UPDAT: VCE Physics: VCAA Webinar

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Webinar
VCAA will be held a one hour webinars in each of the VCE Study Designs.  They are part of VCAA’s Professional Learning program to support VCE Unit 3 and 4 teachers in implementing and delivering the adjusted Study Designs for 2020 and to answer questions related to the adjusted study design content and school-based assessment.
The Physics webinar was on Tuesday, 12th May from 4:15pm to 5:15pm.
You needed to register .  The video will be available afterwards, but only to those who have registered.

2020 VCE Physics Examinations
The VCAA examinations unit are working on examinations for 2020. Further advice will be provided on the VCAA website and through a Notice to Schools when it becomes available.
Note: The NH exam has been postponed.  These students will now sit the same exam as other physics students at the end of the year.

12 month extension of Accreditation Period
To support teachers to focus on the continuity of learning in their schools, the board of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority and the CEO of the Victorian Regulations and Qualifications Authority have approved a 12 month extension to the accreditation periods for all accredited VCE study designs.
All accredited VCE study designs will be taught again unchanged in 2021. The adjusted Study Designs for 2020 are not applicable in 2021.
For Physics, the study design’s accreditation period currently expires on 31 December 2021. This accreditation period has now been extended by 12 months and the study design will now expire on 31 December 2022.
This study was under review in 2020. This review process will continue into 2021 and the newly accredited study design will be delivered by schools in 2023 (rather than 2022).

More resources for Online Teaching and Learning
i) Living Physics Portal is an online resource of curriculum material for introductory physics course for life sciences.  It hopes to make physics classes more relevant for life science students.  The website is very well structured, there is a section for each area of physics, e.g. Mechanics, in each section several headings ( e.g. Newton’s 3rd Law) and for each heading a few sub-headings (e.g. Action/Reaction) and finally some resources which are described in detail and can be downloaded.  You need to register and there is an expectation that at some stage in the future you will contribute some material.
ii) Smart Phones on the Rise. An article on apps that allow experiments to be done at home.  The article mentions Phyphox which was on the last edition of this newsletter.  It had a 30% increase in downloads in the second half of March. This article also describes Physics Toolbox, which has had a similar increase.
iii) From Perimeter Institute a free poster featuring physicists’ reflections on past teachers who had an impact.

Our webpage for Online Learning is regularly updated, so please check it from time to time.

Jane Coyle (Pres), Dr Barbara McKinnon (Vice-Pres), Dan O’Keeffe OAM (Sec) and Paul Walters (Treas)

The next meeting of the Vicphysics Teachers’ Network will be on Wednesday, 13th May online, starting at 5:30pm.   If you wish to participate, please email Vicphysics

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