What is happening to Physics teaching?

[gingerbear]

Report on BBC this am, that pupils studying Physics has dropped by 15% in last 10 years. Some schools no longer offer it in 6th form as there are no teachers. Kids find concepts difficult to understand.

What will happen to the scientists and engineers of the future? Or will they all study Business Management because it is easier to understand?

No physics, no modern languages (my subject)... All 'too hard'. AAAAAARGH! Makes me want to cry.

Was just reading this in the paper and it's taken all the jingle out of my bells.

Why is there such a shortage of teachers in these subjects?

Sad, sad sad.

We are lucky enough still to offer physics at A level

Loads of kids do buisness studies and some of them will tell you they need specific point score to go to uni and they know they have a better chance of getting high grads with subjects other than physics.

Kids also don't want to do the hard stuff.

Because the starting pay in £19,000 and you need a physics degree and a PGCE. Most people with that level of qualification will go into other ares of scinece that are better paid, and there is a shortage of physics graduates!

It does seem sad. But even back in prehistory (okay, 1979) I had to choose between doing O-level German and O-level Physics - there was no way the timetable could accommodate my doing both.

Almost all kids do physics as part of their GCSEs as part of Double Scinece.....and you have to do double of single science at GCSE, it is compulsory. You might do all three separate sciences in stead. So everyone should do *some Physics at GCSE, you can't duck it any more

6 O'clock news featured a biology teacher teaching A level physics - 'I have trouble answering some students questions'!!!

In our school we only have physics graduates teaching A level. We do have non specialists teaching GCSE, but we always have a graduate teaching the physics to the 'top sets' who do the higher GCSE paper and tend to ask the most demanding questions.

I have taught Phsics at GCSE, but only at foundadtion level and did a reasonable job. I would hate to do it at AS or A2. I could parobably hack chemistry (have a degree in Biochemistry( but physics at A level would be awful

awful in what way, hmb?

Clicked post before I'd finished!

Interested because the (bright) son of a friend is going to give up physics A level. Even his (bright) dad couldn't help him with his physics hw - it was too hard.

When I teach A level biology I know the subject inside out and upside down. I love the subject and love to teach it. I understand the topics and see how they fit into society, so I can give the kids loads of relevant examples that they enjoy and help them to learn.

I also 'know' which bits they are going to struggle over, misconceptions that they have, and I can plan lessons accordingly. I can do this because I'm a reasonable biologist, Given time I could be the same for chemistryt but never as well as biology.

I only did physcs for a level (granted a lot of the harder stuff has been dropped) but even so I have no 'feel' for the subject and my lessons would be, at best mediocre. I would be selling the kids short and would Hate to do that. So it would be awful

Oh and I hated A level physics when I studied it and found it very hard. I knew that I had to pass it though, to do my degree, so I bust a gut and passed it.

But I hated every mortal moment!

Interesting. Thank you.

I struggled through O level physics and passed it, much to my amazement. Wouldn't have had a chance at A level.

It might amuse you to know that the current A level course ( where I work) is taught in part from the text book that I had in O level Physics in the late 1970s! And the teacher tells me that the kids can't cope with the maths

DP is a physics graduate, needless to say he's in software and project management (the money the money), he can answer ds's (yr 7)questions which we hope will be enough, also his school has excellent physics support in husband and wife team I just hope they stay another 5 years LOL
As for me my physics teacher was so dreadful at secondary school that I sat on the physics part of my science school cert paper (NZ equiv to O levels GCSE)

I am soo glad my DD's school is Science Specialist (& Maths) status. She is doing separate sciences for GSCE & they have specialist teachers for all 3. Even those doing double get 3 specialist teachers from yr10 upwards.

Piffle, dh has a degree in Engineering, could tteach A level physics with no probelms but would rather fly a plane (the money, the excitement and the kudos! )
the probelms is that there are fewer physics grads, and they go into better paid and better respected jobs than teaching. And so people end up being taught my non specialsts, which puts them off the subjects, do then you end up with fewer physics graduates.

And so the downward spiral continues

My husband and I both have degrees and PhDs in chemistry and we despair at the attitude towards science in this country. Fewer people are studying the sciences at degree level and so even fewer are actually going to end up in the teaching profession.

Two of my colleagues went into teaching after completing their PhDs, both left after 2 years despite teaching at highly sought after selective schools in nice middle class areas. The problem? Pushy arrogant parents who think they know more than the teachers and whose kids can do no wrong,ever and burdensome paper work.

The future is bleak. Attitude has a lot to do with it. It seems to me that anything that requires a bit of effort is deemed too difficult and so is avoided. Also, science is not traditionally seen as a route to highly paying jobs (not true). I'm afraid that the "Studies", eg business, theatre, film, media, tourism, golf management etc are easier compared to chemistry, physics, maths and biology. When I was doing my degree, the business studies undergraduates had about 5 hours of lectures a week whereas we had about 14 hours in addition to several hours of laboratory work. Granted, they probably had to do a lot of reading and coursework as well but so did we. DH and I have already decided that our twin sons (currently 21 months old) will be acquiring a great deal of their scientific knowledge from us because I doubt that many schools will be able to offer a comprehensive syllabus for the sciences in the future

I am constantly surprised at school how few children are prepared to really push themselves with a challenge, and persevere with something that's difficult. This applies to children at all levels of ability and in all subjects. Very few of them seem willing to try hard, and risk failing; so they bottle out much earlier and just refuse to attempt it.

You also have the pressure of an over full NC. So you never get the time you need to make the kids totaly undertand, and crucialy, be able to apply, any given subject.

We are forced into training them to pass exams, not teach them how to think.

And kids don't want to put the work in. Anything that they find difficult is seen as 'boring' and 'crap'.

I had one of my sixth form complain a few weeks ago that thead to learn about the primary structure of protiens. Ge dismissivly asked 'What use is this?'to which I answered, 'Well, wit that youwiller understand Cystic Fibrosis, Huntingdons Chorea or any number of diseases, but other than thatit totaly pointless' And this is a lad who has opted to take Biology at AS level ffs!

if you look at it another way, Physics is easier at A level because the volume of coursework is less than for biology, say.
If universities rated all "studies" A levels lower than traditional subjects, surely that would have an effect?

Our students have the same anount of CW for all of the sciences at A level (and GCSE for that matter)

Just a point though - I Teach Religious Studies (Philosophy and Ethics) 'A' level and I can definitely say it is not one of the easier subjects!! Logical positivism is not an easy concept for students to get their heads round, neither is the ontological argument, ideas about freewill and determinism etc etc.... although I will happily admit that at GCSE it is probably the easiest subject going, then kids get a huge shock when they get to 'A' level and we have loads change course as they find it too hard!!

Not all 'studies' subjects are necessarily easier . Sorry, just had to defend my subject!

the volume of notes was less for Physics in my day, but there were more concepts to understand. put like that, the dossers A level choice was maths, further maths and physics

sorry rarrie - knew someone would come along to defend studies! It was just an umbrella term for media studies etc, which perhaps are more suitable to university courses than A levels.