Hey Buddy! Improving student confidence and understanding in undergraduate physics laboratories

Abstract First-year undergraduate physics laboratory-based courses often see low student satisfaction levels, frequently citing frustration as a major contributing factor. To address this at the University of Liverpool, a writing exercise was introduced to first-year physics students with the goal of better preparing them for writing their first full laboratory report. The exercise was designed to improve their self-perceived understanding and confidence such that they felt better able to approach the report. In the exercise, students evaluated an example lab report—describing the cooling process of a cup of tea—using the same rubric by which their own report would be assessed. A post-exercise survey was conducted in order to measure students’ self-perceived confidence, understanding, and their response to collaborating and discussing with a peer. Despite only a small number of respondents, results indicate that the guided exercise increased students’ self-reported confidence in writing a full lab report by increasing their understanding of the marking expectations. Additionally, students responded positively to peer collaboration, highlighting the benefits that discussion of the example report provided.