Common Student Misconceptions Research Articles

Analysis of Kinematics Graph Interpretation Skills Using RapidMiner

This study explores the application of data mining techniques in physics education research, focusing on the analysis of kinematics graph interpretation skills. The research had two main objectives: to demonstrate the utility of RapidMiner, a data mining tool, in analyzing educational data, and to compare its effectiveness with traditional item analysis methods. Fifty-nine Grade-10 students at Chiang Mai University Demonstration School completed the Test of Understanding Graphs in Kinematics (TUG-K) before and after participating in a problem-based learning module integrating high-speed video analysis. Traditional statistical analysis revealed significant improvement in student performance (p<0.001, effect size 0.76). Association rule mining, conducted using RapidMiner, uncovered key relationships between test items that were not apparent through traditional analysis. These relationships provided insights into common student misconceptions and areas requiring targeted instruction. The study demonstrates the potential of advanced data mining techniques to reveal deeper patterns in educational data compared to conventional item analysis methods. This novel application of RapidMiner in physics education research offers a promising approach for more detailed analysis of student understanding, potentially informing more effective teaching strategies and curriculum design in physics education.

An Assessment to Investigate Student Conceptions of Pedigree Analysis

Genetics plays an increasing role in modern life as evidenced by the development of revolutionary techniques such as CRISPR-based genome editing and the rise of personalized genome services. However, genetics is difficult to learn; known issues include its abstract nature, different scales, and technical language. Pedigree analysis is a convergence of these concepts, requiring use of multiple symbolic scales and understanding the relationships and nature of alleles, genes, and chromosomes. To measure student understanding of these concepts, as well as support biology educational reform toward student-centered instruction, we developed a formative assessment to provide reliable and valid evidence of student understanding, learning, and misconceptions for pedigree analysis. Nine multiple choice items targeted to four learning objectives were developed in an iterative process with faculty and student input. We designed distractor answers to capture common student misconceptions and deployed a novel statistical technique to assess the congruence of distractor language with targeted misconceptions. Psychometric analysis showed the instrument provides valid and reliable data and has utility to measure normalized learning gains. Finally, we employed cross-tabulation and distractor progression to identify several stable misconceptions that can be targeted for instructional intervention.

Bringing science communication skills into the university classroom and back out again: What do palaeoscience educators think?

University-level pedagogy and public science communication both have the same broad goal: to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and understanding from a specialist or expert, to a non-specialist group. Recent research has emphasised the need for there to be a two-way transfer or dialogue of ideas between these fields, but collaboration thus far is rare, particularly at the tertiary education level. Performing science outreach is mostly a voluntary service for academics, and institutions provide little in the way of support, training or recognition. Here I explore the potential for a positive feedback loop between science communication and higher-education pedagogy in the palaeosciences. A synthesis of best practises in science outreach is drawn from the literature and related to pedagogical concepts and findings. The resulting congruences suggest enormous potential for ‘cross-pollination' of ideas between the fields. However, in-depth one-on-one interviews and focus groups with palaeoscience educators, as well as an online survey, indicate that this potential remains largely untapped in the palaeosciences community. While respondents could identify certain skills as being integral to success in science communication, they did not appear to realise that the same skills, when applied in the classroom, could contribute towards key challenges in higher education today, including the stimulation of student engagement and motivation, the accommodation of an increasingly diverse student body, the anticipation of common student misconceptions in science, and the improvement of pedagogical models of delivery. Another emergent theme was that being a good science communicator was “much simpler” than being a good teacher, conflicting with evidence-based pedagogical and outreach research. While many palaeoscientists did express strong commitments to science communication, they had previous experience of time constraints and conflicts with other academic responsibilities. Therefore, both palaeoscientists and their institutions would benefit from viewing science communication as a valuable and formally rewardable activity within the scholarship of sharing knowledge, which also contributes to other aspects of a successful academic career.

Teaching meiosis with the DNA triangle framework: A classroom activity that changes how students think about chromosomes.

Many biology students struggle to learn about the process of meiosis and have particular difficulty understanding the molecular basis of crossing over and the importance of homologous pairing for proper segregation. To help students overcome these challenges, we designed an activity that uses a newly developed Chromosome Connections Kit® from 3‐D Molecular Designs to allow learners to explore meiosis at the molecular level. We took a backwards design approach in constructing an effective classroom activity. We developed evidence‐based learning objectives and designed a crossing over activity that targets students' misconceptions and key concepts about meiosis. Assessment questions were designed based on the learning objectives and common student misconceptions. The activity consists of three parts: an interactive introductory video, a model‐based activity, and reflection questions. The activity was first beta‐tested with a small number of students and revised based on feedback. The revised activity was deployed in a mid‐level Cell and Molecular Biology course. Analysis of pre‐/post‐assessment data from students who completed the activity (n = 83) showed strong learning gains on concepts related to ploidy, homology, segregation, and the mechanism and purpose of crossing over. Additionally, students who participated in the activity outperformed nonparticipants on a Genetics assessment about meiosis the following semester.

