- Winter 2023
Syllabus Description:
Welcome to PHYS 501-502-503. The instructors of these courses are:
- Peter Shaffer (he/him) for PHYS 501
- Kazumi Tolich (she/her) for PHYS 502
- Nikolai Tolich (he/him) for PHYS 503
In this class everyone is welcome, regardless of other identities you hold in addition to that of physics student. We expect everyone in this class to treat each other with respect.
Note on mode of operation:
This class is conducted in-person. Students are expected to participate in class to fully benefit from course activities and meet the course’s learning objectives. To protect their fellow students, faculty, and staff, students who feel ill or exhibit possible COVID symptoms should not come to class. When absent, it is the responsibility of the student to inform the instructor in advance (or as close to the class period as possible in the case of an unexpected absence) so that we can make arrangements for you to make up the missed work.
Introduction
Phys 501-502-503 courses are designed to prepare teaching assistants (TAs) to teach introductory physics tutorials and labs.
- Phys 501 prepares TAs for Phys 121
- Phys 502 prepares TAs for Phys 122
- Phys 503 prepares TAs for Phys 123
The courses also give students a chance to strengthen their understanding of introductory physics concepts and the connections between the physics formalism, the underlying models, and real-world phenomena.
Each quarter we will also introduce different aspects of education research and classroom management. This quarter, the planned topics include:
- Socratic method
- Rubric and grading
- Group dynamics
- Learning objectives
- Formative and summative assessments
New TAs in the physics department are required to complete the Phys 501-502-503 series to be considered for future TA positions. You can take these courses in any order, and you do not need to do them in consecutive quarters. The course you take will depend on your TA assignment in that quarter, so you should enroll after you have been given your TA assignment. During your first quarters as a TA in the physics department, you will be assigned as a TA for each of Phys 121, 122 and 123, but not necessarily in that order.
Learning objectives
By the end of this course, students will demonstrate the ability to:
- Understand introductory physics concepts and the connections between the physics formalism, the underlying models, and real-world phenomena well enough to teach those topics.
- Teach students in PHYS 121/122/123 tutorial and lab sections with an awareness of best pedagogical practices.
Contact information
You can contact us by sending an email to
- Peter Shaffer: shafferp@uw.edu
- Kazumi Tolich: ktolich@uw.edu
- Nikolai Tolich: ntolich@uw.edu
Course Material
No material is required for purchase. We will provide copies of any material required for this course.
Schedule
On Mondays from 1:30 PM to 2:20 PM, we will prepare you for that week's lab. The meeting locations are as follows:
- PHYS 501 in PAB B108
- PHYS 502 in PAB B176
- PHYS 503 in PAB B123
On Wednesdays, we will discuss aspects of education research and classroom management (except two days where we prepare for tutorials this quarter due to Monday holidays). PHYS 501, 502 and 503 will meet together from 1:30 PM to 2:20 PM in PAT C211.
On Fridays from 1:30 PM to 2:20 PM, we will prepare you for the following week's tutorial (except two days where we prepare for labs this quarter due to Monday holidays). The meeting locations are as follows:
- PHYS 501 in PAT C211
- PHYS 502 in PAB B156
- PHYS 503 in PAT C231
The tentative schedule of topics is shown below.
-
Week Date Monday Wednesday Friday 1 1/2 No class Introduction Tut 1 prep 2 1/9 Lab 1 prep Tut 2 prep Lab 2 prep 3 1/16 No class Socratic method Tut 3 prep 4 1/23 Lab 3 prep Rubric and grading Tut 4 prep 5 1/30 Lab 4 prep Group dynamics Tut 5 prep 6 2/6 Lab 5 prep No class Tut 6 prep 7 2/13 Lab 6 prep Tut 7 prep Lab 7 prep 8 2/20 No class Formative and summative assessments Tut 8 prep 9 2/27 Lab 8 prep Learning objectives Tut 9 prep 10 3/6 No class No class No class
Assignments and Grades
This is credit/no-credit course. To get credit you must have no unexcused absences, and your weighted score must be greater than 90%.
Pedagogy class preparation (40% of grade)
- To prepare for the Wednesday classes, you will have a weekly reading assignment or other activity.
- After you have completed the assigned activity for the week you will post a short discussion about the assignment that will be graded based on a thoughtful response.
Tutorial class preparation (20% of grade)
- To prepare for the tutorial preparation classes, you will work through the upcoming tutorial on your own and post a discussion on what you think the common student difficulties or misconceptions that this tutorial is designed to address. These discussions will be graded based on a thoughtful response.
In class participation (40% of grade)
- You are required to attend the Monday, Wednesday, and Friday class meetings and to participate in discussions.
- Each meeting will be graded based on the following rubric:
- Adequate (2 points): Actively engaged in discussion.
- Needs improvement (1 point): Did not significantly contribute to discussion.
- Missing (0 points): Did not participate.
If you cannot participate in a class meeting, let the appropriate instructor know as soon as possible so that we can make arrangements for you to make up the missed meeting.
If you get a score of 1 point for a meeting, we will meet so that we can discuss expectations.
Access and accommodation
Your experience in this class is important to us, so if you have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations (conditions include but are not limited to: mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical), please contact DRS to arrange accommodations.
If you would like to share any accommodation needs that you may have, please contact us.
Safe campus
We are committed to ensuring a safe environment on campus. We encourage you to check out the resources available here.
Religious Accommodations
Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy (https://registrar.washington.edu/staffandfaculty/religious-accommodations-policy/). Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form (https://registrar.washington.edu/students/religious-accommodations-request/).