Phenomenographic analysis and comparison of students’ conceptual understanding of electric and magnetic fields and the principle of superposition

Campos, Esmeralda; Hernandez, Eder; Barniol, Pablo; Zavala, Genaro

doi:10.1103/physrevphyseducres.17.020117

Cited by 14 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Estas leyes nos permiten describir los campos estáticos y revelan que las partículas cargadas generan campos eléctricos, mientras que las corrientes eléctricas generan campos magnéticos. En este marco encontramos los primeros obstáculos para que los estudiantes interpreten adecuadamente las fuentes de los campos [18]. En cuanto a la ley de Gauss para el campo eléctrico, todas las cargas en el espacio contribuyen al campo eléctrico y deben ser consideradas para el cálculo del flujo a través de la superficie cerrada y no solo aquellas encerradas por la superficie [19].…”

Section: Las Fuentes De Los Campos Electromagnéticosunclassified

Las relaciones causa-efecto en las ecuaciones de Maxwell y sus implicancias en la enseñanza del electromagnetismo en los cursos introductorios de Física

Suárez

Martí

Zuza

et al. 2022

Rev. Bras. Ensino Fís.

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Un tratamiento superficial de las ecuaciones de Maxwell puede llevar a interpretar la existencia de una relación causal entre los diferentes términos y, por ende, que un campo eléctrico variable en el tiempo genera un magnético y viceversa. En este artículo abordamos los problemas asociados a dichas interpretaciones y sus consecuencias para la enseñanza de la física en cursos introductorios de física universitaria. Primero desarrollamos los principales argumentos que sustentan que las densidades de carga y de corriente, constantes o variables en el tiempo son las generadoras de los campos eléctricos y magnéticos. Proponemos luego una serie de ejemplos a nivel de cursos introductorios que nos permiten discutir las razones por las cuales considerar los campos eléctrico y magnético como entidades disjuntas conduce a contradicciones. Finalmente, analizamos sus implicaciones en la enseñanza de la física.

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Section: Las Fuentes De Los Campos Electromagnéticosunclassified

Las relaciones causa-efecto en las ecuaciones de Maxwell y sus implicancias en la enseñanza del electromagnetismo en los cursos introductorios de Física

Suárez

Martí

Zuza

et al. 2022

Rev. Bras. Ensino Fís.

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“…This framework presents the first obstacles for students to adequately interpret the sources of the fields. [19] Regarding Gauss's law for the electric field, all the charges in the space should be considered for the calculation of the flux through a Gaussian surface, not only to those enclosed by the surface. [20] On the other hand, according to Ampère's law, the magnetic field used to determine the circulation along a closed curve is the one corresponding to all the conduction currents and not only to those enclosed by the curve.…”

Section: Sources Of Electromagnetic Fieldsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unified approach to the electromagnetic field: the role of sources, causality and wave propagation

Suárez¹,

Martı́²,

Zuza³

et al. 2022

Preprint

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The question of the sources of electric and magnetic fields and their causes has been discussed extensively in the literature over the last 50 years. In this article, we approach this problem from the unified treatment of electromagnetic fields emphasizing the role of their sources in accordance with the cause-effect relationships. First, we analyze whether this unified treatment contributes to a better understanding of these phenomena. Then, we discuss the implications for teaching of a correct understanding of electromagnetic field sources and causality in Maxwell's equations. In particular, we present a series of examples at the introductory physics level that allow us to recognize the reasons why considering electric and magnetic fields as disjoint entities can lead to contradictions.

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“…After magnetism instruction, the interference reverts; students tend to answer electric force questions with magnetic force answers Scaife & Heckler, 2011). A study about 2 / 12 students' understanding of electric and magnetic fields and interactions found a higher tendency to use electricity concepts to answer questions about the magnetic field (Campos et al, 2021;Hernandez et al, 2022). These findings hint that there may be other causes of interference besides the timing of instruction, such as rote learning (or memorization).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning interference between electricity and magnetism? Analysis of patterns and consistency

Campos

Hernandez

Barniol

et al. 2023

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed

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Due to the similarities between Gauss’s and Ampere’s laws, students can present cognitive interference when learning these laws in the introductory physics course. This study aims to analyze the interference patterns that emerge in students’ answers when solving problems that involve Gauss’s and Ampere’s laws and related concepts (e.g., electric flux and magnetic circulation). We conducted a study of 322 engineering students attending a private Mexican university. We applied two open-ended questionnaires with questions that prompted using Gauss’s and Ampere’s laws. We analyzed students’ answers to identify whether they presented some word or element of an equation from the opposite context and coded them into coding families. We analyzed the consistency of interference by counting the times each student presented some interference in general and by coding family. The results indicated that the interferences related to the shape of the Gaussian surface or Amperian trajectory and field-related concepts are shared among contexts. However, the interference related to the source of the field (charge or current) is predominant in magnetism. In contrast, the interference related to using elements from the opposite context in an equation predominates in electricity. In other words, students referred to currents as charges and wrote equations that contained B (for magnetic field) or other similar elements in Gauss’s law. The general consistency analysis revealed that around half the students presented at least one interference in both contexts. We recommend that the interference between electricity and magnetism in Gauss’s and Ampere’s laws must not be overlooked. This study’s findings can guide introductory and intermediate electricity and magnetism instructors to address this interference phenomenon.

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Phenomenographic analysis and comparison of students’ conceptual understanding of electric and magnetic fields and the principle of superposition

Cited by 14 publications

References 26 publications

Las relaciones causa-efecto en las ecuaciones de Maxwell y sus implicancias en la enseñanza del electromagnetismo en los cursos introductorios de Física

Las relaciones causa-efecto en las ecuaciones de Maxwell y sus implicancias en la enseñanza del electromagnetismo en los cursos introductorios de Física

Unified approach to the electromagnetic field: the role of sources, causality and wave propagation

Learning interference between electricity and magnetism? Analysis of patterns and consistency

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