- 30/06-04/07/2025
Undergraduate students’ conceptual understanding of electromagnetic waves
Marco Costigliolo, Matteo Bozzi, Danilo Catena, Marisa Michelini, Lorenzo Santi, Maurizio Zani
GIREP, Groupe International de Recherche sur l’Enseignement de la Physique (Leiden – The Netherlands)
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Abstract:
A questionnaire about electromagnetic waves was submitted to 35 undergraduate students after the conclusion of the electromagnetism course. The questionnaire consists of 6 multiple choice questions, also asking for justification of the answer. The answers’ analysis was carried out through an iterative categorization process, aimed at verifying the consistence between the selected options and the motivations provided by the participants.
Classical Test Theory (CTT) may also be applied for testing items’ efficacy. The preliminary results show which are the most common learning difficulties (e.g. the interpretation of the wave profile representation and the relationships between the velocity and the other quantities characterizing electromagnetic waves) and how they are related to each other.
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