MacKenzie Stetzer
University of Washington

New Insights into Student Understanding of Electric Circuits

The Physics Education Group at the University of Washington has recently 
undertaken two projects that extend the scope of our research on student 
understanding of electric circuits. One project has focused on the 
development of new research questions to probe student understanding of 
complete circuits in greater detail. The second project is an 
investigation of student learning in an introductory electric circuits 
laboratory. The specific context is a laboratory in which students 
investigate current versus voltage characteristics for various devices. 
The insights gained from this research have strong implications for 
instruction in a variety of contexts, including introductory laboratories 
and courses for preservice and inservice teachers. 


Dr. Stetzer's Group Web Site 
http://www.phys.washington.edu/groups/peg/

*Supported in part by NSF DUE #0088906