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At the Ohio State University (OSU), some laboratory sections were replaced with Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE) labs during the 3-quarter calculus-based introductory physics sequence this past academic year. The ISLE labs have been developed by the PAER Group at Rutgers University; implementation at OSU is discussed, making a direct comparison of OSU students participating in ISLE labs with students in pre-existing labs under the same large-lecture instruction. Assessment included diagnostic tests and feedback from a Q-type instrument. The ISLE environment focuses on helping students develop scientific abilities, so we also administered a voluntary lab ‘practical exam’ aimed at testing if these abilities were gained by the students in the ISLE labs. © 2006 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physics by Inquiry (PbI) has been adopted and taught at the Ohio State University for more than a decade. A Q-type instrument, the LPVI, was used to assess students’ perceptions of this teaching method and measure the consonance between these and instructors’ goals. We present methods of analysis to make use of all the information collected with this survey. In applying the LPVI to different sections of the PbI course, we found many similarities in students’ perceptions and also some interesting differences. We also found similarities and differences between students’ perceptions and the goals of PbI. © 2006 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]