PERticles

Moving to CiteULike

2009-07-08T13:53:00.003-04:00

Well, I lied in my last post. Sorry.

Updating citations in both this blog and the CiteULike location is too onerous a task to continue.

Here are some weaknesses of the existing blog:

Posting articles in this blog is time consuming and strips relevant information.

Searching for past posts in this blog is difficult, with too many tags for each article, and no distinction between authors, journals, and keywords in the tagging system.

Downloading a citation is difficult, if you wish to enter the citation into your own database

Links are often difficult to manage, since sometimes the DOI link is unavailable, and other links are restricted.

The list could go on, but I won't. CiteULike addresses nearly all these concerns. It is richer, easier, and more dynamic than this blog. It is the appropriate tool for the task.

One added benefit of the PERticles blog on CiteULike is that anyone who joins the group can post articles. Yes, anyone. That means you. Joss Ives has been a great help, and I certainly hope that others join in.

What can you do on CiteULike?

You can join the group by clicking on the obvious link, called “Join This Group.”

When visiting the library, you can modify tags, discuss papers in a forum, blog about the papers, or download the full citation in a variety of formats.

By subscribing to the library, you can keep up with what everyone else posts.

The peasant is dead - long live the peasant. CiteULike is the new location for the PERticles blog. Thanks for subscribing to this blog - join us and join in at the new, improved PERticle blog.

Testing a new PERticles location

2009-06-29T11:56:00.004-04:00

Hi all,

Thanks for following this blog. It's really amazing how many people mention it to me. I really appreciate that.

The thing is, blogger really stinks for keeping a blog of this nature. It's hard to get a citation out, it's hard to tag all the journals, authors, and so on, and it's generally not designed for this kind of task.

CiteULike is designed much better. Really, if you don't know it, you should. It's fabulous. Check out this link. If you want to subscribe to the feed, click here.

I will keep double-posting for a while, but the long range plan is to head entirely to CiteULike. It's the right tool for the job.

Michael

Brewe Kramer O’Brien - PRST-PER 2009

2009-06-19T22:00:00.003-04:00

Modeling instruction: Positive attitudinal shifts in introductory physics measured with CLASS
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 013102 (2009)

Eric Brewe, Laird Kramer, George O’Brien

Among the most surprising findings in Physics Education Research is the lack of positive results on attitudinal measures, such as Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) and Maryland Physics Expectations Survey (MPEX). The uniformity with which physics teaching manages to negatively shift attitudes toward physics learning is striking. Strategies which have been shown to improve conceptual learning, such as interactive engagement and studio-format classes, provide more authentic science experiences for students; yet do not seem to be sufficient to produce positive attitudinal results. Florida International University’s Physics Education Research Group has implemented Modeling Instruction in University Physics classes as part of an overall effort toward building a research and learning community. Modeling Instruction is explicitly designed to engage students in scientific practices that include model building, validation, and revision. Results from a preinstruction/postinstruction CLASS measurement show attitudinal improvements through both semesters of an introductory physics sequence, as well as over the entire two-course sequence. In this Brief Report, we report positive shifts from the CLASS in one section of a modeling-based introductory physics sequence, for both mechanics (N=22) and electricity and magnetism (N=23) . Using the CLASS results and follow up interviews, we examine how these results reflect on modeling instruction and the unique student community and population at FIU.

Asikainen Hirvonen - AJP 2009

2009-06-12T00:35:00.002-04:00

A study of pre- and inservice physics teachers' understanding of photoelectric phenomenon as part of the development of a research-based quantum physics course

Am. J. Phys. 77, 658 (2009), DOI:10.1119/1.3129093
Mervi A. Asikainen and Pekka E. Hirvonen

Wedescribe the development of a research-based quantum physics course forphysics teachers. A case study approach is used to studythe effect of the course on preservice and inservice teachers'understanding of the photoelectric effect. Results offer new insights intothe learning of the photoelectric effect by providing a detaileddescription of the participant understanding. The learning outcomes achieved indicatethat the instructional approach and the teaching–learning procedure used inthe course can help preservice and inservice teachers attain anin-depth understanding of key quantum physics concepts.

Willoughby Metz - AJP 2009

2009-06-12T00:26:00.001-04:00

Exploring gender differences with different gain calculations in astronomy and biology
Am. J. Phys. 77, 651 (2009), DOI:10.1119/1.3133087

Shannon D. Willoughby and Anneke Metz

Toinvestigate differences in learning gains by gender, we collected datain large introductory astronomy and biology courses. Male astronomy studentshad significantly higher pre- and post-test scores than female studentson the astronomy diagnostic test. Male students also had significantlyhigher pretest and somewhat higher post-test scores than female studentson a survey instrument designed for an introductory biology course.For both courses, males had higher learning gains than femalestudents only when the normalized gain measure was utilized. Nodifferences were found with any other measures, including other gaincalculations, overall course grades, or individual exams. Implications for usingdifferent learning gain measures in science classrooms, as well asfor research on learning differences by gender are discussed.

Etkina Karelina Murthy Ruibal-Villasenor - PRST-PER 2009

2009-06-04T11:28:00.003-04:00

Using action research to improve learning and formative assessment to conduct research
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010109 (2009)

Eugenia Etkina, Anna Karelina, Sahana Murthy, and Maria Ruibal-Villasenor

The paper reports on how educational research informed and supported both the process of refinement of introductory physics laboratory instruction and student development of scientific abilities. In particular we focus on how the action research approach paradigm combined with instructional approaches such as scaffolding and formative assessment can be used to design the learning environment, investigate student learning, revise curriculum materials, and conduct subsequent assessment. As the result of the above efforts we found improvement in students’ scientific abilities over the course of three years. We suggest that the process used to improve the curriculum under study can be extended to many instructional innovations.

Kohlmyer et al. - arxiv.org 2009

2009-06-01T23:12:00.002-04:00

A Tale of Two Curricula: The performance of two thousand students in introductory electromagnetism
arxiv.org

Matthew A. Kohlmyer, Marcos D. Caballero, Richard Catrambone, Ruth W. Chabay, Lin Ding, Mark P. Haugan, M. Jackson Marr, Bruce A. Sherwood, Michael F. Schatz

The performance of over 2000 students in introductory calculus-based electromagnetism (E&M) courses at four large research universities was measured using the Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA). Two different curricula were used at these universities: a traditional E&M curriculum and the Matter & Interactions (M&I) curriculum. At each university, post-instruction BEMA test averages were significantly higher for the M&I curriculum than for the traditional curriculum. The differences in post-test averages cannot be explained by differences in variables such as pre-instruction BEMA scores, grade point average, or SAT scores. BEMA performance on categories of items organized by subtopic was also compared at one of the universities; M&I averages were significantly higher in each topic. The results suggest that the M&I curriculum is more effective than the traditional curriculum at teaching E&M concepts to students, possibly because the learning progression in M&I reorganizes and augments the traditional sequence of topics, for example, by increasing early emphasis on the vector field concept and by emphasizing the effects of fields on matter at the microscopic level.

Rosengrant Heuvelen Etkina - PRST-PER 2009

2009-06-01T14:29:00.002-04:00

Do students use and understand free-body diagrams?
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010108 (2009)

David Rosengrant, Alan Van Heuvelen, and Eugenia Etkina

Physics education literature recommends using multiple representations to help students understand concepts and solve problems. However, there is little research concerning why students use the representations and whether those who use them are more successful. This study addresses these questions using free-body diagrams (diagrammatic representations used in problems involving forces) as a type of representation. We conducted a two-year quantitative and qualitative study of students’ use of free-body diagrams while solving physics problems. We found that when students are in a course that consistently emphasizes the use of free-body diagrams, the majority of them do use diagrams on their own to help solve exam problems even when they receive no credit for drawing the diagrams. We also found that students who draw diagrams correctly are significantly more successful in obtaining the right answer for the problem. Lastly, we interviewed students to uncover their reasons for using free-body diagrams. We found that high achieving students used the diagrams to help solve the problems and as a tool to evaluate their work while low achieving students only used representations as aids in the problem-solving process.

Kortemeyer - PRST-PER 2009

2009-05-26T21:42:00.001-04:00

Gender differences in the use of an online homework system in an introductory physics course
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010107 (2009)

Gerd Kortemeyer

The two genders make different use of being allowed multiple tries to solve online homework problems: male students frequently attempt to immediately solve the problem, while female students are more likely to first interact with peers and teaching assistants before entering answers. More male than female students state that they use the multiple allowed attempts to enter “random stuff,” while more female than male students state that the multiple attempts allow them to explore their own problem solving approaches without worrying or being stressed out by grades.

Kim Song - IJSE 2009

2009-05-17T15:23:00.001-04:00

The Effects of Dichotomous Attitudes toward Science on Interest and Conceptual Understanding in Physics
International Journal of Science Education online first publication

Minkee Kim; Jinwoong Song

The literature on students' attitudinal constructs in science education asserts that students hold dichotomous attitudes toward science (AS). For instance, studies from the Relevance of Science Education project reveal that students possess negative attitudes in terms of their favourableness toward school science, preference toward scientific careers, and emotional states toward science (negative intrinsic AS), despite their positive perception that science is important for society (positive extrinsic AS). The issue demands in-depth examination, since not enough science educators have studied the effects of the dichotomous AS on science education. Rather, they have attempted to improve the uncategorised AS for stimulating student achievement in science education. Hence, the aim of this study is to clarify how the dichotomous attitude (intrinsic AS and extrinsic AS) relates to the two educational products in science: interest inventory and conceptual understanding. One hundred and sixteen physics learners in Japan were sampled for fitting the structural equation model in this study. Our final model validated by LISREL suggests that intrinsic AS exclusively stimulate students' interest and conceptual understanding in physics, while extrinsic AS fail to play their expected role. Finally, features of the sampled 10th-graders and their dichotomous AS are further interpreted with the prevalent concept of the hidden curriculum.

Espinoza - JSET 2009

2009-05-14T10:38:00.001-04:00

Using Project-Based Data in Physics to Examine Television Viewing in Relation to Student Performance in Science
Journal of Science Education and Technology (online first publication)

Fernando Espinoza

Mass media, particularly television, influence public conceptions and attitudes toward learning science. The discovery of an original method that does not rely on self-reported viewing habits to measure the impact of television on students’ performance in science arose from a study of a unit on electricity in a Physics course. In determining the number of television sets at home and the number of hours of operation, data emerged that allowed an investigation of associations between each of these variables and student performance in physics. A negative impact on performance was found in its consistent decrease as both the number of sets and the time the sets are on increase. These results provide dramatic independent confirmation of the negative impact of television viewing on achievement determined through meta-analysis of many studies, and are also consistent with those in the literature at large, particularly from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Furthermore, the totally ‘blind’ participation of the subjects lends a degree of authenticity rarely found in a classically designed study. The findings impact scientific literacy, since performance in science and conceptions of science and scientists, are all inextricably linked.

Glauert - IJSE 2009

2009-05-14T10:32:00.001-04:00

How Young Children Understand Electric Circuits: Prediction, explanation and exploration
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 8 May 2009 , pages 1025 - 1047

Esme Bridget Glauert

This paper reports findings from a study of young children's views about electric circuits. Twenty-eight children aged 5 and 6 years were interviewed. They were shown examples of circuits and asked to predict whether they would work and explain why. They were then invited to try out some of the circuit examples or make circuits of their own choosing. Children expressed a variety of views about the connections needed in a circuit, offered different kinds of explanation and showed differing levels of competence in circuit making. The range of responses showed similarities to those of older students found in previous research. The relationship between practical competence, prediction, and explanation was not straightforward. For example, children with similar levels of practical competence made different predictions or offered different kinds of explanation. Analysis of the circuits children chose to construct suggested influences of existing competence and knowledge. In particular, some children tested out circuit examples about which they had been unsure during the interview, while others explored circuit connections more generally. Findings underline the importance of drawing on a variety of evidence in assessing young children's understandings of electric circuits. They indicate that young children may offer views about electric circuits not unlike those of older children and adults with similar experience. Finally, there was some suggestion that the interview procedure may have acted as an instructive stimulus in helping children to become more conscious of their own views and reflect on their thinking in the light of further evidence.

Ozdemir - IJSE 2009

2009-05-14T10:30:00.002-04:00

Avoidance from Thought Experiments: Fear of misconception
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 8 May 2009 , pages 1049 - 1068

Omer Faruk Ozdemir

Two independent lines of research—mental simulations and thought experiments—provide strong arguments about the importance of perceptual modalities for the instructional practices in science education. By situating the use of mental simulations in the framework of thought experiments, this study investigated the nature and the role of mental simulations in the context of problem-solving. This study draws on data collected through problem-solving sessions with five physics graduates. Throughout the problem-solving sessions, think-aloud and retrospective questioning were used. Results from this study support some serious concerns put forward by several researchers in the community of science educators about high dependence on descriptive forms of scientific knowledge and exclusion of perceptual modalities from instructional practices. The participants' verbal reports confirmed that they had implicitly or explicitly reached a conclusion that mental simulations were not a legitimate way of reasoning about physics problems, and they consciously avoided the use of mental simulations. This conceptualization seemed to lead participants to compartmentalize mental simulations from formal physics knowledge. Therefore, mental simulations were not refined but kept in a primitive form, which was no more than a retrieval of perceptual representations constructed through observations and experiences of the world. The speculations on the results of the study were based on the interpretations of learning science in terms of the refinement and reorganizations of preinstructional ideas.

