Physics 5A
“General Physics: Mechanics, Heat, and Sound”
SacramentoStateUniversityShea - Fall 2007
SYLLABUS
Course Description: The Physics 5A-B sequence is a two-semester course in introductory physics in which fundamental concepts are emphasized including manyapplications across other science disciplines. These courses satisfy the physics requirement for several health related majors, and biology, geology, chemistry(BA)and several engineering majors. Lecture one hour, Discussion/ Laboratory 2.5 hours twice a week.
Prerequisites: Recently completed three years of high school algebra, geometry and a college course in algebra and trigonometry - MATH 9 and/or Physics 1 is recommended for those students having an inadequate mathematics/basic science background.
Schedule: / DAY / TIME / ROOM / INSTRUCTORLecture Sec 7&10 / M / 9 - 9:50 / MND 1015 / Shea
D/L Sec 8&9 / W,F / 8-10:15 / SQU 242 / Shea
D/L Sec 11&12 / W,F / 11:00-1:15 / SQU 242 / Shea
Dr. Michael Shea, Professor of Physics
SQU 432
Office:SQU 432
Office hours:PhysicsTutoringCenter: SQU 124TTh. 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
In my office SQU 432 Mon. 10:00 to 11:00 a.m.
In D/L Lab SQU 242 Wed and Fri. 10:15 to 11:00 a.m.
Or make an appointment using e-mail
Campus Phone: 278-6540Generally you will have to leave a voice mail which I try to check before 8 a.m.in the morning.
E-Mail: .... This is the best way to communicate!
Web Page: csus.edu/indiv/s/sheamj/
Required Stuff: Textbook: “Physics” Vol. 1, Giambattista, Richardson, Richardson
“Physics 5A Discussion/Lab Workbook” Fall 2005, Newcomb
3-ring binder (2-2½ in. diameter rings) and appropriate binder paper. This will be called your “Course Notebook”.
Student Learning Objectives
A. Classroom Strategy to Optimize Learning:This course is structured in a format that is becoming increasingly adopted in the Physics education community. The main feature of this format is to get students out of the large lecture hall and put them in an environment where they interact closely with their peers and the instructor. Physics 5A has just one hour of lecture on Monday and 2.25 hours of discussion/lab (D/L) on Wednesday and Friday. Probably most university classes you have taken have been “teacher centered” with the professor, in a lecture format, telling you things you should “know” and then later you demonstrate your understanding by telling the things back during a quiz or test. Physics is not that kind of a subject and this is not that kind of class. The “D/L” classroom strategy is structured to provide you opportunities to learn along side your peers. It will be your responsibility to take advantage of these opportunities by becoming an involved, hardworking active learner. I like to think of what we do in D/Ls as “practice”, practicing how to use the tools of basic science to understand the physical world around you, just like you practice your golf stroke or piano scales to get better. With your hard work you will develop some powerful intellectual tools that can be used across all scientific and technical fields, which is the reason you are required to take this course.
Remember, you are responsible for your learning. The instructors cannot learn for you any more than you can develop cardiovascular capacity by watching someone else run everyday.
B. Physics Content Learning Objectives: The subject matter or topical content of the course is the traditional mechanics, thermodynamics, waves and sound sequence that is standard throughout the first semester of “general physics”. A quick look at topics in the weekly course outline or the table of contents of the text is the most efficient way to see this in detail. This is not the whole story, though, because it gives little insight into the underlying themes that we will try to help you understand and the technical and analytic skills we hope that you will develop through your studies and effort.
The primary knowledge that will be learned and skills and abilities that we will be developed are:
- Units and dimensions and metric literacy.
- Using mathematics, algebra and trig, to describe the real world.
- Interpreting graphs…slopes, rates of change, etc.
- Measurement skills… data taking, and interpretation, error analysis, etc.
- Practice communicating with models which describe the physical world using pictures, words, and numbers.
- Computer skills, especially data acquisition, graphing and use of spreadsheets.
- Systems thinking and the use of conservation laws to determine the limits of change in a system.
