Using Formative Assessment Probes to Evaluate the Teaching of Inertia in a High School Physics Classroom

Abstract

The teaching approach that addresses the concept of inertia using Newton’s First Law of Motion may
lead students to the misconception that only stationary objects or objects moving at a constant velocity
have inertia. However, inertia exists as long as an object has mass. This study aimed to introduce
formative assessment demonstrations to overcome a common misconception about inertia and to
evaluate practices based on formative assessment. The participants were 52 eleventh grade students at
a public high school. The formative assessment probes were used to collect data before and after
implementation of classroom experiments. Three experiments were demonstrated using a Predict–
Explain-Observe-Explain strategy. During the demonstrations, student-student and student-teacher
discussions were specifically encouraged. The first and second responses of the students to the same
formative assessment task were evaluated by using an evaluation rubric. Findings suggest that
students’ level of conceptual understanding and their explanatory ability were promoted.