Reviews in PER - Volume 2 (Getting Started)

2009-05-04T09:05:00.003-04:00

Getting Started in Physics Education Research

Foreword (direct link)
Charles Henderson and Kathleen A. Harper
We welcome comments about this issue, as well as suggestions for topics to be addressed by future issues.

An Introduction to Physics Education Research (direct link)
Robert Beichner
This article aims to introduce the reader to the field of Physics Education Research (PER).

An Introduction to Classical Test Theory as Applied to Conceptual Multiple-choice Tests (direct link)
Paula V. Engelhardt
The purpose of this paper is to provide the reader with a general overview of the key aspects of the development process from the perspective of classical test theory and critical issues that distinguish high-quality conceptual multiple-choice tests from those that are not.

Additional articles are planned, and this post will be updated.

Beatty Feldman - NARST 2009

2009-04-30T21:00:00.001-04:00

Illuminating teacher change and professional development with CHAT
In the Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST), Garden Grove CA, Apr 20.

Beatty, Ian D. and Feldman, Allan

Technology-Enhanced Formative Assessment (TEFA) is an innovative pedagogy for science and mathematics instruction. Teacher Learning of TEFA is a research project studying teacher change as in-service secondary science and mathematics teachers learn TEFA in the context of a multi-year professional development (PD) program. Applying cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) to the linked activity systems of PD and teachers’ classroom practice leads to a model of teacher learning and pedagogical change in which TEFA is first introduced into classrooms as an object of activity, and then made useful as a tool for instruction, and then—in rare cases—incorporated into all elements of a deeply transformed practice. Different levels of contradiction within and between activity systems drive the transitions between stages. CHAT analysis also suggests that the primary contradiction within secondary education is a dual view of students as objects of instruction versus students as willful individuals; the difficulties arising from this contradiction can either inhibit or motivate TEFA adoption.

Alonzo Steedle - Science Education 2009

2009-04-29T10:45:00.001-04:00

Developing and assessing a force and motion learning progression
Sci Ed 93: 389-421, 2009

Alicia C. Alonzo, Jeffrey T. Steedle

The full set of force and motion items are available by contacting the first author.

Learning progressions are ordered descriptions of students' understanding of a given concept. In this paper, we describe the iterative process of developing a force and motion learning progression and associated assessment items. We report on a pair of studies designed to explore the diagnosis of students' learning progression levels. First, we compare the use of ordered multiple-choice (OMC) and open-ended (OE) items for assessing students relative to the learning progression. OMC items appear to provide more precise diagnoses of students' learning progression levels and to be more valid, eliciting students' conceptions more similarly to cognitive interviews. Second, we explore evidence bearing on two challenges concerning reliability and validity of level diagnoses: the consistency with which students respond to items set in different contexts and the ways in which students interpret and use language in responding to items. As predicted, students do not respond consistently to similar problems set in different contexts. Although the language used in OMC items generally seems to reflect student thinking, misinterpretation of the language in items may lead to inaccurate diagnoses for a subset of students. Both issues are less problematic for classroom applications than for use of learning progressions in large-scale testing.

UPDATE: This paper had been previously posted as an online first publication, 9/3/08. The URL and citation have been updated.

Davis Smithey - Science Education 2009

2009-04-28T11:19:00.002-04:00

Beginning teachers moving toward effective elementary science teaching
Sci Ed 1-26, 2009

Elizabeth A. Davis, Julie Smithey

We use a 10-year program of research centered on iterations of one elementary science methods course as a vehicle for exploring three important and interrelated goals for the learning of beginning elementary teachers. These include learning about inquiry-oriented science teaching, using science curriculum materials effectively, and anticipating and working with students' ideas in instruction. For each goal we discuss how the literature informs our thinking, describe relevant aspects of our design of the course, and present findings of our research with regard to preservice teachers' experiences in and learning from aspects of the course. For each goal, we also highlight examples from our longitudinal work following the preservice teachers into their early years as elementary teachers, to provide a glimpse of teachers' trajectories related to each of the themes. We close with a discussion of implications for research and practice in elementary science teacher education.

Schwarz - Science Education 2009

2009-04-28T11:16:00.003-04:00

Developing preservice elementary teachers' knowledge and practices through modeling-centered scientific inquiry
Sci Ed 1-25, 2009

Christina Schwarz

Preservice elementary teachers face many challenges in learning how to teach science effectively, such as engaging students in science, organizing instruction, and developing a productive learning community. This paper reports on several iterative cycles of design-based research aimed at fostering preservice teachers' principled reasoning around these problems of practice through modeling-centered scientific inquiry. The first design cycle introduced preservice teachers to modeling and simulation software tools in an effort to advance their understanding of science and technology; the second used an instructional framework embodying modeling-centered inquiry to advance their views of effective science teaching and their lesson-planning practices; the third engaged preservice teachers in analyzing and modifying curriculum materials using reform-based criteria to foster effective curriculum materials use. Outcomes from these iterations indicate that the preservice teachers were most likely to advance their knowledge and practices within a coherent approach that focused on a core scientific practice such as modeling-centered inquiry, provided opportunities to unpack and apply robust tools such as reform-based instructional frameworks, and addressed their perceived problems of practice. The findings from this set of approaches are compared to others in an effort to point toward promising future directions for effective science teacher education.

Zembal-Saul - Science Education 2009

2009-04-28T11:14:00.002-04:00

Learning to teach elementary school science as argument
Sci Ed 1-33, 2009

Carla Zembal-Saul

New views of proficiency in K-8 science that highlight the importance of engaging children in the discourses and practices of science have raised the stakes for elementary teachers and the teacher educators who prepare them. In this paper, a framework for teaching science as argument is presented. The framework is advanced as a means of addressing problems of practices faced by preservice teachers, creating coherence for the design of teacher education experiences, and serving as a tool for shaping a design-based research agenda. Findings of three research studies that examined preservice teachers' developing understandings and practices for teaching science as argument and the ways in which teacher education experiences mediated learning are synthesized. Across the studies, findings suggest that the framework serves as a powerful scaffold for preservice teachers' developing thinking and practice. More specifically, early attention to evidence and argument can leverage other important aspects of effective science teaching, such as attention to classroom discourse and the role of the teacher in monitoring and assessing children's thinking. In closing, a case is made for coherence among science learning opportunities, learning to teach science experiences, and field experiences.

Ma Ma - Studies in Ed Evaluation

2009-04-25T16:31:00.001-04:00

The challenge of separating effects of simultaneous education projects on student achievement
Studies In Educational Evaluation 35:1 p. 45-52

Xin Ma and Lingling Ma

When multiple education projects operate in an overlapping or rear-ended manner, it is always a challenge to separate unique project effects on schooling outcomes. Our analysis represents a first attempt to address this challenge. A three-level hierarchical linear model (HLM) was presented as a general analytical framework to separate program effects while taking into account the hierarchy in educational data. The HLM model was then applied to data from the Commonwealth Accountability Testing System that the State of Kentucky has implemented for years, in an attempt to separate the effects of two education projects aimed at improving mathematics and science education in the Appalachian region: the Appalachian Rural Systemic Initiative (ARSI) closely followed by the Appalachian Mathematics and Science Partnership (AMSP). Even though the HLM model successfully separated ARSI and AMSP effects, relevant statistical issues were discussed to improve future efforts in separating effects of simultaneous education projects on schooling outcomes.

Educational Studies in Mathematics special issue on gestures

2009-04-22T10:57:00.003-04:00

Rather than post all articles individually, here are a batch of linked articles on gestures and embodied mathematics, published in Educational Studies in Mathematics.

Introduction: beyond words
L. Radford, L. Edwards and F. Arzarello

Gestures as semiotic resources in the mathematics classroom
Ferdinando Arzarello, Domingo Paola, Ornella Robutti and Cristina Sabena

Why do gestures matter? Sensuous cognition and the palpability of mathematical meanings
Luis Radford

Gestures and conceptual integration in mathematical talk
Laurie D. Edwards

Working with artefacts: gestures, drawings and speech in the construction of the mathematical meaning of the visual pyramid
Michela Maschietto and Maria G. Bartolini Bussi

Mathematical imagination and embodied cognition
Ricardo Nemirovsky and Francesca Ferrara

Bodily experience and mathematical conceptions: from classical views to a phenomenological reconceptualization
Wolff-Michael Roth and Jennifer S. Thom

What’s all the fuss about gestures? A commentary
Anna Sfard

Embodied multi-modal communication from the perspective of activity theory
Julian Williams

Building intellectual infrastructure to expose and understand ever-increasing complexity
James Kaput

comments on comments

2009-04-19T22:29:00.002-04:00

Hi all,

My apologies for the long delay in updating the blog with papers from papers outside of the "mainstream" of PER journals. There have been great papers in all sorts of interesting locations. I added a bunch this morning, and a few this evening.

One element I've just started in this evening's updates: I am adding a comment to some papers, explaining why they're being added, whose or what work I'm thinking of when I read the abstract, and how the paper might fit into the larger endeavor that is PER. For example, when there's a paper about working memory in algebra and problem-solving, it seems pretty obvious to me that we're dealing with an issue relevant to our students working through conceptual physics problems involving logic buried within the words. Or, when looking at issues in writing, I think of Scott Franklin and Dedra Demaree and others... So, from now on, I'll post additional comments with the abstract. If you want to add your comments, please do! I'd like to have a more communal sense of commentary on the papers. Your involvement would be great.

As always, thanks to Joss for updating the PRST-PER and AJP papers, as well.

Michael

Rünger Nagy Frensch - J Exp Psych LMC

2009-04-19T22:24:00.002-04:00

Do recognition and priming index a unitary knowledge base? Comment on Shanks et al. (2003).
Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. Vol 35(2), Mar 2009, 572-585.

Rünger, Dennis; Nagy, Gabriel; Frensch, Peter A.

Whether sequence learning entails a single or multiple memory systems is a moot issue. Recently, D. R. Shanks, L. Wilkinson, and S. Channon (see record 2003-02055-007) advanced a single-system model that predicts a perfect correlation between true (i.e., error free) response time priming and recognition. The Shanks model is contrasted with a dual-process model that incorporates both response time priming and reportable sequence knowledge as predictors of recognition. The models were tested by applying confirmatory factor analysis to data obtained from a recognition test that was administered under both speed and accuracy conditions. The Shanks model accounted for the data in the speed condition, whereas the dual-process model provided a better fit in the accuracy condition. The results are compatible with the notion that cognitive processes were engaged differentially in recognition judgments under speed and accuracy conditions.

Dreisbach Haider - J Exp Psych LMC

2009-04-19T22:21:00.003-04:00

How task representations guide attention: Further evidence for the shielding function of task sets.
Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. Vol 35(2), Mar 2009, 477-486.

Dreisbach, Gesine; Haider, Hilde

To pursue goal directed behavior, the cognitive system must be shielded against interference from irrelevant information. Aside from the online adjustment of cognitive control widely discussed in the literature, an additional mechanism of preventive goal shielding is suggested that circumvents irrelevant information from being processed in the first place. Participants had to react to 8 different words depicting clothing items that were presented in front of line drawings that could be either semantically related (clothes) or unrelated (animals with spatial orientation) to the target words. Participants either learned the stimulus–response (S–R) mappings by heart or used 1 task set (TS). In the S–R group, semantically related and unrelated distractors interfered with performance, whereas in the TS group, only semantically related distractors interfered, and unrelated distractors had no effect. It follows that task representations based on a general TS help to focus attention on relevant information, thereby preventing the processing of irrelevant information.

Proctor Yamaguchi Zhang Vu - J Exp Psych LMC

2009-04-19T22:17:00.004-04:00

Influence of visual stimulus mode on transfer of acquired spatial associations.
Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. Vol 35(2), Mar 2009, 434-445.

Proctor, Robert W.; Yamaguchi, Motonori; Zhang, Yanmin; Vu, Kim-Phuong L.

Associations between corresponding stimulus–response locations are often characterized as overlearned, producing automatic activation. However, 84 practice trials with an incompatible mapping eliminate the benefit for spatial correspondence in a transfer Simon task, where stimulus location is irrelevant. The authors examined whether transfer occurs for combinations of physical-location, arrow-direction, and location-word modes in the practice and transfer sessions. With 84 practice trials, the Simon effect was reduced for locations and arrows, and there was complete transfer across these modes; location words showed little transfer within or between modes. These results suggest that the acquired short-term associations were based on visual-spatial stimulus codes distinct from semantic-spatial codes activated by the words. With 600 practice trials, words showed transfer to word and arrow but not location Simon tasks, suggesting that arrows share semantic-spatial codes with words. Reaction-time distribution functions for the Simon effect showed distinct shapes for each stimulus mode, with little impact of the practiced mapping on the shapes. Thus, the contribution of the short-term location associations seems to be separate from that of the long-term associations responsible for the Simon effect.

