The Lillian McDermott Medal, established in 2021, is awarded annually by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Named after Lillian Christie McDermott, the Medal "recognizes those who are passionate and tenacious about improving the teaching and learning of physics and have made intellectually creative contributions in this area".[1]
The Robert A. Millikan award was the medal previously given by the AAPT to individuals who provide notable contributions to the teaching of physics. The award was established in 1962; the winner received a monetary award and certificate and delivered an address at an AAPT summer meeting. In the spring of 2021, the AAPT Board of Directors removed Millikan's name from the award.[2]
| Year | Name | Institution | Address | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Gregory Francis | Montana State University | "Two Red Bricks: Is A Good Lecture Better Than No Lecture At All?"[5] | |
| 2020 | David M. Cook | Lawrence University | "Attempting the (seemingly) Impossible"[6] | |
| 2019 | Tom Greenslade | Kenyon College | "Adventures with Oscillations and Waves"[7] | |
| 2018 | Kyle Forinash III | Indiana University Southeast | "Breaking out of the Physics Silo"[8] | |
| 2017 | Kenneth Heller | University of Minnesota | "Can We Get There from Here?"[9] | |
| 2016 | Stephen M. Pompea | National Optical Astronomy Observatory | "Knowledge and Wonder: Reflections on Ill-Structured Problem Solving"[10] | |
| 2015 | Robert A. Morse | St. Albans School (Washington, D.C.) | "Facets of Physics Teaching-Pedagogical Engineering in the High School Classroom"[11] | |
| 2014 | Eugenia Etkina | Rutgers University | "Students of Physics: Listeners, Observers, or Collaborative Participants?"[12] | |
| 2013 | Harvey Gould | "New Challenges for Old Physics Departments"[13] | ||
| 2012 | Philip M. Sadler[14] | "Separating Facts From Fad: How Our Choices Impact Students' Performance and Persistence in Physics" | ||
| 2011 | Brian Jones | "All I Really Need to Know About Physics Education I Learned in Kindergarten"[15] | ||
| 2010 | Patricia M. Heller | "Guiding the Future: Developing Research-based Physics Standards"[16] | ||
| 2009 | Arthur Eisenkraft | "Physics for All: From Special Needs to Olympiads"[17] | ||
| 2008 | "The Make-Believe World of Real-World Physics"[18] | |||
| 2007 | David Sokoloff[19] | "Building a New, More Exciting Mouse Trap is Not Enough" | ||
| 2006 | Art Hobson | "Thoughts on Physics Education for the 21st Century"[20] | ||
| 2005 | Washington University in St. Louis | "The Mystique of Physics: Relumine the Enlightenment"[21] | ||
| 2004 | Kenneth S. Krane | "The Challenges of Teaching Modern Physics"[22] | ||
| 2003 | Fred M. Goldberg | "Research and Development in Physics Education: Focusing on Students' Thinking"[23] | ||
| 2002 | Simon George | "Global Study of the Role of the Laboratory in Physics Educations"[24] | ||
| 2001 | Sallie A. Watkins | "Can "Descriptive" End with "A"?"[25] | ||
| 2000 | Thomas D. Rossing | "Beauty in Physics and the Arts"[26] | ||
| 1999 | Alan Van Heuvelen | "Research About Physics Learning, Linguistics, Our Minds, and the Workplace"[27] | ||
| 1998 | Edward F. Redish | "Building a Science of Teaching Physics: Learning What Works and Why"[28] | ||
| 1997 | "Is there a Text in This Class?"[29] | |||
| 1996 | "Promoting Active Learning Based on Physics Education Research in Introductory Physics Courses"[30] | |||
| 1995 | Dean Zollman | "Do They Just Sit There? Reflections on Helping Students Learn Physics"[31] | ||
| 1994 | Frederick Reif | "Understanding and Teaching Important Scientific Thought Processes"[32] | ||
| 1993 | James A. Minstrell | "Creating an Environment for Reconstructing Understanding and Reasoning about the Physical World"[33] | ||
| 1992 | Robert G. Fuller | "Hypermedia and the Knowing of Physics Standing Upon the Shoulders of Giants"[34] | ||
| 1991 | Mr. Wizard Studios | "Behind the Scenes of Mr. Wizard"[35] | ||
| 1990 | "What We Teach and What Is Learned—Closing the Gap"[36] | |||
| 1989 | Peter Lindenfeld | "The Einsteinization of Physics"[37] | ||
| 1988 | "Beetles, Bubbles, and Butterflies Iridescence in Nature"[38] | |||
| 1987 | "Educational Television An Oxymoron?"[39] | |||
| 1986 | Mario Iona | "Why Johnny Can't Learn Physics from Textbooks I have Known"[40] | ||
| 1985 | James Gerhart | "Handling Numbers"[41] | ||
| 1984 | Earl F. Zwicker | "Life, Learning, and the Phunomenological [sic] Approach"[42] | ||
| 1983 | Gerald F. Wheeler | "The Emerging Telecommunications Network: New Conduit to Learners" | ||
| 1982 | "The Missing Essential A Conceptual Understanding of Physics" | |||
| 1981 | "Are We Overlooking Something?" | |||
| 1980 | Thomas D. Miner | "Prides and Prejudices of a Physics Teacher" | ||
| 1979 | Washington University in St. Louis | "The Art of Teaching Physics" | ||
| 1978 | Alfred Bork | "Interactive Learning" | ||
| 1977 | C. Luther Andrews | "Microwave Optics" | ||
| 1976 | Tung Hon Jeong | "Holography" | ||
| 1975 | Harold A. Daw | "Physics Instructional Apparatus and Things" | ||
| 1974 | Harald Jensen | "A Retired Physics Teacher Reminisces" | ||
| 1973 | "Teaching and Learning" | |||
| 1972 | Arnold A. Strassenburg | "The Evolution of Physics Teaching" | ||
| 1971 | Harry F. Meiners | "Problems of Science Education in Underdeveloped Countries" | ||
| 1970 | Franklin Miller, Jr. | "A Long Look at the Short Film" | ||
| 1969 | John M. Fowler | "Content and Process in Physics Teaching" | ||
| 1968 | Alan Holden | "Artistic Invitations to the Study of Physics" | ||
| 1967 | "Oildrops and Subelectrons" | |||
| 1966 | "Electrons, Photons, and Students" | |||
| 1965 | "The Undergraduate Physics Laboratory and Reality" | |||
| 1964 | H. Victor Neher | "Millikan: Teacher and Friend" | ||
| 1962 | "The Early Days of the American Association of Physics Teachers" |