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INNOVATION ABSTRACTS

 

VOLUME X, NUMBER 24

 

ENT, THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
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The Physics Student’s Survival Kit

I do not teach physics, but I try to teach students of
physics—the subtle difference produces a fantastic
attitudinal difference! Physics is a demanding subject;

in order to help present students “survive,” I have gath-
ered survival strategics from former successful students

and incorporated them into this document. Other in-

structors may find merit in these ideas and use them to

produce brochures for their own disciplines.
The Survival Kit
What's It All About?

Have you registered for a course in College Physics?

Do you want to pass the course? Two “YES’S”—and
you may need the crutches in these pages!

This brochure memorializes each of your predeces-
sors who timorously registered for a course in College
Physics and who struggled to become a superstes. It is
gratefully dedicated to those who discovered enough
fun in the fundamentals of physics to persist.

Successful students have enumerated all of the
suggestions contained here. They found them helpful,
and they share them in the hope that you will adopt
those which will guarantee your survival.

Am I Ready for Physics?
You ARE, if you have three of the four following
qualifications:
1. Adequate math skills
2. Minimum modulus of motivation
3. Borderline criterion of formal thought
4. Acceptable coefficient of curiosity
1. ADEQUATE MATH SKILLS
Take the Diagnostic Math Self-Test, Appendix B, of

this brochure. A grade of 85% or better tells you that

you qualify.

. MINIMUM MODULUS OF MOTIVATION
Motivation is not readily quantified, but some of its
components can be identified and manipulated to

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give a numerical result. This result we'll call an MM

.. a Modulus of Motivation. The formula is:
MM = 40x CA + 10x Q-2 x (EH- 20)

where CA = percent (expressed decimally) of total

class hours you expect to be in attendance;
Q = number of times you anticipate asking
questions about confusing material;

EH = number of hours of gainful employment
per week. A minimum or qualifying MM = 50.

3. BORDERLINE CRITERION OF FORMAL
THOUGHT
The most important single indicator of probable
success in the study of physics is the ability to reason
formally. You may not even know what formal
reasoning is, but in Appendix C is a raw test to
determine your Criterion of Formal Thought (CFT).
If your CFT>0 you qualify on this item.

4. COEFFICIENT OF CURIOSITY
An ingredient essential to the successful pursuit of
scientific knowledge is curiosity. During the 1985-86
school year, a group of students devised the formula
in Appendix D to determine a Coefficient of Curios-
ity. While somewhat whimsical, it expresses a rela-
tionship of factors which they perceived to be
significant and for each of which they submitted a
rationale. An acceptable CC = 4 kS.

What If?

If your answer to the question: AM I READY FOR
PHYSICS? is YES—then this kit may be needed only in
emergencies.

If your answer to the preceding question is NO—you
are NOT ready for physics—your immediate task is to
change whatever you can to qualify and to grasp at the
survival strategies that follow.

What Are Some Survival Strategies?

1. Take good notes in class. Since all tests are open-
notes, this is the strategy most often cited as being of
fundamental importance. Many students suggested
rewriting the notes, putting them in a loose-leaf
notebook, and using tabs to label chapter headings or
special topics. The goal: Have notes which are useful to
you! For every definition, add explanations which
clarify the concepts. For formulas, write first the
conditions for which the formula is valid, then, after
the formula, the quantity represented by each
symbol. Since every correct physical formula must
be dimensionally consistent, take special note of the
units involved.

2. Read the text. Highlight a few words or sentences

per page—don’t overdo it!

 

 

MA py} EDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)
Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin

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