University students’ ideas about data processing and data comparison in a physics laboratory course

Abstract

This study investigates undergraduate students' ability to use the ideas of measurement and uncertainty to process and compare experimental data. These ideas include not only knowing what it means to use an instrument to take a measurement, but also being able to apply that knowledge, including the ideas that make up uncertainty analysis, to every aspect of an experiment. A physics laboratory course for the Energy Systems Engineering programme at Uppsala University has been designed to focus on teaching students the ideas of measurement and the associated laboratory skills. In the reported study, we use an open-ended survey to investigate students' ideas about data processing and data comparison before and after this laboratory course. The results show that several students, even after the course, are still unable to appropriately use the ideas of uncertainty. This suggests that these ideas must be continuously revisited and explored as a fundamental part of all undergraduate laboratory experiences. IntroductionData processing and data comparison principally involve the ideas of measurement and uncertainty. Measurement and its related uncertainty are at the very heart of empirical science, and as such are widely considered to be one of the most fundamental and important components of a student's science education (for example, Duggan & Gott, 2002;Welzel et al., 1998). Each phase of an experiment -the design, performance, analysis, and conclusion phases -requires that students know what it means to take a measurement and be able to apply this knowledge along with an understanding of the associated uncertainty. We propose that the underlying ideas for understanding uncertainty can be broadly categorized as follows: (Similar lists may be found in Deardorff, 2001, andFairbrother &Hackling, 1997.) • All measurements have an associated uncertainty, which can and should be quantified and reported.• A calculated result has an associated uncertainty based on the uncertainty carried in its dependent values.University students' ideas about data processing and data comparison in a physics laboratory course

Student reasoning about measurement uncertainty in an introductory lab course

“…An alternative interpretation is that the RD probe is not effectively prompting many students to use reasoning aligned with the point-set paradigms. This interpretation is supported by findings at Uppsala University, where this probe was shown "not to distinguish among students who are experienced in the student laboratory at the sec-ondary and introductory university level [9]." The RD probe is the only PMQ probe that deals with a single data point (as opposed to sets of two or more measurements).…”

“…The PMQ was first implemented at the University of Cape Town [5,6,8]. It has since been used at Uppsala University [9], the University of Maryland College Park [10,11], and North Carolina State University [12]. In all of these previous studies, the PMQ has been implemented in introductory lab courses, and has been used in an evaluative capacity for traditional or transformed labs.…”

Impact of an introductory lab course on students’ understanding of measurement uncertainty

“…Later work showed that while traditional courses improved procedural performance, only a small fraction of students exhibited a deeper conceptual understading after instruction [10]. The PMQ has also been used at Uppsala University, Sweden, showing that a lab course about measurement yielded mixed results in students' ability to appropriately use ideas about uncertainty [12]. In the United States, the PMQ has also been used at the University of Maryland College Park [13,14] and at North Carolina State University [15], both showing significant gains in understanding of measurement uncertainty after completion of research-based courses.…”

Concepções de estudantes do Ensino Médio sobre os conceitos de média e dispersão de dados

“…As pesquisas na área (KUNG; LINDER, 2006;MA-RINELLI;PACCA, 2006;LOVETT;SHAH, 2007;SILVA;SALES, 2010;LUB-BEN;BUFFLER, 2010;MUNIER;MERLE;BREHELIN, 2013, por exemplo) apontam que estudantes, em todos os níveis de ensino, possuem grandes dificuldades com relação aos conceitos e conhecimentos envolvidos no processo de medição e análise das medidas produzidas.…”