Abstract:

A simple five-question multiple-choice exam articulating kinematics and Newton’s laws of motion will be administered to a sample of students from King Faisal University (KFU), Saudi Arabia, who have completed a general course in physics. Results from this test will be analyzed using the concentration and deviation factors to characterize the range of responses associated with concepts exhibited in the test, and compared to the results published by of Mlkawi and Obadiah (2009) reflecting the United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) responses on the same test. This comparison is intended to provide details on coherent naïve mental models held by students from the two different campuses. In addition, this study is intended to identify erroneous notions about some physics concepts to determine the extent to which they are prevalent among students in two Arab universities. Depicting reasoning patterns that students may have in studying some fundamental physics concepts and looking at relatively frequent erroneous notions (misconceptions) will be helpful in identifying the areas underlie the cognitive structures that have been developed and sculpted.

Keywords:

Mental models, Physics, Concepts.