Assessing Secondary and College Students’ Implicit Assumptions about the Particulate Nature of Matter: Development and Validation of the Structure and Motion of Matter Survey

Abstract

Development of learning progressions has been at the forefront of science education for several years. While understanding students' conceptual development toward big ideas in science is extremely valuable for researchers, science teachers can also benefit from assessment tools that diagnose their students' trajectories along the learning progressions. In this paper, we describe the develop- ment and validation of a teacher-friendly survey, the Structure and Motion of Matter (SAMM) survey, designed to measure students' trajectories along aspects of a research-based learning progression on the particulate nature of matter. Specifically, the survey assesses students' implicit assumptions about four concepts: the structure of solute and solvent substances in a gas solution, the origin of motion of gaseous solute particles, and their trajectories. The process to ensure the translation validity (face and content validity) of the survey is described. Criterion validity study results indicate that the SAMM survey is well grounded in theory, and the testretest study results indicate that the survey is also reliable. Finally, the development of an Excel-based scoring scheme associated with the SAMM survey is also described. Inter-rater reliability studies indicate that the scoring scheme can be used reliably.