Re: ...yeah, its better to get the students "prepped" for a test they

["Daniel L. MacIsaac" <Dan.MacIsaac@NAU.EDU>]

> > ..yeah, its better to get the students "prepped" for a test they have
> > to take than for them not to learn anything.  What we must not do is
> > confuse these sessions with a balanced presentation of the intellectual
> > content of some subject.  And we must not use the scores to evaluate the
> > knowledge of the student nor the effectiveness of the teaching.
> > WBN
> >
> > Barlow Newbolt
>
> Exactly!  This is why I worry about the reliance on the FCI (Force Concept
> Inventory) test to prove anything and everything about Physics Education
> Research.
>
> Rick

Yes, the FCI has problems and can be misused.  On the other hand, for the first
time we have an internationally used yardstick that we agree on for
limited situations that is attached to conceptual growth in physics.  And
the FCI shows something important -- it reveals that 'standard' instruction
is woefully inadequate in some ways.

We need more and better instruments, but the FCI IS a start.  It allowed us
to start large scale measurement, and put PER on a numeric footing.  Now
we can move onwards to many other sophisticated things, but the FCI is a
milestone.  It was the first widescale set of acceptable rules for
evaluation in a very limited area under limited conditions.   But you can't
play professional sports without rules all agree to use.

Don't abuse the FCI, but don't underestimate its impact on PER.

Dan M