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Open letter to the president: Physics education

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946 Questions Answered

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American high school Physics courses typically fail to address any modern topics in Physics--intriguing topics, like black holes and antimatter, and applications that play a huge role in our everyday lives, like GPS systems and lasers. Why don't these topics get covered in high school courses?

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4 Open Answer Questions Dig Deeper Learn More …And Finally

What is one reason the video gives as a reason why those who are in charge of shaping high school Physics curricula do not include any topics that were discovered/developed after 1865?

a

Many high school physics teachers do not themselves understand post-1865 topics well enough to teach them.

b

There are already too many physics concepts teachers are supposed to teach--there is not enough time in the school year to teach any more.

c

High school students have not taken enough math/do not have a strong enough math background to appreciate/understand post-1865 topics in physics.

d

Post-1865 topics in physics are not as important to understanding physics as the fundamentals physics, as developed by Isaac Newton and others from ~1687 through 1865.

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