Research has found circular and rotational motion to be a challenging topic for undergraduate physics students. This article reports on Introductory Physics students’ learning of concepts and quantitative principles in circular and rotational motion. It involves a teaching strategy that uses hands-on practical work, PhET simulations and a focus on feedback in line with the Active Learning Theory developed by Chi and colleagues. Data in this study were collected via in-depth interviews, end-of-lesson tasks and questionnaires. After the intervention, most students were able to show understanding of the relationship between velocity (linear and angular) and radius, predict the motion of a car at a curve given the velocity and show understanding of the relationships between mass distribution and moment of inertia. They considered that hands-on practical work facilitated the derivation of equations and establishing of relationships whereas the accompanying group discussions provided opportunities for justifying developing conceptual understanding. The strengths of the use of PhET simulations were seen as the visualisation of vector directions, the opportunities to confirm predictions and the perceived high reliability of the measurements. The study also showed that feedback was perceived to contribute positively towards the ability to derive equations and relate concepts and even promote self-regulation practices. All in all, this study revealed that a complementary combination of hands-on practical work, free internet-based resources such as PhET simulations and a focus on feedback helps Introductory Physics students learn concepts and quantitative principles in the physics topic of circular and rotational motion.

研究发现，圆周运动和旋转运动对于本科物理专业的学生来说是一个具有挑战性的课题。本文报告了物理导论学生对圆周运动和旋转运动的概念和定量原理的学习。它涉及一种教学策略，该策略使用动手实践工作、PhET 模拟以及根据 Chi 及其同事开发的主动学习理论关注反馈。本研究中的数据是通过深入访谈、课后任务和问卷调查收集的。干预后，大多数学生能够理解速度（线性和角）与半径之间的关系，预测汽车在给定速度的曲线上的运动，并理解质量分布与惯性矩之间的关系。他们认为动手实践工作有助于方程式的推导和关系的建立，而伴随的小组讨论为证明发展概念理解提供了机会。使用 PhET 模拟的优势被视为矢量方向的可视化、确认预测的机会以及测量的感知高可靠性。该研究还表明，反馈被认为对推导方程式和关联概念的能力有积极贡献，甚至可以促进自我调节实践。总而言之，这项研究揭示了动手实践工作的互补组合，