/
Article

The crisis in high‐school physics education

SEP 01, 1983
Physics Today

As our society becomes more and more based on high technology, both for the goods and services we use and for the economic health of our country, it seems that fewer and fewer of our youth are learning the basic science they need to cope with the technology. Any technology that is sufficiently far beyond someone’s ken will appear indistinguishable from magic. The graph on page 29 shows that only just over 3% of our high‐school seniors take physics. Even “General Science” does not draw a large audience.

This article is only available in PDF format

Related content
/
Article
Myriad solutions emerge in the stressful process of balancing professional ambition and personal happiness.
/
Article
An interview with a prominent member of the Marshallese diaspora delves into the ongoing impact of aboveground US nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific archipelago.
/
Article
Detecting quantum particles of gravity was long considered hopeless. A new perspective, which takes advantage of quantum technologies, suggests that an experimental realization may be closer than previously thought.
/
Article
As higher-education programs compete for a shrinking pool of students, departments must better communicate the value that a physics major brings.
This Content Appeared In
pt-cover_1983_09.jpeg

Volume 36, Number 9

Get PT newsletters in your inbox

pt_newsletter_card_blue.png
PT The Week in Physics

A collection of PT's content from the previous week delivered every Monday.

pt_newsletter_card_darkblue.png
PT New Issue Alert

Be notified about the new issue with links to highlights and the full TOC.

pt_newsletter_card_pink.png
PT Webinars & White Papers

The latest webinars, white papers and other informational resources.

By signing up you agree to allow AIP to send you email newsletters. You further agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.