9 th Conference of The Society of Physicists of Macedonia PHYSICS LAB CRITICAL THINKING AND GENDER DIFFERENCES Boce Mitrevski 1 and Oliver Zajkov 2 1,2 Institute of Physics, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics Ss. Cyril and Methodius, University in Skopje Republic of Macedonia Ohrid, September 20-23, 2012

Introduction This article examines the effectiveness of one non traditional teaching method to stimulate secondary school students in critical thinking (CT). The main question this paper will seek to answer is: “Does physics lab and practical work is effective teaching method for stimulating secondary school students’ CT skills?” The research study is based on the assumptions that lecture method, as a traditional form of teaching is not appropriate for stimulating and development of students’ CT. Along with effectiveness of the teaching method we examined gender differences in achievement on CT test.

Critical thinking Raise vital questions and problems, formulating them clearly and precisely; Gathers and assesses relevant information, using abstract ideas to interpret it effectively; Assess statements and arguments; Are able to admit a lack of understanding or information; Have a sense of curiosity; Look for evidence to support assumptions and beliefs; Are able to reject information that is incorrect or irrelevant; Examine problems closely; Communicates effectively with others in figuring out solution to complex problems; Seek reasons, look for alternatives. Some characteristics of well-cultivated critical thinker The concept of critical thinking

Critical thinking Literature review shows that there are widespread views about the nature of CT. Nonetheless, there is considerable measure of agreement summarized by Norris (1985) CT is a complex of many considerations. CT is an educational ideal. CT ability is not widespread. CT is sensitive to context. Teacher should look for the reasoning behind students’ conclusions. Simple errors may signal errors in thinking at a deeper level. Having a critical spirit is as important as thinking critically. To think critically, one must have knowledge. We do not know a great deal about the effects of teaching CT. Norris, S. (1985). Synthesis of research on critical thinking, Educational Leadership, 42(8),

Participants Methodology Instrument Experiment with parallel groups N C = 80, N E = 83Age between 15.8 and 16.6 years Critical thinking test 10 th grade Physics topics: Electric current

Qualitatively investigation of conductivity of different materials; Resistance modeling, analogy and similarities between physics concepts and well known wares or idea; Measuring resistance with ohmmeter; Combining resistors and cells; Rheostat as a potentiometer and current regulator; Experiment to investigate Ohm’s law using voltmeter-ammeter method; Investigate how the resistance of a metal wire depends on its length, cross-section area and also on the conducting property of material; Investigating effect of temperature on resistance; Measuring electrical power of elements. Methodology Practical activities

Methodology Instrument r = 0.76 (p < 0.01)

Methodology Instrument Ability to use different forms of formal representation and to change from one into another form; Ability to restraint from making decision prematurely or from making a wrong conclusion, i.e. critical evaluation of the given value; Ability to differentiate essential from inessential; Ability to find and to formulate rational explanation; Ability to perceive logical implications; Reasoning based on given data and information; Ability to use all available resources (knowledge, experience, common sense, senses).

Table 1. Descriptive statistics, pretest (BT_01) Pretest BT_01 GroupNmalefemaleminmaxmodemedianmeanst.dev. C E t = t [  = 0.05; df = 152] = 1.98 Results

Table 2. Descriptive statistics, posttest (PT_01) Posttest PT_01 GroupNmalefemaleminmaxmodemedianmeanst.dev. C E t = 1.18 t [  = 0.05; df = 152] = 1.98 Results

Posttest results frequency distribution Results

Pretest BT_01 GroupNmalefemaleminmaxmodemedianmeanst.dev. C E Posttest PT_01 C E Students (PMF, FEIT) Results

Normalized change Marx, J. & Cummings, K. (2007). Normalized change, American Journal of Physics, 75(1), Results

Descriptive statistics and t test results, posttest (PT_01) Control group GroupNminmaxmodemedianmeanst. dev.tsig. male n.s. female Experimental group GroupNminmaxmodemedianmeanst. dev.tsig. male n.s. female Gender difference n.s. means no significant

TIMSS 1999

TIMSS 2003

Question 1 Electric current versus voltage for two conducting wires is given on the diagram. The wire 1 and wire 2 are from the same electric heater so we assume that they are made from the same material. From the graph, it is obvious that the length of line for wire 2 is longer than the line for wire 1. Which wire has greater electric resistance? Circle the correct answer and write a few sentences that explain your choice. a) Wire labeled with 1; b) Wire labeled with 2; c) Both have the same resistance; d) We can not determine because there are no values on the axes; e) We can not determine because we have no information about cross-section area of wires.

Question 5 You are in a room where there are three same switches. Two of them are dummy switches, while the third one is connected to the desk lamp that is in the next room. You are allowed to turn the three switches on and off as you like, but you can enter in the next room only once. How can you tell witch switch is the right one for the lamp?

Results show that lab physics and practical work teaching method is not effective in terms of stimulating CT skills, because the data have indicated no statistically significant difference between groups. Also, the findings of the study indicate that the gap of gender difference does not exist in terms of students’ achievement on CT test. Conclusions

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