2018 JN PP Andrew J. Stapleton1_1.pdf
Terbatas  Irwan Sofiyan
» Gedung UPT Perpustakaan
Terbatas  Irwan Sofiyan
» Gedung UPT Perpustakaan
In response to the authors, I demonstrate how threshold concepts offer a means
to both contextualise teaching and learning of quantum physics and help transform students
into the culture of physics, and as a way to identify particularly troublesome concepts
within quantum physics. By drawing parallels from my own doctoral research in another
area of contemporary physics—special relativity—I highlight concepts that require an
ontological change, namely a shift beyond the reality of everyday Newtonian experience
such as time dilation and length contraction, as being troublesome concepts that can present
barriers to learning with students often asking “is it real?”. Similarly, the domain of
quantum physics requires students to move beyond “common sense” perception as it brings
into sharp focus the difference between what is experienced via the sense perceptions and
the mental abstraction of phenomena. And it’s this issue that highlights the important role
imagery and creativity have both in quantum physics and in the evolution of physics more
generally, and lies in stark contrast to the apparent mathematical focus and lack of opportunity
for students to explore ontological issues evident in the authors’ research. By reflecting
on the authors’ observations of a focus on mathematical formalisms and problem solving at
the expense of alternative approaches, I explore the dialectic between Heisenberg’s highly
mathematical approach and Schrödinger’s mechanical wave view of the atom, together with
its conceptual imagery, at the heart of the evolution of quantum mechanics. In turn, I highlight
the significance of imagery, imagination and intuition in quantum physics, together
with the importance of adopting an epistemological pluralism—multiple ways of knowing
and thinking—in physics education. Again drawing parallels with the authors’ work and my own,
I identify the role thought experiments have in both quantum physics education
and in physics more generally. By introducing the notion of play, I advocate adopting and
celebrating multiple approaches of teaching and learning, including thought experiments,
play, dialogue and a more conceptual approach inclusive of multiple forms of representation,
that complements the current instructional, mathematical approach so as to provide
better balance to learning, teaching and the curriculum.
Epistemological pluralism