Leveraging Student Misconceptions to Improve Teaching of Biochemistry & Cell Biology

Students come to science class with many ideas of how the natural world works, some of which do not match the consensus of the scientific community and can lead to misunderstandings. Because a growing body of educational research indicates that these misconceptions can serve as resources for learning, we developed a four-point plan to leverage knowledge of common misconceptions to improve classroom teaching by refining instructional focus, providing opportunities for reflective practice, applying evidence-based practices, and promoting exploration of learning theories. By sharing this plan with our teaching colleagues, we were able to foster a collaborative approach to our and others’ practice. To do this, we compiled a resource bank of common student misconceptions using data collected from the University of Toronto’s National Biology Competition, developed a guide for using this misconception resource bank to promote best teaching practices, then shared this plan with our teaching colleagues in order to foster a collaborative approach to our pedagogy. In this article, we present the resource bank and guide and provide teaching tips that can be applied to a wide array of scientific course types and educational levels.

Creating Diagnostic Assessments

The goal of this paper is to propose a new method to generate multiple-choice items that can make creating quality assessments faster and more efficient, solving a practical issue that many instructors face. There are currently no systematic, efficient methods available to generate quality distractors (plausible but incorrect options), which are necessary for multiple-choice assessments that accurately assess students’ knowledge. We propose two methods to use technology to generate quality multiple-choice assessments: (1) manipulating the mathematical problem to emulate common student misconceptions or errors and (2) disguising options to protect the integrity of multiple-choice tests. By linking options to common student misconceptions and errors, instructors can use assessments as personalized diagnostic tools that can target and modify underlying misconceptions. Moreover, using technology to generate these quality distractors would allow for assessments to be developed efficiently, in terms of both time and resources. The method to disguise the options generated would have the added benefit of preventing students from working backwards from options to solution and thus would protect the integrity of the assessment.

The Natural Selection Game: Incorporating Active Learning in Evolution Curricula for General Biology

Teaching evolution in high school and in entry-level college courses can be challenging due to the inherent misinformation, misunderstanding, and biases with which students approach the topic. In this setting, it is critical to both teach the basic concepts and address common student misconceptions about evolution. We present two paired activities that allow students to (1) explore the processes of natural selection in a direct and experiential way and (2) address common misconceptions in evolutionary theory. The first activity, the “Natural Selection Game,” has students simulate a bird population and experience shifts in phenotype frequency as a result of selective pressures. Following the end of the game, students discuss the outcomes and connect them to real-life examples. The second activity encourages students to actively research common misconceptions with the use of personal technology in order to distinguish between scientifically supported data and poor information online. Both activities can be incorporated in high school and university-level general biology curricula. They will allow students to connect their firsthand experiences to lecture-based instruction and, as a result, develop a stronger understanding of the mechanisms of evolution.

Using Targeted Feedback to Address Common Student Misconceptions in Introductory Programming: A Data-Driven Approach

With the expansion of computer science (CS) education, CS teachers in K-12 schools should be cognizant of student misconceptions and be prepared to help students establish accurate understanding of computer science and programming. Digital tools, such as automated assessment systems, can be useful and supportive in teaching CS courses. This two-stage design-based research (DBR) study investigated the effects of targeted feedback in an automated assessment system for addressing common misconceptions of high school students in a Java-based introductory programming course. Based on students’ common errors and underlying misconceptions, targeted feedback messages were designed and provided for students. The quantitative analysis found that with targeted feedback students were more likely to correct the errors in their code. The qualitative analysis of students’ solutions revealed that when improving the code, students receiving feedback made fewer intermediate incorrect solutions. In other words, the targeted feedback messages may help to promote conceptual change and facilitate learning. Although the findings of this exploratory study showed evidence of the power of digital tools, more research is needed to make technology benefit more CS teachers.

Concept Inventory Development Reveals Common Student Misconceptions about Microbiology.

Misconceptions, or alternative conceptions, are incorrect understandings that students have incorporated into their prior knowledge. The goal of this study was the identification of misconceptions in microbiology held by undergraduate students upon entry into an introductory, general microbiology course. This work was the first step in developing a microbiology concept inventory based on the American Society for Microbiology’s Recommended Curriculum Guidelines for Undergraduate Microbiology. Responses to true/false (T/F) questions accompanied by written explanations by undergraduate students at a diverse set of institutions were used to reveal misconceptions for fundamental microbiology concepts. These data were analyzed to identify the most difficult core concepts, misalignment between explanations and answer choices, and the most common misconceptions for each core concept. From across the core concepts, nineteen misconception themes found in at least 5% of the coded answers for a given question were identified. The top five misconceptions, with coded responses ranging from 19% to 43% of the explanations, are described, along with suggested classroom interventions. Identification of student misconceptions in microbiology provides a foundation upon which to understand students’ prior knowledge and to design appropriate tools for improving instruction in microbiology.

