High School
Curriculum Materials
Comparison Table
Erin E. Peters
August 5, 2006
|
|
Modeling
Instruction Program |
Conceptual Physics |
Active Physics |
Physics: Principles
and Problems |
|
Company Name |
|
Addison-Wesley |
It’s About Time |
Glencoe/McGraw
Hill |
|
Dates of creation |
More than a decade
of development |
Started in 1976 |
Not
mentioned, but it is new – this is the first edition |
First
edition came out in 2002 |
|
Costs |
I couldn’t find
any prices – Free? |
Student edition
$120 Teacher’s edition
$120 |
Each of the seven
modules are $17 for the soft cover, $21 for the hard cover, and $61 for the
teacher’s edition Video tapes are
$30 |
Student text $65 Student lab book
$14 Teacher bundled
materials $320 Performance
assessments $24 |
|
Ordering
Information |
There are
downloadable workshops on the website and a list of teachers authorized to perform
workshops. The closest one on the list is in Spotsylvania Co.! |
Available on the
website or your local representative of Pearson/Addison-Wesley |
Find your state
representative at http://www.its-about-time.com/states/staterep.html |
Available on the
website or your local representative of Glencoe/McGraw-Hill http://www.glencoe.com/sites/virginia/teacher/science/index.html |
|
URL for web site |
http://modeling.asu.edu/ |
http://www.conceptualphysics.com/cp.shtml |
http://www.its-about-time.com/htmls/ap.html |
www.glencoe.com |
|
Description of
student materials |
Diagrams of
phenomena, lab report sheets, whiteboards and lab equipment |
Textbook and lab book
called “Touch This” |
Small texts that
start off with background information then proceed through several
investigations to build ideas |
Traditional
textbook with reading and problems at the end of the chapter. Also has a lab
book and a studying at the end of the course book – really. Includes design your own labs, traditional
labs, and internet labs. Each sample problem has three steps used to solve it
– the book company actually promotes this procedure. |
|
Description of
teacher materials |
Background
knowledge, demonstrations, lab report evaluations, tests and quizzes |
Teacher edition
provides lab set ups and answers to questions |
Teachers guide
gives suggestions for managing investigations |
Text book, fast
files (the worksheets by chapter), critical thinking books, science skills
books, lab books |
|
Science disciplines
covered |
Physics |
Physics |
Physics |
Physics |
|
Assessments
available |
Tests and quizzes |
Next time
questions, conceptual development and text bank |
The assessments are
determined by teacher and student – for example, the text encourages teachers
to find out from students “What makes a valuable proposal?” and make a rubric
from that |
Tests and quizzes
in the Fast File book |
|
Other languages
available? |
There is a
powerpoint in English and in Spanish for convincing parents that the program
is worthwhile |
None found on
website |
None found on
website |
Spanish |
|
Age group range |
11-12 grade |
9-12 grade |
9th
grade (could be used up to 12th for struggling students) |
11-12th
grade |
|
Strengths |
Lots of support
for teacher professional development to go to the workshops. There is even a
sample grant proposal that can be downloaded to ask principals for funding.
