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This international curricular review provides a structured overview of the particle physics content in 27 state, national, and international high-school physics curricula. The review was based on a coding manual that included 60 concepts that were identified as relevant for high-school particle physics education. Two types of curricula were reviewed, namely curricula with a dedicated particle physics chapter and curricula without a dedicated particle physics chapter. The results of the curricular review show that particle physics concepts are explicitly or implicitly present in all reviewed curricula. However, the number of particle physics concepts that are featured in a curriculum varies greatly across the reviewed curricula. We identified core particle physics concepts that can be found in most curricula. Here, elementary particles, fundamental interactions, and charges were identified as explicit particle physics concepts that are featured in more than half of the reviewed curricula either as content or context. Indeed, theoretical particle physics concepts are more prominent in high-school physics curricula than experimental particle physics concepts. Overall, this international curricular review provides the basis for future curricular development with respect to particle physics and suggests an increased inclusion of experimental particle physics concepts in high-school physics curricula.

Previous studies highlight the positive effects of science outreach labs, in particular on students' motivational variables. However, out-of-school learning is generally associated with high novelty and specific setting characteristics that can impact learning and development. Indeed, previous studies call for further research on students' perception of the learning settings to ensure the best possible use of science outreach labs. This study aims to take this call up by analyzing motivational outcomes (situational interest and self-concept) together with an unprecedented number of carefully chosen student and setting factors supposed to contribute to students' experience at science outreach labs. This study involved 509 high-school students from 13 countries who took part in a half-day hands-on session at the particle physics outreach lab S'Cool LAB at CERN and a single group longitudinal pre- and post-test research design. The results confirm that this intervention led to very high situational interest and self-concept, even for a student sample that showed higher-than-average dispositional interest and self-concept beforehand. Moreover, the initial motivational gender gap was closed after the intervention. To take the nested data into account, multilevel models were employed to study the predictive power of a set of student factors as well as students' perception of setting factors. Here, even after controlling for student factors such as their dispositional interest, support by the learning environment and educators was a crucial setting factor and was associated with especially high situational interest. Furthermore, students' cognitive preparedness and cognitive load were vital with respect to their situational self-concept. Overall, regression models account for almost 60% of the variance of both motivational outcomes. We conclude that a systematic measurement of student and setting factors together with a multilevel approach provides highly valuable information about science outreach labs and how to optimize their effectiveness.

Effective professional development programs (PDPs) rely on welldefined goals. However, recent studies on PDPs have not explored the goals from a multi-stakeholder perspective. This study identifies the most important learning goals of PDPs at science research institutions as perceived by four groups of stakeholders, namely teachers, education researchers, government representatives, and research scientists. Altogether, over 100 stakeholders from 42 countries involved in PDPs at science research institutions in Europe and North America participated in a three-round Delphi study. In the first round, the stakeholders provided their opinions on what they thought the learning goals of PDPs should be through an open-ended questionnaire. In the second and third rounds, the stakeholders assessed the importance of the learning goals that emerged from the first round by rating and ranking them, respectively. The outcome of the study is a hierarchical list of the ten most important learning goals of PDPs at particle physics laboratories. The stakeholders identified enhancing teachers’ knowledge of scientific concepts and models and enhancing their knowledge of the curricula as the most important learning goals. Furthermore, the results show strong agreement between all the stakeholder groups regarding the defined learning goals. Indeed, all groups ranked the learning goals by their perceived importance almost identically. These outcomes could help policymakers establish more specific policies for PDPs. Additionally, they provide PDP practitioners at science research institutions with a solid base for future research and planning endeavors.

The discovery of the Higgs boson by the ATLAS and CMS collaborations in 2012 concluded the longest search for a particle in the history of particle physics and was based on the largest and most complex physics experiments ever conducted, involving thousands of scientists and engineers from around the world. It provided crucial evidence for a theory developed in the 1960s that describes the existence of the invisible Brout-Englert-Higgs field and the effects of this field on the mass of elementary particles. After the discovery, the work on the theoretical prediction was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics 2013. This discovery provides a prime example of modern science in the making and a fantastic opportunity to discuss important aspects of Nature of Science (NoS) in the classroom. In this article, we draw connections between a) milestones in the discovery of the Higgs boson, b) important aspects of NoS, and c) hands-on activities with mystery boxes, which are an effective tool to enable students to experience elements of scientific discovery and explicitly reflect on NoS. We hope that this supports educators in bringing lively discussions about modern physics research into their classrooms., 18 pages, 6 figures

