Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems

McBride, Dyan L.

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Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems

written by Dyan L. McBride

It is commonly known that students have difficulty connecting the techniques they learn in math classes with necessary steps for solving physics problems. In this study, introductory-level physics students were given a set of pure math problems and a set of physics problems that required them to use the exact same mathematical processes. The students were then asked to pair the analogous problems and explain the pairings. Presented here are the results of that study, which support previous findings that students have difficulty determining how the two are connected and give some insight into what can be done to help scaffold that connection in the future.

Physics Education Research Conference 2011
Part of the PER Conference series
Omaha, Nebraska: August 3-4, 2011
Volume 1413, Pages 275-278

download 61kb .pdf
Published: February 6, 2012

Subjects	Levels	Resource Types
Education Foundations - Problem Solving - Student Characteristics = Skills	- Lower Undergraduate	- Reference Material = Research study

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Mirror:: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3680048
Access Rights:: Free access and
Available for purchase; A preprint of the work is available. A hard copy of the PERC 2011 proceedings is available for purchase from the AIP.
Restriction:: © 2011 American Institute of Physics
DOI:: 10.1063/1.3680048
PACS:: 01.40.Fk
Keyword:: PERC 2011
Record Cloner:: Metadata instance created February 6, 2012 by Lyle Barbato
Record Updated:: April 23, 2012 by Lyle Barbato
Last Update when Cataloged:: February 6, 2012
Other Collections:: The PER-Central

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<a href="https://www.compadre.org/portal/items/detail.cfm?ID=11695">McBride, Dyan. "Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, August 3-4, 2011.</a>

AIP Format

D. McBride, , presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, 2011, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11695&DocID=2572).

AJP/PRST-PER

D. McBride, Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems, presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, 2011, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11695&DocID=2572>.

APA Format

McBride, D. (2011, August 3-4). Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska. Retrieved March 16, 2025, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11695&DocID=2572

Chicago Format

McBride, Dyan. "Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, August 3-4, 2011. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11695&DocID=2572 (accessed 16 March 2025).

MLA Format

McBride, Dyan. "Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems." Physics Education Research Conference 2011. Omaha, Nebraska: 2011. 275-278 Vol. 1413 of PER Conference. 16 Mar. 2025 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11695&DocID=2572>.

BibTeX Export Format

@inproceedings{ Author = "Dyan McBride", Title = {Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems}, BookTitle = {Physics Education Research Conference 2011}, Pages = {275-278}, Address = {Omaha, Nebraska}, Series = {PER Conference}, Volume = {1413}, Month = {August 3-4}, Year = {2011} }

Refer Export Format

%A Dyan McBride %T Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems %S PER Conference %V 1413 %D August 3-4 2011 %P 275-278 %C Omaha, Nebraska %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11695&DocID=2572 %O Physics Education Research Conference 2011 %O August 3-4 %O application/pdf

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%0 Conference Proceedings %A McBride, Dyan %D August 3-4 2011 %T Student Views of Similarity between Math and Physics Problems %B Physics Education Research Conference 2011 %C Omaha, Nebraska %V 1413 %P 275-278 %S PER Conference %8 August 3-4 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11695&DocID=2572

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