2026-27 Modeling Physics Electricity & Magnetism DL Workshop

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This distance learning course prepares teachers to implement the Modeling Instruction approach to Electricity and Magnetism in their Physics classrooms. Participants will experience the Modeling cycle firsthand developing conceptual models through guided inquiry, whiteboarding, and collaborative argumentation before adapting these practices for their own students.

Content moves through the standard modeling sequence for E&M: electrostatics and the charge model, Coulomb's law, electric fields and potential, simple circuits (current, resistance, and Ohm's law), circuit models (series and parallel), and an introduction to magnetism and electromagnetic induction. Throughout, the emphasis is on how students build and test models through experiment and discourse, rather than on lecture-based delivery of content.

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Facilitate Modeling Instruction for E&M topics in Physics
• Use whiteboarding and Socratic dialogue effectively in virtual and in-person formats
• Assess student model development through representations (diagrams, graphs, equations) rather than rote problem-solving alone

LOCATION: The workshop will meet weekly via Zoom.

DATES & TIME: from Oct 4th through Nov 15th and from Jan 17th through Feb 28th on Sunday evenings (7-10 PM Eastern, 6-9 PM Central, 5-8 MT, 4-7 PT); 3 hours per week. 

LEADER(S): Shannon McLaughlin and Geoff Nunes

COST: members: $900; non-members $975

GRADUATE-LEVEL CREDIT: 3 optional Graduate-level credits are available from University of Pacific.

Any questions? reach out to engage@modelinginstruction.org