Renovation of the Introductory Physics Laboratory Rooms
at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln
315 and 317 Ferguson Hall
Pluses and minuses of "new" room
Good Points:
Easy to provide power to all tables.
Unistrut works great for mounting equipment overhead such as motion sensors!
Room is bright and clean.
Instructors like being able to walk all the way around the room to monitor and facilitate lab activities.
Instructors like having marker boards around the room to allow for mini-discussions with just a few students at a time as necessary.
New table makes it easier for three students to work together - they can even see each other's faces! It seems to facilitate group discussions.
Not-So-Good Points:
New table doesn't have sufficient space for students' lab books. To fix this, we are having a leaf built to install in the middle of a two-table pod.
The new table is too massive (steel legs and supports!) and the feet do not have a leveling mechanism.
The monitor supports are strong and sturdy, but they interfere too much in the work space and they bring the monitor too close to the students.
We currently do not have sufficient funds to replace the curtains. The old curtains allow a lot of light to leak into the room. In addition, they look dingy compared to the newness of the rest of the room.