Examining Knowledge Levels of High School Students Related to Conductors at Electrostatic Equilibrium and Electric Field Lines Using the Drawing Method

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate knowledge of high school students related to conductors at electrostatic equilibrium and electric field lines. The descriptive model was preferred in line with the purpose of the study. The sample of the study consisted of 35 11th grade students, 18 females and 16 males, who were enrolled in a state-owned high school in Turkey. The participants had previously learned the electric field lines in their courses. The research data was collected using a drawing scale consisting of three sections prepared by the researchers. The students then were asked to explain their drawings. Descriptive analysis was applied to the answers of the students. According to the findings obtained from the analysis, the most commonly reflected property of electric field lines was “electric field lines do not intersect,” while the least commonly reflected property was “electric field lines are drawn parallel to the surface.” Also, the students were observed to confuse the concept of the electric field with electric current, and electric field lines with magnetic field lines. In addition, it was found that the students did not understand the direction of the electric field and the vectorial nature of the electric field, and believed that electric field lines were real. The knowledge of the students was not based on scientific foundations.