Date of Award

Fall 2025

Project Type

Thesis

Program or Major

Physics

Degree Name

Master of Science

First Advisor

Dawn Meredith

Second Advisor

Elena Long

Third Advisor

David Mattingly

Abstract

‘One-size-fits-all’ education aims to cater to the ‘average’ student, but the ‘average’ student does not exist. Students are individuals, each with a set of needs, abilities, preferences, and interests unique to them. A variety of instructional approaches should thus be used to differentiate students’ learning. This differentiation has been studied mostly for K-12. My study extends this research into an upper-level undergraduate physics theory course. For this phenomenographic pilot study, I interviewed ten students about the differentiated homework assignments in their upper-level undergraduate classical mechanics course at the University of New Hampshire. I performed an issue-focused analysis of the data, using the theoretical frameworks of physics identity and self-determination theory. This analysis shows that when given the choice of which homework questions to answer, some students intentionally and thoughtfully chose the questions that they believed would benefit their learning. Also, giving students this autonomy positively affected the students both in the course, beyond the course grade, and outside of the course in a variety of ways.

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