Lee Ng Ng - J Ed Psych 2009

2009-04-19T22:13:00.002-04:00

The contributions of working memory and executive functioning to problem representation and solution generation in algebraic word problems.
Journal of Educational Psychology. Vol 101(2), May 2009, 373-387.

Lee, Kerry; Ng, Ee Lynn; Ng, Swee Fong

Solving algebraic word problems involves multiple cognitive phases. The authors used a multitask approach to examine the extent to which working memory and executive functioning are associated with generating problem models and producing solutions. They tested 255 11-year-olds on working memory (Counting Recall, Letter Memory, and Keep Track), ability to inhibit inappropriate responses (inhibition: numeric Stroop, Stop Signal), mental flexibility (switching: Number–Letter and Plus–Minus), English literacy, and algebraic problem-solving skills (problem representation, solution generation, and other subcomponents). Working memory explained about a quarter of the variance in both representation and solution formation. Literacy explained an additional 20% of the variance in representation formation. Ability to discern quantitative relationships explained an additional 10%. The findings go beyond a demonstration of an association between working memory and problem-solving accuracy. They show that success in word problems is particularly reliant on ability to decode and assign mathematical operators to quantitative relationships, 2 phases of problem solving that also draw heavily on working memory resources.

Ed Psych linked articles on Ohlsson's model of conceptual change

2009-04-19T11:24:00.003-04:00

Rather than post all articles individually, here are a batch of linked articles on resubsumption and conceptual change, published in the Educational Psychologist.

Educational Psychologist, Volume 44 Issue 1 2009

Resubsumption: A Possible Mechanism for Conceptual Change and Belief Revision
Stellan Ohlsson

Rethinking the Role of Resubsumption in Conceptual Change
Andrew Shtulman

Conceptual Change—Multiple Routes, Multiple Mechanisms: A Commentary on Ohlsson (2009)
Clark A. Chinn; Ala Samarapungavan

Contrasting Ohlsson's Resubsumption Theory With Chi's Categorical Shift Theory
Michelene T. H. Chi; Sarah K. Brem

Meaning Change, Multiple Routes, and the Role of Differentiation in Conceptual Change: Alternatives to Resubsumption?
Stellan Ohlsson

Koning Tabbers Rikers Paas - Ed Psych Rev 2009

2009-04-19T11:01:00.001-04:00

Towards a Framework for Attention Cueing in Instructional Animations: Guidelines for Research and Design
Educational Psychology Review

Björn B. de Koning, Huib K. Tabbers, Remy M. J. P. Rikers and Fred Paas

This paper examines the transferability of successful cueing approaches from text and static visualization research to animations. Theories of visual attention and learning as well as empirical evidence for the instructional effectiveness of attention cueing are reviewed and, based on Mayer’s theory of multimedia learning, a framework was developed for classifying three functions for cueing: (1) selection—cues guide attention to specific locations, (2) organization—cues emphasize structure, and (3) integration—cues explicate relations between and within elements. The framework was used to structure the discussion of studies on cueing in animations. It is concluded that attentional cues may facilitate the selection of information in animations and sometimes improve learning, whereas organizational and relational cueing requires more consideration on how to enhance understanding. Consequently, it is suggested to develop cues that work in animations rather than borrowing effective cues from static representations. Guidelines for future research on attention cueing in animations are presented.

Scherr Hammer - C&I 2009

2009-04-19T10:56:00.002-04:00

Student Behavior and Epistemological Framing: Examples from Collaborative Active-Learning Activities in Physics
Cognition and Instruction, Volume 27, Issue 2 April 2009 , pages 147 - 174

Rachel E. Scherr; David Hammer

The concept of framing from anthropology and sociolinguistics is useful for understanding student reasoning. For example, a student may frame a learning activity as an opportunity for sensemaking or as an assignment to fill out a worksheet. The student's framing affects what she notices, what knowledge she accesses, and how she thinks to act. We find evidence of framing in easily observed features of students' collaborative behavior. We apply this observational methodology to explore dynamics among behavior, framing, and the conceptual substance of student reasoning in the context of collaborative active-learning activities in an introductory university physics course. We find evidence that certain student behaviors indicate and support a relatively sophisticated epistemological framing of these activities, one in which students discuss the substance of the ideas at hand.

An earlier draft of this paper was posted previously.

Harlow - Science Education 2009

2009-04-19T10:54:00.003-04:00

Structures and improvisation for inquiry-based science instruction: A teacher's adaptation of a model of magnetism activity
Sci Ed 1-22, 2009

Danielle Boyd Harlow

One aspect of scientific inquiry that appears to be particularly challenging to learn is how explanatory models are developed and used in science. It is even more challenging to learn to teach through methods that engage young students in building and using explanatory models. In part, this is because to do so requires that teachers make real-time instructional decisions in response to the ideas that students articulate. In this paper I present an example of a teacher who participated in a series of activities during a professional development course that guided her and her colleagues through the process of developing and revising an explanatory model of magnetic phenomenon. She subsequently transformed this series of activities to use with her elementary school students. Contrasting the series of activities in the elementary classroom to the corresponding professional development activities revealed improvisational instructional acts and shed light on aspects of the classroom context that necessitated and facilitated improvisation. In particular, this paper highlights the multiple pedagogical and disciplinary structures that teachers implicitly chose among when improvising.

Kalman - Science & Education 2009

2009-04-19T10:51:00.001-04:00

Enabling Students to Develop a Scientific Mindset
Science & Education

Calvin Kalman

This paper is centered on getting students to understand the nature of science (NOS) by considering historical material in relation to modern philosophers of science. This paper incorporates the methodology of contrasting cases in the calculus-based introductory physics course on optics and modern physics. Students study one philosopher all semester as a group project and report regularly on how their philosopher would view the subject matter of the course. Almost all of the students were able to argue successfully on the final examination about all three philosophers. Students become aware that the same textual material can be viewed in a variety of ways. The answers that students give about the NOS have become clearer at the end of the course.

Wuttiprom Sharma Johnston Chitaree Soankwan - IJSE 2008

2009-04-19T10:45:00.000-04:00

Development and Use of a Conceptual Survey in Introductory Quantum Physics
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 5 March 2009 , pages 631 - 654

Sura Wuttiprom; Manjula Devi Sharma; Ian D. Johnston; Ratchapak Chitaree; Chernchok Soankwan

Conceptual surveys have become increasingly popular at many levels to probe various aspects of science education research such as measuring student understanding of basic concepts and assessing the effectiveness of pedagogical material. The aim of this study was to construct a valid and reliable multiple-choice conceptual survey to investigate students' understanding of introductory quantum physics concepts. We examined course syllabi to establish content coverage, consulted with experts to extract fundamental content areas, and trialled open-ended questions to determine how the selected content areas align with students' difficulties. The questions were generated and trialled with different groups of students. Each version of the survey was critiqued by a group of discipline and teaching experts to establish its validity. The survey was administered to 312 students at the University of Sydney. Using the data from this sample, we performed five statistical tests (item difficulty index, item discrimination index, item point biserial coefficient, KR-21 reliability test, and Ferguson's delta) to evaluate the test's reliability and discriminatory power. The result indicates that our survey is a reliable test. This study also provided data from which preliminary findings were drawn on students' understandings of introductory quantum physics concepts. The main point is that questions which require an understanding of the standard interpretations of quantum physics are more challenging for students than those grouped as non-interpretative. The division of conceptual questions into interpretive and non-interpretive needs further exploration.

DOI: 10.1080/09500690701747226

Grimberg Hand - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:41:00.001-04:00

Cognitive Pathways: Analysis of students' written texts for science understanding
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 4 March 2009 , pages 503 - 521

Bruna Irene Grimberg; Brian Hand

The purpose of this study was to reconstruct writers' reasoning process as reflected in their written texts. The codes resulting from the text analysis were related to cognitive operations, ranging from simple to more sophisticated ones. The sequence of the cognitive operations as the text unfolded represents the writer's cognitive pathway at the time the text was produced. This type of analysis was used to study the impact that three different types of inquiries had on the reasoning process of low-achieving and high-achieving students when performing their laboratory activity using the Science Writing Heuristic. The researchers found that the reasoning pathways for both low-achieving and high-achieving students were similar for each type of inquiry, characterized as being decision-making, descriptive/speculative, and application. The reasoning pathways for the decision-making and application inquiries appear to be more structured than the pathways for the descriptive/speculative activity. The dependence between students' achievement levels and the type of inquiry in relation to specific use of thinking operations was tested using a chi-square analysis, with the results indicating that the reasoning operations performed by the students are independent of their achievement level and dependent on the inquiry type. Higher-order operations were extensively used in the decision-making inquiry and less used in the application activity. Low-order cognitive operations, such as observations and comparisons, were extensively used in the descriptive/speculative inquiry while being less used in the decision-making inquiry activity.

Abd-El-Khalick Ackerson - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:38:00.001-04:00

The Influence of Metacognitive Training on Preservice Elementary Teachers' Conceptions of Nature of Science
International Journal of Science Education

Fouad Abd-El-Khalick; Valarie Akerson

This study assessed the influence of training in, and use of, metacognitive strategies on the development of prospective elementary teachers' views of nature of science (NOS). Participants were 49 students (92% female) enrolled in two sections of an elementary science methods course. The sections were randomly assigned to an intervention group and a comparison group. Students in both groups were engaged with explicit-reflective NOS instruction, which focused on the empirical, tentative, theory-driven, inferential, and creative NOS. Additionally, students in the intervention group received instruction in, and used, three metacognitive strategies during their engagement with thinking about NOS. The Views of Nature of Science Questionnaire—Form C and the Metacognitive Awareness Inventory were respectively used to assess participants' views of NOS and metacognitive awareness at the beginning and conclusion of the study. Data analyses indicated that significantly more students in the intervention group explicated more informed views of the target aspects of NOS. Moreover, these substantial changes were coupled with significantly increased Metacognitive Awareness Inventory scores for the intervention group participants. The results point to a relationship between improved metacognitive awareness and the development of informed understandings of NOS.

Prain Tytler Peterson - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:36:00.001-04:00

Multiple Representation in Learning About Evaporation
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 6 April 2009 , pages 787 - 808

Vaughan Prain; Russell Tytler; Suzanne Peterson

There has been extensive research on children's understanding of evaporation, but representational issues entailed in this understanding have not been investigated in depth. This study explored three students' engagement with science concepts relating to evaporation through various representational modes, such as diagrams, verbal accounts, gestures, and captioned drawings. This engagement entailed students (a) clarifying their thinking through exploring representational resources; (b) developing understanding of what these representations signify; and (c) learning how to construct representational aspects of scientific explanation. The study involved a sequence of classroom lessons on evaporation and structured interviews with nine children, and found that a focus on representational challenges provided fresh insights into the conceptual task involved in learning science. The findings suggest that teacher-mediated negotiation of representational issues as students construct different modal accounts can support enriched learning by enabling both (a) richer conceptual understanding by students; and (b) enhanced teacher insights into students' thinking.

Adbo Taber - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:34:00.001-04:00

Learners' Mental Models of the Particle Nature of Matter: A study of 16-year-old Swedish science students
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 6 April 2009 , pages 757 - 786

Karina Adbo; Keith S. Taber

The results presented here derive from a longitudinal study of Swedish upper secondary science students' (16-19 years of age) developing understanding of key chemical concepts. The informants were 18 students from two different schools. The aim of the present study was to investigate the mental models of matter at the particulate level that learners develop. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews based around the students' own drawings of the atom, and of solids, liquids, and gases. The interview transcripts were analysed to identify patterns in the data that offer insight into aspects of student understanding. The findings are discussed in the specific curriculum context in Swedish schools. Results indicate that the teaching model of the atom (derived from Bohr's model) commonly presented by teachers and textbook authors in Sweden gives the students an image of a disproportionately large and immobile nucleus, emphasises a planetary model of the atom and gives rise to a chain of logic leading to immobility in the solid state and molecular breakdown during phase transitions. The findings indicate that changes in teaching approaches are required to better support learners in developing mental models that reflect the intended target knowledge.

Ostermeier Prenzel Duit - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:33:00.003-04:00

Improving Science and Mathematics Instruction: The SINUS Project as an example for reform as teacher professional development
International Journal of Science Education

Christian Ostermeier; Manfred Prenzel; Reinders Duit

This article presents an example of teacher professional development based on a perspective of situated learning and implemented on a large scale. We consider teacher professional development from three perspectives. First, teacher professional development is a key factor in improving classroom instruction. Second, teacher professional development is a vehicle for conveying knowledge from research into classrooms. Third, teacher professional development is an object of research itself. A German project to improve science and mathematics teaching (SINUS)—comprising 180 schools in a pilot-phase and more than 1,700 schools in a second phase of scaling-up—serves as an example of this framework for teacher professional development. Using these three views we describe the foundations of the programme and provide a brief account of the programme's background and its conception. We show how the central elements of the programme (11 modules) are based on an in-depth analysis of science and mathematics education, as well as how those modules structure the professional development of the teachers. Finally, we provide an overview of the evaluation of the programme. A large-scale comparison between SINUS schools and a representative sample of German schools tested in PISA 2003 showed positive effects of the programme with regard to students' interest and motivation as well as competencies in science and mathematics. In the light of these findings, we argue that teachers' learning related to daily pedagogical challenges in the classroom should be central to professional development initiatives.

