Tracking Students’ Understanding of the Particle Nature of Matter by Joi DeShawn Merritt A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Education) in The University of Michigan 2010 Doctoral Committee: Professor Joseph S. Krajcik, Chair Professor Brian P. Coppola Associate Professor Elizabeth A. Davis Assistant Professor Amelia W. Gotwals, Michigan State University Joi D. Merritt 2010 Dedication To My Family ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My dissertation study would not have been possible without the support and guidance of so many. First, I would like to thank my advisor, Joseph Krajcik, whose support, guidance and feedback have been invaluable during my time as a graduate student. Joe has provided with many opportunities and experiences that have had an amazing impact on me both personally and professionally. I look forward to our future collaborations. I must also thank my other committee members, Betsy Davis, Brian Coppola and Amelia Gotwals. Betsy has always pushed me to think about the connections and what my work means. I thank her for always providing me with wonderful feedback that is insightful and thoughtful and most of all extremely helpful. Brian has pushed me to think about my work in terms of what does it all mean. I thank him for always leaving me with something to think about. Finally, I would like to thank Amelia, whose knowledge of science assessments has been absolutely invaluable. I want to thank her for her help and feedback. I thank you all for pushing me and helping me in ways that you could never know. I would like to thank all of the IQWST sixth grade teachers that I have had the opportunity to work with. I would especially like to thank those teachers who provided me with the data to make this dissertation possible: Lisa Brody, Jeffrey Downes, Rachelle Fulkerson, Kristie Hannon, Kathleen Keenmon, Jamie Klausing, and Kalonda McDonald. I must also thank the members of the IQWST project, both past and present that I have had the great fortune of working with. I would especially like iii to thank all the past and present members of the Chemistry team whose hard work and guidance has been an integral part of my journey. I would like to send thanks to those who have helped me in completing my dissertation in various and different roles: Molly Yunker, James Hagerty, Yael Baumberger, Jenny Sealy Badee, Serena Salloum, Ashima Mathur, Kathryn Drago and Clara Cahill. Whether it has been to provide me feedback on different stages of my dissertation, help with coding or words of encouragement, you all have kept me going and I want to know how much I appreciate each of you. Finally, I would like to thank my family for all their love and support. I would like to thank my parents for always being my biggest cheerleaders. Your belief in me has allowed me to make my dreams reality. To my brothers, Philip and Justin, I thank you for always encouraging me, making me laugh when I needed it most and for your support. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication ............................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgments................................................................................................................. iii List of Figures........................................................................................................................ viii List of Tables ............................................................................................................................. x List of Appendices .................................................................................................................xii Chapter 1: Introduction.........................................................................................................1 Research Questions ........................................................................................................................................5 Outline of dissertation...................................................................................................................................7 Chapter 2: Literature Review ..............................................................................................9 Introduction........................................................................................................................................9 Learning progressions and progress variables ................................................................... 10 Models and Modeling in Chemistry.......................................................................................... 13 (Mis)Conceptions of The Particle Nature of Matter............................................................ 18 How is the particle model used in teaching?......................................................................... 22 Hybrid Models of Matter ...........................................................................................................................24 Curriculum........................................................................................................................................ 28 Chapter Summary .......................................................................................................................... 34 Chapter 3: The BEAR Assessment System .................................................................... 36 Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 36 The BEAR Assessment System ................................................................................................... 37 Designing a Construct Map For the Particle Model of Matter.......................................... 38 Item Design....................................................................................................................................... 43 Development of Items ................................................................................................................................45 Outcome Space ................................................................................................................................ 48 Measurement Model...................................................................................................................... 51 Chapter Summary .......................................................................................................................... 54 Chapter 4: Calibration Study............................................................................................. 55 Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 55 Calibration Study............................................................................................................................ 55 Study Setting & Participants....................................................................................................................55 Data Sources..................................................................................................................................... 56 Assessment Items.........................................................................................................................................56 Exit Interviews...............................................................................................................................................57 Measurement Model....................................................................................................................................60 Findings ............................................................................................................................................. 61 Evaluation of the model.............................................................................................................................61 Wright Map......................................................................................................................................................64 Wright map discussion...............................................................................................................................67 Determining Performance Levels..........................................................................................................68 Performance Level Discussion................................................................................................................71 Item Fit..............................................................................................................................................................73 Item Fit Discussion ......................................................................................................................................73 Respondent fit................................................................................................................................................74 v Summary ........................................................................................................................................... 79 Reliability.......................................................................................................................................... 79 Standard Error of Measurement............................................................................................................79