Directions for Use

The Minds On Physics Internet Modules were designed to be user-friendly. Learning to use the program should occur quite quickly. Knowing a few basic facts about the program will improve the friendliness of your experience.

Logging On

Anyone can use the Minds On Physics (MOP) Internet Modules. Logging on is an easy process - whether you are doing them as an assignment for a course or simply doing them to review a physics concept or as practice for an upcoming quiz or a test. To begin, ...

  1. Go to the Start page.
  2. Click the Continue button.
  3. Read about the various options; then choose the option you wish to use. The For Credit option is recommended even for those students who simply want to practice without receiving credit. For Credit provides the most vigorous exercise in thinking and learning and the most elaborate feedback. The For Practice option is ideal for those who wish to view and practice all the questions quickly and progress through an assignment without earning credit. Choose an option.
  4. If choosing the For Credit option, you must first provide MOP some start-up information. This includes two pieces of information that are important in awarding you with credit if you successfully complete an assignment. You will need to enter a ...
Teacher Code - a 4-6 letter code
Registered teachers are assigned a teacher code that their students use when they do MOP for credit. If you're doing MOP as an assignment, you will need your teacher's teacher code. If you're just practicing or wanting to survey the program, use GUEST as the teacher code

Student ID - 4-6 numbers; no leading zeros; numbers only

If you are doing MOP as an assignment for a teacher, use the student ID which your teacher assigned to you. Like the teacher code, you must enter it correctly If you enter it incorrectly, you might not receive credit. If you are just doing MOP on your own (not as an assignment), then you can use 1234 as your student ID number.
  1. Now you're ready to pick an assignment. First pick the broad Subject area by clicking on one of the fields titled Mechanics, Electricity, Waves, Sound and Light or Ray Optics.
  2. Now tht you have chosen a subject, narrow the subject down to a narrower topic by clicking on one of the lines in the field.
  3. Now that you have chosen a narrower topic, you will see a listing of assignments. The assignments have a label (e.g., KC1), a title (e.g., Scalars and Vectors) and the number of questions in the assignment. Click on one of the titles (... or labels ... or number of questions) to begin your Minds On Physics session. (If you teacher gave you a special Start Code, then click the small, light grey Start Code icon located to the left of the assignment number; enter the Start Code information and begin.)
  4. Now for the phun part - you get to think physics and answer questions. Do your best. Read carefully. This can be difficult if you're not comfortable with the topic. Don't get frustrated. Instead, get help by using the Hints and Helps button. (You will need to enable the pop-ups in the browser preferences in order for this to work.) If you are having difficulties, MOP will detect that and recommend some help that is specific to each question. If you have persistent difficulties, MOP may even recommend a Tutorial. This may be the best choice if your understanding of the topic is in its beginning stages. Learning is seldom the result of the impulsive act of clicking buttons; it takes time, thought and mental organization; so take MOP's advice and try the Tutorial. Another free piece of advice is this: slow down, organize, think about the meaning of the physics terms and the wording of each question. Perhaps get out a textbook or some class notes, and make an effort to fill in the holes in your knowledge of a topic.

Earning Credit

Credit can only be earned when doing MOP in For Credit usage mode. You will notice a Progress bar and a Health bar to the side of each question. This is MOP's way of measuring your understanding. The Progress bar will get higher as you answer questions correctly. When the Progress bar reaches 100%, you are done with the assignment and MOP will report a success code. It is VERY important that you write the success code down. Your teacher may have given you a record keeping form for recording the success codes. These record keeping forms are available at the Record-Keeping page. Write down your code on the record-keeping form.

You are likely to miss some questions. Any question you miss will appear again (or at least a version of it will) before you complete the assignment. If you miss the same or similar question twice, MOP will let you know by the displaying a flashing exclamation point. Click the exclamation point to receive help on that question. If you miss too many questions, your health bar will drop to 0% and you will have to re-start the assigment. While that can be frustrating, it doesn't reduce the amount of credit that you earn. Learning is a process; you are participating in that process each time you click on the Try Again button.

There are instances in which a student nearly masters the content in an assignment. With the exception of the same one or two questions that keep causing the student to stumble, he/she has a strong and consistent grasp of the topic. In such instances, it is possible (in fact, probable) that the student will earn a Silver Medal Success Code. Many instructors accept such success codes for partial credit. Record the Silver Medal Success Code in the appropriate column of your record-keeping form. If you still have the energy and patience, continue forward and go for the Gold.

The record-keeping form with the success codes written on it should be handed in to your teacher on the due date. Your teacher subscribes to a program that allows him/her to check the success codes you submit against a master list. If there is agreement between the code you submit and the correct success code on the master list, you will be rewarded credit. This is how your teacher validates that you indeed did the assignment that was assigned. A lack of agreement between the correct success code on the master list and the success codes you submit can only mean one of two things: (a) you made the success code up and did not actually receive it from MOP or (b) you entered the wrong teacher code and/or student ID number when you logged on to use the MOP program. This explains why it is VERY important to enter this information correctly when you begin.

 

Teachers who are interested in registering to use the Minds On Physics Internet Modules with their classes can read more about it at the Teacher Use page and the Teacher Registration page.