U.S. grade 4–6 students’ rational-number substitutions for odd-sum unknown addend tasks

ABSTRACTResearch findings have established common student misconceptions for literal symbolic representations of variables but lack corresponding findings of when or how these misconceptions arise. This article reports findings from an exploratory study of U.S. grade 4–6 students’ conception(s) for various representations of unknown addends commonly found in U.S. elementary mathematics textbooks. Thirty-six U.S. grade 4–6 students participated in two semistructured task-based interviews designed to explore their conception(s) of conventional and nonconventional representations of unknown addends as revealed by their number substitutions across task types and core mathematical tasks. Results showed that participants initially demonstrated a bias toward positive integers, upon further questioning a bias toward non-negative integers, potential conflict factors related to rational-number substitutions, and did not demonstrate common difficulties with literal symbols exhibited by students in algebra and higher-level mathematics courses.

Using Pre-Assessment and In-Class Questions to Change Student Understanding of Molecular Movements.

Understanding how different types of molecules move through cell membranes is a fundamental part of cell biology. To identify and address student misconceptions surrounding molecular movement through cell membranes, we surveyed student understanding on this topic using pre-class questions, in-class clicker questions, and subsequent exam questions in a large introductory biology course. Common misconceptions identified in student responses to the pre-class assessment questions were used to generate distractors for clicker questions. Two-tier diagnostic clicker questions were used to probe incoming common student misconceptions (first tier) and their reasoning (second tier). Two subsequent lectures with assessment clicker questions were used to help students construct a new framework to understand molecular movement through cell membranes. Comparison of pre-assessment and post-assessment (exam) performance showed dramatic improvement in students’ understanding of molecular movement: student answers to exam questions were 74.6% correct with correct reasoning while only 1.3% of the student answers were correct with correct reasoning on the pre-class assessment. Our results show that students’ conceptual understanding of molecular movement through cell membranes progressively increases through discussions of a series of clicker questions and suggest that this clicker-based teaching strategy was highly effective in correcting common student misconceptions on this topic.

The Fold Analysis Challenge: A virtual globe-based educational resource

We present an undergraduate structural geology laboratory exercise using the Google Earth virtual globe with COLLADA models, optionally including an interactive stereographic projection and JavaScript controls. The learning resource challenges students to identify bedding traces and estimate bedding orientation at several locations on a fold, to fit the fold axis and axial plane to stereographic projection data, and to fit a doubly-plunging fold model to the large-scale structure.The chosen fold is the Sheep Mountain Anticline, a Laramide uplift in the Big Horn Basin of Wyoming. We take an education research-based approach, guiding students through three levels of difficulty. The exercise aims to counter common student misconceptions and stumbling blocks regarding penetrative structures. It can be used in preparation for an in-person field trip, for post-trip reinforcement, or as a virtual field experience in an online-only course. Our KML scripts can be easily transferred to other fold structures around the globe.

Educative Mentoring: How a Mentor Supported a Preservice Biology Teacher’s Pedagogical Content Knowledge Development

Research suggests discipline-specific, educative mentoring can help preservice teachers develop more sophisticated pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). However, there are few studies examining the nature of mentors’ practice and how mentors influence preservice teacher’s (PST) PCK. The purpose of this case study was to describe the strategies used by a secondary biology mentor teacher to support the development of a PST’s PCK. The primary data sources were the transcripts of audio-recorded, daily meetings between the mentor and the PST during two curriculum units: DNA/Protein Synthesis and Evolution. The mentor influenced the PST’s teaching orientation by repeatedly comparing teacher- and student-centered approaches, asking him to consider how students learn, and asking him to self-assess whether his instruction aligned with his teaching beliefs. The mentor helped the PST develop topic-specific knowledge of instructional strategies by sharing strategies she used previously, modeling critical reflection, and inviting him to critically reflect on his own instructional strategies. Topic-specific knowledge of students’ understanding of science was developed by discussing common student misconceptions revealed in students’ conversations and by sharing the results of test-item analysis from previous unit tests. The mentor helped develop the PST’s topic-specific knowledge of assessment by helping him critically analyze and revise previous examinations to better align with the current curriculum units. Topic-specific knowledge of curricula was developed by jointly grappling with decisions about concept sequencing within units. The study includes implications for research, science teacher education, and professional development for mentors.

