PRE-SERVICE PHYSICS TEACHERSʹ PROBLEM SOLVING APPROACHES IN SPECIAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY

The aim of the study, which was designed as a qualitative research, is to determine the problem solving approaches of pre-service physics teachers in special theory of relativity. The data was collected through semi structured interviews and through problem solving tasks and was analyzed by using qualitative research method. At the end of the analysis process three categories were obtained. Especially the students in the second and in the third categories were seen to have developed a solution approach which includes solving the problem through finding a similar equation that seems to match the current problem and/or through trial and error. We think that this study might be a source material to other studies supposed to be done in the future, since the insufficient investigation was taken into consideration at undergraduate level related to the special theory of relativity.