Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/733
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Item Examining the psychometric functionality of the force concept inventory(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2020) Eaton, Philip Dale; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Shannon Willoughby; Keith Johnson and Shannon Willoughby were co-authors of the article, 'Generating a growth-oriented partial credit grading model for the force concept inventory' in the journal 'Physical review physics education research' which is contained within this dissertation.; Barrett Frank and Shannon Willoughby were co-authors of the article, 'Examining the effects of item chaining in the force concept inventory and the force and motion conceptual evaluation using local item dependence' submitted to the journal 'Physical review physics education research' which is contained within this dissertation.; Shannon Willoughby was a co-author of the article, 'Confirmatory factor analysis applied to the force concept inventory' in the journal 'Physical review physics education' which is contained within this dissertation.; Shannon Willoughby was a co-author of the article, 'Identifying a preinstruction to postinstruction model for the force concept inventory within a multitrait item response theory framework' in the journal 'Physical review physics education' which is contained within this paper.To improve the current understanding of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), both a response-option-level analysis and a dimensionality analysis were proposed and applied. The response-option-level analysis used polytomous item response theory to reveal that the response options on the FCI are generally functioning appropriately, with two questions being identified as likely malfunctioning. To address the question of the FCI's dimensionality, an analysis of local item independence using item response theory was proposed and performed. Results indicate that the FCI is a multi-factor instrument, not a unidimensional instrument as it is often assumed. As a result of this analysis, three factor models were proposed and tested using confirmatory factor analysis and confirmatory multi-trait item response theory. All of these models were found to adequately explain the factor structure of the FCI within each of the statistical frameworks. The results from these investigations can be used as a starting point for further analysis and directing future improvements of the FCI.Item Development and calibration of a concept inventory to measure introductory college astronomy and physics students' understanding of Newtonian gravity(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2013) Williamson, Kathryn Elizabeth; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Shannon WilloughbyThe topic of Newtonian gravity offers a unique vantage point from which to investigate and encourage conceptual change because it is something with which everyone has daily experience, and because it is taught in two courses that reach a wide variety of students - introductory-level college astronomy ("Astro 101") and physics ("Phys 101"). Informed by the constructivist theory of learning, this study characterizes and measures Astro 101 and Phys 101 students' understanding of Newtonian gravity within four conceptual domains - Directionality, Force Law, Independence of Other Forces, and Threshold. A phenomenographic analysis of Astro 101 student-supplied responses to open-ended questions about gravity results in the characterization of students' alternative mental models and misapplications of the scientific model. These student difficulties inform the development of a multiple-choice assessment instrument, the Newtonian Gravity Concept Inventory (NGCI). Classical Test Theory (CTT) statistics, student interviews, and expert review show that the NGCI is a reliable and valid tool for assessing both Astro 101 and Phys 101 students' understanding of gravity. Furthermore, the NGCI can provide extensive and robust information about differences between Astro 101 and Phys 101 students and curricula. Comparing and contrasting the Astro 101 and Phys 101 CTT values and student response patterns shows qualitative differences in each of the four conceptual domains. Additionally, performing an Item Response Theory (IRT) analysis of NGCI student response data calibrates item parameters for all Astro 101 and Phys 101 courses and provides Newtonian gravity ability estimates for each student. Physics students show significantly higher pre-instruction and post-instruction IRT abilities than astronomy students, but they show approximately equal gains. To investigate the differential effect of Astro 101 compared to Phys 101 curricula on students' overall post-instruction Newtonian gravity ability, linear regression models control for student characteristics and classroom dynamics. Results show that differences in post-instruction abilities are most influenced by students' pre-instruction abilities and the level of interactivity in the classroom, rather than the astronomy curriculum compared to the physics curriculum. These analyses show that the NGCI has broad capabilities.Item An investigation into the effects of completion problems on the performance of introductory physics students(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2009) Wolf, Jeremy Tyler; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Jeff AdamsIn this study the completion problems were voluntary. I believe it has been reasonably shown that the completion problems do not have a negative effect on test performance. If the act of completing a completion problem is useful making the completion problems mandatory would seem to be a simple improvement that may result in further or more widespread gains. Further, I believe that completion problems are realistic to implement for an entire semester or year-long course, in terms of time invested in creation of the problems compared to the possible gains made by students. The study has also shown that completion problems can be implemented without significantly altering the rest of the course (i.e. lectures, exams and tutorials).