A COURSE IN TOOLS AND PROCEDURES FOR PHYSICS-I

A one-semester course covering the tools, skills, and procedures that are required to engage meaningfully with first-year university physics is described. The course forms part of the Science Foundation Program me at the University of Cape Town which was set up to provide access t o a science degree for students who have been educationally disadvanta ged, part of the legacy of racial discrimination in South Africa. The course comprises three basic elements: a theoretical component, a labo ratory-based experimental component, and a communication skills compon ent. The theory component consists of the various mathematical techniq ues used in a calculus-based Physics I course, grouped into cognate ar eas so that each technique is presented immediately in the full range of contexts that will be encountered later on. Part of the theory comp onent involves written explanations of the mathematical formalism. The focus of the communication skills component is on report writing whic h follows as a natural consequence of the laboratory tasks which have been restructured as problems necessitating an experimental investigat ion. The implementation of cooperative tutorial groups, which forms an integral part of the learning environment, is also discussed. (C) 199 8 American Association of Physics Teachers.