Learning and teaching Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity: state of the art

TL;DR

This paper reviews current challenges in teaching Einstein's special relativity, analyzing literature and proposing a Minkowskian geometry-based approach for secondary education to improve understanding.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive review of educational difficulties and introduces a novel teaching proposal based on Minkowskian geometry for high school students.

Findings

Identifies common misconceptions among students and teachers.

Highlights the importance of geometric interpretation in teaching relativity.

Proposes a Minkowskian geometry approach as effective educational tool.

Abstract

This work analyzes the difficulties in learning and teaching Einstein's theory of special relativity. An extensive bibliographic review has been performed, considering articles published in the most relevant journals on science education, which were selected taking into account the following impact factors: JCR, SJR, IN-RECS and ICDS. The typical thinking of students and teachers is discussed pointing out that, occasionally, it does not befit the proper scientific perspective. Different educational proposals are examined and particular didactic implications are inferred. The conclusions of this inquiry constitute the basis of a proposal that relies on a Minkowskian geometrical formulation for teaching special relativity in upper secondary education.