Scientific Programme

The MPTL Workshops are an opportunity where different communities involved in Multimedia (MM) in Physics Education can meet and share ideas and experience. Many activities are undertaken: comparison, production, analysis and research for the Multimedia in Physics Education, as described in the website www.mptl.eu.

1. Designing Multi-Media for teaching/learning physics:  web environments, Open Source Physics (OSP) project, internet on-line services, internet portals,  learning objects, java applets,  tools and instruments, remote labs, teaching/learning materials.
2. Multi-Media for the teaching and learning process: integrating Multimedia in the curriculum, Multimedia supports to the learning in different topics, worldwide software products, the contributions by the European working group "Multimedia in Physics Teaching and Learning" and the MERLOT/Physics Editorial Board. Interactive computer-based curricular material. Multimedia in distance learning and in the lab. Modelling and integrated tools to improve learning.
3. Research and physics education: multimedia in applied sciences, physics education research on multimedia to improve teaching and learning physics.

In Udine 2009  MPTL14 Workshop specific emphasis will be on Multimedia as one of the main powerful tools now available in physics education, such as lab-work, web search, modeling, computational activities, chalk and talk presentation, active and interactive home-work:

1. Integration of Multimedia in class work and lab activities. The contribution for learning, the benefit of integrating MM in current physics education activities or in educational paths for different topics and students groups: examples from experienced teachers or from physics education research.
2. The role and contribution of Multimedia to teaching/learning of specific physics topics and integrated MM activities such as Modeling and on-line measurements in school work, in home-work and in distance learning.
3. Multimedia as a learning environment and resource for scientific education in primary and secondary schools.

MPTL 14 hopes to gather together teacher trainers, scientist from universities and industry, researchers in education and school teachers united in a common aim to improve the quality of physics education.

• TOPICS. Multimedia Contribution to Teaching/Learning of:
  • modern physics topics,
  • classical physics topics, related with the analysis of the multimedia resources for different topics with particular emphasis on optics (see earlier reports at www.mptl.eu )
  • science in primary education.
• ASPECTS
  • Integration of MM materials in physics teaching/learning.
  • E-learning and distance learning.
  • Computer-controlled apparatus: on-line computer measurements and remote labs.
  • Modelling and simulations
  • Animation and symbolic representation
  • Movie and video: role in education and support into empirical research.
  • Artificial intelligence.
• THEMES FOR CONTRIBUTIONS are:
  • T1: Integrating MM in Physics Teaching/Learning Paths and the role of MM and computer resources, as Java applets and Physlets, to promote innovative teaching.
  • T2: Design and use electronic material: textbooks, learning-objects, Java applets, MM tools and Physlets.
  • T3: Active learning strategies with MM for education and teacher training: interactive learning, inquiry methods, problem solving, real time measurements and modeling to overcome conceptual knots in physics learning.
  • T4: MM for learning the basic concepts of science in primary and secondary school and teacher education.
  • T5: Web-environments, Internet portals, Internet on-line services for physics teaching and learning.
  • T6: Designing and using MM and ICT in physics lab and remote lab.
  • T7: MM materials and tools for evaluation of learning outcomes.

ORGANIZATION
The Workshop will host 4 Plenary Talks, Panel Sessions, Workshops, Interactive Poster Session  and Poster Session.
The four Plenary Talks (PT) will be devoted to the main topics related to the MPTL14, like integration of multimedia in teaching and learning, research based proposals to improve innovations in physics teaching and learning: tools, materials, strategies and methods for physics learning.

Contributions from participants will be presented in Panel Session (PS) (in thematic parallel sessions, if necessary)

Workshops (WS) will be organized on specific topics in parallel, depending on contributed proposals on specific areas and topics such as modeling for physics education, remote lab, …. The workshop's goal is to create the situation in which the participants can work together on the topics proposed. Each workshop will consist of 4 parts: 1) first and general view on the problem involved in the subject, 2) preliminary discussion of the most important problem considered, 3) insight into some specific aspects of the most important problem, 4) general summary.