AP Annual Conference: AP Physics 1 and 2 Courses

**AP Physics 1 and 2 Courses**

*Connie Wells, Co-Chair, Physics 2 Development Committee*

*Karen Lionberger, College Board’s AP Program Director, Science Curriculum and Content*

*I attended this session to learn as much as possible about the new AP Physics 1 and 2 courses as we are “piloting” AP Physics 1 in the context of our Honors Physics course this upcoming school year.*

* Out of 1 million high school freshen interested in STEM majors and careers, 57.4% loose interest and switch to a different career path.
* Big Ideas -> Enduring Understandings -> Essential Knowledge + Science Practices -> Learning Objectives
* Physics 1 designed to have a couple of weeks of extra time to cover additional topics to meet requirements for state exams or teacher preference.
* Big Idea 7 is only addressed in Physics 2. Some new material related to probability.
* Rigor (or Vigor) = Complexity (and Autonomy) + Engagement
* Teaching Strategies for Success in the AP Physics 1 and 2 Courses
* assessment of prior knowledge, beliefs, and misconceptions that students bring with them to the course(s)
* analysis of how to deal with students’ misconceptions
* greater depth of conceptual understanding through the use of student-centered, inquiry-based instructional practices
* use of formative assessments to guide instructional practices and provide feedback to students about depth of understanding
* planning lessons based on the clearly articulated AP Physics learning objectives
* integration of student inquiry laboratory work into the course
* How the Learning Objectives Will Be Assessed
* ability to solve problems mathematically – including symbolically – but with less emphasis on only mathematical routines used for solutions
* questions relating to lab experience and analytical skills: designing and describing experiments; data and error analysis
* questions asking for explanations, reasoning, or justification of answers
* more emphasis on deeper understanding of foundational principles and concepts
* interpreting and developing conceptual models
* laboratory emphasis on students – inquiry-based, hands-on, integrated, investigative and collaborative
* lab questions will focus more on error analysis and what the next step in the investigation would be
* students will have to write at least one paragraph-length argument (make a claim and support with evidence) in the short-answer questions
* 2014 professional development will launch new One-Day and AP Summer Institute Workshops to support the new courses
* June 2014 – practice exams for both AP Physics 1 and Physics 2
* sample syllabi available before March 2014
* course and exam description (including equation sheets) available March 2014
* course planning and pacing guides (8 total, 4 for each course)
* teacher’s guide on inquiry-based investigations
* **2 pacing guides will be available August 1st**
* [Advances in AP site](http://advancesinap.collegeboard.org/)
* 140 instruction hours is the target for AP courses (Physics 1 is targeted at 115-120 to allow time for additional topics)

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