Using math in physics -- Overview

Abstract

The key difference between math as math and math in science is that in science we blend our physical knowledge with our knowledge of math. This blending changes the way we put meaning to math and even to the way we interpret mathematical equations. Learning to think about physics with math instead of just calculating involves a number of general scientific thinking skills that are often taken for granted (and rarely taught) in physics classes. In this paper, I give an overview of my analysis of these additional skills. I propose specific tools for helping students develop these skills in subsequent papers.

6 pages, 2 figures

References in corpus (2)

• Language of physics, language of math: Disciplinary culture and dynamic epistemology
• A Theoretical Framework for Physics Education Research: Modeling Student Thinking

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