This book presents a selection of the best contributions to GIREP EPEC 2015, the Conference of the International Research Group on Physics Teaching (GIREP) and the European Physical Society"s Physics Education Division (EPS PED). It introduces readers interested in the field to the problem of identifying strategies and tools to improve physics teaching and learning so as to convey Key Competences and help students acquire them.The main topic of the conference was Key Competences (KC) in physics teaching and learning in the form of knowledge, skills and attitudes that are fundamental for every member of society. Given the role of physics as a field strongly connected not only to digital competence but also to several other Key Competences, this conference provided a forum for in-depth discussions of related issues.
Part I: Towards Shaping Key Competences.- Role of Key Competences in Physics Teaching and Learning.- Competence and Understanding: A Personal perspective.- Analysing the Competency of Mathematical Modelling in Physics.- Introduction of Current Scientific Results to Education: Experiences from the Case of Liquid Crystals.- The Influence of Epistemic Views about the Relationship between Physics and Mathematics in Understanding Physics Concepts and Problem Solving.- Part II: Educational research and development.- Analysing the Conceptions on Modelling of Engineering Undergraduate Students: A Case Study Using Cluster Analysis.- Classroom Evidence of Teachers" PCK of the Interplay of Physics and Mathematics.- Development of Research Based Teaching Materials: The Learning Output of a Course for Geometrical Optics for Lower Secondary Students.
