The Science Beliefs Quiz

Mary Stein, Charles R. Barman, Michelle Haley, and Dolores Miller

Science misconceptions—we all have them. It doesn’t matter whether you are a science teacher, an elementary student, a parent, or someone earning an advanced degree in science. The vast majority of children and adults have scientific misconceptions or ideas that run counter to the beliefs and theories held by scientists. When attempting to teach students difficult science concepts, it is important that teachers do not also hold misconceptions regarding the concepts they teach. This may seem obvious to most, but when it comes to understanding science, many ideas are counterintuitive and may not be supported by our daily life experiences.

Are you wondering whether you hold scientific misconceptions? After reviewing research on commonly held scientific misconceptions, we created an online Science Beliefs Quiz (See Internet Resources). It consists of 47 statements to which the reader responds “true” or “false” and writes a short explanation. Upon completion of the quiz, an individual score is given, and the correct answers are provided along with explanations of each item and the respondent’s original answers. Specific references to relevant National Science Education Standards are also provided.

To this date, approximately 980 individuals have responded to the quiz. Many of these have been preservice teachers. Currently the correct responses rate is approximately 59%. It is clear from the results that misconceptions about many science concepts remain persistent.

Teachers of science may in turn teach these scientific misconceptions to their students. Even when a teacher realizes that students hold a misconception about a particular phenomenon, it can be difficult to find ways to help students understand and accept an alternative way of thinking about what is happening. We have selected four of the items from the Science Beliefs Quiz for you to use to test your own beliefs. Following each of these items we provide an explanation of the concept and describe an activity that may help students understand the concept better. Misconceptions tend to persist, and one activity alone will usually not “prove” to the learner that a scientific concept is true. However, we hope the quiz and accompanying activities will get you on your way to understanding science concepts accurately.

What Falls Faster?

True or False? When two spheres that are the same size and have similar surfaces but unequal masses—for example, one sphere is made of wood and the other of lead (greater mass)—are dropped from the same height above the ground, the more massive sphere (e.g., lead sphere) will hit the floor first.

Explanation

False. Though it just seems to make sense that the object with more mass would fall faster, this is not the case. Gravity accelerates all objects at the same rate. Still, this can be difficult to “prove” when our instinct and experiences tell us otherwise. For example, we see a leaf falling slowly and gently from a tree, while we see a bowling ball falling straight to the ground with no gentle swaying involved. One of the important components of the true/false statement is that the objects that are dropped have essentially all the same characteristics (size, shape, surface), but different masses. This will help to eliminate other variables that could change the results.

Activity

Materials:

• Two spheres with similar surface characteristics but distinctly different masses (e.g., golf ball and plastic practice golf ball)
• A soft, smooth surface on which the spheres will be dropped (e.g., pillow or a two-gallon plastic bag filled with bean-bag stuffing)

Directions:

Working in small groups of three or four students, challenge the students with the true/false statement above. Tell them to collect data using the two spheres and the impact surface. Each student should take at least one turn dropping the two spheres simultaneously (from the exact same height) and have their partners observe which falls first. Students should record their data and repeat this multiple times. (If the physical setting safely allows a drop from a greater height, then the results will be more evident.) Students will find that the two spheres hit at the same time. From a greater height it is even more evident that the spheres are falling at the same rate.

Which Hits With More Force?

True or False? When two spheres that are the same size with similar surfaces and other characteristics but unequal masses are dropped from the same height above the ground, the more massive sphere will hit with greater force.

Explanation

True. Unlike the previous item, this statement is more understandable. For example, if a ball were to fall on your head from above, would you rather it be a baseball or a Styrofoam ball the size of a baseball? Intuitively, we understand that the more massive object will hit with more force. From the previous item, we understand that gravity accelerates all objects at the same rate, so both balls would hit the ground at the same time. Newton’s second law of motion states that the force of an object is equal to its mass times its acceleration. Therefore, the difference in forces would be caused by the different masses of the balls.

