Previous research provided evidence that cognitive ability is one of the learning outcomes that students need to achieve. The purpose of this study was to analyze gender gap in cognitive abilities between male students and female students in learning of simple harmonic motion. The number of students involved in this research consisted of 14 male students and 22 female students with an age range of 15-17. The instrument employed in this study was a cognitive ability test with ten questions compiled based on Bloom’s taxonomy and was analyzed with the Rasch model. Cognitive ability which was measured included the ability to remember, understand, apply, and analyze. The data obtained were analyzed using person reliability, item reliability, Wright map, person measure, DIF and t-test. The results showed that there was no significant difference between male and female students’ cognitive ability. Therefore, the study indicated that there was no gender gap in students’ cognitive ability after attending physics class. However, students had poor cognitive ability, so educators need to design a simple harmonic motion learning process that is able to improve students’ cognitive ability.

Concept mastery is one of the main goals in the learning process. This study aimed to analyze the improvement of students’ physics concept mastery by implementing challenge-based learning with Edmodo-assisted learning. This study used mixed methods with an embedded experimental model research design. The research sample was 10th-grade students in a public vocational school’s food crops and horticulture agribusiness program. Data analysis employed the Rasch model with the help of ministeps software version 4.1.1. The results of this study indicate a significant increase in students’ conceptual mastery of +3.44 logit. The average logit value of students’ abilities is higher than the average logit value of the item difficulty level. Students’ physics concept mastery can be improved through the challenge-based learning model assisted by Edmodo.

Physics education researchers have put out a large number of papers about attitudes. Yet, only few papers employed Rasch model to analyze data of attitudes. This paper reports a comparative study of students’ attitudes toward physics from rural and urban high schools (n=130). In order to collect data of attitudes toward physics, the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) was administered online to participated students. Obtained data were analyzed by using Rasch model and t-test. Prior Rasch analysis revealed that all items of the CLASS were fitted the Rasch model and had good psychometric properties. The present research found that there were no significant differences between rural and urban students in terms of attitudes toward physics. This result was in line with some earlier finding, but contrary to other previous result. One of variables probably affecting this outcome was teachers’ unawareness of technology usage and other school facilities to enhance teaching quality.