Beginning the weekend of June 20-24 and continuing June 26-30, Andrews University will host its third annual Smartlabs, an intensive summer program for teachers and students that not only stresses “pedagogical practicality and instrument mastery” in the context of modern physics instruction laboratories, but also intends to spur attendees toward revamping their respective institutions.

During the eight days of Smartlabs coursework, attendees will navigate state-of-the-art science software supported by the distinguished companies Vernier Software & Technology and Pasco Scientific. This follows a previous introductory workshop, which ran from June 13-15, was likewise attended by teacher-student pairs, and aimed to facilitate laboratory experimentation with the help of an advanced, computerized data-gathering system. Dr. Margarita Mattingly, chair of Andrews University’s physics department and director of the Smartlabs program, expects her excitement about physics will be contagious thanks to the very hands-on nature of Smartlabs.

With physics lately fluorescing in the academic spotlight, Smartlabs aims to equip professors with the tools, knowledge, and perspective crucial to meeting the increasingly technological expectations and challenges today’s teaching environment poses. Aside from encouraging attendees to attain comprehensive physics lab proficiency, Smartlabs also provides a fast-paced and flexible means by which teachers may accrue the 20 credits required to teach physics in the state of Michigan, assuming they’ve previously completed a year-long laboratory course in physics.