The Story of Physical Science Research Associates
(Message from the Founder)
Hi, I am Anatoliy and I’ve got an idea I want to share with you today:
The main difference between the educational system of the United States and other countries in Europe and Asia is that the entire world teaches physics as a separate discipline in all grades starting from grade six.
Some time ago, when my daughter Iryna went to her first day of middle school I asked her who her physics teacher was. I was stunned to hear that there was no physics in grade 6. The next day, I ran to the school and for the first time in my life, I faced a reality of math and science education in the United States. Essentially, apart from a few randomly selected topics, there is no physics in middle school and physics is not a mandatory course in high school. This explained to me why our students are heavily underperforming in math and science – both in K-12 and later on during the university years. This could also be a contributor to why, so few choose natural science disciplines (i.e. all types of engineering), and why there are such high attrition rates within the country.
Throughout my career, I have lived in many countries and have worked extensively as an educator, a world-renowned applied physicist, and an innovator. During my time in Asia and Europe, I was able to see firsthand the benefits that physics as a separate discipline, started early can provide. Some of these benefits are the development of critical thinking of students, the establishment of a scientific foundation, building a critical application for math, helping kids to overcome the fear of failure in related fields and empowering opportunities early on for their aspiration to technical professions.
A problem of the absence of physics in middle school: The United States is falling behind in math and science in comparison to the other countries, and thus is experiencing a severe workforce shortage in critical industries.
France, Germany, Japan, and other developed countries overproduce a large amount of the world’s technological talent. On the contrary, the US is suffering a shortage of engineers and other technical professionals. Due to this factor often, we must look outside of our country to fill these positions.
A quick way to address this problem in United States: Put physics back into the schools, starting from 6th grade and provide it in a way that it is extremely easy for teachers to implement and is engaging for students to participate in.
That is exactly why Physical Science Research Associates (PhySciRA) was formed and why we have created the breakthrough Physics in a Box program.
What we provide is not just “another STEM solution.” We haven’t invented anything new; we simply bring solutions that have worked in Europe and Asia for over a century and structure programs to fit into our American curriculum. This program we have created has been designed to be 100% hands-on and provides schools and teachers with all the necessary tools, curriculum, and unique professional development for educators on the content and methodology.
Guys, we have started a movement here…! Over the past couple of years, our physics program has been delivered to schools and districts in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Florida. Our overall goal is to see Physics being taught as a separate discipline in every state of our country. Our vision is that it will eventually be introduced in elementary schools, taught in middle school, and to ultimately be a consistent factor of high school. We believe that in doing so, we’ll change the technological workforce climate in the United States growing our country a better future.
Let’s make a bigger impact together.
Anatoliy V. Glushchenko
Founder, Physical Science Research Associates
Professor of Physics
Director, Center for Advanced Technologies & Optical Materials
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
