Current Work
Note: For more information about my background, see the next section. For more info about publications, etc., jump to the last section.
I am a Lecturer in the Department of Physics and a member of the Digital Learning Lab. In my role, I teach in-person classes at MIT, which we call “Residential” classes, and I help produce and run online classes for a broader audience, which we call “MITx” classes. I have been involved with teaching introductory and sophomore-level residential courses since 2018, and I have also produced several MITx courses including “8.03x Vibrations and Waves” and a series titled “8.S50x Computational Data Science in Physics.” Here is a list of all MITx Physics courses that our team manages.
Beyond teaching and running online courses, I am involved with educational functions and initiatives within the Physics Department, including mentoring students. I am also deeply interested in Physics Education Research and developing effective ways for students to interactively engage with content, for instance through hands-on experiments or visualizations.
In the remaining part of this section, I provide a brief overview of my areas of work.
Teaching
- I have taught Introductory Physics I and II (8.01 & 8.02), which are “technology enabled active learning” (TEAL) courses, taught in a “studio” physics classroom. They are general requirement courses serving students with a range of backgrounds and interests.
- I have taught recitation sections of 8.03 Vibrations and Waves, a sophomore-level class that most majors take. I am leading an effort to incorporate more active-learning components into this class.
Mentoring and Supervising
- I have participated in the Physics Department Mentor Program for several semesters, where I meet one-on-one with students to discuss issues, questions, and provide overall support.
- I’ve mentored Digital Learning Summer Interns on projects that support our online educational initiatives. For instance, see this article.
- I have hired and supervised numerous undergraduate employees, working on various projects.
Hands-on Learning
- I led a grant-funded project to produce take-home experiments kits for 8.02 Introductory Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism. I created learning sequences (e.g. instructional videos, exercises, etc.) for the related experiments and helped implement them during multiple semesters. We created nearly 500 kits, and they are now an integral part of the curriculum.
- I helped develop learning sequences for our other classroom experiments, in an attempt to create pedagogical uniformity.
Visualizations
- I’ve created numerous interactive Jupyter notebook visualizations for 8.03 Vibrations and Waves, in order to elucidate complex phenomena and engage students in active learning and coding.
- I have worked towards transforming Jupyter notebook visualizations into interactive javascript pages so that they can be run in a browser and, therefore, embedded anywhere.
MITx Courses
- Produced 8.03x Vibrations and Waves
- Produced 8.S50x Computational Data Science in Physics, Parts I, II, and III.
- Help support Quantum Mechanics series courses, 8.04x, 8.05x, and 8.06x.
Grading Management
- I have developed and coordinated part of the grading procedure in our large-scale TEAL classes (8.01 & 8.02), which involves scanning exams and managing a consistency check amongst graders.
Advanced-Standing Exams
- I support advanced-standing exams that are run through the Physics Department, by helping curate exam questions and manage grading.
Background
I received my B.A. from Wheaton College (MA) in 2008, majoring in Physics & Mathematics, and my M.A. in Physics from the University of Rochester in 2010. At that time, I looked for opportunities to explore my interest in physics outside of graduate school, and applied to be a Technical Instructor in the Physics Department at MIT. As a Technical Instructor, I was heavily involved in “active-learning” efforts in the classroom, from running demonstrations to engaging students in problem-solving. During that time I also produced many demo videos, some of which can be seen HERE. The experience was formative, and I was hooked! I ultimately left this role in 2012 to pursue a Ph.D. in Physics at Boston College, but from then on I knew that I wanted to be involved in Physics Education in the future.
At Boston College, I pursued research in plasmonics, which is a branch of condensed matter physics. I found great satisfaction in studying a topic deeply and really enjoyed my work in theoretical physics. I also sought opportunities to teach and became heavily involved in the undergraduate lab program. I taught physics labs nearly every semester and in the summer, and took on the role of Acting Lab Manager for a period of time. I also had the opportunity to teach an algebra-based Introductory Physics course called “Foundations of Physics,” where I applied active-learning elements like “concept-questions” and peer problem-solving. When preparing to leave Boston College in 2018, after completing my Ph.D., I sought careers in the Physics Education space.
In 2018, I came to MIT as a postdoc, focused on Physics Education Research. Initially, I worked with Professor David Pritchard developing online quizzes for MIT’s Introductory Electricity and Magnetism course (8.02), with the objective of producing meaningful low-stakes assessments. Soon thereafter, I joined the Digital Learning Lab, which is a cohort of postdocs and lecturers from different departments who produce and manage online courses and support residential education. I have learned a significant amount from this “community of practice,” and have served in some leadership roles and on committees. Eventually I transitioned from “Postdoctoral Associate” to “Lecturer,” and this is where the timeline coincides with the section above!
Awards, Grants, Publications, Related Media (while at MIT)
Awards
Grants
- J-WEL Higher Education Innovation Grant, Spring 2020
Contributed Talks, Posters, etc.
- Shvonski, A. (2023). Computational Data Science with Jupyter Notebooks: An Undergrad/Graduate-Level
- Course Offered in Different Formats. PICUP Fall 2023 Webinar. DOI: 10.1119/PICUP.Webinar.2023-12-04
- Shvonski, A., Harris, P. C. (2023). Computational Data Science with Jupyter Notebooks in Online Courses. Contributed Talk, AAPT Summer Meeting 2023.
- Shvonski, A. (2022). Multiple Implementations of Hands-On Learning Labs. MIT J-WEL Hands-on and Experiential Learning Webinar, June 21, 2022.
- Shvonski, A. (2020). Electricity and Magnetism Take-Home Design Experiments. MIT J-WEL Connections Panel, October 2020.
- Shvonski, A., Prabakar, P., White, J., Dourmashkin, P. (2020). Implementation of Design Experiments in Large-Scale Introductory Physics Classes. Contributed Talk, AAPT Summer Meeting 2020.
- Shvonski, A., Tomasik, M., Drury, B., Pritchard, D. E. (2019). Topical, Randomized Quizzes in Electromagnetism. Contributed Talk, AAPT Summer Meeting 2019.
- Shvonski, A., Prabakar, P., White, J., Dourmashkin, P., Tomasik, M. (2019). Implementing Design Experiments in a Blended Learning, Introductory Electromagnetism Class. Poster, AAPT Summer Meeting 2019.
Related Media (authored or mentioned)
- High school students gain skills by working on digital learning materials. MIT News, Nov. 30, 2023. LINK.
- Shvonski, A., Vibrations and Waves: Adapting a residential MIT physics course for online learners. MIT Open Learning via Medium, Mar. 28, 2022. LINK.
- Schools of Science and Engineering join hands to transform learning. MIT News, Dec. 6, 2019. LINK.