Liu Hu Jiannong Adey - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:31:00.001-04:00

Gender Stereotyping and Affective Attitudes Towards Science in Chinese Secondary School Students
International Journal of Science Education

Mingxin Liu; Weiping Hu; Shi Jiannong; Philip Adey

This study explores explicit and implicit gender-science stereotypes and affective attitudes towards science in a sample of Chinese secondary school students. The results showed that (1) gender-science stereotyping was more and more apparent as the specialization of science subjects progresses through secondary school, becoming stronger from the 10th grade; girls were more inclined to stereotype than boys while this gender difference decreased with increasing grade; (2) girls tend to have an implicit science-unpleasant/humanities-pleasant association from the 8th grade, while boys showed a negative implicit attitude towards science up to the 11th grade. In self-report, girls preferred humanities to science, while boys preferred science to humanities; (3) implicit affective attitude was closely related to implicit stereotype. In particular, implicit affective attitude has a stronger predictive power on stereotype than the other way around, the result of which may have more significance for girls.

Wilhelm - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:29:00.001-04:00

Gender Differences in Lunar-related Scientific and Mathematical Understandings
International Journal of Science Education

Author: Jennifer Wilhelm

This paper reports an examination on gender differences in lunar phases understanding of 123 students (70 females and 53 males). Middle-level students interacted with the Moon through observations, sketching, journalling, two-dimensional and three-dimensional modelling, and classroom discussions. These lunar lessons were adapted from the Realistic Explorations in Astronomical Learning (REAL) curriculum. Students' conceptual understandings were measured through analysis of pre-test and post-test results on a Lunar Phases Concept Inventory (LPCI) and a Geometric Spatial Assessment (GSA). The LPCI was used to assess conceptual learning of eight science and four mathematics domains. The GSA was used to assess learning of the same four mathematical domains; however, the GSA test items were not posed within a lunar context. Results showed both male and female groups to make significant gains in understanding on the overall LPCI test scores as well as significant gains on five of the eight science domains and on three of the four mathematics domains. The males scored significantly higher than the females on the science domain, phase—Sun/Earth/Moon positions, and on the mathematics domain geometric spatial visualisation. GSA results found both male and female groups achieving a significant increase in their test scores on the overall GSA. Females made significant gains on the GSA mathematics domains, periodic patterns and cardinal directions, while males made significant gains on only the periodic patterns domain. Findings suggest that both scientific and mathematical understandings can be significantly improved for both sexes through the use of spatially focused, inquiry-oriented curriculum such as REAL.

Baviskar Hartle Whitney - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:26:00.003-04:00

Essential Criteria to Characterize Constructivist Teaching: Derived from a review of the literature and applied to five constructivist-teaching method articles
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 4 March 2009 , pages 541 - 550

Sandhya N. Baviskar; R. Todd Hartle; Tiffany Whitney

Constructivism is an important theory of learning that is used to guide the development of new teaching methods, particularly in science education. However, because it is a theory of learning and not of teaching, constructivism is often either misused or misunderstood. Here we describe the four essential features of constructivism: eliciting prior knowledge, creating cognitive dissonance, application of new knowledge with feedback, and reflection on learning. We then use the criteria we developed to evaluate five representative published articles that claim to describe and test constructivist teaching methods. Of these five articles, we demonstrate that three do not adhere to the constructivist criteria, whereas two provide strong examples of how constructivism can be employed as a teaching method. We suggest that application of the four essential criteria will be a useful tool for all professional educators who plan to implement or evaluate constructivist teaching methods.

This article was previously posted when published online.

Bouwma-Gearhart Stewart Brown - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:16:00.002-04:00

Student Misapplication of a Gas-like Model to Explain Particle Movement in Heated Solids: Implications for curriculum and instruction towards students' creation and revision of accurate explanatory models
International Journal of Science Education

Jana Bouwma-Gearhart; James Stewart; Keffrelyn Brown

Understanding the particulate nature of matter (PNM) is vital for participating in many areas of science. We assessed 11 students' atomic/molecular-level explanations of real-world phenomena after their participation in a modelling-based PNM unit. All 11 students offered a scientifically acceptable model regarding atomic/molecular behaviour in non-heated solids. Yet, 10 of 11 students expressed the view that, in response to added heat energy, atoms/molecules in a solid increase in movement to a degree beyond what is scientifically accepted. These students attributed a gas-like model of atomic/molecular movement to situations involving a heated solid. Of the students who held two conflicting models of atomic/molecular movement in solids, almost all provided justification for doing so, indicating their holding of the conflicting models was unproblematic. These findings can be interpreted to mean that students may drop constraints of certain scientific representations and apply, assess, or revise models when explaining unfamiliar phenomena. In fact, we believe students may develop conflicting causal models as a result of misperceptions they acquire, in part, during classroom instruction regarding atomic/molecular movement. However, our findings may also be interpreted as an incidence of student model development that may later aid their understanding of a more complex model, one that involves substantial sub-atomic electron movement to account for heat transfer in solids. Whether or not this is the case remains to be seen. Implications for student learning and instruction are discussed.

Eshach - IJSE 2009

2009-04-19T10:15:00.002-04:00

An Analysis of Conceptual Flow Patterns and Structures in the Physics Classroom
International Journal of Science Education

Haim Eshach

The aim of the current research is to characterize the conceptual flow processes occurring in whole-class dialogic discussions with a high level of interanimation; in the present case, of a high-school class learning about image creation on plane mirrors. Using detailed chains of interaction and conceptual flow discourse maps—both developed for the purpose of this research—the classroom discourse, audio-taped and transcribed verbatim, was analyzed and three discussion structures were revealed: accumulation around budding foci concepts, zigzag between foci concepts, and concept tower. These structures as well as two additional factors, suggest the Two-Space Model of the whole class discussion proposed in the present article. The two additional factors are: (1) the teacher intervention; and (2) the conceptual barriers observed among the students, namely, materialistic thinking, and the tendency to attribute “unique characteristics” to optical devices. This model might help teachers to prepare and conduct efficient whole-class discussions which accord with the social constructivist perspective of learning.

Ogan-Bekiroglu Akkoç - IJSME 2009

2009-04-19T10:12:00.001-04:00

Preservice Teachers’ Instructional Beliefs And Examination Of Consistency Between Beliefs And Practices
International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education

Feral Ogan-Bekiroglu and Hatice Akkoç

The purposes of this study were to determine preservice physics teachers’ instructional beliefs and to investigate the relationship between their beliefs and practices. The theoretical framework was based on the combination Haney & McArthur’s (Science Education, 86(6):783–802, 2002) research and Ford’s (1992) motivation systems theory. A multicase study design was utilized for the research in order to focus on a belief–practice relationship within several examples. Semistructured interviews, observations, and preservice teachers’ written documents were used to collect data. Results showed that most preservice teachers held instructional beliefs aligned with constructivist philosophy. Some of the preservice teachers’ beliefs were consistent with their practices while some of them presented different practices from their beliefs in different placements.

Brandon Young Pottenger Taum - IJSME 2009

2009-04-19T10:09:00.001-04:00

The Inquiry Science Implementation Scale: Development And Applications
International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education

Paul R. Brandon, Donald B. Young, Francis M. Pottenger and Alice K. Taum

Instruments for evaluating the implementation of inquiry science in K-12 classrooms are necessary if evaluators and researchers are to know the extent to which programs are implemented as intended and the extent to which inquiry science teaching accounts for student learning. For evaluators and researchers to be confident about the quality of these instruments, information about their development and validation—particularly about teacher self-report instruments—must be available. In this article, we present the Inquiry Science Implementation Scale, describe the instrument’s development and the results of analyses of the validity and reliability of data collected with it, and discuss the possible uses of the instrument.

Everett Otto Luera - IJSME 2009

2009-04-19T10:06:00.001-04:00

Preservice Elementary Teachers’ Growth in Knowledge of Models in a Science Capstone Course
International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education

Susan A. Everett , Charlotte A. Otto and Gail R. Luera

We used four different methods to determine the best means of assessing over 200 preservice elementary teachers’ growth in knowledge of models and their use in K-8 classrooms while participating in the Science Capstone course that focused on the unifying themes of models in science. Each assessment method probed a different aspect of models (from growth in scientific use to need for greater emphasis on the role and use of models) and each used a different method of gathering student responses (Likert-type responses to concept maps). We determined that growth in student knowledge was demonstrated by all instruments, but some instruments were more useful than others for determining preservice elementary teachers’ prior knowledge as well as growth in knowledge of models necessary for K-8 teachers.

Leinonen Räsänen Asikainen Hirvonen - EJP 2009

2009-04-19T09:52:00.002-04:00

Students' pre-knowledge as a guideline in the teaching of introductory thermal physics at university
Eur. J. Phys. 30 593-604

Risto Leinonen, Esa Räsänen, Mervi Asikainen and Pekka E Hirvonen

This study concentrates on analysing university students' pre-knowledge of thermal physics. The students' understanding of the basic concepts and of the adiabatic compression of an ideal gas was studied at the start of an introductory level course. A total of 48 students participated in a paper-and-pencil test, and analysis of the responses revealed that they had several kinds of problems. They did not differentiate between concepts, confusing in particular the concepts of temperature, internal energy and heat. The students also seemed to have serious problems in applying the first law of thermodynamics: they were frequently more likely to use the ideal gas law rather than the first law, e.g., in the case of adiabatic compression, even though it cannot provide a proper explanation of the phenomenon. More detailed analysis revealed that the underlying reasons for many of the problems detected were based on an inadequate understanding of micro-level models of substance. At the upper secondary level, students have acquired an impression of how particles move, vibrate and interact, but they have not learnt how to apply the ideas and concepts of the micro-models in a scientific manner. All of this means that university teachers need to exercise great care in designing their teaching. Explicit recommendations for teachers to take into account both the findings of this research project and also students' pre-knowledge are presented in the discussion section at the end of this paper.

Dykstra Sweet - AJP 2009

2009-04-16T17:07:00.004-04:00

Conceptual development about motion and force in elementary and middle school students

Am. J. Phys. 77, 468 (2009)
DOI:10.1119/1.3090824

Dewey I. Dykstra, Jr. and Dale R. Sweet

Methodsof physics education research were applied to find what kindsof changes in 4th, 6th, and 8th grade student understandingof motion can occur and at what age. Such findingsare necessary for the physics community to effectively discharge itsrole in advising and assisting pre-college physics education. Prior toand after instruction the students were asked to carefully describeseveral demonstrated accelerated motions. Most pre-instruction descriptions were of thedirection of motion only. After instruction, many more of thestudents gave descriptions of the motion as continuously changing. Studentresponses to the diagnostic and to the activity materials revealedthe presence of a third “snapshot” view of motion notdiscussed in the literature. The 4th and 6th grade studentsgave similar pre-instructional descriptions of the motion, but the 4thgrade students did not exhibit the same degree of changein descriptions after instruction. Our findings suggest that students asearly as 6th grade can develop changes in ideas aboutmotion needed to construct Newtonian-like ideas about force. Students' conceptionsabout motion change little under traditional physics instruction from thesegrade levels through college level.

Bailey Finkelstein - PRST-PER 2009

2009-03-24T12:17:00.001-04:00

Development of quantum perspectives in modern physics

Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010106 (2009)
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.5.010106

Charles Baily and Noah D. Finkelstein

Introductory undergraduate courses in classical physics stress a perspective that can be characterized as realist; from this perspective, all physical properties of a classical system can be simultaneously specified and thus determined at all future times. Such a perspective can be problematic for introductory quantum physics students, who must develop new perspectives in order to properly interpret what it means to have knowledge of quantum systems. We document this evolution in student thinking in part through pre- and post-instruction evaluations using the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey. We further characterize variations in student epistemic and ontological commitments by examining responses to two essay questions, coupled with responses to supplemental quantum attitude statements. We find that, after instruction in modern physics, many students are still exhibiting a realist perspective in contexts where a quantum-mechanical perspective is needed. We further find that this effect can be significantly influenced by instruction, where we observe variations for courses with differing learning goals. We also note that students generally do not employ either a realist or a quantum perspective in a consistent manner.

