ERIC Number: EJ1156477
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2469-9896
EISSN: N/A
Pseudolongitudinal Investigation on Chinese Students' Categorization of Kinematics and Mechanics Problems
Zhu, Guangtian; Wang, Jue
Physical Review Physics Education Research, v13 n2 p020118-1-020118-9 Jul-Dec 2017
Students' categorization of physics problems reflects their expertise in problem solving. We conducted a pseudolongitudinal study to investigate the development of students' categorization ability. Over 250 Chinese students from grade 10 to grade 12 were asked to categorize 20 problems of kinematics and mechanics into suitable categories based on the similarity of solutions. We compared the categories made by the students in different grades and found that, although students in all three grades performed as novices, their expertise in categorization gradually developed. The results also suggested that the training in problem solving may affect students' categorization, especially for those in grade 12.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, High School Students, Classification, Expertise, Problem Solving, Longitudinal Studies, Kinetics, Mechanics (Physics), Comparative Analysis, Questionnaires, Cognitive Development, Pictorial Stimuli, Training
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: China
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A