A Homeostasis Concept Inventory for Undergraduate Physiology

This poster presents the development of an assessment tool designed to measure undergraduate students' conceptual understanding of homeostasis. The homeostasis concept inventory (HCI) is intended primarily for undergraduate-level physiology and anatomy & physiology courses in life science departments. The HCI can be used for several ways, to assess students' performance, to reveal and address misconceptions, and to evaluate the effectiveness of teaching and learning structures. The HCI consists of 20 multiple-choice questions that focus on important sub-concepts and component ideas in our validated homeostasis conceptual framework. These questions have been validated using student interviews, faculty surveys and testing in physiology courses at a variety of institutions including community colleges, liberal arts institutions, comprehensive regional universities and research universities. The HCI is designed to detect some common student misconceptions regarding this critical core concept in physiology. Supported by NSF DUE-1043443.

A psychometric evaluation of the digital logic concept inventory

Concept inventories hold tremendous promise for promoting the rigorous evaluation of teaching methods that might remedy common student misconceptions and promote deep learning. The measurements from concept inventories can be trusted only if the concept inventories are evaluated both by expert feedback and statistical scrutiny (psychometric evaluation). Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory provide two psychometric frameworks for evaluating the quality of assessment tools. We discuss how these theories can be applied to assessment tools generally and then apply them to the Digital Logic Concept Inventory (DLCI). We demonstrate that the DLCI is sufficiently reliable for research purposes when used in its entirety and as a post-course assessment of students’ conceptual understanding of digital logic. The DLCI can also discriminate between students across a wide range of ability levels, providing the most information about weaker students’ ability levels.

Making Water the Exciting Way: A Classroom Demonstration of Catalysis

An understanding of the factors that govern the rate of chemical reactions has proven elusive for many students who begin a survey course in the chemical sciences. Inquiry-based curricula built upon an understanding of common student misconceptions related to chemical kinetics have proven to be a more effective means by which to develop student understanding than traditional lecture formats. To facilitate teacher-guided discussion regarding the subject of catalysis, we have developed a simple and safe demonstration, whereby the hydrogen and oxygen components evolved upon electrolysis of water are recombined at room temperature with the aid of a platinum/ruthenium catalyst. This demonstration is designed to draw students’ attention toward the dramatic change in reaction rate that can be affected by catalyst involvement and to provoke dialog regarding the mechanistic changes that accompany reaction catalysis.

Rabbit-ears hybrids, VSEPR sterics, and other orbital anachronisms

We describe the logical flaws, experimental contradictions, and unfortunate educational repercussions of common student misconceptions regarding the shapes and properties of lone pairs, inspired by overemphasis on “valence shell electron pair repulsion” (VSEPR) rationalizations in current freshman-level chemistry textbooks. VSEPR-style representations of orbital shape and size are shown to be fundamentally inconsistent with numerous lines of experimental and theoretical evidence, including quantum mechanical “symmetry” principles that are sometimes invoked in their defense. VSEPR-style conceptions thereby detract from more accurate introductory-level teaching of orbital hybridization and bonding principles, while also requiring wasteful “unlearning” as the student progresses to higher levels. We include specific suggestions for how VSEPR-style rationalizations of molecular structure can be replaced with more accurate conceptions of hybridization and its relationship to electronegativity and molecular geometry, in accordance both with Bent's rule and the consistent features of modern wavefunctions as exhibited by natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis.

Secondary School Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Some Common Student Errors and Misconceptions in Sets

The study investigated teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge of common students’ errors and misconceptions in sets. Five mathematics teachers from one Lesotho secondary school were the sample of the study. Questionnaires and interviews were used for data collection. The results show that teachers were able to identify the following students’ errors: (i) writing an empty set as {0} instead of { }; (ii) treating the repeating elements of the union of two sets as distinct and (iii) treating an infinite set as a finite set. Teachers were not able to identify the errors where students (i) treated infinity as a number; (ii) said that the members of countable infinite sets cannot be compared and (iii) that curly brackets are used only when listing the members of a set. The identified errors were associated with some misconceptions. Depending on the nature of the students’ tasks teachers’ strategies and explanations of dealing with the errors and misconceptions were inclined towards calling on procedural knowledge. Only a few cases of conceptual knowledge were noted. Implications for teaching are proposed.

The role of the lecturer as tutor: doing what effective tutors do in a large lecture class.

Wood, W. B., & Tanner, K. D. (2012). The role of the lecturer as tutor: doing what effective tutors do in a large lecture class. CBE-Life Sciences Education, 11(1), 3-9. Retrieved from https://dx.doi.org/10.1187%2Fcbe.11-12-0110

What Do You Mean That “Strong” Doesn't Mean “Powerful”?

The words used in the chemistry classroom often add to problems that students have in understanding complex concepts. This is particularly true when terms with specific scientific meanings are also used in colloquial speech with different meanings. This report discusses the results of student interviews that examine student comprehension of the term strong used in chemical and colloquial contexts. The most common student misconceptions associate the chemical meaning of strong with “concentration”, “charge”, or “powerful”.