Modeling Instruction - Legacy Site

This is the original Modeling Instruction Program website at Arizona State University. We update it often for ASU-specific information; e.g., ASU's summer graduate program for teachers, and for research & evaluation. It has information about Modeling Instruction nationwide and resources for educators from inception in 1995 through 2012.

Visit the new (as of 2012) Modeling Instruction site hosted by the American Modeling Teachers Association; it has updated information and resources for teachers worldwide.

History     Partners    Annual Report     Founders and directors    Ways to Volunteer or Donate

Modeling Instruction is Effective (data: 1 page)
NSF report: Findings of the Modeling Workshop Project: 1994-2000. pdf
NSF report: Findings of the ASU Summer Graduate Program for Physics Teachers (2002-2006) pdf

Opportunities for Professional Growth

The National Science Education Standards (NRC, 1996) emphasize that "coherent and integrated programs" supporting "lifelong professional development" of science teachers are essential for significant reform. "The conventional view of professional development for teachers needs to shift from technical training for specific skills to opportunities for intellectual professional growth."
The Glenn Commission report Before It's Too Late states:

"We are of one mind in our belief that the way to interest children in mathematics and science is through teachers who are not only enthusiastic about their subjects, but who are also steeped in their disciplines and who have the professional training—as teachers—to teach those subjects well. Nor is this teacher training simply a matter of preparation; it depends just as much—or even more— on sustained, high-quality professional development."

The Modeling Instruction program and MNS degree program at ASU are designed to meet this need.

ASU Summer Graduate Program for Teachers of Physical Sciences
Modeling Workshops, interdisciplinary STEM courses, and contemporary physics courses for teachers of high school physics and chemistry and junior high physical science. Course list for summer 2014 & tentative course list for 2015 (updated in July 2014)

Modeling Workshops Nationwide for Summer 2014 are listed at
the American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA) website. The link is under the Teachers tab.

For historical purposes and for continuity, here is the link to the 50 Modeling Workshops nationwide in summer 2012.

Remodeling University Physics NSF-supported research to reform introductory physics at the university/college level. (updated Dec. 2007) Peer leaders: Dwain Desbien, Eric Brewe, Michael Politano Modeling-friendly short workshops for two-year college and high school teachers that are NSF-funded until 2014.

Research & Evaluation

Research findings, publications and evaluation instruments [Force Concept Inventory (FCI), Mechanics Baseline Test (MBT), Views About Science Survey (VASS), RTOP & Modeling Self-Assessments, links to research-based concept inventories in sciences]. Dissertations; evaluations of Modeling Instruction and other programs. Two taxonomies of student conceptions about force and motion.

Cognitive Instruction in Mathematical Modeling The CIMM program is transforming mathematics education to include conceptual understanding (grouping structure), symbol construction (algorithmic manipulations), problem solving and mathematical reasoning. (updated May 2011)

Professional Development, Community, Policy and Vision

Remodeling Science Education, by David Hestenes (Invited talk in Taiwan, 2011)
AMTA Camp 2014: group picture and Plenary by David Hestenes

Modeling Instruction for STEM Education Reform, a major proposal by David Hestenes (2009)
A Critical Role for Physics Departments in K-12 Science Reform, by David Hestenes and Jane Jackson (2004, 160kb)
Activities and Significance of the Modeling Workshop Project (1994-2000), by David Hestenes. David Hestenes' vision for high school physics is reflected in the activities, contributions, and significance expressed in the 10-page document submitted to the NSF.

University - School partnerships - for sustained science education reform.
  Documents for persons who want to seek funding and organize a Modeling Workshop
National Center for Physics Education
   A proposal to stimulate action by the physics community, submitted by David Hestenes to the AAPT.
Local Physics Alliances - Learning communities of physics teachers.
AzAAPT - Follow this link to learn about activities of the Arizona Section of the American Association of Physics Teachers. (Updated in 2012.)

This page, last updated on July 8, 2014, is maintained by Jane Jackson, mostly for ASU-specific information & our research & evaluations.

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