The galvanic cell is a basic concept in electrochemistry. To assess mainland Chinese students’ proficiency levels in galvanic cells, the Galvanic Cell Proficiency Level Assessment (GCPA) was developed based on the Rasch model. The GCPA was developed through a pilot test and consists of seven multiple-choice questions and four open questions. The assessment instrument was administered to 621 high school students in the 11th grade, and the test results showed good reliability and validity. The interview results supported the validity of the data generated by the instrument.

Besides improving students' understanding of scientific concepts, chemistry teaching should also improve students' ability of applying concepts to solve problems. The research aims to explore the effects of modeling teaching on students’ proficiency in solving galvanic cell problems. This research used a quasi-experimental design, and the independent variable of the research was the teaching method. Forty-five students in the experimental class received modeling teaching, and 48 students in the control class received lecture-style teaching. The dependent variable was the performance level of the student's ability to solve the problem of the galvanic cell, which was evaluated using the galvanic cell proficiency assessment tool. The research results show that the students in the experimental class were significantly more proficient in solving galvanic cell problems than those in the control class. The results of unstructured interviews assisted in illustrating the role of modeling teaching in improving the proficiency of students in solving galvanic cell problems, and students in the experimental class had positive views on modeling teaching. Keywords: galvanic cells, modeling teaching, problem solving, proficiency level