Student-centred learning and disciplinary enculturation: an exploration through physics

This study argues that student-centred methods in the teaching of physics can be beneficial for students' enculturation into the discipline and into a physicist's profession. Interviews conducted with academics and students from six master degrees in physics in three different European countries suggest that student-driven classroom activities, collaborative learning and problem-solving, or integration in research groups/projects enable students to engage in practices similar to those which are part of professional scientists' routine. Through interactive, participative methods reminiscent of cognitive apprenticeship, students develop a range of abilities necessary in a physicist's career: capacity of explanation, argumentation and defence of claims; analytical reasoning; capacity to critically review literature; ability to discern research paths worth pursuing; writing skills; and interpersonal skills. These give them a first taste of what it is like to be a physicist and ease their transition into a professional physics career.