- An appreciation for the simplicity, power and usefulness of the underlying physical laws as applied in your discipline
C. Discussion/LabWork and communication of technical information: Lab work is an important part of this course. However, instead of “doing a lab” and turning in what is sometimes called a formal lab report each week, D/L lab work will involve a number of different activities which are more closely integrated with instruction and will promote learning. The focus of D/L Work will be on you developing the skill to communicate technical information both orally and in written form. The importance of student talk in facilitating learning has been has been established in many physics education research studies and is now being incorporated as a key learning tool in science classrooms. Peer talk in the classroom and expressing your thinking in written form will offer you opportunities to construct new ways of understanding the science knowledge being presented. The specific activities will include:
(i)working together in your group to solve “rich” open ended problems that you have not seen before. I will refer to this as practice and for full benefit will require you to fully participate in your group
(ii) doing lab work in which you determine the procedure and how you will present your resultsinstead of following a set of instruction which rob you of an opportunity to think and reason which is to learn.
(iii) observing demonstrations of physical phenomenon presented in lecture and D/L and then discussing them in your group and writing aboutthem in your workbook.
(iii) working through the practice problems in the book on your own and sometimes in D/L. Note that the answers to practice problems are given at the end of each chapter.
(iv) discussing homework problems in D/L and in the process explaining your work and defending your reasoning to your peers. It will be necessary for you to come prepared with your solutions and/or questions about the problems in order to fully benefit for this discussion.
(v) working with a study group outside of the class to discuss homework and to prepare for exams.
Most of you will not be research scientists, but you will presumably be technical professionals who will be expected to understandand apply technical information, do careful and accurate analytical work and to document and communicate both orally and in written form what you have done to who ever is paying your salary. It should be worth your effort and their money. When you do D/L work in this class, you should think of yourself as a professional technical consultant who has been hired to do a study and produceuseful information for your employer. You need to be proud of your work and enjoy presenting it to others.
Evaluation and Grading
Your performance in this course in terms of a final grade will be based on the following:
Exams
Three midterms and a comprehensive final exam will be given. These exams will consist of short answer questions and problems that are designed to test how well you can apply your Physics knowledge and show understanding of physics concepts. You can use a 6” x 4” card with information in exams (one for Exam 1, two for exam 2, 3 for exam 3, and 4 for the final exam.
No make-up exams will be given. Any points lost when missing a midterm exam will be added to the final exam. A letter grade will be assigned to your final exam and may be used in determining your final course grade when higher than your grade based on total points accumulated.
D/L attendance and participation
You are expected to actively contribute to the work that is assigned in D/Ls,both by participating in the day-to-day class activities and completing the activities and lab work assigned. The points awarded will be determined by comparing your effort and performance to a good “average” student who is involved in the course, comes on time and does not leave early, participates actively and seriously in their group and does most of the work assigned. Such a person will get about 80% of the available points, which is a B level. Those who miss class (more than two D/Ls), are often late for class, do not turn in assignments regularly, and do not participate much in their groups will loose most of these points.
D/L Quizzes
Essentially every week there will be a quiz in the D/Ls. Your grade will be based on how well you demonstrate your understanding of the physics knowledge being examined. You will generally have the opportunity to consult with your group on your quiz before turning it in to me. There will be no make-up quizzes given. Quizzes will be graded on bases of ten points.
D/LWork
Your D/L lab grade will be based on your ability to demonstrating understanding of the physics concepts being considered through written presentation of (i) lab work, (ii) practice problems done in D/L, and (iii) the quality of your written work on homework, quizzes, and practice problems taken form the book. You will receive a number grade from 1 to 5 based on the level of your D/L work as specified by a D/L rubric. The rubric will be handed out and discussed in D/L.
Homework
Each week problems and questions will be assigned from the book. The HW will be collected and evaluated. The format required for the homework and the way it will be evaluated will be discussed in the D/Ls. No late HW will be accepted. You are responsible for all material that is covered in the HW assignments and lectures and will be tested on those topics in the mid-term exams and the final exam!
Points will be assigned for the above parts of the course and added up to give a point total for the course. If a person shows significant improvement on the comprehensive final exam I will consider boosting their grade accordingly.
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