ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Background
Ph.D. - 2004 ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳
M.S. - 1998 ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳
B.S. - 1997 ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳
Courses Taught
- PH131
- PH132
- Physics Team Design Lab
Research Interests
Research Interests
Professor Ramsdell's research interests are in the area of Physics ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Research, Laboratory Curriculum Development and Design. Our research has focused on the implementation and assessment of the Physics Team Design Program for the calculus-based introductory Mechanics and Electricity and Magnetism courses. This Program utilizes an inquiry-based approach to team problem solving and developing mathematical modeling skills. FCI and CSEM assessment reveals that participating students out perform a comparison group of nonparticipating students by a factor of 1.5 – 1.6 using a traditional percent gain calculation.
Publications
- Wick, D.P., and Ramsdell, M.W., University Outreach in Stem ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ through Roller Coaster Science and Engineering Camp; Proceedings of the annual FIE (Frontiers in ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳) (2011)
- Wick, D.P., and Ramsdell, M.W., Predictive Assessment of Student Performance for Early Strategic Guidance; Proceedings of the annual FIE (Frontiers in ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳) (2011)
- Wick, D.P., and Ramsdell, M.W., Experimenting with Electric Trains, The Physics Teacher (Accepted, January 2006).
- Ramsdell, M. W. and Wick, D.P., Predicting Turning Points for Toy Cars, The Physics Teacher, Vol. 43, October 2005, pp.442 – 444.
- Wick, D. P. and Ramsdell, M. W., Modeling the motion of a toy train powered with a time-dependent applied voltage: ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳al implementation and analysis, American Journal of Physics, July 2004, 72(7), pp. 863 – 874.
- Wick, D. P. and Ramsdell, M. W., Modeling the motion of a toy car traveling on an arbitrarily shaped track, American Journal of Physics July 2002, 70(7), pp. 670 – 679.2003.