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Abstract
Reliable and validated assessments of introductory physics have been instrumental in driving curricular and pedagogical reforms that lead to improved student learning. As part of an effort to systematically improve our sophomore-level Classical Mechanics and Math Methods course (CM 1) at CU Boulder, we have developed a tool to assess student learning of CM 1 concepts in the upper-division. The Colorado Classical Mechanics/Math Methods Instrument (CCMI) builds on faculty consensus learning goals and systematic observations of student difficulties. The result is a 9-question open-ended post-test that probes student learning in the first half of a two-semester classical mechanics / math methods sequence. In this paper, we describe the design and development of this instrument, its validation, and measurements made in classes at CU Boulder and elsewhere.
Highlights
In recent years the physics education research (PER) community has placed a strong emphasis on improving student learning in upper-division courses for physics majors [1,2,3,4]
We present the Colorado Classical Mechanics and Math Methods Instrument (CCMI) that is both grounded in the history of this work and opens a new space for upper-level physics assessments—middledivision classical mechanics and mathematical methods
III–V), we articulate how and why those decisions were made, but suffice it to say the CCMI is limited in its scope and its ability to serve as an assessment of classical mechanics
Summary
In recent years the physics education research (PER) community has placed a strong emphasis on improving student learning in upper-division courses for physics majors [1,2,3,4]. These systematic assessments of student understanding at the upper-division highlight common and persistent student difficulties that can both inform curricular and pedagogical innovations and help form the basis for research efforts These measures of student performance provide an indicator of the effectiveness of different pedagogies and curricula and can be used by instructors and departments to improve course offerings over time. Over the last 40 years, the awareness created by assessments of student learning using conceptual inventories has helped to drive widespread transformation of introductory lecture courses [17,18,19] The use of these conceptual inventories has helped the physics community identify persistent difficulties and provided the means to compare learning outcomes between different pedagogical and curricular reforms as well as across many institutions and implementations [20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27].
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