The Process of Transforming an Advanced Lab Course: Goals, Curriculum, and Assessments

TL;DR

This paper details a systematic, research-based overhaul of a senior-level physics lab course at the University of Colorado Boulder, focusing on establishing learning goals, designing aligned curricula, and developing tailored assessments.

Contribution

It presents the first comprehensive, research-based transformation of an advanced physics lab course, including new learning goals, activities, and assessments applicable broadly.

Findings

Development of clear learning goals for advanced labs

Implementation of new lab activities and assessments

Enhanced alignment between goals, activities, and assessments

Abstract

A thoughtful approach to designing and improving labs, particularly at the advanced level, is critical for the effective preparation of physics majors for professional work in industry or graduate school. With that in mind, physics education researchers in partnership with the physics faculty at the University of Colorado Boulder have overhauled the senior-level Advanced Physics Lab course. The transformation followed a three part process of establishing learning goals, designing curricula that align with the goals, and assessment. Similar efforts have been carried out in physics lecture courses at the University of Colorado Boulder, but this is the first systematic research-based revision of one of our laboratory courses. The outcomes of this effort include a set of learning goals, a suite of new lab-skill activities and transformed optics labs, and a set of assessments specifically tailored for a laboratory environment. While the particular selection of advanced lab experiments varies widely between institutions, the overall transformation process, the learning goals, and the assessments are broadly applicable to the instructional lab community.