Personal Epistemology Survey

Last spring 28 students in my physics 101 course took a 63-question survey which was comprised of questions from several exisitng surveys.The students took the survey on-line, out of class.

Epistemological Beliefs Assessment in Physical Science (EBAPS) ¹

Nature of knowing and learning. Does learning science consist mainly of absorbing information? Or, does one need to actively work through the material?

• Tamara just read something in her science textbook that seems to disagree with her own experiences. But to learn science well, Tamara shouldn’t think about her own experiences; she should just focus on what the book says.
  

Source of ability to learn. Is being good at science mostly a matter of fixed natural ability? Or, can most people become better at learning (and doing) science?

• Someone who doesn’t have high natural ability can still learn the material well even in a hard chemistry or physics class.
  

There are three other dimensions to the EBAPS, which were not used: Real-life applicability, Evolving knowledge and Structure of scientific knowledge.

Maryland Physics Expectations Survey (MPEX) ²

Independence. Do students take what is given to them by authorities without any evaluation? Or, do they believe in the need to evaluate and understand independently?

• My grade in this course is primarily determined by how familiar I am with the material. Insight or creativity has little to do with it.
  

Coherence. Is physics a collection of separated facts? Or, does physics need to be considered as a connected, consistent framework?

• If I came up with two different approaches to a problem and they gave different answers, I would not worry about it; I would just choose the answer that seemed most reasonable. (Assume the answer is not in the back of the book.)
  

Concepts. Is learning focused on memorizing and using formulas? Or, are the underlying ideas and concepts emphasized?

• The most crucial thing in solving a physics problem is finding the right equation to use.
  

There are three additional dimensions that are included in the MPEX, but were not used: Reality link, Math link, and Effort.

Schommer’s Epistemological Questionnaire (EQ) ³

Avoid integration

• To me studying means getting the big ideas from the text, rather than details.
• When I study, I look for the specific facts.
  

Ability to learn is innate

• Some people are born good learners, others are just stuck with limited ability.
• Students who are "average" in school remain "average" for the rest of their lives.
  

Can’t learn how to learn

• Everyone needs to learn how to learn.
• The most successful people have discovered how to improve their ability to learn.
  

Success is unrelated to hard work

• Genius is 10% ability and 90% hard work.
• The really smart students don't have to work hard to do well in school.
  

Concentrated effort is a waste of time

• If a person tries too hard to understand a problem, they will most likely end up being confused.
• Usually you can figure out difficult concepts if you eliminate all outside distractions and really concentrate.
  

Learn the first time

• Almost all the information you can learn from a textbook you will get during the first reading.
• Going over and over a difficult textbook chapter usually won't help you understand it.
  

Learning is quick

• If a person can't understand something within a short amount of time, they should keep on trying.
• If you are ever going to be able to understand something, it will make sense to you the first time you hear it.
  

Schommer’s EQ includes several other subsets that were not used: Avoid ambiguity, Knowledge is certain, Depend on authority, Don’t criticize authority, and Seek single answers.

1. B. White, A. Elby, J. Frederiksen, and C. Schwarz. The Epistemological Beliefs Assessment for Physical Science. presented at American Education Research Association. 1999. Montreal.
2. E. F. Redish, J. M. Saul, and R. N. Steinberg, Student Expectations in Introductory Physics. Am. J. Phys., 1998. 66(3): p. 212-224.
3. Schommer, M. The influence of age and schooling on epistemological beliefs. Br. J. Educ. Psychol., 1998. 68: p. 551-562.