Integrating Einsteinian physics in the year 7 Australian Science Curriculum: What are the challenges in design and implementation?

Abstract

Integrating Einsteinian physics into school curricula has become a challenge for researchers. This process involves choosingappropriate disciplinary knowledge to be accommodated in the curriculum and researching ways to illustrate how teachers can use this knowledgein their classrooms. The Einstein-first project research is centered on building a new curriculum on Einsteinian physics (space, time, geometry,gravity) in Western Australia and on teacher’s ability to embrace this modern paradigm and enhance their scientific and didactical knowledge.My research is designed to trial a learning progression of Einsteinian concepts within an overall curriculum structure for year 7. Manyconcepts related to Einstein’s theory of gravity will be included in association to the existing year 7 curriculum in Australia. I willidentify the primary challenges in design and implementation, which helps organize appropriate teacher professional learning to understandand teach Einsteinian physics concepts. A series of 14 physics lessons were developed for the Year 7 Science curriculum in Western Australia.The first three lessons introduce concepts of measurement, straight lines, Geometry, space (curved), time, nature of spacetime. The conceptof velocity, terminal velocity, acceleration, inertia and mass are then developed. Students then learn about Einstein’s conception of gravitythrough the analysis of free-falling bodies and thought experiments. They use the spacetime simulator to investigate topics of generalrelativity, the attractional force between masses and orbits in our Solar System. The learning progression ends with introducing black holesand gravitational waves.