Choosing to Major in Physics, or Not: Factors Affecting Undergraduate Decision Making
Abstract
For the past 40 years, there has been apprehension in North American society, and particularly in the scientific community, concerning the decline of interest and enrollment in science degree programs at the post-secondary level. This trend has proven very difficult to reverse. The purpose of this study was to explore why students at an Atlantic Canadian university pursue a major in physics, and why other eligible students make different choices. Both the students themselves and their physics professors were consulted in the course of this investigation. With a post structural, constructivist theoretical framework, an instrumental case study of this university is presented using a qualitative online survey for students and semi-structured interviews with their professors. Data from this study supports the theory of physics identity proposed by Hazari et al. (2010). The themes reflected the four dimensions of physics identity, namely, interest, recognition, performance, and competence, with interest appearing as the most important of the four. One additional dimension, the career prospects problem, was reflected within the themes of this study. This research begins to address the concern of low enrollments by examining the decision-making process of first-year physics students to stay-the-course or to pursue other options with a clear indication that as physics educationalists, we need to clearly articulate viable career options available to those who hold an undergraduate physics degree. Else, students will choose degrees whose career paths have been clearly labeled by society.
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http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Saul/
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Stadler, H., Duit, R., & Benke, G. (2000).Do Boys and Girls Understand Physics Differently? Physics Education, 35 (6), 417-22.
Stake, R. E. (2005). Qualitative Case Studies. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research, (pp. 443-466). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc. the gap. American Journal of Physics, 59 (4). doi: 10.1119/1.16539
Tobias, S. (1990). They’re not dumb, they’re different: Stalking the second tier. Tucson, AZ: Research Corporation. van Aalst, J. (2000). An introduction to physics education research. Canadian Journal of Physics, 78 (1), 57-71.
Wieman, C. E. (2005). Engaging students with active thinking. Peer Review, 7 (2), 23.
Wieman, C., & Perkins, K. (2005). Transforming Physics Education. Physics Today, 58 (11), 36- 41.
Woolnough, B. E. (1994). Why students choose physics, or reject it. Physics Education, 29 (6),368-374. doi: 10.1088/0031-9120/29/6/006
Aguilar, L., Walton, G., & Wieman, C. (2014). Psychological insights for improved physics teaching. Physics Today, 67, (5), 43-49. Doi: 10.1063/PT.3.2383
Aikenhead, G. (2006). Science Education for Everyday Life: Evidence-Based Practice. New York, NY: Teachers College.
Angell, C., Guttersrud, O., Henriksen, E. K., & Isnes, A. (2004). Physics: Frightful, But Fun: Pupils’ and Teachers’ Views of Physics and Physics Teaching. Science Education, 88 (5), 683-706. Doi: 10.1002/sce.10141
Camporesi, T. (2001). High-energy physics as a career springboard. European Journal of Physics, 22 (2), 139-148.
Canadian Association of Physicists. (2010). Physics Careers: Get Ready for the Real World. Retrieved May 13, 2015 from https://www.cap.ca/careers/home/employmentprospects.html
Carson, B. H. (1996). Thirty years of stories. (Cover story). Change, 28(6), 10.
Cleaves, A. (2005). The formation of science choices in secondary school. International Journal of Science Education, 27 (4), 471-486.
Dean, C. (2007, September 25). When science suddenly mattered, in space and in class. New York Times. Retrieved July 16, 2014 from http://www.nytimes.com/ 2007/09/25/science/space/25educ.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Gonsalves, A. (2012). Physics and the girly girl - there is a contradiction somewhere. Cultural Studies of Science Education, October 2012. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11422-012- 9447-6
Guba, E. G., & Lincoln, Y. S. (2005). Paradigmatic Controversies, Contradictions, and Emerging Confluences. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research (pp. 191-215). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Hake, R. R. (1998). Interactive-engagement versus traditional methods: A six-thousand-student survey of mechanics. American Journal of Physics, 66 (1) doi: 10.1119/1.18809
Harlow, J. J. B., Harrison, D. M., & Meyertholen, A. (2014). Correlating student interest and high school preparation with learning and performance in an introductory university physics course. Physical Review Special Topics - Physics Education Research, 10 (1). Doi: 10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.10.010112
Harrison, D. M. (2014). On Resistance to Implementing Physics Education Research Results in Physics Courses. Retrieved July 16, 2014 from
http://www.upscale.utoronto.ca/PVB/Harrison/ResistanceToPER/ResistanceToPER.pdf
Haussler, P., & Hoffmann, L. (2000). A Curricular Frame for Physics Education: Development, Comparison with Students' Interests, and Impact on Students' Achievement and Self-Concept. Science Education, 84 (6), 689-705.
