The department

Outline of the Department

The department used to be part of a block built in the 1960’s, for all three sciences.
This block was demolished to make way for the new Sanger science centre.
There are five teaching laboratories plus an assignment area in the Physics department. The assignment lab is manned by a physics teacher for nearly every period of the week and is used for practical and written assignment work. The benefit of having a physics teacher around and able to help individuals has been a big part of the success of the department.

Use of Information Technology

Information technology is widely used in the department.

An assortment of Macintosh computers are used for a wide range of data logging applications in conjunction with Pasco sensors. These are widely used in practicals and extensively in practical investigations by upper school students. In addition, they can be used to view on-demand videos, encyclopaedias and internet access for Research and Analysis projects. Students are encouraged to word process longer reports and coursework elements.

Library

A Physics library is maintained containing a wide ranging selection of books on every aspect of Physics and suitable for students in D up to university level. There are currently some 800 books available of which some 600 can be borrowed for a few weeks as part of the larger school library system. The remainder form a reference library. New books are continually being added at a rate of about 20 a term.

In addition to books a selection of scientific magazines and journals are often on display.

Other Media

Our large number of videos have been digitised and are now accessible via the network to any computer.

The old building.

Constructing the new Labs (February 2006) .

Construction as of November 2006.