Exhibitions, experiments help students comprehend physics

Exhibitions, experiments help students comprehend physics

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta

Exhibitions and experiments of natural phenomena can help high
school students gain a much better understanding of physics than
drilling them with theories and formulas, a teacher said.

"Exhibitions and experiments will encourage them to seek a
logical explanation of the phenomena," said Lokie, a physics
teacher from SMUK 3 BPK Penabur private high school, on the
sidelines of a physics contest final on Saturday at Trisakti
University.

In the contest, Lokie's pupil, Iyung, won first prize, a Rp
2.5 million (US$289) scholarship from the university. Hafiyan
Prafianto from Insan Cendekia Islamic boarding school in Serpong,
Tangerang, finished second, Dito Eka Cahya from SMU 1 state high
school Serpong was third and Willy Yunnal Wirawan from SMUK 1 BPK
Penabur, Jakarta, was fourth.

The four contestants had to answer 50 physics problems
presented in three rounds. In the main round, they were required
to observe experiments and explain the results.

Bambang Nurcholis, a member of the organizers and head of the
university's school of industrial technology physics laboratory,
said the committee had deliberately chosen a quiz format for the
main round to make it more interesting.

"We want to prove that learning physics can be fun by
exhibiting its theorems through simple and everyday events," he
said.

The laboratory has contributed materials for Galileo physics
quiz TV show, which also uses the same format.

Chairman of the organizers, Djasli Djamarus, who is also the
school deputy dean, said the contest was also aimed at promoting
physics among high school students.

"We can't deny that Indonesian students have potential in
physics. Trisakti would like to encourage that potential," he
said, adding that the school was planning to hold a mathematics
contest later this year.

Indonesia won five medals, including a gold, in last year's
34th International Physics Olympiad (IPO) in Taipei.

Djasli, however, acknowledged that the contest had yet to
receive much enthusiasm from invited high schools. Only 94
contestants from 27 high schools throughout Greater Jakarta
participated in the contest. Most of them were sophomore
students, as third-year students are busy preparing for their
final national exams, which start on Monday.