Analyzing the history of physics education in the USA and Europe through natural language processing

This study systematically explores the thematic evolution of articles in The Physics Teacher and Physics Education journals during a critical period in modern history, from the Cold War era to the prepandemic world (1966-2019). To contextualize the analysis, we first present an overview of historical events and developments that have characterized physics education in the United States and Europe since the 1950s. Using a natural-language-processing-based inductive topic modeling approach, we then identify recurring themes that have shaped physics education literature, including content-based topics, teaching methodologies, laboratory practices, curriculum development, and the influence of physics education research (PER). Our findings reveal both overarching trends and distinct thematic preferences between the journals. Physics Education has historically emphasized curriculum structures, social aspects of education, and interdisciplinary connections, whereas The Physics Teacher has focused more on pedagogical strategies, demonstrations, and practical teaching tools. In the last three decades, both journals have increasingly incorporated discussions on technology, computation, and PER-driven instructional practices. By tracing these shifts over five decades, this study provides a broader perspective on how physics education has responded to changing educational priorities, technological advancements, and research developments.