Becoming physics people: Development of integrated physics identity through the Learning Assistant experience

Abstract

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Preparing and Supporting University Physics Educators.] In this study, we analyze the experience of students in the Physics Learning Assistant (LA) program at Texas State University in terms of the existing theoretical frameworks of community of practice and physics identity, and explore the implications suggested by these theories for LA program adoption and adaptation. Regression models from physics identity studies show that the physics identity construct strongly predicts intended choice of a career in physics. The goal of our current project is to understand the details of the impacts of participation in the LA experience on participants' practice and selfconcept, in order to identify critical elements of LA program structure that positively influence physics identity and physics career intentions for students. Our analysis suggests that participation in the LA program impacts LAs in ways that support both stronger "physics student" identity and stronger "physics instructor" identity, and that these identities are reconciled into a coherent integrated physics identity. Increased comfort in interactions with peers, near peers, and faculty seems to be an important component of this identity development and reconciliation, suggesting that a focus on supporting community membership is useful for effective program design.

Leveraging the expertise of the urban STEM student in developing an effective LA Program: LA and Instructor Partnerships

“…al. [4]. One LA stated that "... the fact that I'm dealing with people with doctorates, that's not something I normally do ... it gives me a sense of ownership ... knowing that I'm actually becoming a professional myself ... as long as faculty stay open to that opportunity to engage with ... LA students."…”

“…LA Programs, at institutions using the LA model, have been shown to create positive shifts in overall LA attitudes about science, personal interest, and content understanding [3]. In addition, they can serve to facilitate students' growth of identity as scientists and inclusion in the scientific community of practice [4]. A critical component of the LA model is that it can be transformative not only to the LAs who participate, but that it can also impact faculty, as they work toward transforming their courses to be able to utilize LAs.…”

Group Formation on Physics Exams

“…Research utilizing network analysis focused on the development of student social networks is ongoing in the broader PER community (e.g., Brewe et al [7]). In particular, at Texas State University, the physics department has been paying close attention to how the campus physics community can be enriched by focusing on the introductory physics courses [8]. We collect the following data from these exams:…”

Analyzing discourse and identity in physics education: Methodological considerations

“…In particular, I will discuss the poststructuralist notion of discourse as a social structure for interpretation that shapes what can be said, done or understood in a certain context. Drawing on two studies from my PhD-project [5,6] and other studies of identity in physics education [4,[7][8][9][10], I will argue that using a discursive perspective of identity enables us to answer important questions about students' various relationships to physics without taking the norms of the discipline for granted. For example, in the projects reported here, I and my co-authors have seen how students' negotiations of learning practice in an electromagnetism course can be affected by cultural norms around physics and how the teaching and learning practice in quantum physics classrooms can limit the ways of identifying as a physicist for students.…”