Thornton Kuhl Cummings Marx - PRST-PER 2009

2009-03-21T17:38:00.001-04:00

Comparing the force and motion conceptual evaluation and the force concept inventory
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010105 (2009)
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.5.010105

Ronald K Thornton, Dennis Kuhl, Karen Cummings, and Jeffrey Marx

In this paper we compare and contrast student’s pretest/post-test performance on the Halloun-Hestenes force concept inventory (FCI) to the Thornton-Sokoloff force and motion conceptual evaluation (FMCE). Both tests are multiple-choice assessment instruments whose results are used to characterize how well a first term, introductory physics course promotes conceptual understanding. However, the two exams have slightly different content domains, as well as different representational formats; hence, one exam or the other might better fit the interests of a given instructor or researcher. To begin the comparison, we outline how to determine a single-number score for the FMCE and present ranges of normalized gains on this exam. We then compare scores on the FCI and the FMCE for approximately 2000 students enrolled in the Studio Physics course at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute over a period of eight years (1998–2006) that encompassed significant evolution of the course and many different instructors. We found that the mean score on the FCI is significantly higher than the mean score on the FMCE, however there is a very strong relationship between scores on the two exams. The slope of a best fit line drawn through FCI versus FMCE data is approximately 0.54, and the correlation coefficient is approximately r=0.78 , for preinstructional and postinstructional testings combined. In spite of this strong relationship, the assessments measure different normalized gains under identical circumstances. Additionally, students who scored well on one exam did not necessarily score well on the other. We use this discrepancy to uncover some subtle, but important, differences between the exams. We also present ranges of normalized gains for the FMCE in a variety of instructional settings.

Krusberg - arxiv.org 2009

2009-03-19T09:59:00.003-04:00

Physics education research: Resources for middle school science teachers
arXiv:0903.3183

Zosia A. C. Krusberg

This resource letter intends to provide middle school science teachers with a collection of resources to aid them in planning and implementing a physical science curriculum. The resources are in the form of books, websites, journals, and organizations.

MCW comment: This isn't a PER publication, despite what the title says, as it is seriously lacking in links to PER results. I post it as an example of a quick'n'dirty resource letter in a public forum, a way to share meaningful information for general use. Perhaps this could inspire someone else to do the same work in PER...

O'Brien Thompson - Physics Teacher 2009

2009-03-16T22:00:00.005-04:00

Effectiveness of Ninth-Grade Physics in Maine: Conceptual Understanding
Phys. Teach. 47, 234 (2009)
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1119/1.3098211

Michael J. O'Brien and John R. Thompson

The Physics First movement—teaching a true physics course to ninth-grade students—is gaining popularity in high schools. There are several different rhetorical arguments for and against this movement, and it is quite controversial in physics education. However, there is no actual evidence to assess the success, or failure, of this substantial shift in the science teaching sequence. We have undertaken a comparison study of physics classes taught in ninth- and 12th-grade classes in Maine. Comparisons of student understanding and gains with respect to mechanics concepts were made with excerpts from well-known multiple-choice surveys and individual student interviews. Results indicate that both populations begin physics courses with similar content knowledge and specific difficulties, but when learning concepts, ninth-graders are more sensitive to the instructional method used.

This article was previously posted on PERticles as a pre-preprint here

Marshall Hagedorn O’Connor - PRST-PER 2009

2009-03-05T11:50:00.003-05:00

Anatomy of a physics test: Validation of the physics items on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010104 (2009)
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.5.010104

Jill A. Marshall; Eric A. Hagedorn; Jerry O’Connor

We report the results of an analysis of the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) designed to determine whether the TAKS is a valid indicator of whether students know and can do physics at the level necessary for success in future coursework, STEM careers, and life in a technological society. We categorized science items from the 2003 and 2004 10th and 11th grade TAKS by content area(s) covered, knowledge and skills required to select the correct answer, and overall quality. We also analyzed a 5000 student sample of item-level results from the 2004 11th grade exam, performing full-information factor analysis, calculating classical test indices, and determining each item's response curve using item response theory. Triangulation of our results revealed strengths and weaknesses of the different methods of analysis. The TAKS was found to be only weakly indicative of physics preparation and we make recommendations for increasing the validity of standardized physics testing.

Admin comments

2009-03-03T15:52:00.003-05:00

Hi all,

I neglected to inform regular readers that the blog has expanded. I'm happy that Joss Ives approached me at the AAPT meeting in Chicago and asked to help out - it means that papers will get posted more regularly, and we can share the wealth of research in physics education more effectively. Thanks, Joss!

The present separation of duties has Joss doing the "basics," meaning AJP, PRST-PER, and so on. I'll be posting articles from the European side of things (L&I, IJSE, EJP, etc.) as well as those articles I come across when trawling for information in the math ed, cognition, development, and ed psych journals. Man, there's some fascinating stuff out there. Anyone doing work in, say, vectors (like we are at Maine) can find some pretty awesome articles on perception, embodied mathematics, and more. Totally awesome.

It's obvious from the papers I post here that I feel strongly about the broad view of what PER is. I hope the richness of postings in this blog is of use to people. If I am not finding what you know about, send it to me. The richer base our research community has, the better work we can do. My hope is that those not reading widely enough (which is, you know, everyone) will learn to expect more, to seek more, so that they end up unsatisfied with the way things have been in the past. Everyone gets richer, in the long run, as long as we strive to get there.

As an aside, I'm out of the country for a while, so I won't be posting any of the great articles which I'd like to post but haven't had time for. Sorry. Expect more after March 16. Thanks for your patience.

Kapon Ganiel Eylon - IJSE 2009

2009-02-23T20:33:00.003-05:00

Explaining the Unexplainable: Translated Scientific Explanations (TSE) in public physics lectures
International Journal of Science Education online
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09500690802566632

Shulamit Kapon; Uri Ganiel; Bat Sheva Eylon

This paper deals with the features and design of explanations in public physics lectures. It presents the findings from a comparative study of three exemplary public physics lectures, given by practicing physicists who are acknowledged as excellent public lecturers. The study uses three different perspectives: the lecture, the lecturer, and the audience (high school physics teachers and students). It concludes with a grounded theory explanatory framework for public physics lectures. The framework demonstrates that a “Translated Scientific Explanation” (TSE) draws upon four clusters of explanatory categories: analogical approach, story, knowledge organization, and content. The framework suggests how the lecturer fits the content of the presentation to the audience's knowledge throughout the lecture, taking into account the listeners' lack of necessary prior knowledge.

Talanquer - IJSE 2009

2009-02-23T20:31:00.004-05:00

On Cognitive Constraints and Learning Progressions: The case of “structure of matter”
International Journal of Science Education online publication
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09500690802578025

Vicente Talanquer

Based on the analysis of available research on students' alternative conceptions about the particulate nature of matter, we identified basic implicit assumptions that seem to constrain students' ideas and reasoning on this topic at various learning stages. Although many of these assumptions are interrelated, some of them seem to change or lose/gain strength independently from one another. Overlapping or competing presuppositions about the structure, properties, and dynamics of matter may be able to coexist at any given level, particularly at intermediate stages of expertise. Our results allowed us to suggest common paths in the transition from naive through novice to expert along relevant dimensions related to the structure and properties of chemical substances. The identification of these cognitive constraints provides a useful framework that educators can use to better understand and even predict many of their students' learning difficulties. It can also assist in the design and organisation of learning experiences and assessment tools that recognise and take advantage of the most likely trajectories towards expertise (learning progressions) followed by many students.

Ramadas - IJSE 2009

2009-02-23T20:26:00.004-05:00

Visual and Spatial Modes in Science Learning
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 3 February 2009 , pages 301 - 318
DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09500690802595763

Jayashree Ramadas

This paper surveys some major trends from research on visual and spatial thinking coming from cognitive science, developmental psychology, science literacy, and science studies. It explores the role of visualisation in creativity, in building mental models, and in the communication of scientific ideas, in order to place these findings in the context of science education research and practice.

Subramaniam Padalkar - IJSE 2009

2009-02-23T20:24:00.002-05:00

Visualisation and Reasoning in Explaining the Phases of the Moon
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 3 February 2009 , pages 395 - 417
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09500690802595805

K. Subramaniam; Shamin Padalkar

In this study, we examine how subjects set up, transform, and reason with models that they establish on the basis of known facts as they seek to explain a familiar everyday phenomenon—the phases of the moon. An interview schedule was designed to elicit subjects' reasoning, and in the case where explanations were mistaken, to induce a change in explanation. Detailed interviews of eight participants were videotaped and their reasoning analysed to highlight the difficulties encountered, the interaction between physical and geometrical aspects, simplification and idealisation processes, interplay between facts, concepts and visualisation, and the use of external visualisations through gestures and diagrams. We suggest that visualisation is an important process in science learning, and point to the importance of developing among students the ability to work with diagrams.

Reiner - IJSE 2009

2009-02-23T20:22:00.003-05:00

Sensory Cues, Visualization and Physics Learning
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 3 February 2009 , pages 343 - 364
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09500690802595789

Miriam Reiner

Bodily manipulations, such as juggling, suggest a well-synchronized physical interaction as if the person were a physics expert. The juggler uses “knowledge” that is rooted in bodily experience, to interact with the environment. Such enacted bodily knowledge is powerful, efficient, predictive, and relates to sensory perception of the dynamics of objects. This paper describes results of an empirical study in physics learning, aimed at exploring links between sensory input, visual representations, and corresponding conceptual learning in physics. The central finding is that through sensory interaction (e.g., touch, vision) with a physical system in the physics laboratory, learners spontaneously generate a novel reference-system of pictorial representations, typical to the situation explored. Results show that in collaborative hands-on problem-solving in physics, a pictorial referential communication system is generated. Elements of the pictorial communication system were found to be one of three: photographic, metaphoric, or symbolic. The constituents of the communication system are socially shared, hence valid, are used repeatedly when similar experience happens, therefore consistent. Thus visual-spatial representations of non-explicit knowledge turn into pictorial representations for communication. It is powerful because it allows access and retrieval of tacit knowledge, inaccessible by symbolic interaction.

Ibrahim Buffler Lubben - JRST 2009

2009-02-23T20:15:00.003-05:00

Profiles of freshman physics students' views on the nature of science
J Res Sci Teach 46: 248-264, 2009
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/tea.20219

Bashirah Ibrahim, Andy Buffler, Fred Lubben

The views on various aspects of the nature of science (NOS) of 179 novice undergraduate physics students were investigated using six open-ended, written probes. These views were consolidated within compact NOS profiles, which were designed based on the students' responses to the probes. These profiles may be understood as sets of key descriptors, which represented the variation in the views of individual students in a succinct way. The views of 86% of the sample were found to be represented by four profiles, each containing five descriptors. The consequences for the teaching and learning of tertiary science, and advantages for linking NOS views to other research observables were explored.

Nielson Nashon Anderson - JRST 2009

2009-02-23T20:12:00.003-05:00

Metacognitive engagement during field-trip experiences: A case study of students in an amusement park physics program
J Res Sci Teach 46: 265-288, 2009
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/tea.20266

Wendy S. Nielsen, Samson Nashon, David Anderson

This article reports on a study that investigated students' metacognitive engagement in both out-of-school and classroom settings, as they participated in an amusement park physics program. Students from two schools that participated in the program worked in groups to collectively solve novel physics problems that engaged their individual metacognition. Their conversations and behavioral dispositions during problem-solving were digitally audio-recorded on devices that they wore or placed on the tables where groups worked on the assigned physics problems. The students also maintained reflection journals on the strategies they employed to manage their own understanding as well as learning processes. Prior to the amusement park physics discourse, the students completed a specially developed questionnaire instrument. This provided signposts of the students' metacognitive engagement during group problem-solving at the park and subsequent related physics learning tasks back in the classroom. This data, added to field notes arising from observations, and formal and informal interviews during post-visit learning activities provided the data corpus on the students' metacognitive engagement. Analysis of this data revealed three types of metacognitive engagement during group learning tasks: collaborative and consensus-seeking, highly argumentative, and eclectic, resulting from high levels of dissonance. In both cases, evidence of individual students' deeper understandings, which manifested through students' cognitive and social behaviors, demonstrated the invocation of metacognition to varying degrees. The novel physics problems tackled by the students created situations where discrepancies between their prior knowledge and the direct experiences enabled them to explicate their thinking through dispositions of behavior. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Sandoval - JLS 2009

2009-02-23T20:06:00.002-05:00

In Defense of Clarity in the Study of Personal Epistemology
Journal of the Learning Sciences, Volume 18, Issue 1 January 2009 , pages 150 - 161
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10508400802581700

William A. Sandoval

Andrew Elby (this issue) argues that researchers in the field of personal epistemology should beware insistence on a narrow definition of epistemology to guide this work. His argument is a response to suggestions (Hofer & Pintrich, 1997; Sandoval, 2005) that the study of personal epistemology should focus on people's views about knowledge and knowing and not conflate those with views about learning. His main concern is that learners' views about knowledge and their views about learning may, in fact, be conflated and that an insistence on definitional clarity could lead to a mischaracterization of cognitive structures. In this response I argue that clarity in the definition of theoretical constructs does not imply exclusion of views about learning from the study of personal epistemology. Furthermore, given the history of this area of research, failing to more clearly define our constructs makes real theoretical progress difficult.

