This study presents the development and validation of a novel multiple-choice test designed to assess university students' conceptual understanding of electric field, force, and flux. The test of understanding of electric field, force, and flux was constructed based on the results of previous studies using a phenomenographic approach to classify…

The accurate assessment of analytical thinking in physics, particularly in magnetism, poses substantial challenges due to the limitations of conventional tools in measuring higher-order cognitive skills. This study aimed to validate an analytical skills test in physics, based on Bloom's Revised Taxonomy, with an emphasis on the dimensions of…

In this article, we discuss the development and the administration of a multiple-choice test, which we named "Test of Calculus and Vectors in Mathematics and Physics" (TCV-MP), aimed at comparing students' ability to answer questions on derivatives, integrals, and vectors in a purely mathematical context and in the context of physics.…

In this article we discuss the findings of our research on students' understanding of vector concepts in problems without physical context. First, we develop a complete taxonomy of the most frequent errors made by university students when learning vector concepts. This study is based on the results of several test administrations of open-ended…

In this study, a Thermodynamic Concept Test (TCT) was designed to assess student's conceptual understanding heat and thermodynamics at undergraduate level. The different statistical tests such as item difficulty index, item discrimination index, point biserial coefficient were used for assessing TCT. For each item of the test these indices were…

The Concise Data Processing Assessment (CDPA) was developed to probe student abilities related to the nature of measurement and uncertainty and to handling data. The diagnostic is a ten question, multiple-choice test that can be used as both a pre-test and post-test. A key component of the development process was interviews with students, which…

Physics educators around the world often need reliable diagnostic materials to measure students' understanding of physics concept in high school. The purpose of this study is to evaluate a new diagnostic tool on High School Optics concept. Test of Conceptual Understanding on High School Optics (TOCUSO) consists of 25 conceptual items that measures…

Suggests improving test validity by deciding in advance the relative importance of each competence, and asking a colleague to read over the items and comment on any discovered ambiguities. Suggests increasing test reliability with item analyses. Discusses criteria for choosing objective or essay tests. (MLH)

The Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA), developed by Chabay and Sherwood, was designed to assess student understanding of basic electricity and magnetism concepts covered in college-level calculus-based introductory physics courses. To evaluate the reliability and discriminatory power of this assessment tool, we performed…

Summarizes classifications of educational objectives, types of test items, and principles underlying the construction of tests. Indicates that a combination of essay and objective tests is preferable in the overall evaluation of a course. (CC)