Analysing discourse and identity in physics education: Methodological considerations

Uppsala universitet, Fysikundervisningens didaktik Uppsala universitet, Centrum för genusvetenskap 2016

Johansson, Anders

Physics education research has for a long time primarily been concerned with helping students to learn physics and to "think like a physicist". The results I present here contribute to the emerging subfield where students' identity development is analyzed to explore processes of "becoming a physicist" in a wider sense. Drawing on sociocultural theories and methodologies, and specifically analyzing identity and discourse, I focus on what happens when students with different outlooks on physics encounter advanced physics courses. A discourse analytical framework allows me and my colleagues to inquire into the messages about "who one should be as a physicist", communicated to students during courses. This enables a discussion of what physicist identities are made available to physics students. I argue that focusing on these social aspects of physics learning contributes to a better and more inclusive physics education that may also attract a more diverse student body.

Physical Sciences; Fysik; Educational Sciences; Utbildningsvetenskap; Gender Studies; Genusstudier; Conference paper; info:eu-repo/semantics/conferenceObject; text

English

UPE oai:DiVA.org:uu-300833
0000-0001-8180-5369
1233702237

UPPSALA UNIV LIBR
From OAIster®, provided by the OCLC Cooperative.

edsoai.on1233702237