A stratified study of students' understanding of basic optics concepts in different contexts using two-tier multiple-choice items

A large scale study involving 1786 year 7-10 Korean students from three school districts in Seoul was undertaken to evaluate their understanding of basic optics concepts using a two-tier multiple-choice diagnostic instrument consisting of four pairs of items, each of which evaluated the same concept...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Research in science & technological education Vol. 27; no. 3; pp. 253 - 265
Main Authors: Chu, Hye-Eun, Treagust, David F., Chandrasegaran, A.L.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Abingdon Routledge 01.11.2009
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects:
Context Effect
context-dependent
Correlation
Diagnostic Tests
Foreign Countries
Misconceptions
Multiple Choice Tests
Optics
optics concepts
Predictor Variables
School districts
Science Achievement
Science activities
Science Education
Scientific concepts
Scientific literacy
Secondary education
Secondary school science
Secondary School Students
secondary science
South Korea (Seoul)
Student assessment
Student Attitudes
Korea
South Korea (Seoul)
South Korea
Seoul South Korea
ISSN:0263-5143, 1470-1138
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:A large scale study involving 1786 year 7-10 Korean students from three school districts in Seoul was undertaken to evaluate their understanding of basic optics concepts using a two-tier multiple-choice diagnostic instrument consisting of four pairs of items, each of which evaluated the same concept in two different contexts. The instrument, which proved to be reliable, helped identify several context-dependent alternative conceptions that were held by about 25% of students. At the same time, students' performance on the diagnostic test correlated with the location of the schools, students' achievement in school science and their attitudes to science learning. However, students' grade levels had limited influence on their understanding of basic concepts in optics as measured by the instrument.
Bibliography:Refereed article. Includes bibliographical references.
Research in Science and Technological Education; v.27 n.3 p.253-265; November 2009
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-1
content type line 14
ISSN:0263-5143
1470-1138
DOI:10.1080/02635140903162553