Activity

Materials:

• Two spheres with similar surface characteristics but distinctly different masses (e.g., golf ball and plastic practice golf ball)
• A soft, smooth surface on which the spheres will be dropped in which depressions can form (e.g., pans with sand or flour in them)

Directions:

Using the same directions in the activity above, ask students to drop two different spheres from the same height and observe the results. However, this time the students must be certain that the “catching surface” is smooth and flat before the spheres are dropped.

After each drop, have the students look for evidence of impact on the surface. Is there evidence that one sphere hit harder than the other? Was there a relationship between the mass of the sphere and the impact on the surface? The students will see that the more massive sphere made a deeper impact on the surface. They will better understand that the more massive sphere must have greater force.

Mixing It Up

True or False? Two containers with equal amounts of clear water are at two different temperatures. Equal amounts of green dye are added to each container. The dye will mix with the warmer water faster.

Explanation

True. All molecules are in constant motion. Molecules in a gas have the greatest degree of motion. Molecules of a liquid have more freedom of movement than those in a solid. Temperature, heat, and motion of molecules are all related. Temperature is a measure of the average kinetic energy of the molecules in a material. Heat is the energy transferred between materials that have different temperatures. Increasing the temperature increases the motion of molecules. Thus, the food coloring mixes with the warmer water faster.

Activity

Materials:

• One clear cup of warm water and one clear cup of cold water in equal amounts
• Two bottles of food coloring (same color and brand)

Directions:

It is important that all of the potential variables in this experiment be controlled except for the temperature of the water. For example, the same amount of food coloring should be used and the food coloring should be dropped from the same height. The student will drop one drop of food coloring into each cup of water at the same time.
Without disturbing the cups, the student will observe the extent to which the food coloring mixes with the water over a 15-minute period. The students will clearly see the food coloring mixing (or moving about) to a greater extent in the warmer water while the food coloring in the cooler water tends to remain more stationary.

Where Did the Mass Go?

True or False? When a chemical reaction occurs, the total mass of the resulting products can be less than or greater than the original mass of the reactants depending on the type of chemical reaction that took place.

Explanation

False. One of the fundamental laws involving chemistry that is taught in school is the Law of Conservation of Matter. This law states that matter can neither be created nor destroyed by chemical reactions. The mass of the products of a reaction must equal the mass of the reactants. However, sometimes it seems as if mass has disappeared, particularly when one or more of the products is a gas. For example, think about the mass of a sheet of paper before it is burned. Once it is burned, the ashes seem to have much less mass. In this type of reaction, gases are produced, which have mass but are not observed easily.

Activity

Materials:

• Safety goggles
• Balance (dual pan)
• Pipette
• Two resealable plastic bags
• Four tablets of Alka-Seltzer
• Water
• Graduated cylinder

Directions:

All students should wear safety goggles. Place one plastic bag on each pan of the balance. Carefully pour 20 mL of water into each plastic bag. Place two Alka-Seltzer tablets on each pan of the balance (do not put these into the bag). The mass on each side of the balance should be equal, but there are usually slight variations. For example, there is usually a slight variation in the masses between two Alka-Seltzer tablets or two plastic bags. Using a pipette, gradually add water to one of the plastic bags until the mass is equalized. At the same time, place the two Alka-Seltzer tablets into each of the bags. Seal one of the bags and leave the other bag open to the atmosphere. Observe what happens to the balance.

The sealed bag completely fills with carbon dioxide gas. We have not had a bag “pop” at room conditions, but this could potentially happen (gas expands when heated, so in a warmer room it may expand more than in our experiments). When the results become apparent (in about three minutes), open the sealed bags to release the pressure.

Balancing Evidence

Doing these activities should provide your students with evidence that will challenge existing misconceptions. At the same time, this evidence does not stand alone and is challenged by previous knowledge, experiences, and intuitions. Just as with the dual-pan balance used in the activity above, if we think of our minds as balancing evidence in the direction of one concept or another, one activity alone may not be enough to change the balance. We encourage you to take the Science Beliefs Quiz and think about other experiences to create for your students that will challenge their ideas and engage them in meaningful ways.

Mary Stein (stein@oakland.edu) is an associate professor for the Department of Te

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