Improving Introductory Physics Labs for Life Science Students at Brigham Young University

Traditional labs, aimed at reinforcing lecture content, have shown limited educational impact. Instead, physics labs should focus on helping students develop experimentation skills. Brigham Young University (BYU) has made this change to their mechanics introductory physics lab for life science students. Student lab notebooks and reports were coded to analyze students' modeling practices and inform teaching assistant preparation. Results show student growth in using mathematical and theoretical reasoning reflected in increased correct predictions. However, students misrepresenting how they reasoned in lab and having less discussion of results with less scaffolding can also be seen.