Conference: Developing an Integrated Physics Curriculum Through National Faculty Collaboration

This project aims to serve the national interest by improving undergraduate physics education through the development of instructional materials that integrate theoretical analysis, computation, and experimentation. Modern physics relies on theorical, computational, and experimental approaches yet they are often taught separately in undergraduate courses. This IUSE Conference award project plans to bring physics educators together to collaboratively develop, test, and share instructional modules that more closely reflect the way modern physics is practiced. By expanding the availability of these materials and supporting faculty in their implementation, the project aims to better prepare students for research, graduate study, and careers in science and engineering. The significance of this work lies in strengthening the connection between undergraduate physics education and contemporary scientific practice. The goals of the project are to develop integrated curricular modules for upper-division physics courses, establish collaborative faculty teams to refine and beta test these materials, and evaluate their implementation across a range of institutions. The project plans to organize a four-day national workshop that brings together faculty with complementary expertise in theory, computation, and experiment to design instructional modules that can be readily adopted by other instructors. The resulting materials will be shared through established physics education networks, conference presentations, and peer-reviewed publications to broaden their impact. The project will also investigate how collaborative curriculum development can increase faculty adoption of integrated instructional practices. The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.