Week 4: The Final Project 🎓

Designing Your "Virtual Lab"

Pre-service Physics Teacher Training

Today's Goal: From Student to Creator

Building Your First EdTech Tool

You are going to build a "Digital Experiment" that you can use in your future classroom.

The Criteria:

  1. Clarity: Can a 15-year-old follow your instructions?
  2. Control: Are the variables easy to find and change?
  3. Visualization: Does the graph clearly show the "Physics Story"?

The Anatomy of a Great Virtual Lab

1. The Hook (Text Cell)

Define the problem. Example: "Why do heavy cars take longer to stop?"

2. The Engine (Code Cell)

Your loop-based simulation. Use # Comments to explain the logic to your students.

3. The Discovery (The Graph)

A clean plot with units and a legend.

Project Rubric: How You'll Be Evaluated

Component 5 Pts (Pro) 3 Pts (Basic) 1 Pt (Novice)
Pedagogy Clear instructions + a "What if?" question. Minimal instructions. No text, only code.
Simulation Runs perfectly; uses a loop + .append(). Runs but has minor units/logic errors. Code fails to run.
Plotting Labeled axes, grid, and title. Missing labels or grid. No graph.
Architecture High schoolers can easily find/edit variables. Code is messy/hard to navigate. Values are hard-coded.

Lab Task: Drafting Your Module 🛠️

  1. Pick your Topic: (e.g., Projectile Motion).
  2. Prompt the AI: "Write a Python script for a Virtual Lab on [Topic]. Include a loop, list appending, and a plot."
  3. Refine as the Architect: * Fix the units.
    • Add a input() function for "Launch Angle" if you're feeling brave!
    • Write the "Questions for Students" in a Text cell.

The "User Experience" Check âś…

Before you submit, test your notebook:

  • Restart & Run All: Does it work from scratch?
  • The "Student" Test: If you change the initial velocity, does the graph reflect that change?
  • The Units: Are your axes labeled with (m), (s), or (N)?

Submission & Showcase

  1. Set Share permissions to "Anyone with the link can view".
  2. Submit the link to our class portal.
  3. Next Session: We will "peer review" each other's labs by trying to "break" them!

Congratulations!

You are now a Cognitive Architect.

You have moved from "learning code" to "authoring reality." Use these tools to make physics visible for your future students!

"Congratulations on making it to Week 4. Over the last three weeks, you’ve learned how to assign variables, visualize data, and simulate complex motion step-by-step. Today, you stop being my students and start being the architects of your own classrooms. Your goal today is to take one physics concept—one that is usually hard to visualize—and build a tool that makes it crystal clear."

"A good virtual lab is a conversation between you and your future student. Start with a Text Cell that 'hooks' them. If you’re doing braking distance, ask them about road safety. Then, provide the 'Engine.' This is your code cell. Make sure your variables are clearly labeled so the student knows where to change the 'Mass' or 'Friction.' Finally, your graph should be the 'Reward'—the visual proof of their experiment."

"I’m grading you on **Pedagogy** as much as **Code**. I want to see that you’ve thought about the user. Is your code commented? If a 10th-grader looks at your loop, will they understand that `v = v + a*dt` is how the speed increases? Use the rubric on the screen as your checklist."

"Use your AI partner today to build the skeleton of your project. But remember—the AI is just a junior developer. It might forget to label the X-axis or it might use a time-step that is too large. You are the Architect. You must refine the code until it’s a professional teaching tool."

"Before you hit 'Submit,' do a 'Clean Run.' Go to the menu and select 'Restart and Run All.' This ensures that your notebook doesn't rely on some hidden variable you created an hour ago. If it runs smoothly from top to bottom, it’s ready for your students."