Xian Wu

Associate Professor In Residence

Physics

2016 Ph.D. Physics Kansas State University

2012 M.S. Physics University of New Hampshire

2007 B.S. Physics (National Scientific Base for Talented Candidates) Wuhan University

I see myself as an educator and I have broad interests across diverse areas of education research. Through the endeavor in both teaching and scholarship, I hope to be closer to some of the field’s most fundamental questions:

• What defines a better education?
• Is it teaching or learning?
• How do we balance the art and science of education?

I welcome graduate students who are curious about these questions and eager to explore them through collaborative research.

Selected recent publications:

• Wu, X., Li, Y., Zu, T., Hutson, J., Loschky, L. C., & Rebello, N. S. Using Multimedia Hints to Facilitate Conceptual Problem Solving in Physics: Investigating the Effect of Multiple Modalities. In Frontiers in Education (Vol. 10, p. 1568406). Frontiers.
• Scanlon, E. M., Guthrie, M. W., Wu, X., Syerson, E., Butler, J., Mora, B., … & McPadden, D. (2025). Amplifying disabled voices in physics: Experiences from the C2C design team. The Physics Teacher, 63(4), 294-295.
• Wu, X., Guthrie, M. W., Scanlon, E. M., & Li, Y. (2023, September). Analyzing the dimensionality of the Energy and Momentum Conceptual Survey using Item Response Theory. In 2023 PERC Proceedings.
• Wu, X., Guthrie, M. W., Peyravi, M. M., & Scanlon, E. M. (2022, September). They’re not buying what we’re selling: comparing student-requested supports with instructional practice during group work. In 2022 PERC Proceedings.