Evaluation of a research based teaching development in first year physics

The School of Physics at The University of Sydney has developed workshop tutorials for first year physics in accord with findings in physics education research. The students work in cooperative groups at a variety of tasks including hands-on activities and discussion questions. The tutorials are self-paced and focus on understanding, with tutors acting as facilitators. A CUTSD funded project to develop a workshop manual is now nearing completion, and the workshops are already being used at other Australian universities. Formative evaluation, such as the use of minute papers and a feedback box, has helped to improve the workshops. The students provide a ‘snap-shot’ of a particular workshop by filling in a minute paper, which allows that workshop to be revised and improved. Summative evaluation of the workshops has been provided by Likert scale surveys and focus groups. The surveys have been administered to large numbers of students and provide a broad overview of the workshops. The focus groups, run by the Institute of Teaching and Learning at The University of Sydney, provide indepth information from a small number of students. The information from the focus groups and the surveys has enabled the expansion of the project both within and beyond The University of Sydney.