Research in particle physics seems to be abstract and far away from high-school students’ daily life. Yet, research in particle physics is not only relevant for scientists but also applied in numerous fields. For example, technologies developed at CERN are used in medicine for cancer diagnostics and therapy or in cultural heritage for art authentication and restoring. These applications of particle physics may be interesting for high-school students, and thus could serve as contexts for learning activities about particle physics contents. In the framework of a PhD project in physics education research at CERN, a study examines how to foster students’ interest in particle physics by setting it in meaningful contexts. The aim of the project is to compare different contexts in order to identify the ones that are equally and highly interesting for all students. We developed an instrument to measure particle physics interest (IPPI). The items present particle physics set in different contexts. We surveyed 1049 German-speaking students aged 14 to 15 years in an online cross-cohort study. Rasch analysis revealed which contexts of particle physics were rated as more (or less) interesting by the students. For example, the most interesting context was the human body (“medical diagnostics”). Knowing the hierarchy of interesting contexts enables educators to adapt or create learning activities according to the most promising contexts.

Given the importance of fostering students’ interest as a goal of physics education in meeting international science standards, empirical support for the theoretical description of the interest construct is essential. Empirical studies require the use of psychometrically sound measurement instruments. This study developed an instrument to measure students’ interest in particle physics (IPPI). Drawing from previous research, we defined interest in particle physics, identified corresponding behaviours, and proposed a hierarchy of students’ levels of interest in particle physics. Then, we developed the IPPI, using rating scale items that assessed the latent trait developed from our theory regarding the degree of interest in particle physics. We tested the IPPI in student think-aloud interviews and validated it in a field test on a sample comprising 99 German-speaking grade 9 students. A Rasch analysis provided evidence supporting the content, construct, statistical, and fit validity of the IPPI. We revised the hypothesised hierarchy of students’ levels of interest in particle physics based on the item hierarchy revealed by the Rasch analysis. We associated each level with different contexts, such as socio-scientific issues. Knowing about these levels of interest in particle physics can help educators design their learning activities better and foster their students’ interest.

In secondary education, cathode-ray tubes (CRTs) are often the first choice when it comes to investigating the behavior of electrically charged particles in electric and magnetic fields. While CRTs offer some advantages, mainly from a practical point of view, they are on the whole ill-suited for an inquiry-based approach since they provide very limited room for modification or hands-on experimentation. Therefore, a 3D-printable plasma electron gun has been developed, which is at the same time modular, inexpensive, and easily accessible. The main objective is to provide teachers and students with an easy-to-operate electron beam source that allows conducting experiments on beam generation, beam focusing, and beam deflection as a hands-on activity in a classroom setting. From a technical point of view, this can be achieved by substituting the hot cathode as standard electron source by a plasma cathode electron gun, which can be operated at fore-vacuum pressure and in reactive gases. We provide a proof of concept that a low-cost 3D-printed plasma electron source is feasible and that beam generation can be accomplished.

Spreading interest in physics is crucial for the course and career choices of high-school students. When investigating interest in physics, previous studies focused on four aspects: interesting contents, contexts, tasks, and learning environments. Overall, physics education researchers agree that when trying to catch students’ interest, context matters the most. However, previous studies did not include modern physics content areas such as particle physics. Moreover, they interpreted individual difference based on gender instead of students’ self-concept. Thus, we examined what matters when spreading interest in particle physics among 9th grade students. We adapted existing questionnaires assessing interest and self-concept to investigate a) which aspects of particle physics students are interested in and b) whether they differ in their interest profiles. We surveyed 99 German-speaking students in 9th grade using an online questionnaire. The analysis revealed that particle physics is perceived as the most interesting when presented in a context, e.g., in relation to humans and nature. This is in line with previous findings about interest in classical physics. However, contrary to classical physics, analysis suggests that particle physics is equally interesting for all students.

Sympozjum omawia sposoby i środki wprowadzenia współczesnej fizyki do edukacji przed uniwersyteckiej zilustrowane kilkoma efektywnymi przykładami. Przykłady pochodzą z fizyki miękkiej materii w ciekłych kryształach i hydrożelach oraz fizyki ciała stałego w nadprzewodnikach. Rolę analogii omówiono i zilustrowano w porównaniu między nadprzewodnikami a fizyką cząstek. Ponadto przedstawiono opracowanie programu rozwoju zawodowego nauczycieli, który wypełni lukę w nowej wiedzy dla aktywnych nauczycieli pracujących już w zawodzie. This symposium discusses the modes and means for introduction of contemporary physics to pre-university level education illustrated by a few successful examples. Examples come from soft matter physics in liquid crystals and hydrogels and solid-state physics in superconductors. The role of analogies is discussed and illustrated in analogy between superconductors and particle physics. In addition, a development of a professional development programme that will bridge the gap to new knowledge for active in-service teachers is presented.

