Abstract
This paper argues that some kind of historical perspective is a conditio sine qua non in the teaching of physics. Without a proper historical perspective the student will not experience physics as the living, human endeavour it is; in addition, the historical-exemplaric approach is often beneficial also to the technical and conceptual aspects of physics education by offering a deeper and more critical look at particular physical problems. However, the relationship between physics and history of physics is intrinsically problematic in that the lessons to be learned from history are often counterproductive to those aimed at in science teaching. The tensions between the two approaches may lead to a historically unsatisfactory quasi-history adapted to the perceived needs of science education, but although this dilemma is genuine, there is no reason why it should block a historically oriented teaching of physics. Based on the example of the history of the photoelectric effect as a case in the teaching of introductory quantum theory it is argued that the dilemma between ‘historical truth’ and ‘didactic usefulness’ may be circumvented by focussing on a few, carefully selected case studies. The didactic potentials of one such example, the early introduction of the light-quantum, are discussed.
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Roskilde University Centre, P.O. Box 260, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark.
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Kragh, H. A sense of history: History of science and the teaching of introductory quantum theory. Sci Educ 1, 349–363 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00430962
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00430962