2007

SHELLEY COLLEGE
PHYSICS DEPARTMENT

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AS Salters Horners Physics
Physics In Action

Before reading through these webpages, please take a few moments to look at our most recent photographs for Year 12 & 13 coursework experiments.

Welcome to the Physics Department Webpages

Our guess is that since you're reading this, you've got at least a passing interest in what we would consider to be the most important subject you can study at Shelley College........and we can prove it!

Take a look around you.

• The building you are in was designed, built, and remains standing due to Physics.
• The transport you used to get to College works because of the principles of Physics.
• The weather, miserable though it is at times, is predicted using highly complicated Physical and Mathematical models, using data received from satellites. Satellites that were launched within the constraints of Newton's Laws of Motion.
• Mobile phones work due to advanced electronic engineering, a branch of Physics.
• Your mp3 player is a highly sophisticated piece of equipment that uses the principles of Physics to store and play your music.

The list goes on and on:

Electricity and the National Grid, dentists equipment, drug development, DVD players, aeroplanes, water treatment, waste treatment, fire hose pressure, building surveying, microwave ovens, street lighting, food development and treatment, road design, glasses and contact lenses, furniture manufacture, fridges, locks, smoke alarms, windows, stairs, scissors,

..........and don't even think about getting us started on computers and the Internet.  

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So the next time someone says that they don't need Physics: it's absolute NONSENSE.

Why Study Physics?

Many of the students that leave Shelley College after passing Physics continue on to study an engineering based course. However, this is just one of the many, many career paths that an A' level in Physics can open up. It has to be said that the number of students studying traditional Physics at University has fallen over the past few years as many young people are choosing to be more specialised and opting for electrical or automotive engineering, civil engineering, astrophysics, or meteorology, for example. However, all these students have one thing in common.

They all passed A' level Physics and want to make it part of their career.

Coupled with this is a very interesting point: If you study Physics, or engineering, you are in such short supply that you will always be in demand. For those of you who are economically minded, if demand outstrips supply the price goes up. Therefore: Engineering = Money Cash ²

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How OUR Course is delivered?

In Year 12 AS course students will study 3 MODULES, and 2 of these modules consist of 3 UNITS.

The 3^rd Module is based entirely on coursework:

Module PSA3: 2 experiments from the units studied in PSA1 or 2 written up to very strict criteria. Plus, students will attend an industrial visit, from which they will write a report. The most popular visit we have had recently is to the National Media Museum in Bradford where students received a guided tour around the projection room of the IMAX theatre.

eLearning Portal In PSA1 & PSA2 EVERY lesson is delivered through the eLearning Portal a revolutionary resource that allows ALL students to access their work on a lesson by lesson basis. All work has been pre-prepared by our Physics department staff and can be accessed by students through their user area from the College computers AND through the INTERNET if access is available from home.

It is EXPECTED that students print out, and be in possession of, the relevant aspects of the lesson when they attend class.

EVERY lesson is taught using the accelerated learning cycle, using a chunked lesson approach with starter activities, experiments, past paper questions and appropriate homework tasks.

What do you study in each unit?

The concept behind the Salters Horners course is one that addresses the applications of Physics principles in everyday life. The theories and principles that you would study on ALL Physics courses throughout the world WILL BE THE SAME, however there are very few that allow students to APPLY their knowledge to everyday situations. In our opinion it's no good knowing Einstein's theory of Photoelectric effect without understanding how it can be used.

In our course at Shelley College students will learn about the applications of Physics:

On the following pages we have produced a brief outline of the contents of each unit in Year 12. However, we advise you to look at the textbook, check the eLearning Portal, and talk to Mr Tipler, Miss Abbott or Mr Little for in-depth details regarding the units.

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	PSA1
	Sound Of Music
In this unit students study how sounds are made and analyse the motion of atoms and objects that produce these sounds.
	How musical instruments work is the essential basis of this unit. The Physics behind how a CD works is the main aspect of the second part of the unit with students learning the principle of lenses.
	CD's use LASER light and students learn how these work.

	Higher, Faster, Stronger
In this unit students will study the ideas and principles of SPORTS SCIENCE and how Scientists have analysed motion to improve the performance of athletes.
	The types of sports you will study are running, bungee jumping, rock climbing, skiing and ski jumping. Students will also study the relative motion of athletes and the space shuttle. The unit covers the basics of motion and the associated equations. Studying this unit will link with other AS subjects such as PE, Biology and Maths.

	Technology In Space
	In this unit students study the issues that Scientists are faced with when keeping a satellite in orbit around the Earth.  The emphasis is with powering satellites housing astronauts, such as the MIR and the International Space Station. The unit begins with a study of how space stations are powered. The study of solar cells is linked to electrical circuits, voltage and resistance. The unit then continues to look at a different type of problem on satellites; in that of heat dissipation.

	PSA2
	Good Enough to Eat
In this, one of the most popular units, students investigate the Physics of the food industry and, regardless of what Jamie Oliver does about it, actually get to eat sweets in lesson time!!!
	Material properties of solids and solutions are vital to ensure that all types of manufactured food are safe and tasty to eat. Chocolate makers, for instance, take measurements of the viscosity of the liquid chocolate so that when it solidifies it has the required consistency. Students will also study how to measure the strength of a sugar solution - vital in the wine making industry to ensure the quality of grape being grown at vineyards.
	Spare Part Surgery
	In this unit of the Year 12 AS course students study an extension to some of the work covered in the Good Enough to Eat Unit about material properties. The context of this unit is how different materials can be used in medicine and particularly how they can be used in the design of prosthetic limbs. This unit also introduces a more in depth look at the workings of the eye and ultimately how contact lenses work to correct vision defects. The unit finishes with a short study into the use of ultrasound to monitor the heart.