Haussler, P., & Hoffmann, L. (2002). An Intervention Study To Enhance Girls' Interest, Self- Concept, and Achievement in Physics Classes. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 39 (9), 870-888. Doi: 10.1002/tea.10048
Hazari, Z., Sonnert, G., Sadler, P. M., & Shanahan M-C. (2010). Connecting High School Physics Experiences, Outcome Expectations, Physics Identity, and Physics Career Choice: A Gender Study. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 47 (8), 978-1003. doi: 10.1002/tea.20363
Hazari, Z., Tai, R. H., & Sadler, P. M. (2007). Gender Differences in Introductory University Physics Performance: The Influence of High School Physics Preparation and Affective Factors. Science Education, 91 (6), 847-876. Doi: 10.1002/sce.20223
Kvale, S. (1992). Psychology and Postmodernism. London: Sage. Langer Tesfaye, C., & Mulvey, P. (2012). Physics Bachelors: Initial Employment. Focus On:
American Institute of Physics. Retrieved from http://www.aip.org/sites/default/files/statistics/employment/bachinitemp-p-10.pdf.
Langer Tesfaye, C., & Mulvey, P. (2014). Physics Bachelors: One Year After Degree. Focus On: American Institute of Physics. Retrieved from http://www.aip.org/sites/default/files/statistics/employment/bach1yrafterdeg-p-12.2.pdf.
Malcom, S. M. (1990). Essay: Who will do science in the next century? Scientific American 262 (2) 112.
McDermott, L. C. (1991). Millikan Lecture 1990: What we teach and what is learned—Closing
Mulvey, P. J., & Nicholson, S. (2011). Physics Enrollments: Results from the 2008 Survey of Enrollments and Degrees. Focus On: American Institute of Physics. Retrieved from http://www.aip.org/sites/default/files/statistics/undergrad/enrollments-p-08.pdf.
Nicholson, S., & Mulvey, P. J. (2013). Roster of Physics Departments with Enrollment and Degree Data. Focus On: American Institute of Physics. Retrieved from http://www.aip.org/sites/default/files/statistics/rosters/physrost12.pdf.
Oliver, D. L. (2010). Careers in Patent Law for Physics Majors. Physics Teacher, 48 (8), 528-530.
Perkins, K. K., & Gratny, M. (2010). Who becomes a Physics major? A long-term Longitudinal Study Examining the Roles of Pre-College Beliefs about Physics and Learning Physics, Interest, and Academic Achievement. AIP Conference Proceedings, 1289 (1), 253-256. Doi: 10.1063/1.3515214
Perkins, K. K., Gratny, M. M., Adams, W. K., Finkelstein, N. D., & Wieman, C. E. (2006). Towards characterizing the relationship between students’ interest in and their beliefs about physics. AIP Conference Proceedings, 818 (1), 137-140. Doi: 10.1063/1.2177042
Pimbley, J. M. (1997). Physicists in finance. Physics Today, 50 (1), 42-46.
Redish, E. F., & Hammer, D. (2009). Reinventing college physics for biologists: Explicating an epistemological curriculum. American Journal of Physics, 77 (7), 629-642. Doi: 10.1119/1.3119150
Rigden, J., & American Institute of Physics. (2002). Landing your first job: A guide for physics students. American Institute of Physics, Career Services Division.
Saul, J. M. (1998). Beyond problem solving: Evaluating introductory physics courses through the hidden curriculum. Retrieved September 28, 2014 from:
http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/dissertations/Saul/
Seymour, E., & Hewitt, N. M. (1997). Talking about Leaving: Why Undergraduates Leave the Sciences. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Stadler, H., Duit, R., & Benke, G. (2000).Do Boys and Girls Understand Physics Differently? Physics Education, 35 (6), 417-22.
Stake, R. E. (2005). Qualitative Case Studies. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research, (pp. 443-466). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc. the gap. American Journal of Physics, 59 (4). doi: 10.1119/1.16539
Tobias, S. (1990). They’re not dumb, they’re different: Stalking the second tier. Tucson, AZ: Research Corporation. van Aalst, J. (2000). An introduction to physics education research. Canadian Journal of Physics, 78 (1), 57-71.
Wieman, C. E. (2005). Engaging students with active thinking. Peer Review, 7 (2), 23.
Wieman, C., & Perkins, K. (2005). Transforming Physics Education. Physics Today, 58 (11), 36- 41.
Woolnough, B. E. (1994). Why students choose physics, or reject it. Physics Education, 29 (6),368-374. doi: 10.1088/0031-9120/29/6/006
Published
2017-02-27
How to Cite
STILES-CLARKE, Laura; MACLEOD, Katarin.
Choosing to Major in Physics, or Not: Factors Affecting Undergraduate Decision Making.
European Journal of Physics Education, [S.l.], v. 7, n. 1, p. 1-12, feb. 2017.
ISSN 1309-7202.
Available at: <https://eu-journal.org/index.php/EJPE/article/view/48>. Date accessed: 27 apr. 2024.
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