Middle School Physics Concepts

• This note covers middle school physics concept teaching.

Physics Concept Overview

• Physics concepts reflect the common physical characteristics and the essential attributes of objective things as abstracted in people's minds, as explained in physical learning theory.
• A physics concept reflects the essential attributes of physical phenomena and processes through a thinking method; its based on extensive observation and experimentation, applying logical thinking.

Characteristics of Physics concept

• Physical concepts are the product of a combination of observation, experimentation, and scientific thinking.
• Simple concepts involve observation, experimentation, and thinking to abstract essential characteristics.
• Complex concepts involve observation, experimentation, and thinking to abstract common essential characteristics.
• Many physical concepts possess quantitative properties, using quantitative methods to describe the essence of objective things, linking to mathematics and measurement.
• Quantitative characteristics can be classified into: state quantities and process quantities; nature quantities and action quantities; vector and scalar quantities; relative and absolute quantities; base physical quantities and derived physical quantities.
• Physical concepts evolve, as illustrated by the concept of "mass" progressing from "the amount of matter contained in an object" to "a measure of the magnitude of an object's inertia," then to "a measure of the capacity of an object to produce and be affected by gravitational fields," and finally to the relationship between mass and energy as proposed by the theory of relativity.

Teaching Procedures for Physics Concepts

• Teaching involves concept introduction, formation, and application.
• Concept introduction involves posing questions, observation, experiments,and guiding reading of teaching materials.
• Concept formation encompasses perceptual knowledge, understanding common features, abstract regulation, and conceptual understanding.
• Concept application includes conceptual development, method application, and ability transformation.
• Physical concepts are reflections of the common and essential attributes of objective things in the mind and products of the combination of observation, experiment, and scientific thought.
• Steps in physical concepts teaching are introducing concepts, giving perceptions, forming concepts with thought processing, use the concept to understand and apply knowledge.

Concept intro commonly used methods

• Experimentation is used to introduce new concepts.
• Life experience is used to introduce new concepts.
• Reviewing prior knowledge is used to introduce new concepts.
• Historical materials are used from physics to introduce new concepts.
• Analogies are used to introduce new concepts.

Concept Formation

• Revealing the essential attributes and features of matter as physics concepts are scientific abstractions derived from sensory materials like physical phenomena.
• Students need to engage in thought processing activities, for effective learning.
• Correct understanding requires following a physics research approach and leading students to use comparison, analysis, synthesis, abstraction, generalization, judgment, induction, and deduction to process sensory materials and abstract the essential attributes of things, so that students can form a clear understanding.
• Defining concepts involves using concise language to express the meaning of each formed physical concept.
• The right time is needed to define concept, generally after comparative analysis and exposure of essential attributes, teachers should use the momentum to shift quickly to the concept definition stage.
• Discussing the the physical meaning and scope of usage helps because physics concepts have crucial aspects on both the connotation and extension.
• The connotation refers to the physical meaning, like velocity is the speed of an object.
• The extension refers to the sum total of things or the applicable scope of a concept, such as "force" includes gravity, elastic force, friction, and the force of a magnetic field on an electric current.
• Understanding needs clear comprehension of the characteristics, various methods, and appropriate approaches; truly understanding the usage.

Notes For concept formation

• Preconceptions from life experiences interfere.
• Understanding concepts based on external, non-essential attributes is bad
• Inadequate sensory understanding and confusion of existing concepts can cause problems.
• Incorrect use of mathematical relationships in formulas to replace physical meaning is also something to avoid.

Concept Application

• Involves using physical concepts to solve unresolved problems.
• Physical concepts are used to explain certain phenomena.
• Physical concepts are used to interpret experimental phenomena.
• Concepts are used to solve related physics exercises.

Deepening the Teaching Design

• Teaching design includes creating scenarios to introduce concepts, processing information to establish concepts, and applying concepts to understand and consolidate.
• Teaching also includes forming perceptual knowledge and rational understanding through abstraction and specific examples, then use practical application, all of which includes consolidation forming structure, making analogies, and analyzing with comparing, all from observation.