Expanding a Physics Program

In 2016, the foundation approved a 2,800,000 NIS grant to the Weizmann Institute to develop and pilot test a program to teach middle school mathematics-based physics. The program aimed at high achieving middle school students, relying on their advanced mathematical knowledge and skills. Initially the program faced challenges in recruiting teachers, and only 68 teachers (instead of 200) implemented the new content in their classrooms. When the foundation embarked on its roadmap for middle schools, it asked the program to align its content with the PISA 5-6 proficiency levels in mathematics.

Over the last two years, the development team has worked to become familiar with the PISA mathematics framework, recruited a mathematics education scholar who specializes in PISA, and consulted with Zbigniew Marciniak, chair of the PISA mathematics expert group. The program now includes content that applies high-level mathematical thinking skills aligned with the PISA excellence levels, and is based on the eighth grade curriculum. Eventually, 168 teachers have participated in the program through eight professional learning communities and by integrating the content in their classes.

The feedback from the teachers is positive and they report that the upgraded PISA-aligned content stimulates the students to deepen their knowledge of the eighth grade physics curriculum, focusing on “forces”, “interactions”, and “motion”, while applying mathematical modeling. The teachers pointed out that in order to allow for a smoother transition to high school, the program which thus far has been implemented in eighth grade and partially in ninth, should be extended so that a complete year of ninth grade content will be covered.

Therefore, the Weizmann Institute of Science approached the foundation, proposing to prepare new, additional material aligned with the ninth grade curriculum, and to expand the program and operate it with another 120 ninth-grade middle school teachers of excellence classes over a period of three years, in addition to 40 eighth grade teachers annually. The material will include presentations, quantitative research through experiments and simulations, in Hebrew and in Arabic, and will be uploaded to a special website. It will focus on the topic of “energy”, which is the main subject of the ninth grade curriculum.

In the first year, the implementation will rely on 15 lead teachers who will also be part of the development team and try out the assignments in their classrooms. Then, over three years, these teachers will guide 105 additional teachers who will teach the material for at least one year in their excellence classes across the country.

The impact of the program will be measured with a diagnostic test, the goal of which is for at least 80% of the participating students to meet the PISA 5-6 proficiency levels in mathematics.

* The text above shows the grant as approved by the Foundation’s Board of Directors / Grant 431