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Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field
written by
Charles Baily and Cecilia Astolfi
Expanding our knowledge of student difficulties in advanced undergraduate electromagnetism is essential if we are to develop effective instructional interventions. Drawing on an analysis of course materials, in-class observations and responses to conceptual questions, we document specific resources employed by students when reasoning about the divergence of a vector field. One common student error, which persisted in our course despite explicit instruction, is to misinterpret any "spreading out" of field lines in a diagram as representing a place of non-zero divergence. Some of these student difficulties can likely be attributed to having first learned about the divergence in a mathematical context, where there was little emphasis on graphical representations of vector fields and connections to physical situations.
Physics Education Research Conference 2014
Part of the PER Conference series Minneapolis, MN: July 30-31, 2014 Pages 31-34
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Record Link
<a href="https://www.compadre.org/portal/items/detail.cfm?ID=13440">Baily, Charles, and Cecilia Astolfi. "Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2014, Minneapolis, MN, July 30-31, 2014.</a>
AIP Format
C. Baily and C. Astolfi, , presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2014, Minneapolis, MN, 2014, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=13440&DocID=4039).
AJP/PRST-PER
C. Baily and C. Astolfi, Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field, presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2014, Minneapolis, MN, 2014, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=13440&DocID=4039>.
APA Format
Baily, C., & Astolfi, C. (2014, July 30-31). Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2014, Minneapolis, MN. Retrieved October 8, 2024, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=13440&DocID=4039
Chicago Format
Baily, Charles, and Cecilia Astolfi. "Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2014, Minneapolis, MN, July 30-31, 2014. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=13440&DocID=4039 (accessed 8 October 2024).
MLA Format
Baily, Charles, and Cecilia Astolfi. "Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field." Physics Education Research Conference 2014. Minneapolis, MN: 2014. 31-34 of PER Conference. 8 Oct. 2024 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=13440&DocID=4039>.
BibTeX Export Format
@inproceedings{
Author = "Charles Baily and Cecilia Astolfi",
Title = {Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field},
BookTitle = {Physics Education Research Conference 2014},
Pages = {31-34},
Address = {Minneapolis, MN},
Series = {PER Conference},
Month = {July 30-31},
Year = {2014}
}
Refer Export Format
%A Charles Baily %A Cecilia Astolfi %T Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field %S PER Conference %D July 30-31 2014 %P 31-34 %C Minneapolis, MN %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=13440&DocID=4039 %O Physics Education Research Conference 2014 %O July 30-31 %O application/pdf
EndNote Export Format
%0 Conference Proceedings %A Baily, Charles %A Astolfi, Cecilia %D July 30-31 2014 %T Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field %B Physics Education Research Conference 2014 %C Minneapolis, MN %P 31-34 %S PER Conference %8 July 30-31 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=13440&DocID=4039 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.
Citation Source Information
The AIP Style presented is based on information from the AIP Style Manual. The APA Style presented is based on information from APA Style.org: Electronic References. The Chicago Style presented is based on information from Examples of Chicago-Style Documentation. The MLA Style presented is based on information from the MLA FAQ. Student Reasoning about the Divergence of a Vector Field:Know of another related resource? Login to relate this resource to it. |
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