Physics+First

North Arlington HS is a suburban 9-12 High school of about 500 students in Northern NJ.
After several years of preparation, the science sequence for the 2011-12 school year was changed from BCP to PCB. The Physics curriculum for grade 9 evolved from the “Physics Union Mathematics” (PUM) materials developed at Rutgers University under Dr. Eugenia Etkinia.

PUM is a physics curriculum linking middle/high school physics curricula and builds on the intrinsic mathematical reasoning to develop and strengthen students’ mathematical concepts at the pre-algebra and algebra levels. PUM curriculum consists of logically connected modules that allow students to build their conceptual understanding of physics concepts, develop relevant mathematical reasoning and simultaneously learn how to think like scientists. The PUM curriculum builds on the philosophy of the Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE, Etkina & Van Heuvelen, 2007)

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