Speaker
Description
Numerous educators have successfully integrated poetry in the high-school and undergraduate classroom to teach subjects across STEM, including algebra, geometry, trigonometry, statistics, biology, and in medical education. However, with the notable exception of courses like “astronomy for poets,” the poetic impulse is less prominent among physicists. Paul Dirac famously argued that “the aim of science is to make difficult things understandable in a simpler way; the aim of poetry is to state simple things in an incomprehensible way. The two are incompatible.” Based on my experience incorporating poetry as a high-school mathematics teacher and current research on arts-integrated physics, I will argue against Dirac’s view, claiming that there is space for poetry in physics education. This presentation will propose and illustrate practical ways to incorporate poetry into physics pedagogy, offering example assignments for fellow educators at both the high-school and undergraduate levels.
| Keyword-1 | Interdisciplinary Education |
|---|---|
| Keyword-2 | Arts-Integrated STEM |
| Keyword-3 | Mathematical Poetry |