Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives
written by
Amy Rouinfar, Adrian M. Madsen, Tram Do Ngoc Hoang, Sadhana Puntambekar, and N. Sanjay Rebello
Research has shown that the concept of force in a pulley is learned equally well by students using physical and virtual manipulatives. We report on a study in which students enrolled in a conceptual physics laboratory spent two weeks investigating pulley systems using either physical or virtual manipulatives. Students were given written materials which guided them through a series of activities which scaffolded the construction of their conceptions of pulleys. Students were required to make predictions and then test these predictions by building and comparing different pulley systems. They were presented with a challenge to design the best pulley system to lift a piano at the end of each week. We compare how the students' conceptions of pulleys develop between the physical and virtual treatments as well as investigate the ways in which they use the manipulatives while completing the scaffolding activities.
Physics Education Research Conference 2011
Part of the PER Conference series
Omaha, Nebraska: August 3-4, 2011
Volume 1413, Pages 331-334
<a href="https://www.compadre.org/portal/items/detail.cfm?ID=11880">Rouinfar, A, A. Madsen, T. Hoang, S. Puntambekar, and N. Rebello. "Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, August 3-4, 2011.</a>
A. Rouinfar, A. Madsen, T. Hoang, S. Puntambekar, and N. Rebello, , presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, 2011, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11880&DocID=2727).
A. Rouinfar, A. Madsen, T. Hoang, S. Puntambekar, and N. Rebello, Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives, presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, 2011, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11880&DocID=2727>.
Rouinfar, A., Madsen, A., Hoang, T., Puntambekar, S., & Rebello, N. (2011, August 3-4). Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska. Retrieved April 8, 2025, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11880&DocID=2727
Rouinfar, A, A. Madsen, T. Hoang, S. Puntambekar, and N. Rebello. "Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2011, Omaha, Nebraska, August 3-4, 2011. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11880&DocID=2727 (accessed 8 April 2025).
Rouinfar, Amy, Adrian Madsen, Tram Hoang, Sadhana Puntambekar, and N. Sanjay Rebello. "Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives." Physics Education Research Conference 2011. Omaha, Nebraska: 2011. 331-334 Vol. 1413 of PER Conference. 8 Apr. 2025 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11880&DocID=2727>.
@inproceedings{
Author = "Amy Rouinfar and Adrian Madsen and Tram Hoang and Sadhana Puntambekar and N. Sanjay Rebello",
Title = {Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives},
BookTitle = {Physics Education Research Conference 2011},
Pages = {331-334},
Address = {Omaha, Nebraska},
Series = {PER Conference},
Volume = {1413},
Month = {August 3-4},
Year = {2011}
}
%A Amy Rouinfar %A Adrian Madsen %A Tram Hoang %A Sadhana Puntambekar %A N. Sanjay Rebello %T Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives %S PER Conference %V 1413 %D August 3-4 2011 %P 331-334 %C Omaha, Nebraska %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11880&DocID=2727 %O Physics Education Research Conference 2011 %O August 3-4 %O application/pdf
%0 Conference Proceedings %A Rouinfar, Amy %A Madsen, Adrian %A Hoang, Tram %A Puntambekar, Sadhana %A Rebello, N. Sanjay %D August 3-4 2011 %T Comparing the development of students' conceptions of pulleys using physical and virtual manipulatives %B Physics Education Research Conference 2011 %C Omaha, Nebraska %V 1413 %P 331-334 %S PER Conference %8 August 3-4 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=11880&DocID=2727
Disclaimer: ComPADRE offers citation styles as a guide only. We cannot offer interpretations about citations as this is an automated procedure. Please refer to the style manuals in the Citation Source Information area for clarifications.
Record Link
Save to my folders