Investigating student ownership of projects in an upper-division physics lab course

TL;DR

This study explores how students in an upper-division physics lab develop ownership of their projects, examining factors like agency, self-efficacy, peer interaction, and emotional responses, with evidence of ownership and its complex relationship with affect.

Contribution

It provides initial evidence of student project ownership in advanced physics labs and analyzes how affect influences ownership, a novel investigation in this context.

Findings

Evidence of student ownership in upper-division physics labs

Complex relationship between student affect and ownership

Insights into factors influencing project ownership

Abstract

In undergraduate research experiences, student development of an identity as a scientist is coupled to their sense of ownership of their research projects. As a a first step towards studying similar connections in physics laboratory courses, we investigate student ownership of projects in a lasers-based upper-division course. Students spent the final seven weeks of the semester working in groups on final projects of their choosing. Using data from the Project Ownership Survey and weekly student reflections, we investigate student ownership as it relates to students' personal agency, self-efficacy, peer interactions, and complex affective responses to challenges and successes. We present evidence of students' project ownership in an upper-division physics lab. Additionally, we find that there is a complex relationship between student affect and their sense of ownership.