Squaring the Circle: A Mathematically Rigorous Physics First

For more than a hundred years there has been a debate about the sequence in which high school science should be taught. Many advocates of “Physics First” support a more conceptual ninth-grade physics course followed by chemistry and then biology while supporters of mathematically rigorous physics favor a sequence of biology-chemistry-physics. This paper describes a new approach that incorporates some of the best arguments from both sides. The main idea is to teach a mathematically rigorous ninth-grade physics course based on algebra alone, avoiding trigonometry.^1,2 By selecting topics from the AP Physics B curriculum that form a foundation for both chemistry and biology, one can establish an efficient science sequence. The goal of this paper is to describe this new approach to Physics First and present data supporting its effectiveness.