This page from the Institute of Physics provides two tutorials and one lab designed to specifically address students' difficulties in understanding magnetic effects in terms of attraction of unlike poles and repulsion of like poles. The aim of this module is to provide diagrams to help students visualize this basic yet crucial aspect of magnetism. This resource is appropriate for learners who are struggling with a high school curriculum in electricity and magnetism.
This page is part of a larger collection from IOPSpark that presents findings from academic literature about the conceptions (and misconceptions) young people have regarding processes in the physical world. See Related Materials for a link to the full collection.
Forces that act at a distance (electric, magnetic, and gravitational) can be explained by fields that extend through space and can be mapped by their effect on a test object (a charged object, or a ball, respectively). (6-8)
Forces at a distance are explained by fields (gravitational, electric, and magnetic) permeating space that can transfer energy through space. Magnets or electric currents cause magnetic fields; electric charges or changing magnetic fields cause electric fields. (9-12)
Forces that act at a distance (electric, magnetic, and gravitational) can be explained by fields that extend through space and can be mapped by their effect on a test object (a charged object, or a ball, respectively). (6-8)
Forces at a distance are explained by fields (gravitational, electric, and magnetic) permeating space that can transfer energy through space. Magnets or electric currents cause magnetic fields; electric charges or changing magnetic fields cause electric fields. (9-12)
<a href="https://www.compadre.org/precollege/items/detail.cfm?ID=15995">IOPSpark. IOPSpark: Many students are slow to adopt the idea of magnetic poles. London: IOPSpark, January 11, 2021.</a>
IOPSpark: Many students are slow to adopt the idea of magnetic poles (IOPSpark, London, 2021), <https://spark.iop.org/many-students-are-slow-adopt-idea-magnetic-poles-and-only-gradually-come-see-magnetic-effects-terms>.
IOPSpark: Many students are slow to adopt the idea of magnetic poles. (2021, January 11). Retrieved October 6, 2026, from IOPSpark: https://spark.iop.org/many-students-are-slow-adopt-idea-magnetic-poles-and-only-gradually-come-see-magnetic-effects-terms
IOPSpark. IOPSpark: Many students are slow to adopt the idea of magnetic poles. London: IOPSpark, January 11, 2021. https://spark.iop.org/many-students-are-slow-adopt-idea-magnetic-poles-and-only-gradually-come-see-magnetic-effects-terms (accessed 6 October 2026).
IOPSpark: Many students are slow to adopt the idea of magnetic poles. London: IOPSpark, 2021. 11 Jan. 2021. 6 Oct. 2026 <https://spark.iop.org/many-students-are-slow-adopt-idea-magnetic-poles-and-only-gradually-come-see-magnetic-effects-terms>.
@misc{
Title = {IOPSpark: Many students are slow to adopt the idea of magnetic poles},
Publisher = {IOPSpark},
Volume = {2026},
Number = {6 October 2026},
Month = {January 11, 2021},
Year = {2021}
}
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%0 Electronic Source %D January 11, 2021 %T IOPSpark: Many students are slow to adopt the idea of magnetic poles %I IOPSpark %V 2026 %N 6 October 2026 %8 January 11, 2021 %9 text/html %U https://spark.iop.org/many-students-are-slow-adopt-idea-magnetic-poles-and-only-gradually-come-see-magnetic-effects-terms
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