ERIC Number: EJ1213637
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019-May
Pages: 4
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0031-921X
EISSN: N/A
Using Games to Understand Physics Concepts
Olmstead, Matt
Physics Teacher, v57 n5 p304-307 May 2019
Throughout students' careers in physics, there are some topics that they learn multiple times and in multiple ways, and other topics that are briefly, if at all, discussed. I wanted to have the students think about all of the different physics topics they had learned in, most likely, a new way. Games have been used as a way to learn new physics ideas, as a way to examine the scientific process, and for other educational endeavors. I wanted to use a game to think about many physics topics from a different perspective. I modified a board game to enable students to have a competitive atmosphere in which they would be physically drawing and guessing physics ideas. In the game, every player is simultaneously drawing a specific item from a selection of items and also guessing what the other players are drawing. After each round, we would discuss their pictures, misconceptions, misremembered subjects, and other aspects of the drawings. While this game was first used in a senior seminar course, it can easily be modified to other courses and has since been used during a three-week high school outreach course.
Descriptors: Physics, Science Instruction, Scientific Concepts, Teaching Methods, Game Based Learning, Competition, Concept Formation, Misconceptions, Freehand Drawing, High School Students
American Association of Physics Teachers. One Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740. Tel: 301-209-3300; Fax: 301-209-0845; e-mail: pubs@aapt.org; Web site: http://aapt.scitation.org/journal/pte
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A