sensemaking in upper-level electrostatics in the context of problems that can be efficiently solved for the electric potential using Laplace’s equation. Although there are many technical mathematical issues involved in solving Laplace’s equation, the focus of this research is not on those issues. Instead, the focus is on structural issues such as whether students recognize when solving Laplace’s equation would be an effective approach to finding the potential and set up the problems correctly, and whether they can draw the electric field lines and equipotential surfaces in a given situation. Although many prior investigations have shed light on student sensemaking in introductory physics contexts, very few investigations have focused on graduate student sensemaking while solving advanced physics problems. We present the findings of our research, which was conducted through the lens of the epistemic game framework proposed by Tuminaro and Redish. We observe different nested epistemic games played by students.

Examining teaching practices in university physics is crucial for addressing the lack of student achievement in and engagement with the subject. Research-based instructional strategies (RBIS) offer evidence-based methods to enhance student engagement and learning outcomes, but face adoption challenges due to institutional, contextual, and individual barriers, particularly in higher-year courses. This case study investigates how second-year physics instructors at a research-intensive university within a trimester system engaged with RBIS, using the EPIC-implementation model to guide analysis. A case-study approach, using semistructured interviews and secondary data (e.g., course evaluations and materials), explored instructors’ decision making through the EPIC-implementation model (exposure, persuasion, identification, commitment, and implementation). The study reveals how individual motivation, peer influence, institutional constraints, and discipline-specific challenges shape RBIS adoption. While some instructors maintained commitment, others reverted to traditional methods due to systemic barriers. Co-teaching dynamics played a key role in influencing adoption, yielding mixed results. The findings contribute to the growing literature on instructional change by highlighting the importance of institutional support, peer mentorship, and alignment with teaching philosophies in sustaining RBIS adoption in major courses beyond the first year. They highlight the need for supportive institutional frameworks, discipline-specific strategies, and the alignment of teaching methods with instructors’ values. This study provides practical insights for educators, institutional leaders, and policymakers to encourage innovative teaching practices in higher education.

Physics teacher identity encompasses teachers’ beliefs and views toward being a physics teacher. Physics teacher identity is influenced by teachers’ perspectives on physics teaching and learning. Previous studies on teacher identity in general suggest that the construct is complex and malleable. Studies further suggest that it influences instructional methods, student engagement, and classroom environment. However, within physics education, there has yet to be an examination of how physics teacher identity influences “equitable” teaching approaches. This qualitative study sought to identify various dimensions of physics teacher identity and its implications for physics education research. We interviewed secondary and postsecondary physics teachers ($n=10$) from different regions of the country with varying years of experience. We searched for consistent themes regarding the influence of physics teacher identity on equitable instruction using a conceptual framework that examines conceptions of self, others, knowledge, and pedagogy. Findings showed that teachers held a variety of conceptions of self and others, while many struggled to describe their conceptions of knowledge and pedagogy. Our findings are significant for physics teachers, educators, and researchers aiming to employ equitable teaching strategies. Ultimately, this study fostered a deeper understanding of the relationship between physics teacher identity and equitable instruction.

Enhancing students’ conceptual understanding is one of the primary goals of science education. Existing literature suggests that the degree of knowledge integration among students can reflect their level of conceptual understanding. This study focuses on the concept of friction force, constructing a cognitive structure model of friction force to depict the cognitive structure features of students with different levels of conceptual understanding. Additionally, a cognitive diagnostic test tool for friction force was developed. Based on this tool, 827 Chinese high school students were tested. The results demonstrate that the cognitive structure model of friction force is reasonable and can effectively characterize the knowledge structures of students with varying levels of conceptual understanding. Furthermore, analysis revealed multiple viable pathways for cognitive development. Based on empirical data, we identified the progression pathway optimally aligned with students’ cognitive schemata. The findings of this study provide a novel approach for mapping the cognitive development process of students and offer valuable information for personalized instructional guidance.

In this yearlong, naturalistic case study in a high school physics classroom, we examine the different dimensions of politicized care displayed by Sarah, an African American teacher teaching physics to working-class students of color traditionally underserved in science. Through extended field observations and a series of interviews with the teacher, we identified the various forms of care, social, epistemic, and academic, that Sarah expressed for her students throughout her teaching. We recognized that these forms of care are manifestations of Sarah’s politicized care. As we traced Sarah’s care along these different forms, we identified tensions and synergies among these expressions of care, differentially shaping opportunities for students’ disciplinary learning. More broadly, our findings call for conceptualizing politicized care as an essential aspect of effective physics teaching, especially for minoritized students. This care involves careful acts of balancing disciplinary and teaching demands, mindful of wider societal and institutional inequities while honoring children as social, academic, and epistemic beings. Such care for her students can be understood as an intentional act of resistance to current oppressive educational and wider societal systems.