Elby - JLS 2009

2009-02-23T20:04:00.002-05:00

Defining Personal Epistemology: A Response to Hofer & Pintrich (1997) and Sandoval (2005)
Journal of the Learning Sciences, Volume 18, Issue 1 January 2009 , pages 138 - 149
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10508400802581684

Andrew Elby

Some researchers, including B. K. Hofer and P. R. Pintrich (1997) and W. A. Sandoval (2005), argue for defining personal epistemology as views about the nature of knowledge and knowing but not views about the nature of learning. Others continue using a more expansive definition of personal epistemology that includes views about learning. I argue that the scope of personal epistemology should not be decided entirely a priori. If people's views about the nature of knowing and knowledge turn out to be separable from (despite being intertwined with) their views about the nature of learning, then it makes sense to define 2 separate areas of study corresponding to those 2 separable sets of psychological constructs. From some theoretical perspectives, however, empirical results may support the interpretation that views about knowledge are inseparably entangled with views about learning. In that case, excluding views about learning from personal epistemology obscures rather than elucidates the content and cognitive structure of students' views. To be clear, I do not think the community should decide, now, to etch “views about the nature of learning” into the definition of personal epistemology. I argue instead that it is more productive not to converge on a definition until further empirical and theoretical progress points us toward the best way to “cut up [nature] … along its natural joints” (Plato, 1995, p. 64).

Lindstrøm Sharma - PRST-PER 2009

2009-02-23T19:58:00.004-05:00

Link maps and map meetings: Scaffolding student learning
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010102 (2009) [11 pages]
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.5.010102

Christine Lindstrøm and Manjula D. Sharma

With student numbers decreasing and traditional teaching methods having been found inefficient, it is widely accepted that alternative teaching methods need to be explored in tertiary physics education. In 2006 a different teaching environment was offered to 244 first year students with little or no prior formal instruction in physics. Students were invited to attend additional enrichment classes 1 h a week called map meetings. The focus of these classes was a different type of visual presentation of physics material called link maps. Link maps explicitly show the key concepts covered in lectures and how these interrelate to help novices establish their physics schemata. In each map meeting the link map for the different topic was interactively discussed by the researcher before the students worked on problems in groups using the link map. The class ended with the researcher going through one problem, talking aloud about how to logically attack it. The results were promising. Each week about 20% of the class voluntarily attended map meetings whereas 22% reported that they did not attend due to timetable clashes. Two questionnaires revealed that students thought the classes were helpful for gaining an overview of physics and for developing their problem solving abilities. In the final examination the 32 students who had attended at least eight out of ten map meetings achieved, on average, 9 points out of 90 better in the examination (p=0.004) than a comparison group (N=40) with similar academic background which had not attended map meetings. The results of this study suggest that map meetings are a valuable learning environment for physics novices. Further investigations are currently being undertaken.

Sayre Heckler - PRST-PER 2009

2009-02-23T19:57:00.004-05:00

Peaks and decays of student knowledge in an introductory E&M course
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 013101 (2009)
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.5.013101

Eleanor C. Sayre and Andrew F. Heckler

A common format for assessment of learning is pretesting and post-testing. In this study, we collect student test data several times per week throughout a course, allowing for the measurement of the changes in student knowledge with a time resolution on the order of a few days. To avoid the possibility of test-retest effects, separate and quasirandom subpopulations of students are tested on a variety of tasks. We report on data taken in a calculus-based introductory E&M class populated primarily by engineering majors. Unsurprisingly for a traditional introductory course, there is little change in many conceptual questions. However, the data suggest that some student performance peaks and decays rapidly during a quarter, a pattern consistent with memory research yet unmeasurable by pretesting and post-testing. In addition, it appears that some course topics can interfere with prior knowledge, decreasing performance on questions related to earlier topics in the course.

Gire Jones Price - PRST-PER 2009

2009-02-23T19:55:00.005-05:00

Characterizing the epistemological development of physics majors
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010103 (2009)
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevSTPER.5.010103

Elizabeth Gire, Barbara Jones, Ed Price

Students in introductory physics courses are likely to have views about physics that differ from those of experts. However, students who continue to study physics eventually become experts themselves. Presumably these students either possess or develop more expertlike views. To investigate this process, the views of introductory physics students majoring in physics are compared with the views of introductory physics students majoring in engineering. In addition, the views of physics majors are assessed at various stages of degree progress. The Colorado learning attitudes about science survey is used to evaluate students’ views about physics, and students’ overall survey scores and responses to individual survey items are analyzed. Beginning physics majors are significantly more expertlike than nonmajors in introductory physics courses, and this high level of sophistication is consistent for most of undergraduate study.

Henderson Beach Famiano - AJP 2009

2009-02-22T23:53:00.006-05:00

Promoting instructional change via co-teaching
American Journal of Physics, Volume 77, Number 3 (March 2009), pp. 274-283

Charles Henderson, Andrea Beach, Michael Famiano

PhysicsEducation Research (PER) has made significant progress in developing effectiveinstructional strategies, but disseminating the background knowledge and strategies toother faculty has proven difficult. Co-teaching is a promising andcost-effective alternative to traditional professional development which may be applicablein particular situations. We discuss the theoretical background of co-teachingand describe our initial experience with it. A new instructor(Famiano) co-taught an introductory calculus-based physics course with an instructorexperienced in PER-based reforms (Henderson). The pair taught within thecourse structure typically used by Henderson and met regularly todiscuss instructional decisions. An outsider (Beach) conducted separate interviews witheach instructor and observed several class sessions. Classroom observations showan immediate use of PER-based instructional practices by the newinstructor. Interviews show a significant shift in the new instructor'sbeliefs about teaching and intentions of future use of PER-basedinstructional approaches.

An earlier version of the article was posted on arxiv.org

Wittman - arxiv.org 2009

2009-02-22T21:32:00.003-05:00

Shaping Attitudes Toward Science in an Introductory Astronomy Class
arXiv:0902.3321

D. Wittman (UC Davis)

At many universities, astronomy is a popular way for non-science majors to fulfill a general education requirement. Because general-education astronomy may be the only college-level science course taken by these students, it is the last chance to shape the science attitudes of these future journalists, teachers, politicians, and voters. I report on an attempt to measure and induce changes in science attitudes in my general-education astronomy course. I describe construction of the attitude survey, classroom activities designed to influence attitudes, and give numerical results indicating a significant improvement. In contrast, the literature on attitudes in introductory physics courses generally reports stagnation or decline. I briefly comment on some plausible explanations for this difference.

Rojas - arxiv.org 2009

2009-02-09T07:37:00.001-05:00

On the teaching and learning of physics: A Criticism and a Systemic Approach
arXiv:0902.1151v1 [physics.ed-ph]

Sergio Rojas

The amount of published research in Physics Education Research (PER) shows, on one hand, an increasing interest in the design and development of high performance physics teaching strategies, and, on the other hand, it tries to understand plausible ways on which the brain processes scientific information so that scientific thinking skills could be taught more effectively. As physics is a subject in which mathematical and conceptual reasoning can not be separated, instructors of physics face the problem of finding suitable advise on the most effective methods of teaching physics (i.e. how much time should be spent on intuitive conceptual reasoning and how much time in developing quantitative reasoning, and how to teach both in a unitary way). In spite the important efforts made by the PER community, the published results are overwhelming and confusing for the physics instructors in the sense that the conclusions that have arisen in those articles are in some instances controversial and far from being conclusive in pointing out a particular strategy to overcome the afore mentioned problem. Accordingly, based on the analysis of published PER work, we'll be arguing that one of the major difficulties to overcome in the teaching of physics could be associated to the lack of a consistent and coherent methodological framework for teaching which integrates both aspects, conceptual and mathematical reasoning, in a systemic way of thinking. We will be presenting a set of plausible steps that could be applied to tackle the aforementioned difficulty.

Black Wittmann - arxiv.org 2009

2009-02-04T22:30:00.002-05:00

Understanding the use of two integration methods on separable first order differential equations
arXiv:0902.0748, submitted to Physical Review Special Topics - Physics Education Research

Katrina E. Black, Michael C. Wittmann

We present evidence from three student interactions in which two types of common solution methods for solving simple first-order differential equations are used. We describe these using the language of resources, considering epistemic games as particular pathways of solutions along resource graphs containing linked procedural and conceptual resources. Using transcript data, we define several procedural resources, show how they can be organized into two facets of a previously described epistemic game, and produce a resource graph that allows visualization of this portion of the epistemic games. By representing two correct mathematical procedures in terms of shared resources, we help clarify the types of thinking in which students engage when learning to apply mathematical reasoning to physics and illustrate how a "failure to connect" two ideas often hinders students' successful problem solving.

Hayes Wittmann - arxiv.org 2009

2009-02-02T12:58:00.002-05:00

The role of sign in students' modeling of scalar equations
arXiv:0901.4912v1 [physics.ed-ph], to be published in The Physics Teacher

Kate Hayes, Michael C. Wittmann

We describe students revising the mathematical form of physics equations to match the physical situation they are describing, even though their revision violates physical laws. In an unfamiliar air resistance problem, a majority of students in a sophomore level mechanics class at some point wrote Newton's Second Law as F = -ma; they were using this form to ensure that the sign of the force pointed in a direction consistent with the chosen coordinate system while assuming that some variables have only positive value. We use one student's detailed explanation to suggest that students' issues with variables are context-dependent, and that much of their reasoning is useful for productive instruction.

O'Brien Thompson - arxiv.org 2009

2009-01-30T10:02:00.003-05:00

Effectiveness of Ninth-Grade Physics in Maine: Conceptual Understanding
arXiv:0901.4692v1 [physics.ed-ph], to be published in The Physics Teacher

Michael O'Brien, John Thompson

The Physics First movement - teaching a true physics course to ninth grade students - is gaining popularity in high schools. There are several different rhetorical arguments for and against this movement, and it is quite controversial in physics education. However, there is no actual evidence to assess the success, or failure, of this substantial shift in the science teaching sequence. We have undertaken a comparison study of physics classes taught in ninth- and 12th grade classes in Maine. Comparisons of student understanding and gains with respect to mechanics concepts were made with excerpts from well-known multiple-choice surveys and individual student interviews. Results indicate that both populations begin physics courses with similar content knowledge and specific difficulties, but that in the learning of the concepts ninth graders are more sensitive to the instructional method used.

UPDATE: This paper has been published in The Physics Teacher. Click here for more.

PERC Proceedings 2008

2009-01-21T10:12:00.001-05:00

PERC Proceedings 2008

There's a ton of good stuff here. Check it out. Sorry I haven't posted it sooner.

PERC Proceedings 2001-2008

2009-01-21T10:00:00.000-05:00

Having a hard time finding past PERC Proceedings? Here are links to all of them, in a single location.
Click on the links to find out more about authors and editors.

2001, Rochester
Self-published proceedings

2002, Boise
Self-published proceedings

2003, Madison
AIP Conference Proceedings Volume 720

2004, Sacramento
AIP Conference Proceedings Volume 790

2005, Salt Lake City
AIP Conference Proceedings Volume 818

2006, Syracuse
AIP Conference Proceedings Volume 883

2007, Greensboro
AIP Conference Proceedings Volume 951

2008, Edmonton
AIP Conference Proceedings Volume 1064

Airey Linder - JRST 2009

2009-01-15T13:56:00.001-05:00

A disciplinary discourse perspective on university science learning: Achieving fluency in a critical constellation of modes
J Res Sci Teach 46: 27–49, 2009

John Airey, Cedric Linder

In this theoretical article we use an interpretative study with physics undergraduates to exemplify a proposed characterization of student learning in university science in terms of fluency in disciplinary discourse. Drawing on ideas from a number of different sources in the literature, we characterize what we call “disciplinary discourse” as the complex of representations, tools and activities of a discipline, describing how it can be seen as being made up of various “modes”. For university science, examples of these modes are: spoken and written language, mathematics, gesture, images including pictures, graphs and diagrams, tools such as experimental apparatus and measurement equipment, and activities such as ways of working—both practice and praxis, analytical routines, actions, etc.. Using physics as an illustrative example, we discuss the relationship between the ways of knowing that constitute a discipline and the modes of disciplinary discourse used to represent this knowing. The data comes from stimulated recall interviews where physics undergraduates discuss their learning experiences during lectures. These interviews are used to anecdotally illustrate our proposed characterization of learning and its associated theoretical constructs. Students describe a repetitive practice aspect to their learning, which we suggest is necessary for achieving fluency in the various modes of disciplinary discourse. Here we found instances of discourse imitation, where students are seemingly fluent in one or more modes of disciplinary discourse without having related this to a teacherintended disciplinary way of knowing. The examples lead to the suggestion that fluency in a critical constellation of modes of disciplinary discourse may be a necessary though not always sufficient condition for gaining meaningful holistic access to disciplinary ways of knowing. One implication is that in order to be effective, science teachers need to know which modes are critical for an understanding of the material they wish to teach. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Hugenera Paulia Reussera Lopowsky Rakoczyc Kliemer - L&I 2009

2009-01-15T13:53:00.001-05:00

Teaching patterns and learning quality in Swiss and German mathematics lessons
Learning and Instruction Volume 19, Issue 1, February 2009, Pages 66-78

Isabelle Hugenera, Christine Paulia, Kurt Reussera, Frank Lipowskyb, Katrin Rakoczyc, and Eckhard Kliemec

Based on a coding of 39 videotaped three-lesson units on the introduction to the Pythagorean Theorem, three teaching patterns were identified: lecturing, developing based on a problem, and discovery based on a problem. The analysis showed no effect of the teaching patterns on student achievement, whereas effects were discovered on students' perceived learning quality. The discovery teaching pattern had negative effects on the emotional quality of learning. However, this pattern exhibited high degree of externally rated cognitive activation. The lecturing approach to the introduction to the Pythagorean Theorem supported students' self-perceived understanding.