The project involves ongoing research, so the units are constantly being
revised |
Hewitt is very good at explaining through pictures,
analogies and everyday occurrences. The labs are mostly cookbook, but there
are many attempts at more open ended questions guiding activities |
This program
really hooks students into physics in their world. Very engaging, thoughtful
program |
Very traditional
approach to physics instruction |
|
Weaknesses |
The content is
still very traditional – the Atwood machine, projectile motion with pennies. There
isn’t much connection to real world phenomena and the experiments are always
controlled experiments as evidenced by the sample lab evaluation form. |
This series is
limited by using reading, discussion, and demonstration as the guiding tools
for instruction |
There is a great
deal of responsibility placed on the teacher in this program – creating many
of the rubrics alone may turn teachers off of this program Otherwise, very
strong program |
This book is
heavily equipped with “drill and kill” types of problems. There are examples
given in the text that ALWAYS use three steps to solve the problems. The
inquiry labs are one-dimensional and the internet labs have minimal content. |
|
AAAS Rating |
Physics not
evaluated yet |
Physics not
evaluated yet |
Physics not
evaluated yet |
Physics not
evaluated yet |
|
Correlated to SOLs
or AP, IB standards? |
Draws from core
physics principles described in AAAS Benchmarks |
No |
Written from NSES
standards, so closely correlated to state standards. They have all states on
the website |
No |
|
Is readability
matched to level of the student? |
Not much reading
involved. Many of the activities begin with a demonstration/discussion then
move to experimentation |
Very readable |
Set below – at an
eighth grade level |
No conceptual
“story” just a list of vocabulary with problem sets. |
|
Support a hands-on
approach? |
Yes |
Only if you
actively incorporate the labs |
Very little
reading – almost all of the curriculum is hands-on |
Some support, but
not nearly enough |
|
Support an
inquiry-based approach? |
Most of the labs
are controlled experimental conditions, not an open ended inquiry. The open
choices for students come into play when students design the experiment |
Very guided
inquiry in some of the labs |
Lots of student-lead
inquiry |
The inquiry labs
make an attempt, but they are shallow |
|
Research support of
program |
This project has been the focus of educational research by David Hestenes and collaborators since 1980 Modeling Instruction in Physics was recognized in 2000 by the U.S. Department of Education as one of the seven best K-12 educational technology programs out of 134 programs evaluated. Modeling Instruction in Physics was recognized in 2001 by the U.S. Department of Education as one of two exemplary programs in K-12 Science Education. |
Philosophy is on
the website, but no research |
Case studies are
on the website, but they are really just testimonials of 6 teachers. |
None on the
website or mentioned in the book |
|
Are concepts
organized around “big ideas”? |
Yes – core physics
concepts |
Organized around chapters |
Yes – each book is
independent of the others |
Organized around
chapters |
|
NOS? |
One of the
evaluation questions is “How did you know that?” but other than that, not
explicit. |
Some history of
science is mentioned in the text |
Nothing explicit |
No |
|
Provides teacher
support to support learners? |
Yes – there are
always workshops in the summer |
None other than
the excellent descriptions of physical phenomena |
Yes – lots of
notes for teachers to provide scaffolding Workshops and conferences
available |
No – only answers
to problems |
|
Provides materials
to “scaffold” learning? |
Yes – teachers are
guiding students to examine foundational physics concepts |
The text offers opportunities
for a creative teacher to develop helpful scaffolds through skills |
Yes- they
explicitly take a constructivist approach |
The three step
approach, but this is too lock-step Includes honors
problems in another book you can buy. |
|
Integrate skills
with concepts? |
Yes – process with
content |
The text offers
opportunities for a creative teacher to develop helpful scaffolds through
skills |
Yes – very
interactive |
No |
|
Depth over breadth
of content |
Yes |
Yes – his ideas help
you to see physics all around you |
Since this is
geared toward younger students, it is about equal depth and breadth |
No |
|
Incorporate
technology resources? |
Yes – Vernier,
spreadsheets and calculator based labs |
There is a website
that is available when you purchase the book. The title page says that the
site is award winning. His videos of the
demonstrations are hilarious |
Software,
probeware and test generators are available as well as the videos |
Yes “interactive
books” that read the text selected Test bank “What’s Physics
Got to Do with It?” DVD – physics careers and everyday events on DVD |
|
Assessments inform
instruction? |
Quizzes are
offered in the package for formative assessment |
Very traditional
assessments – end of the chapter questions, quizzes and tests |
There are
performance assessments as well as about 9 checks within each unit |
No – they are
drill exercises |
|
Review materials
cumulative over time? |
The presentations after
the labs serve as the review materials. |
No |
No – each unit is
stand alone |
No |
|
Review materials
varied? |
Not really, all of
the modules have the same structure – demonstration, investigation,
presentation and justification |
No |
Yes – performance
assessments, create your own assessments and traditional questions |
No |
|
Materials free from
error? |
I found lots of
typos on their website, but that is minor |
It is on the 10th
edition – looks pretty good |
Yes – there are
links showing where typos appear in the first edition |
Apparently not,
they call motion and momentum types of forces |
|
Free from racial
ethnic or gender stereotypes? |
No mention of
people – only objects |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Common
misconceptions addressed? |
Yes – teachers are
supplied with a packet addressing common misconceptions |
Yes – in the text
rather than in the teacher notes |
Yes |
No |
|
Concrete examples
of concepts provided? |
No, this is about
modeling not concrete objects |
The entire series is
based on concrete examples |
The series is
based on everyday events |
In the DVD and
sometimes in pictures, but there isn’t a huge connection |
|
Rating |
*** |
**1/2 |
***1/2 |
* |