A Level Physics Teacher and Digital Learning Lead @symonds_college Tweeting about resources, demos, curriculum, Ed tech etc. #chatphysics #cogscisci
Southampton, UK
Joined September 2011
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On this site you’ll find student workbooks, presentations, @isaacphysics boards and @quizlet flashcard sets alongside other resources I’ve been collating for both OCRA and AQA A level Physics. Really hope this saves other teachers time and effort.
sites.google.com/view/alevel…
One of the most important threads I’ve read on X.
Many consider numerological connections in ancient monuments baseless unscientific bullshit
But are they? Take the pyramids of Giza for example. There're 3 great pyramids
There're also 3 generations of fundamental fermions. The ancient egypts couldn't have known this, ..
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Does anyone use Google Chat routinely for communications within a school or college? Please let me know as I’d love to hear how it’s used and how effective it is.
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Said goodbye to upper sixth classes this week. It’s weird, you’ve spent so much time together and suddenly it’s ending and I’ll miss them. It’s also so satisfying seeing the progress they’ve made and knowing I’ve helped them along the way. I find it a nice but unsatisfying end…
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Wow, this perfectly describes my issues with AQA A level Physics papers these days.
Today’s KS2 maths reasoning paper is a failure at a national level, one which will serve only to put pupils off maths.
There is nothing wrong with tough questions in maths. Mathematicians love the challenge of overcoming difficult problems.
But that’s not the same thing at all as questions that seek to confuse, mislead or hide meaning in meaningless, tiresome contexts.
Show a real mathematician a problem written by someone who is deliberately communicating badly or poking fun by being disingenuous and that mathematician will tell you to bugger off.
We’re in the business of grappling with and resolving genuinely interesting and important questions. We have no interest in silly, dull and ill conceived questions that lack meaning and intend to trip up.
So, an opportunity to show pupils what mathematics is and can be has been utterly wasted and instead we’ve just made it a lot less likely a nascent interest in becoming a mathematician will flourish for many, many pupils who will, quite rightly, reject the subject as tedious sleight of hand.
To those writing, signing off and publishing national exam papers: be better at your job or do something else.
AI can help with learning factual recall and will probably find the greatest application in maths and sciences, although it will struggle to support students in dealing with how to apply ideas in new situations.
This demo is insane.
A student shares their iPad screen with the new ChatGPT + GPT-4o, and the AI speaks with them and helps them learn in *realtime*.
Imagine giving this to every student in the world.
The future is so, so bright.
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Student built drainpipe linac model. Our Van de Graaff’s weren’t working very well so this is with a 5kV supply. Not spectacular but still very pleasing.
Having a lot of fun running an experimental physics extra curricula group. We’ve had Lissajous curves on a dual beam oscilloscope, coupled mechanical oscillators, an ion craft that can generate lift (not flying yet), a student built wind tunnel, a drainpipe LINAC model….
The government’s draft Guidance for Schools and Colleges on Gender Questioning Children is open for consultation. It would probably be good if plenty of educators responded.
consult.education.gov.uk/equ…
@dcsandbrook I love your podcast but please don’t, never not use the phrase “couldn’t be less unhelpful” again.
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcas…
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First time I’ve had a donation on @buymeacoffee! @NicolaPercy1 you are awesome and generous and it’s nice to feel my efforts are helpful 😀
Bernard Rand is creating and sharing Physics teaching resources.. You can support by buying a coffee here — buymeacoffee.com/bernardrand…
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A student built an ion powered craft that can generate an awesome 1.1mN of thrust 😉 It doesn’t fly but it was lovely to see a force due to the Biefield-Brown effect. I’ve learned from them.
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One of my upper 6th students took about an hour to learn how to use two sig gens and a digi oscilloscope to start generating Lissajous curves. I’m very impressed.
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We have the @Lascells Faraday coil and a @pascoscientific voltage sensor for this demo but it can be done with any coil and strong magnet alongside a suitable data logger and voltage sensor (or just an oscilloscope with a ms time base and the right trigger level).
Dropping a magnet through a coil. Great for getting the students to predict, observe and explain. I usually find we need to discuss how flux linkage varies before they make a successful prediction. Also nice why EMF is greater when it’s exiting the coil.
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Dropping a magnet through a coil. Great for getting the students to predict, observe and explain. I usually find we need to discuss how flux linkage varies before they make a successful prediction. Also nice why EMF is greater when it’s exiting the coil.