Spannender und kognitiv aktivierender Unterricht sollte Jugendlichen die Moglichkeit geben, sich selbsttatig mit einem fur sie interessanten Unterrichtsgegenstand zu beschaftigen und dabei ihre bestehenden Wissensstrukturen zu erweitern, z. B. in der Form von gut durchdachten Schulerexperimenten. Die Komplexitat der Teilchenphysik erschwert dieses Vorhaben allerdings, da das benotigte Equipment fur Schulen oft zu teuer und schwer zuganglich ist. Aus ahnlichen Grunden wurden in den letzten Jahren in verschiedenen Gebieten moderner Wissenschaft zahlreiche Schulerlabore zur Wissenschaftskommunikation geschaffen, die mittels ihrer Spezialisierung und moderner Ausstattung Experimentiergelegenheiten schaffen, um Jugendlichen einen Einblick in die aktuelle Forschung zu geben.

This paper describes the second in a series of studies exploring the acceptance of the subatomic structure of matter by 12-year-olds. The studies focus on a novel learning unit introducing an atomic model from electrons down to quarks, which is aimed to be used at an early stage in the physics curriculum. Three features are fundamental to the unit’s design: conveying the central role of models in physics, focusing on linguistic accuracy, and the use of novel typographic illustrations. An initial study saw the iterative redesign and retesting of the unit through 20 one-on-one interviews with grade-6 students. Findings indicated broad acceptance of most of the unit’s key ideas, hinting that the unit’s final version is plausible for 12-year-olds. Subsequently, the research was focused on the perspective of teachers to gain insight into their evaluation of the unit’s adequacy and didactic feasibility. Therefore, the current follow-up study was designed to introduce the proposed unit to grade-6 students. This time, instead of education researchers, 13 teachers conducted a set of 17 one-on-one interviews. The teachers had been introduced to the learning unit and the research method during a professional development programme. Our analysis showed that the unit’s key ideas were broadly accepted by all the students, who adequately used them for problem-solving during the one-on-one interviews. Overall, the documented results validate our findings from the initial study and indicate that the learning unit is adequate and well-suited for a broad evaluation in the classroom.

Sensors for environmental radioactivity based on two novel setups using photodiodes, on the one hand, and an advanced tablet-based hybrid pixel detector, on the other hand, are presented. Measurements of four kinds of terrestrial and every-day radiation sources are carried out: Airborne radon, a mineral containing traces of uranium, edible potassium salt, and an old radium watch. These measurements permit comparisons between different types of ambient radioactive sources and enable environmental monitoring. Available data comprise discrimination between &alpha, and &beta, &minus, particles in an energy range of 33 keV to 8 MeV and under ambient air conditions. The diode-based sensor is particularly useful in portable applications since it is small and sturdy with little power consumption. It can be directly connected to a smartphone via the headset socket. For its development, the low-cost silicon positive-intrinsic-negative (PIN) diodes BPX61 and BPW34 have been characterised with capacitance versus voltage (C-V) curves. Physical detection limits for ionising radiation are discussed based on obtained depletion layer width: ( 50 &plusmn, 8 ) &mu, m at 8 V. The mobile and low-cost character of these sensors, as alternatives to Geiger counters or other advanced equipment, allows for a widespread use by individuals and citizen science groups for environmental and health protection purposes, or in educational settings. Source code and hardware design files are released under open source licenses with this publication.

CERN’s educational programmes offer a broad spectrum of opportunities from high-school students to professional and well experienced science teachers. In 2017 three new projects have been launched to complement these efforts. The High-School Students Internship Programme (HSSIP) offers a two-week national internship experience for students aged 16 to 19, enabling them to strengthen their understanding of science. The S’Cool LAB Summer Camp extends the S’Cool LAB offers by a two weeks residential programme enabling high-school students from around the world to experience hands-on science in an international research laboratory. The International Teacher Weeks is a two week programme that enables high-school teachers to develop further in the field of particle physics and exchange knowledge and experience among teachers from all over the world. CERN’s Physics Education Research team and its projects and programmes will be presented.

Quadrupole ion traps are modern and versatile research tools used in mass spectrometers, in atomic frequency and time standards, in trapped ion quantum computing research, and for trapping anti-hydrogen ions at CERN. Despite their educational potential, quadrupole ion traps are seldom introduced into the physics classroom not least because commercial quadrupole ion traps appropriate for classroom use are expensive and difficult to set up. We present an open hardware 3D-printable quadrupole ion trap suitable for the classroom, which is capable of trapping lycopodium spores. We also provide student worksheets developed in an iterative design process, which can guide students while discovering particle traps. The quadrupole ion trap operates using a 3 kV 50 Hz alternating current power supply and uses an astable multivibrator circuit including high luminosity LEDs to illuminate the spores, using the stroboscopic effect to exhibit their movement. The trap can be used in teaching laboratories to enhance high school and university students’ understanding of electric fields and their applications.

