Collaborative Research: Individualizing Instruction and Improving Research Using Adaptive Testing

Iowa State University, Ames IA

Investigators

Abstract

This project aims to serve the national interest by developing diagnostic tools that will help instructors help students succeed in high-enrollment introductory physics courses. This collaborative project involves investigators at Iowa State University (Award DUE-2141847) and Purdue University (Award DUE-2142317). The introductory college physics course often poses a major hurdle for students working toward a degree in a STEM discipline. Because the course often has a large enrollment, it is difficult for instructors to provide personalized instruction and other customized resources to help students succeed. This project plans to develop a free online assessment platform that provides physics instructors with measures of individual student-level and course-level learning. These tools should allow physics instructors to provide individualized instruction by providing student-specific, actionable feedback throughout the course. The online, adaptive, cognitive assessment platform is intended to assist instructors in evaluating the effectiveness of their course and addressing inequities in student outcomes. The platform will provide analyses and visualizations to highlight skills that need additional attention for all students in the course and to identify individual students who need help with specific topics. Working with instructors, the investigators plan to develop adaptive tests in modules covering a range of topics in mechanics. Planned workshops should support physics instructors in using the tests in their courses. Tools developed in the project should also support the future creation of adaptive assessments for other STEM courses in a variety of institutions. The investigators intend to address the following education research questions: (1) What skills do instructors and researchers prioritize in introductory mechanics courses? (2) To what extent do existing assessment instruments measure these skills? (3) To what extent do existing instruments provide unbiased measures across demographic groups? (4) How, if at all, is the development of these skills interrelated (e.g., does developing some skills depend on having mastered other skills)? (5) What information, if any, about equity in their course do instructors report as helping to inform their teaching practices? The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.