Physics Textbook

[Ben Crowell <bcrowell@SPRINTMAIL.COM>]

Jack wrote:
>        Hewitt is popular with many high school teachers, but even his
> book is IMO too narrow for a first course.

Ken replied:
> I am
> concerned about the term "narrow" used here, Jack. One of the results
and
> interpretations of the TIMMS report was that American education is " a
> mile wide and an inch deep". I feel that is what you are promoting.

Believe it or not, I agree with both Jack and Ken! Jack is right that
there is a real problem with students slipping through K-12 without any
broad,
qualitative knowledge of science. Very few of the students in my gen.
ed.
community college classes realize that electrons orbit nuclei, or that
the moon
may be visible in the daytime.

But the way to fix the problem is not by marching high-school students
through
a kitchen-sink plug-and-chug college textbook like Serway and Faughn or
its
ilk. Anyone who has any illusions about what students learn from this
kind of
whirlwind tour should try administering the FCI to their class. A
humbling
experience! It would be an exceptional achievement if a high-school
class
was really to _understand_ the whole contents of a short, intellectually

honest book like PSSC or Hewitt.

BTW, I've heard that a standard complaint against PSSC is that it's too
hard (especially too mathematically hard). Any opinions on this from
high
school teachers who have actually used it?

  Ben Crowell
  Fullerton College