PROCEEDINGS OF THE 19TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON RESEARCH IN UNDERGRADUATE MATHEMATICS EDUCATION
2016
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Exploring student understanding of the negative sign in introductory physics contexts
Page: 568
Recent studies in physics education research demonstrate that although physics students are generally successful executing mathematical procedures, they struggle with the use of mathematical concepts for sense making. In this poster we investigate student reasoning about negative numbers in contexts commonly encountered in calculus-based introductory physics. We describe a large-scale study (N > 900) involving two introductory physics courses: calculus-based mechanics and calculus-based electricity and magnetism (E&M). We present data from six assessment items (3 in mechanics and 3 in E&M) that probe student understanding of negative numbers in physics contexts. Our results reveal that even mathematically well-prepared students struggle with the way that we symbolize in physics, and that the varied uses of the negative sign in physics can present an obstacle to understanding that persists throughout the introductory sequence.