We have developed a learning unit based on the Standard Model of particle physics, featuring novel typographic illustrations of elementary particles and particle systems. Since the unit includes antiparticles and systems of antiparticles, a visualization of anticolor charge was required. We propose an alternative to the commonly used complementary-color method, whereby antiparticles and antiparticle systems are identified through the use of stripes instead of a change in color. We presented our proposal to high school students and physics teachers, who evaluated it to be a more helpful way of distinguishing between color charge and anticolor charge.

This article presents a study that examined an innovative short-term program (two sessions of 3 hr each) for the professional development of teachers. The program design is based on the technique of probing acceptance, which is aimed at investigating student learning processes. It relies on students' evaluation, paraphrasing, and adaptation of information presented during a one-on-one interview with defined student-centered interview phases. During the professional development program, teachers were introduced to a novel learning unit that focuses on the subatomic structure of matter. In addition, the teachers were instructed in how to use the technique of probing acceptance during one-on-one interviews to evaluate the concepts of the unit. The rationale of the professional development program is that the preparation and execution of, and reflection on the one-on-one interviews based on the technique of probing acceptance should have an impact on dimensions of teachers' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Four teachers from one Austrian high school participated in this exploratory study, and each teacher conducted two one-on-one interviews with two different grade-6 students. Postintervention interviews were conducted with all the teachers to document the potential influences on the teachers' PCK. The interviews were transcribed word for word, and a category-based content analysis was applied to the transcripts. Our results indicate that during the professional development program, all the teachers revisited their existing knowledge about the subatomic structure of matter and left with an enhanced PCK, especially regarding their knowledge of learners and of instructional strategies. Overall, we show the technique of probing acceptance to be a promising tool for short-term professional development programs, and we suggest that our findings have implications for both professional development designers and educators.

With the ability to attribute signatures of ionising radiation to certain particle types, pixel detectors offer a unique advantage over the traditional use of Geiger-Müller tubes also in educational settings. We demonstrate in this work how a Timepix readout chip combined with a standard 300 μ m pixelated silicon sensor can be used to visualise radioactivity in real-time and by means of augmented reality. The chip family is the result of technology transfer from High Energy Physics at CERN and facilitated by the Medipix Collaboration. This article summarises the development of a prototype based on an iPad mini and open source software detailed in ref. [1]. Appropriate experimental activities that explore natural radioactivity and everyday objects are given to demonstrate the use of this new tool in educational settings.

Summary The beginning of the universe, the Big Bang, being an important subdomain in cosmology, marks the very beginning of space and time. Therefore, it has formed the modern scientific worldview. Transferring this to students through science teaching is a frequent request in science literacy discussion (e.g., American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1993 , Schecker et al., 2004 ). However, it is not yet clear in science education if students’ conceptions about the Big Bang vary by nationality, and therefore, if it is possible to apply the same teaching modules to students from different countries, who may have diverse social and cultural backgrounds and different curricula. These conceptions with which students enter the classroom were investigated in our study. We implemented an open-ended questionnaire survey in Germany, with questions based on recent U.S. studies. The results clearly showed, with high interrater reliabilities, widespread misconceptions like the Big Bang being an explosion of preexisting matter into empty space or the universe having a centre. Furthermore, a comparison of results from researchers in the USA, Sweden and Germany allowed us to identify differences in students’ conceptions between the countries. Our findings appear to indicate that German students have slightly better pre-instructional conceptions about the Big Bang theory.

We present a new learning unit, which introduces 12 year-olds to the subatomic structure of matter. The learning unit was iteratively developed as a design-based research project using the technique of probing acceptance. We give a brief overview of the unit's final version, discuss its key ideas and main concepts, and conclude by highlighting the main implications of our research, which we consider to be most promising for use in the physics classroom.

In einer Kooperation der Universität Wien und des CERN wird ein Forschungprojekt zur Rolle interessanter Inhalte und Kontexte im Physikunterricht durchgeführt. Im Besonderen wird das Interesse an Inhalten der modernen Physik, wie etwa Teilchenphysik, untersucht.

This study introduces a teaching concept based on the Standard Model of particle physics. It comprises two consecutive chapters –¬ elementary particles and fundamental interactions. The rationale of this concept is that the fundamental principles of particle physics can run as the golden thread through the whole physics curriculum. The design process was conducted from a constructivist perspective based on students’ documented conceptions. Three pillars underpin the whole teaching concept: a permanent model character, linguistic accuracy, and innovative typographic illustrations. Using the framework of design-based research, microteaching sessions with 20 Grade-6 students were conducted to probe its acceptance. The study focusses on learning processes of 12-year-olds with respect to elementary particles. Our findings indicate broad acceptance of most key ideas, but also avoidance when considering the permanent model character of physics. The most promising outcomes of the study are pure typographic illustrations. Not only were these thoroughly accepted by all students, but they also seem to reduce known misconceptions. Overall, students’ understanding of elementary particles improved fundamentally.