Son Goldstone - C&I 2009

2009-01-15T13:49:00.001-05:00

Contextualization in Perspective
Cognition and Instruction,27:1,51 — 89

Ji Y. Son; Robert L. Goldstone

Instruction abstracted from specific and concrete examples is frequently criticized for ignoring the context-dependent and perspectival nature of learning (e.g., Bruner, 1962, 1966; Greeno, 1997). Yet, in the effort to create personally interesting learning contexts, cognitive consequences have often been ignored. To examine what kinds of personalized contexts foster or hinder learning and transfer, three manipulations of perspective and context were employed to teach participants Signal Detection Theory (SDT). In all cases, application of SDT principles was negatively impacted by manipulations that encouraged participants to consider the perspective of the signal detector (the decision maker in SDT situations): by giving participants active detection experience (Experiment 1), biasing them to adopt a ﬁrst-person rather than third-person perspective (Experiment 2), or framing the task in terms of a well-known celebrity (Experiment 3). These contexts run the risk of introducing goals and information that are speciﬁc to the detector’s point of view, resulting in sub-optimal understanding of SDT.

Inglis Mejia-Ramos - C&I 2009

2009-01-15T13:45:00.001-05:00

The Effect of Authority on the Persuasiveness of Mathematical Arguments
Cognition and Instruction Volume 27, Number 1 (January 2009)

Matthew Inglis, Juan Pablo Mejia-Ramos

Three experiments are reported that investigate the extent to which an authority figure influences the level of persuasion undergraduate students and research-active mathematicians invest in mathematical arguments. We demonstrate that, in some situations, both students and researchers rate arguments as being more persuasive when they are associated with an expert mathematician than when the author is anonymous. We develop a model that accounts for these data by suggesting that, for both students and researchers, an authority figure only plays a role when there is already some uncertainty about the argument's mathematical status. Implications for pedagogy, and for future research, are discussed.

Ares Stroup Schademan - C&I 2009

2009-01-15T13:43:00.001-05:00

The Power of Mediating Artifacts in Group-Level Development of Mathematical Discourses
Cognition and Instruction Volume 27, Number 1 (January 2009)

Nancy Ares, Walter Stroup, Alfred Schademan

A new generation of networked classroom technology immerses students and teachers in the group-level construction of powerful mathematical and scientific concepts. We examine these networks from a sociocultural point of view as a new form of mediating artifact. We present a mixed-method, microgenetic analysis to characterize students' appropriation of mathematical content and practice as mediated by the Participatory Simulations system. Central findings of the study are that networked activities provided the opportunity for students and the teacher to: (a) act on multiple representations, (b) create collectively a linked set of mathematical objects that they could examine and discuss together, and (c) exercise agency in the production of mathematical discourse and practice. These opportunities fostered the development of powerful mathematical discourse.

Ogan-Bekiroglu - IJSE

2009-01-15T13:40:00.001-05:00

Assessing Assessment: Examination of pre-service physics teachers' attitudes towards assessment and factors affecting their attitudes
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31 Issue 1 2009

Feral Ogan-Bekiroglu

The purpose of this study was to determine pre-service physics teachers' attitudes towards assessment. It was also aimed to examine the factors affecting their attitudes. Two factors were considered. The first was difficulties that pre-service teachers experienced relating to assessment. The second factor was teachers' self-efficacy regarding their ability to assess. The difficulties were divided into external and internal. Internal difficulties depended on pre-service teachers' assessment skills and their subject matter knowledge, and represented the difficulties that they encountered during preparation and evaluation of assessment methods. External difficulties, on the other hand, depended on the external factors such as school policy and facilities that might affect pre-service teachers' classroom assessment implementation. A parallel mixed-methodology approach was utilized during the data collection and analysis. This paradigm combined both qualitative and quantitative methods to give both breadth and scope to the research. The pre-service physics teachers' general attitude towards assessment was determined as close to constructivist. Knowledge about the subject assessed and university entrance examination were found to be the common factors that affected pre-service teachers' predispositions for action. Conclusions carry implications for science teacher education in Turkey and other countries where educational reforms have been implemented.

Potgin Hazari Tai Sadler - Science Education 2009

2009-01-15T13:35:00.001-05:00

Unraveling bias from student evaluations of their high school science teachers
Sci Ed 1-19, 2009

Geoff Potvin, Zahra Hazari, Robert H. Tai, Philip M. Sadler

In this study, the evaluation of high school biology, chemistry, and physics teachers by their students is examined according to the gender of the student and the gender of the teacher. Female teachers are rated significantly lower than male teachers by male students in all three disciplines, whereas female students underrate female teachers only in physics. Interestingly, physics is also the field that suffers the greatest lack of females and has been criticized most for its androcentric culture. The gender bias in teacher ratings persists even when accounting for academic performance, classroom experiences, and family support. Furthermore, male and female teachers in each discipline appear equally effective at preparing their students for future science study in college, suggesting that students have a discipline-specific gender bias. Such a bias may negatively impact female students and contribute to the loss of females in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Schwartz Sadler Sonnert Tai - Science Education 2008

2009-01-15T13:33:00.004-05:00

Depth versus breadth: How content coverage in high school science courses relates to later success in college science coursework

Sci Ed 1-29, 2008

Marc S. Schwartz , Philip M. Sadler, Gerhard Sonnert, Robert H. Tai

This study relates the performance of college students in introductory science courses to the amount of content covered in their high school science courses. The sample includes 8310 students in introductory biology, chemistry, or physics courses in 55 randomly chosen U.S. colleges and universities. Students who reported covering at least 1 major topic in depth, for a month or longer, in high school were found to earn higher grades in college science than did students who reported no coverage in depth. Students reporting breadth in their high school course, covering all major topics, did not appear to have any advantage in chemistry or physics and a significant disadvantage in biology. Care was taken to account for significant covariates: socioeconomic variables, English and mathematics proficiency, and rigor of their preparatory high science course. Alternative operationalizations of depth and breadth variables result in very similar findings. We conclude that teachers should use their judgment to reduce coverage in high school science courses and aim for mastery by extending at least 1 topic in depth over an extended period of time. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Kost Pollock Finkelstein - PRST-PER 2009

2009-01-15T13:30:00.002-05:00

Characterizing the gender gap in introductory physics

Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 5, 010101 (2009) [14 pages]

Lauren E. Kost, Steven J. Pollock, and Noah D. Finkelstein

Previous research [S. J. Pollock et al., Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 3, 1 (2007)] showed that despite the use of interactive engagement techniques, the gap in performance between males and females on a conceptual learning survey persisted from pretest to post-test at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Such findings were counter to previously published work [M. Lorenzo et al., Am. J. Phys. 74, 118 (2006)]. This study begins by identifying a variety of other gender differences. There is a small but significant difference in the course grades of males and females. Males and females have significantly different prior understandings of physics and mathematics. Females are less likely to take high school physics than males, although they are equally likely to take high school calculus. Males and females also differ in their incoming attitudes and beliefs about physics. This collection of background factors is analyzed to determine the extent to which each factor correlates with performance on a conceptual post-test and with gender. Binned by quintiles, we observe that males and females with similar pretest scores do not have significantly different post-test scores (p>0.2) . The post-test data are then modeled using two regression models (multiple regression and logistic regression) to estimate the gender gap in post-test scores after controlling for these important prior factors. These prior factors account for about 70% of the observed gender gap. The results indicate that the gender gap exists in interactive physics classes at our institution but is largely associated with differences in previous physics and math knowledge and incoming attitudes and beliefs.

Liu Zhang Liang Fulmer Kim Yuan - Science Education 2008

2009-01-15T13:27:00.002-05:00

Alignment between the physics content standard and the standardized test: A comparison among the United States-New York State, Singapore, and China-Jiangsu
Sci Ed 1-21, 2008

Xiufeng Liu, Baohui Zhang, Ling L. Liang, Gavin Fulmer, Beaumie Kim, Haiquan Yuan

Alignment between content standards and standardized tests is a significant issue to society, science pedagogy, and test validation. To better understand the issues related to alignment, this study compares the alignment in physics among three education systems: Jiangsu (China), New York State (United States), and Singapore. The same coding framework for content standards and standardized tests is used to compute the alignment indices in the three education systems. It was found that there was a statistically significant alignment between the New York content standard and the standardized test for physics, but there was not a statistically significant alignment for Chinese and Singapore physics. The insignificant alignment for Chinese and Singapore physics was due to a shift toward higher level cognitive reasoning skills from content standards to standardized tests. For Chinese physics, the insignificant alignment was also due to a heavier emphasis on electricity in the test than in the content standard. Both significant and insignificant alignments may result in desirable and undesirable effects on guiding classroom instruction. Thus, ongoing study of the alignment between a science content standard and the standardized test is necessary for any education system, and alignment studies may be used as a means of teacher professional development for improving student achievement. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Beatty Gerace - J Sci Ed Tech

2009-01-15T13:23:00.001-05:00

Technology-Enhanced Formative Assessment: A Research-Based Pedagogy for Teaching Science with Classroom Response Technology
Journal of Science Education and Technology

Ian D. Beatty and William J. Gerace

Classroom response systems (CRSs) are a promising instructional technology, but most literature on CRS use fails to distinguish between technology and pedagogy, to define and justify a pedagogical perspective, or to discriminate between pedagogies. Technology-enhanced formative assessment (TEFA) is our pedagogy for CRS-based science instruction, informed by experience and by several traditions of educational research. In TEFA, four principles enjoin the practice of question-driven instruction, dialogical discourse, formative assessment, and meta-level communication. These are enacted via the question cycle, an iterative pattern of CRS-based questioning that can serve multiple instructional needs. TEFA should improve CRS use and help teachers “bridge the gap” between educational research findings and practical, flexible classroom strategies for science instruction.

Willoughby Gustafson - AJP 2009

2009-01-15T13:20:00.001-05:00

Technology talks: Clickers and grading incentive in the large lecture hall
American Journal of Physics, Volume 77, Number 2 (February 2009), pp. 180-183

Shannon D. Willoughby, Eric Gustafson

Two sections of an introductory astronomy class were given different grading incentives for clicker participation for two consecutive semesters. In the high stakes classroom points were awarded only for correct answers, in contrast to the low stakes classroom in which points were awarded simply for participating. Self-formed groups of four students each were recorded in both sections several times during the spring 2007 semester and their conversations were transcribed and categorized into nine topics to analyze the variations between the sections. Performance on clicker questions and tendency to block vote were correlated with class grades and gains for the pre- and post-test scores on the Astronomy Diagnostic Test.

Stelzer Gladding Mestre Brookes - AJP 2009

2009-01-15T13:17:00.003-05:00

Comparing the efficacy of multimedia modules with traditional textbooks for learning introductory physics content
American Journal of Physics, Volume 77, Number 2 (February 2009), pp. 184-190

Timothy Stelzer, Gary Gladding, Jose´ P. Mestre, David T. Brookes

We compared the efficacy of multimedia learning modules with traditional textbooks for the first few topics of a calculus-based introductory electricity and magnetism course. Students were randomly assigned to three groups. One group received the multimedia learning module presentations, and the other two received the presentations via written text. All students were then tested on their learning immediately following the presentations as well as 2 weeks later. The students receiving the multimedia learning modules performed significantly better on both tests than the students experiencing the text-based presentations.

an earlier version of this paper was posted on arxiv.org.

Kapon Ganiel Eylon - Physics Education 2009

2008-12-19T13:38:00.002-05:00

Scientific argumentation in public physics lectures: bringing contemporary physics into high-school teaching
Phys. Educ. 44 33-38 doi: 10.1088/0031-9120/44/1/004

S Kapon, U Ganiel and B Eylon

This article presents an approach to integrating public e-lectures on contemporary physics into a traditional high-school syllabus. This approach was used in a long-distance professional development course for in-service physics teachers. Each lecture was related to a specific obligatory syllabus chapter, and was accompanied by learner-centred activities. We provide a detailed description of an activity that explicates the scientific arguments that were presented in the lectures. Teachers appreciated the approach and reported that the lectures and activities updated and broadened their knowledge of physics and contributed to their understanding of the nature of science (NOS).

