Ames, Iowa (PRWEB) July 24, 2013 -- Actus Potentia’s Physics software (http://www.actuspotentia.com/Physics.shtml) is a 24-7 tutor that will help students complete their work in a fraction of the time, get better grades, and become expert problem solvers. Unlimited practice problems on eight major topics engage students in learning through ascending steps of question, answer, and feedback.
Students learn through active participation in the software’s structured environment that guides them through multiple steps to the solutions of Physics problems. The software does not have a limited problem bank; students can pose their own problem and solve the problem with the help from the software. The software provides immediate feedback that allows students to fix their mistakes and develop strong foundation in Physics from the guided problem solving. The software does not contain any video lecture or lengthy reading material. Brief help files provide essential and timely help for problem solving.
The software consists of eight sections on Vectors, Mechanics, Heat and Thermodynamics, Waves and Sound, Fluid Mechanics, Optics, Electricity and Magnetism. All sections are designed to minimize students’ cognitive load. Cognitive load is the load on working memory during instruction. A few impacts of cognitive load on learning are: (i) limited amount of information can be retained in the short term memory before information loss occurs, (ii) students learn better when they can build on what they already have in their working memory, and (iii) gradual and self-paced build-up of information in the working memory leads to learning that is retained for a long period of time. The software keeps the cognitive load low by (i) providing small but essential instruction to develop the ability of the students to solve wide variety of basic problems, (ii) not overwhelming the students with large number of equations, and (iii) providing the opportunity of growth through inquiry and discovery in an interactive environment.
Many problem solving exercises utilize Actus Potentia’s own Concept Map software. The concept mapping technique has the following properties: (i) Concept Map optimizes the amount of information students need to store and reduces the cognitive load, (ii) Concept Map checks the sufficient of the input data and whether the input data have contradictions, (iii) Concept Map distinguishes properly and improperly posed problems, (iv) Concept Maps shows all possible ways of solving one problem making it attractive to learners with different learning styles, and (v) Concept Map does not make any distinction between direct and inverse problems.
The software is aligned with the Core Physics Curriculum.
Ambar Mitra, Actus Potentia, http://www.actuspotentia.com, 515-291-1563, AKMITRA@ACTUSPOTENTIA.COM
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