Collaborative Research: Individualizing Instruction and Improving Research Using Adaptive Testing

该项目旨在通过开发诊断工具来服务于国家利益，这些工具将帮助教师帮助学生在高入学率的入门物理课程中取得成功。该合作项目涉及爱荷华州州立大学（DUE-2141847奖）和普渡大学（DUE-2142317奖）的研究人员。大学物理入门课程往往构成了学生在STEM学科学位工作的主要障碍。由于该课程通常有大量的招生，教师很难提供个性化的指导和其他定制资源来帮助学生取得成功。该项目计划开发一个免费的在线评估平台，为物理教师提供学生个人水平和课程水平学习的措施。这些工具应允许物理教师通过在整个课程中提供针对学生的、可操作的反馈来提供个性化的指导。在线、自适应、认知评估平台旨在帮助教师评估其课程的有效性，并解决学生成绩不公平的问题。该平台将提供分析和可视化，以突出课程中所有学生需要额外关注的技能，并确定需要帮助特定主题的个别学生。与教师合作，调查人员计划在涵盖力学一系列主题的模块中开发自适应测试。计划中的讲习班应支持物理教师在其课程中使用测试。该项目中开发的工具还应支持未来为各种机构的其他STEM课程创建适应性评估。调查人员打算解决以下教育研究问题：（1）教师和研究人员在介绍力学课程优先考虑哪些技能？(2)现有的评估工具在多大程度上衡量这些技能？(3)现有文书在多大程度上为各人口群体提供了无偏见的衡量标准？(4)如果有的话，这些技能的发展是如何相互关联的（例如，是否发展某些技能取决于掌握其他技能）？(5)教师报告的关于课程公平的信息（如果有的话）有助于指导他们的教学实践？NSF IUSE：EHR计划支持研究和开发项目，以提高所有学生STEM教育的有效性。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project aims to serve the national interest by developing diagnostic tools that will help instructors help students succeed in high-enrollment introductory physics courses. This collaborative project involves investigators at Iowa State University (Award DUE-2141847) and Purdue University (Award DUE-2142317). The introductory college physics course often poses a major hurdle for students working toward a degree in a STEM discipline. Because the course often has a large enrollment, it is difficult for instructors to provide personalized instruction and other customized resources to help students succeed. This project plans to develop a free online assessment platform that provides physics instructors with measures of individual student-level and course-level learning. These tools should allow physics instructors to provide individualized instruction by providing student-specific, actionable feedback throughout the course.The online, adaptive, cognitive assessment platform is intended to assist instructors in evaluating the effectiveness of their course and addressing inequities in student outcomes. The platform will provide analyses and visualizations to highlight skills that need additional attention for all students in the course and to identify individual students who need help with specific topics. Working with instructors, the investigators plan to develop adaptive tests in modules covering a range of topics in mechanics. Planned workshops should support physics instructors in using the tests in their courses. Tools developed in the project should also support the future creation of adaptive assessments for other STEM courses in a variety of institutions. The investigators intend to address the following education research questions:(1) What skills do instructors and researchers prioritize in introductory mechanics courses?(2) To what extent do existing assessment instruments measure these skills?(3) To what extent do existing instruments provide unbiased measures across demographic groups?(4) How, if at all, is the development of these skills interrelated (e.g., does developing some skills depend on having mastered other skills)?(5) What information, if any, about equity in their course do instructors report as helping to inform their teaching practices?The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.