IMPROVING PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE PHYSICS OF MINORITY STUDENTS ASPIRING TO SCIENCE-RELATED CAREERS: INVESTIGATION OF STUDENT DIFFICULTIES AND DEVELOPMENT OF APPROPRIATE CURRICULUM

This dissertation reports on a project, begun in 1976 by the Physics Education Group at the University of Washington, to improve the performance of minority undergraduates in physics and other science courses required for admission to engineering, medicine, and other technical professions. The project has two main elements. The first is an investigation of specific conceptual and reasoning difficulties encountered by the students in the study of physics and physical science. This investigation forms the basis of an empirical assessment of the students' academic needs. The second is the use of this assessment in developing a curriculum specifically designed to help students overcome the difficulties they experience in introductory science courses. The research and curriculum development have taken place in the context of a special physics course to help prepare minority college students for science-related majors.;The effectiveness of the project is discussed in terms of student achievement at the University of Washington and curriculum adoption by other institutions. It appears that the goal of increasing minority representation in the sciences through action at the college level is a realistic one.;*Copyrighted Appendixes B, C, and D available for consultation at University of Washington Library. UMI.;Specific difficulties encountered by the students as they work through the subject matter of the course have been identified and grouped into three categories: difficulty with basic concepts, difficulty with scientific representations, and difficulty with scientific reasoning. Curriculum development has focused on helping students overcome these difficulties. The dissertation gives the results of the investigation and presents samples of the curriculum with a discussion of the principles of its design. The dissertation also illustrates how the close association of investigation of difficulties, development of curriculum, and teaching of the course has provided an environment that allows continuous feedback on the design of instructional materials and facilitates the tasks of testing, evaluation, and revision.