Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics
written by
Chandralekha Singh
We developed a survey to probe student understanding of quantum mechanics concepts at the beginning of graduate instruction. The survey was administered to 202 graduate students in physics enrolled in first-year quantum mechanics courses from seven different universities at the beginning of the first semester. We also conducted one-on-one interviews with fifteen graduate students or advanced undergraduate students who had just finished a course in which all the content on the survey was covered. We find that students share universal difficulties about fundamental quantum mechanics concepts. The difficulties are often due to over-generalization of concepts learned in one context to other contexts where they are not directly applicable and difficulty in making sense of the abstract quantitative formalism of quantum mechanics. Instructional strategies that focus on improving student understanding of these concepts should take into account these difficulties. The results from this study can sensitize instructors of first-year graduate quantum physics to the conceptual difficulties students are likely to face.
Physics Education Research Conference 2005
Part of the PER Conference series
Salt Lake City, Utah: August 10-11, 2005
Volume 818, Pages 69-72
<a href="https://www.compadre.org/quantum/items/detail.cfm?ID=8917">Singh, Chandralekha. "Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2005, Salt Lake City, Utah, August 10-11, 2005.</a>
C. Singh, , presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2005, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2005, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8917&DocID=3489).
C. Singh, Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics, presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2005, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2005, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8917&DocID=3489>.
Singh, C. (2005, August 10-11). Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2005, Salt Lake City, Utah. Retrieved February 17, 2025, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8917&DocID=3489
Singh, Chandralekha. "Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2005, Salt Lake City, Utah, August 10-11, 2005. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8917&DocID=3489 (accessed 17 February 2025).
Singh, Chandralekha. "Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics." Physics Education Research Conference 2005. Salt Lake City, Utah: 2005. 69-72 Vol. 818 of PER Conference. 17 Feb. 2025 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8917&DocID=3489>.
%A Chandralekha Singh %T Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics %S PER Conference %V 818 %D August 10-11 2005 %P 69-72 %C Salt Lake City, Utah %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8917&DocID=3489 %O Physics Education Research Conference 2005 %O August 10-11 %O application/pdf
%0 Conference Proceedings %A Singh, Chandralekha %D August 10-11 2005 %T Assessing and improving student understanding of quantum mechanics %B Physics Education Research Conference 2005 %C Salt Lake City, Utah %V 818 %P 69-72 %S PER Conference %8 August 10-11 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=8917&DocID=3489
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