Waiting for physics? An inquiry into first year physics students’ experience of a traditionel science curriculum.

Studies of attrition in science education show that students who leave are often extrinsically motivated,

whereas students who stay are often intrinsically motivated. Furthermore, students (in Scandinavia)

tend to use an introvert discourse when explaining their motives for leaving. A longitudinal study of 26

first year students of physics, who were interviewed on two to seven occasions over a year, show that

even the intrinsically motivated students struggle with their studies. They experience a pressure for

using a surface approach to studying, which they find inappropriate. Although students use an

introspective discourse, analysis of interviews show that they experience a conflict between their

intrinsic interest in physics and the curriculum. This can be interpreted as a problem with the didactical

transposition; the ‘physics taught’ is too distant from ‘research physics’.