Black Wittmann - arxiv.org 2008

2008-12-17T09:27:00.002-05:00

Visualizing changes in student responses using consistency plots
arxiv.org (Submitted on 16 Dec 2008)

Katrina E. Black, Michael C. Wittmann

Traditional methods of reporting changes in student responses have focused on class-wide averages. Such models hide information about the switches in responses by individual students over the course of a semester. We extend unpublished work by Steven Kanim on "escalator diagrams" which show changes in student responses from correct to incorrect (and vice versa) while representing pre- and post-instruction results on questions. Our extension consists of "consistency plots" in which we represent three forms of data: method of solution and correctness of solution both before and after instruction. Our data are from an intermediate mechanics class, and come from (nearly) identical midterm and final examination questions.

(This paper has been submitted to PRST-PER, and this link will be replaced if and when the paper is accepted and published. The new page will contain a link to the original arxiv.org submission at that time.)

Joung - IJSE 2008

2008-12-16T15:31:00.001-05:00

Children's Typically-Perceived-Situations of Floating and Sinking
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 1 January 2009 , pages 101 - 127

Yong Jae Joung
Monash University, Australia
DOI: 10.1080/09500690701744603

Abstract
The purpose of this study is to explore children's typically-perceived-situations (TPS) of 'floating' and 'sinking'. TPS refers to the situation rising spontaneously in an individual's mind when they first think of a phenomenon or concept. Data were collected from 148 Year 5 Korean children. As a result of analysing the data according to three categories - 'spatial background', 'main object', and 'position of main object' - the children mainly thought of a river or a sea with a human or a boat on the water surface or half-submerged as a floating situation; and a river or sea with a boat or a human on the bottom or mid-way between the water surface and the bottom as a sinking situation respectively. Considering the whole context of children's TPS, the contexts of 'a boat is on the water surface of the sea or river' and 'a boat is half-submerged in the sea or river' were the most frequent ones, as a floating and as a sinking situation respectively. In addition, it appeared that these children's TPS affect their judgment of floating and sinking, in that they showed stronger tendency to regard the situation where an object is just beneath the water as a floating situation, while the position of a main object in their TPS of a sinking situation was nearer to the bottom of the water. Based on these results, several suggestions for science education are given.

Fields - IJSE 2009

2008-12-16T15:27:00.002-05:00

What do Students Gain from a Week at Science Camp? Youth perceptions and the design of an immersive, research-oriented astronomy camp
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 2 January 2009 , pages 151 - 171
DOI: 10.1080/09500690701648291

Deborah Anne Fields

This study explored American high school students' perceptions of the benefits of a summer astronomy camp, emphasizing a full cycle of the research process and how the organization of the camp contributed to those perceptions. Semi-structured interviews with students and staff were used to elicit the specific benefits that campers perceived from their experiences and examine them in relation to the stated goals and strategies of camp staff. Among the perceived benefits that students described were peer relationships, personal autonomy, positive relationships with staff, and deepened science knowledge. These perceived benefits appear to influence the kinds of identities students constructed for themselves in relation to science. Gee's concept of 'affinity space' is used to consider how features of the camp's design, especially those that promoted student autonomy, contributed to students' positive perceptions, and to draw implications for the design of informal science learning experiences that can link youth with larger communities of scientists.

Park Light - IJSE 2009

2008-12-16T15:24:00.001-05:00

Identifying Atomic Structure as a Threshold Concept: Student mental models and troublesomeness
International Journal of Science Education, Volume 31, Issue 2 January 2009 , pages 233 - 258
DOI: 10.1080/09500690701675880

Eun Jung Park; Gregory Light

Atomic theory or the nature of matter is a principal concept in science and science education. This has, however, been complicated by the difficulty students have in learning the concept and the subsequent construction of many alternative models. To understand better the conceptual barriers to learning atomic structure, this study explores the troublesome nature of this fundamental scientific concept. In order to illustrate the distinction of student understanding by threshold barriers, this study chose three particularly high-achieving students from an original interview sample of 20 students who were selected from an introductory college chemistry course. The pre-course and post-course interview responses were examined and compared in detail. This study considers the concepts of 'probability' and 'energy quantization' to both describe the structure of the threshold of understanding students' need to negotiate in their construction of the target model of atomic structure. In this respect, this study suggests atomic structure as a possible threshold concept for further study in science. Identifying the nature and structure of the threshold of understanding confronting students, and analyzing the troublesomeness of atomic structure, provides valuable information for understanding student learning difficulties, and insight into how they may be addressed.

Studies in Educational Evaluation special issue

2008-12-12T17:16:00.003-05:00

This special issue looks really interesting for those who are focusing on methodology, credibility of measurements, and so on. The applications to PER should be relatively obvious, but they are part of our unquestioned assumptions about the data that we take. Read up for more...

The Process of Evaluation: Focus on Stakeholders
Edited by Tanner LeBaron Wallace and Marvin C. Alkin

Studies in Educational Evaluation
Volume 34, Issue 4, Pages 191-230 (December 2008)

1. Editorial Board
Page CO2

2. Editor's Note
Page 191

3. Process of evaluation: Focus on stakeholders
Pages 192-193
Tanner LeBaron Wallace, Marvin C. Alkin

4. What we learned from three evaluations that involved stakeholders
Pages 194-200
Jean A. King, John C. Ehlert

5. Integrating participatory elements into an effectiveness evaluation
Pages 201-207
Tanner LeBaron Wallace

6. When stakeholders rebel: Lessons from a safe schools program
Pages 208-211
Billie Gastic, Decoteau J. Irby, Maureen Zdanis

7. Engaging stakeholders in the planning of a collaborative multi-agency evaluation: The HousingPlus Collaborative Communities Project
Pages 212-217
John Sylvestre, J. Bradley Cousins, Purnima Sundar, Tim Aubry, Val Hinsperger

8. Encouraging stakeholder engagement: A case study of evaluator behavior
Pages 218-223
Cheryl-Anne Poth, Lyn Shulha

9. What have we learned about stakeholder involvement in program evaluation?
Pages 224-230
Sandy Taut

New journal to consider: Water

2008-12-09T20:42:00.002-05:00

I say this partially in jest, but also in honesty: If you're doing any work that deals with fluid mechanics (student understanding of... teacher understanding of... evaluation of curricula about... etc.) then consider sending a paper to Water, a new journal seeking submissions. No, they don't say they would publish papers on education research. Why should that stop you? Send in a draft, try it out, see what happens.

Etkina Karelina Ruibal-Villasenor - PRST-PER 2008

2008-12-08T11:27:00.001-05:00

How long does it take? A study of student acquisition of scientific abilities
Phys. Rev. ST Phys. Educ. Res. 4, 020108 (2008)

Eugenia Etkina, Anna Karelina, and Maria Ruibal-Villasenor

Most of the time, instructors of introductory physics limit their goals to students’ acquisition of basic concepts and end-of-the-chapter problem solving efficiency. They overlook the development of students’ science process abilities required for constructing scientific knowledge and approaching complex problems as scientists do. This goal is attainable and very valuable at the same time. This paper describes how learners improved their scientific abilities during the course of one semester and reports on the activities and facilitations that helped students in the process. We investigated how long it takes for novices to develop complex scientific abilities and whether the content and the context of the tasks affect the abilities that students demonstrate. We found that students need to conduct several cycles of scaffolded investigations to gain competence in the application of scientific abilities. Depending on the particular ability, a period of five to eight weeks of work is necessary to achieve it.

Merhar Planinsic Cepic - EJP 2009

2008-12-08T11:25:00.001-05:00

Sketching graphs—an efficient way of probing students' conceptions

Eur. J. Phys. 30 163-175 doi: 10.1088/0143-0807/30/1/017

Vida Kariz Merhar, Gorazd Planinsic and Mojca Cepic

This paper describes a teaching method that allows for the fast and early detection of students' conceptions, misconceptions and their development. The empirical study of two examples where the method was applied is reported. The prerequisites for the efficient use of the method are discussed and results of the pilot study of its effectiveness are briefly presented.

Thompson McGill - J Ed Computing Research 2008

2008-12-03T09:32:00.001-05:00

Multimedia and Cognition: Examining the Effect of Applying Cognitive Principles to the Design of Instructional Materials
Journal of Educational Computing Research Volume 39, Number 2 / 2008, p 143 - 159

Nik Thompson and Tanya Jane McGill

The human cognitive system possesses a finite processing capacity, which is split into channels for various modalities, and learning can be inhibited if any of the cognitive channels is overloaded. However, although the amount of e-learning materials is increasing steadily, the design of instructional material has been largely based on intuition rather than cognitive principles. This research investigated if it is possible to improve the effectiveness of an established e-learning system by the application of cognitive design principles. And if so, does the increased development time and resources yield a substantial effect on learning. Quantitative data collecting during the experiment supported the cognitive principles based design and demonstrated that significantly better quiz scores were obtained in transfer and retention tests when compared against a more traditional design. The results of the study also indicate that the cognitive principles based design was both practical and feasible to apply in terms of necessary resources.

Jang - J Ed Psych

2008-12-03T09:29:00.001-05:00

Supporting Students' Motivation, Engagement, and Learning During an Uninteresting Activity
Journal of Educational Psychology Volume 100, Issue 4, November 2008, Pages 798-811

Hyungshim Jang

The present study examined the capacity of 2 different theoretical models of motivation to explain why an externally provided rationale often supports students' motivation, engagement, and learning during relatively uninteresting learning activities. One hundred thirty-six undergraduates (108 women, 28 men) worked on an uninteresting 20-min lesson after either receiving or not receiving a rationale. Participants who received the rationale showed greater identified regulation, interest-enhancing strategies, behavioral engagement, and conceptual learning. Structural equation modeling was used to test 3 alternative explanatory models to understand why the rationale produced these benefits—an identified regulation model based on self-determination theory, an interest regulation model based on interest-enhancing strategies research, and an additive model that integrated both models. The data fit all 3 models; however, only the model that included rationale-enhanced identified regulation uniquely fostered students' engagement and hence their learning. Findings highlight the role that externally provided rationales can play in helping students generate the autonomous motivation they need to engage constructively in and learn from uninteresting, but personally important, lessons.

Cognitive Development Special Issue: Scientific Reasoning

2008-11-30T19:17:00.004-05:00

Cognitive Development
Volume 23, Issue 4, Pages 431-538 (October-December 2008)

SPECIAL ISSUE: Scientific reasoning -- Where are we now?

Scientific reasoning—Where are we now?
Pages 431-434
Beate Sodian, Merry Bullock

Beyond control of variables: What needs to develop to achieve skilled scientific thinking?
Pages 435-451
Deanna Kuhn, Kalypso Iordanou, Maria Pease, Clarice Wirkala

A dual-process account of the development of scientific reasoning: The nature and development of metacognitive intercession skills
Pages 452-471
Eric Amsel, Paul A. Klaczynski, Adam Johnston, Shane Bench, Jason Close, Eric Sadler, Rick Walker

Information becomes evidence when an explanation can incorporate it into a causal framework
Pages 472-487
Barbara Koslowski, Joseph Marasia, Melanie Chelenza, Randi Dublin

Developing elementary science skills: Instructional effectiveness and path independence
Pages 488-511
Mari Strand-Cary, David Klahr

Supporting development of the epistemology of inquiry
Pages 512-529
Richard Lehrer, Leona Schauble, Deborah Lucas

(note that I have only labeled first authors in the labels here. Sorry if you end up missing this article on searches.)

Martin-Blas Serrano-Fernandeza - Computers & Education 2008

2008-11-30T19:14:00.001-05:00

The role of new technologies in the learning process: Moodle as a teaching tool in Physics

Teresa Martín-Blas and Ana Serrano-Fernándeza

In this work we present an overview of the undergraduate online Physics course that we have implemented in the Moodle platform. This course has been developed as an enhancement of the face-to-face courses. The aim of this course is to create an online learning community which helps both teachers and students to have a virtual space where we can share knowledge through different kinds of supervised activities, chats and forums. As we will show in this paper, the students’ response to this initiative has been very good: the online Physics course helps them to reinforce their abilities and knowledge.

Kariotoglou Spyrtou Tselfes - IJSME 2008

2008-11-30T19:10:00.003-05:00

How Student Teachers Understand Distance Force Interactions In Different Contexts

International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education

Petros Kariotoglou, Anna Spyrtou and Vassilis Tselfes

In this paper, we describe empirical research on the recording of primary school and preschool student teacher conceptions of the concept of distant force interactions in different contexts related to the school curriculum for this subject. For this objective to be achieved, we undertook ten semi-structured interviews with student teachers. Based on the findings from these interviews, we developed a written ten-item questionnaire that was distributed to 264 first-year student teachers at three Greek universities. The main findings of our research are that a significant number of students: (i) experience difficulty in recognizing the interactions in different contexts, and even in different cases within the same context; (ii) place the arrow representing the force on the body that exerts it and not on that which accepts it; and (iii) hold the alternative view that the larger the body interacting, the greater the force it exerts. Based on the above results, as well as in the ways in which they seem to be related, we developed hypotheses, potentially able to lead to the construction of a teaching–learning sequence, which focuses on the comprehension of force as the measure of a unified concept of interaction between two entities.