Squaring the Circle:A Mathematically Rigorous Physics First

摘要

For more than a hundred years there hasbeen a debate about the sequence in whichhigh school science should be taught.Many advocates of "Physics First"support a moreconceptual ninth-grade physics course followed bychemistry and then biology while supporters ofmathematically rigorous physics favor a sequenceof biology-chemistry-physics.This paper describesa new approach that incorporates some of the bestarguments from both sides.The main idea is to teacha mathematically rigorous ninth-grade physics coursebased on algebra alone,avoiding trigonometry.~(1,2)Byselecting topics from the AP Physics B curriculumthat form a foundation for both chemistry andbiology,one can establish an efficient sciencesequence.The goal of this paper is to describe thisnew approach to Physics First and present datasupporting its effectiveness.