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Student learning in simple electric circuits has been an important area in physics education research. This study builds off a previous investigation that applied the conceptual framework model to examine knowledge integration in student learning of simple electric circuits and developed a multiple-choice concept test for assessing knowledge integration in simple electric circuits. In this study, a conceptual-framework-based teaching intervention was developed and implemented in a controlled study with high school students in China to evaluate the effectiveness of the new instruction. Using the instrument developed in the previous study, a pretest, a post-test, and a delayed post-test were conducted with both groups of students. The delayed post-test was included to further evaluate knowledge retention as evidence of knowledge integration. The results suggest that the conceptual-framework-based teaching intervention was effective in promoting knowledge integration compared to the existing instruction.

Work and mechanical energy is a fundamental topic in introductory physics. Studies in existing literature have shown that students have difficulties in understanding work and mechanical energy, particularly the topic of work-energy theorem. To study students’ knowledge integration in learning work and mechanical energy, a conceptual framework model of work and mechanical energy was developed and applied to guide the design of an assessment for measuring students’ level of knowledge integration. Using the assessment, qualitative and quantitative data were collected in two high schools in an eastern Chinese city. The results reveal that the conceptual framework model can effectively represent the students’ knowledge structures at different levels of knowledge integration. In addition, the assessment is shown effective in identifying unique features of knowledge integration, including context dependence and fragmentation of knowledge components, memorization-based problem-solving strategies, and lack of meaningful connections between work and change in kinetic energy. The conceptual framework of work and mechanical energy and assessment results can provide useful information to facilitate instructional designs to promote knowledge integration.

Student learning in simple electric circuits has been extensively studied, which has revealed a large number of persistent misunderstandings. This study applies the conceptual framework model to investigate student difficulties in the knowledge integration perspective. The results are used to guide the design of a concept test that targets the different stages of knowledge integration in student learning of electric circuits. Specifically, two areas of research have been conducted. First, based on content analysis by experts and a review of the literature on students’ conceptual understandings, a conceptual framework for electric circuits is developed. The conceptual framework model is then applied to guide the development of a multiple-choice concept test for assessment of knowledge integration in learning electric circuits. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected from high school students who had completed the learning of electric circuits. The results confirmed that the conceptual framework model can effectively represent the knowledge structures of students at different levels of knowledge integration. In addition, the assessment outcomes also reveal that the concept test is effective in identifying unique features of knowledge integration, including context dependence and fragmentation of knowledge components, memorization-based problem solving, difficulty in transfer to novel contexts, and lack of meaningful connections between microscopic and macroscopic models of electric current. The assessment outcomes can also provide practical information for instruction to promote knowledge integration in learning electric circuits.

Momentum is a foundational concept in physics. Although it is often taught in introductory mechanics courses, there are a limited number of studies on this topic in the literature. The results from these studies have consistently shown that students have difficulties in understanding momentum, especially the connections between net force, time, and change in momentum, which are signs of fragmented knowledge structure and poor knowledge integration. This study adopts the conceptual framework representation to model student understanding and guide the design of an assessment test on momentum. Informed by the previous work on knowledge integration, the conceptual framework maps out the key concepts and their connections within a student’s knowledge structure. Recent studies have shown that a conceptual framework can be used as a guide to create assessment items that follow different reasoning pathways, probing various misconceptions and student difficulties. In this study, an assessment of momentum was developed and tested among a large number of U.S. college freshmen and Chinese high school students. Based on testing and interview results, students’ understanding is separated into three progression levels of knowledge integration including novicelike, transitional, and expertlike. Furthermore, the comparison between the two countries’ curriculum and momentum test results indicates that an emphasis on the central idea of impulse-momentum theorem can be an essential instructional strategy to help students make the necessary connections within their knowledge structure, leading to a deeper conceptual understanding of momentum.