I previously shared that I started doing Multiple Choice Mondays and FRQ Fridays every week going into the AP exam. Here is a sample score tracking sheet my students used to track their progress. It was helpful and motivating for them to see their progress over time.
Category: ap physics 1 (Page 3 of 4)
How much does your AP Physics pass rate matter as a teacher? I started teaching AP Physics 1 two years ago. I was scared. The national pass rate was appallingly bad and I was afraid to push a course that no one could pass on my students.
I feel very different after teaching it and getting through two National Exams.
What does the national AP Physics pass rate tell us?
I firmly believe that the national pass rate does not accurately reflect the course. If you look at the numbers, many many more students took AP Physics 1 than the old B exam. Schools seemed to have pushed AP Physics on too many unprepared students. Additionally, I have heard tales of freshmen taking it, of schools completely abolishing all Physics but AP, and offering 1 and 2 in the same year. I think all of these things artificially deflate the AP Physics pass rate.
What’s the big difference in the newer course? Less rote memorization and plug-and-chug. More analysis and critical thinking. These are important skills that I hope my students take away from the course. I always say that Physics teaches you how to think. For instance, I’d rather my students remember how to think than recite a definition. I posted here about how I rethought my classroom to make it more student-centered – these types of strategies are definitely important to adjust our teaching to include inquiry and critical thinking.
My hypothesis is that the national pass rate will slowly rise to 50% or so as teachers learn the test and students are able to more adequately prepare. Also, it will take time for teachers and students to adjust to the new exam format. , This exam has almost no calculations and hopefully will create change overall in how Physics is taught. Physics education as a whole seems to be moving towards conceptual understanding, inquiry, and a more hands-on approach. Only time will tell. My biggest fear is that students will see the pass rate and not take the class. They’d be missing out on an amazing adventure.
Good quality AP Physics resources can be hard to find. I searched for review materials and videos but was overall disappointed by the quality of the content I found. Enter Flipping Physics.
So, I’m not actually a big proponent of flipped classrooms. I don’t believe any teaching strategy should be used all the time. However, the flipped model is an excellent one when used in addition to other strategies. These would fit perfectly in a blended learning classroom (I even used one in a personalized learned menu, shown as an example in this post).
When I was looking for great review videos, I stumbled across Mr. Palmer by accident. I don’t know how I didn’t find him sooner – he was exactly what I was looking for. His mission is to “Make the world a better place through real, fun, and free physics education,” which is exactly what his videos do. The humorous, lecture-discussion style of video is a great addition to a blended learning classroom.
Students sometimes find the videos cheesy, but I find using these to reinforce ideas has been a great tool. Some of my students re-watched every video before the National Exam and said it tremendously helped them remember concepts! They also loved the lecture notes associated with the videos. Additionally, he has slowly been adding more videos to cover every topic in Physics.
If you are looking for an excellent video resource, Flipping Physics is the best out there. He even has videos explaining some of the released FRQs. My only complaint is that he doesn’t have Physics 2!
http://www.flippingphysics.com
Here is one of my favorite videos to show right before the National Exam, his reflections on the 2015 exam. It has some excellent tips to remember. I show this every year before the National Exam.
The free-response questions on the AP Physics 1 and 2 exams can be daunting. Students tend to not be used to writing in science classes, and the AP Physics B exam had a lot more calculations and a lot fewer explanations. These FRQs require careful thought and deep knowledge of physics concepts. Here are my top tips for tackling the AP Physics FRQs.
1. Support your answer.
This is my biggest pet peeve with student responses. If a question says to refer to a graph or has to analyze a student’s statement or uses any sort of source, directly refer back to that source.
For example, question #2 on the 2016 AP Physics 1 exam was an experimental design question that referenced a student’s hypothesis. The experiment outlined should directly address this, not just generally discuss the overarching concept.
Make sure that explanations are not generally statements, but directly refer back to the question at hand.
2. Do not just write equations into words.
The qualitative/quantitative translation question will frequently include parts that say “explain without the use of equations.” This does not mean to write out “Well, force equals mass times acceleration…” Be sure to explain, and make reference to the law or principle you are explaining. The AP Physics FRQs are looking for students’ mastery of the content – not reciting equations.
3. Know when to explain and when to not.
Sometimes, a question says things like “State…” or “Determine…” These types of questions are looking for an answer, not a long winded explanation. Read the first word of the question to clue in to what type of answer is needed. Take a look at this document to help with what different exam words mean.
4. Use the given symbols.
If a problem has you solve something symbolically, use the given symbols. For example, a question might read, “Solve for the acceleration in terms of m, θ, and physical constants.” This means your answer should not have tension, friction, normal force, or any other variables in it.
5. Be clear and concise.
Most answers are designed that a simple sentence or two can explain what you need, except of course the paragraph-length response. Even for the paragraph, however, it is important to get to the point. Writing a diatribe about an unrelated concept shows that you do not truly know the principle at hand. For example, I posted about the 2017 AP Physics 1 paragraph-length question here.
Here is my messy solution to AP Physics 1 2017 FRQ #1. Here is the full AP Physics 1 2017 FRQ from College Board.
This FRQ was very simple, but students may have overthought what the question was asking. For example, students may have not recognized the need to analyze the energy usage in terms of power dissipated in each. However, almost every teacher does a lab that involves the principles behind this FRQ, so hopefully, it was familiar to students. I predict this being the highest scoring FRQ.
I think the biggest struggle with this FRQ is students following the paragraph-length response guidelines. College Board does publish guidelines for this type of question, but students tend to write too little or not enough substance in the paragraph. I suggest that students follow a basic CER structure:
- Claim – What is your answer to the question?
- Evidence – What basic Physics principle or concept are you using to defend your response?
- Reasoning – Why and how does that principle apply to this scenario and your answer?
I tend to find that students do not mention specific Physics principles in their responses. Additionally, students don’t write a full paragraph. Practicing the paragraph-length response and scoring is key to tackling this type of question.
If you want more general tips for the AP Physics 1 and 2 FRQs, here is my post with my top five tips!