	Digging up the Past
In this unit students study how Physics principles are used to help the identification and analysis of archaeological artefacts.
	The techniques studied are vital in the revelation, identification, dating and preservation of objects found on archaeological digs. Such techniques are 1-D and 2-D resistance modelling, X-ray crystallography, background radiation and thermoluminescence. The theory of thermoluminescence encompasses work derived by Albert Einstein, for which he won a Nobel Prize in 1921.

    Year 13   

The A2 course continues in a similar vain and covers such topics as Electromagnetic Induction, Capacitance, Momentum, Circular Motion, Modulation and Pulse coding, Earthquakes and resonance, Theories of the Universe, Particle accelerators, and the theory of gases.

All the details and lessons for this part of the course can be found via the eLearning Portal and the expectations of students in Year 13 as the same as Year 12.

The only difference in the course at A2 level is whereas Module 4 is a taught, and assessed, unit like those in Year 12, Module 5 (PSA5) is divided and assessed as a taught unit and a coursework unit which takes the form of an individual project. Module 6 is a synoptic paper that tests students on their recall of all work studied throughout Year 12 & 13.

COURSE ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

All students need to be aware that the AS Physics course IS more demanding than GCSE work and your attitude and work ethic will determine your success to a much greater extent.

If you want to study AS Physics you must meet the following criteria:

Achieve a grade C or above at GCSE Science

Study for the higher tier paper at GCSE Science

Achieve your target grade at GCSE Science

Achieve a grade C in Maths at GCSE

Have at least another 3 grades at GCSE at C or above.

If you think you may not achieve one or more of these criteria then you need to see Mr Tipler without delay.

Throughout the course students are encouraged to revise and recap their work regularly, using a range of different techniques.

The diagram below is an example of a MindMap for the topic "Medium is the Message" produced by a Year 13 student.

Click to enlarge

Is Physics Difficult?

This is a question that is asked continually by students. The answer is, of course, it depends upon how much effort you put in.

Do not let any other institution tell you that Physics is not difficult because ALL A' levels are hard and your work ethic will do more to make a subject more or less difficult than it did at KS3 or GCSE.

However, AS level is slightly less complicated than it used to be, but only because of the nature of the organisation of the course. But remember, this is the same for any subject NOT JUST PHYSICS.

Below we have given you a visual example below to illustrate the difference between AS level and the "old fashioned" A' level.

In "the olden days" each concept was taught from start to finish.

To give a simple example, a typical 2 year course may involve studying 2 concepts; mechanics and electricity and they would be arranged like this over the two years:

Mechanics Year 12		Electricity Year 13
Equations of Motion Easier topic	Circular Motion Harder topic	Circuits and Equations Easier topic	Capacitance Harder topic

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However, with the new AS level the easier parts are all studied in Year 12 with the more difficult concepts approached in year 13.

Year 12		Year 13
Equations of Motion Easier topic	Circuits and Equations Easier topic	Circular Motion Harder topic	Capacitance Harder topic

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		FAQ
Do I need to study A' level Maths to study AS level Physics?
	Opinion is divided on this matter and those institutions that "co-join" subjects within 1 subject choice may limit students to following a particular career path. Our advice is simple, and in the best interest of students well- being, because who wants to study a subject they may not necessarily enjoy just to be able to take one that they do? Although there are a number of mathematical aspects to the course, if you can rearrange equations, draw graphs, and find the gradient of a graph then this is sufficient for Year 12. What we do ask is that you are willing to learn and study hard on mathematical problems if you have to learn a new skill.
Who will teach me Physics next year?
				Well that depends on a number of factors such as the "option band" in which you choose Physics. However, it will either be Mr Tipler, Miss Abbott, or Mr Little. We also have 2 technicians, Mrs Steele and Mrs Hope who will be on hand to support all students with experimental work.
Where will my lessons take place?
	Probably in A3, A4, A5, or A6. Our department is well resourced with more and more investment in highly advanced equipment and apparatus each year. Live and remote datalogging is playing a far more prominent role in AS/A2 Physics than ever before and Mr Tipler has ensured that the department remains at the cutting edge of the technological frontier.
How many lessons will I get on my timetable?
	In the past AS Physics has been taught over 9 lessons a fortnight.
What help can I expect?
	As well as the eLearning Portal which gives every lesson in detail, including past paper questions, students will receive the AS Salters Horners text book. Physics staff to be available at all times for help and revision. Student will also receive a "Profile" of their progress at regular intervals throughout the year.

What results can I expect to get?

It depends on how hard you work.  The entire support network that students need is in place, and so a lot of it is down to you.

A2 Headline Results

This table shows the entire results since the first results in 1979 and a comparison to our most recent results in Jun 2005.

What can I do with an A Level in Physics?

The answer to this question is very simple:  almost anything.  A good A' level in Physics is looked on as very favourable by universities as it indicates a student with a good work ethic.

We have included the destinations of some of our students who studied AS/A2 last year.