Physics education research differs from traditional education research in that the emphasis is not on educational theory or methodology in the general sense, but rather on student understanding of physics. Such research requires an in-depth knowledge of the subject as well as access to students, which means that it can usually only be carried out by physicists working in physics departments. The findings form a rich resource that provides insights into how students learn physics. When teachers apply this information and document the results for others to use, cumulative improvement in instruction is possible (L C McDermott and E F Redish 1999 Am. J. Phys. 67 755).
The perspective that teaching can be treated as a science, as well as an art, motivates the work of researchers in the Physics Education Group at the University of Washington. Our research indicates that although students vary in the way they learn best, learning is not as idiosyncratic as is often assumed. Students at the same level of study respond in a remarkably similar way to certain kinds of questions, both before and after standard instruction via lectures, textbooks and lab classes.
In the January issue of Physics World Lillian C McDermott, professor of physics and director of the Physics Education Group in the Department of Physics at the University of Washington in Seattle in the US describes how research in physics education can lead to more effective teaching.