To address a perennial need to provide K-8 teachers with a solid foundation in science, there are many
physics content courses throughout the United States. One such course is Physics and Astronomy for
Teachers (PAT), which relies heavily on active-learning strategies. Although PAT is successful in teaching
physics content, students sometimes report dissatisfaction with the course. Such instances of poor affect
are worrisome because they may influence how teachers present science in their own classrooms.
Therefore, this study investigates students’ affect in terms of their pedagogical expectations and potential
personal learning outcomes with respect to PAT. Two sections of PAT, each containing approximately 40
students, were observed. Students in those sections were surveyed, and a sample were interviewed
(N ¼ 10). An analysis of the data in terms of an expectancy violation framework shows that while
students’ expectations regarding the hands-on and interactive components of PAT were met, they received
substantially fewer lectures, class discussions, and opportunities to make class presentations than they had
expected, even after they had been presented with the course syllabus and informed about the specific
nature of the course. Additionally, students expected PAT to be more directly linked with their future
teaching careers and therefore expected more opportunities to practice teaching science than they reported
receiving. This investigation serves as a case study to provide insight into why students are sometimes
frustrated and confused when first encountering active-learning classes, and it implies that instructors
should be cognizant of those feelings and devote resources toward explicit orientation that emphasizes the
purpose of the course and reasons behind their pedagogical choices.