  The paper describes a curricular framework for introducing microcontroller
programming in the University Physics lab. The approach makes use of Modeling
Instruction, an effective approach for teaching science at the secondary level
in which student learn the standard material by developing and deploying models
of the physical world. In our approach, students engage with a context-rich
problem that can be solved with one or more sensors and a microcontroller. The
solution path we describe then consists of developing a mathematical model for
how the sensors' data can be mapped to a meaningful measurement, and further,
developing an algorithmic model that will be implemented in the
microcontroller. Once the system is developed and implemented, students are
given an array of similar problems in which they can deploy their data
collection system. Results from the implementation of this idea, in two
University Physics sections, using Arduino microcontrollers, are also
described.
