Physics seeks to understand and explain the physical world, both natural and constructed. It examines models and ideas used to make sense of the world. VCE Physics is an opportunity for students to undertake a range of inquiry tasks including laboratory experiments, data logging, simulations and animations. Students pose questions, formulate hypotheses, collect and analyse data, evaluate methodologies and results, justify conclusions and communicate their findings.
Attempting Unit 3 and 4 without completing Units 1 and 2 is not advised.
In this unit students use Newton’s laws to investigate motion in one and two dimensions. They explore the concept of the field as a model used by physicists to explain observations of motion of objects not in apparent contact. Students compare and contrast three fundamental fields – gravitational, magnetic and electric – and how they relate to one another. They consider the importance of the field to the motion of particles within the field. Students examine the production of electricity and its delivery to homes. They explore fields in relation to the transmission of electricity over large distances and in the design and operation of particle accelerators.
Areas of study include:
How do Physicists explain motion in two dimensions?
How do things move without contact?
How are fields used in electricity generation?
In this unit, students explore some monumental changes in thinking in Physics that have changed the course of how physicists understand and investigate the Universe. They examine the limitations of the wave model in describing light behaviour and use a particle model to better explain some observations of light. Matter, that was once explained using a particle model, is re-imagined using a wave model. Students are challenged to think beyond how they experience the physical world of their everyday lives to thinking from a new perspective, as they imagine the relativistic world of length contraction and time dilation when motion approaches the speed of light. They are invited to wonder about how Einstein’s revolutionary thinking allowed the development of modern-day devices such as the GPS.
Students conduct a scientific investigation related to fields, motion or light, and present a conclusion in a scientific poster.
Areas of study include:
How has understanding about the physical world changed?
How is scientific inquiry used to investigate fields, motion or light?
The students level of achievement in Units 3 and 4 is determined by School-assessed Coursework and end-of-year examination.
Percentage contributions to the study score in VCE Physics are as follows:
Unit 3 School-assessed Coursework: 20 per cent
Unit 4 School-assessed Coursework: 30 per cent
End-of-year examination: 50 per cent.
For more detailed information, please click on the link/s below:
Students will need a scientific calculator
Students will order the textbook from the booklist
Edrolo Units 3 & 4 Physics Resource will be purchased and distributed to students by the school (this will be charged on your College account)
Cambridge Checkpoints VCE Physics Unit 3 and 4