Inventory of Basic Conceptions - DC Circuits (IBCDC)

Developed by Ibrahim Halloun

Purpose To assess basic conceptions of DC circuits.
Format Pre/post, Multiple-choice
Duration 30 min
Focus Electricity / Magnetism Content knowledge (DC circuits)
Level Intro college, High school
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Sample questions from the IBCDC:

IBCDC Implementation and Troubleshooting Guide

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RESEARCH VALIDATION
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Silver Validation
This is the second highest level of research validation, corresponding to at least 5 of the validation categories below.

Research Validation Summary

Based on Research Into:

  • Student thinking

Studied Using:

  • Student interviews
  • Expert review
  • Appropriate statistical analysis

Research Conducted:

  • At multiple institutions
  • By multiple research groups
  • Peer-reviewed publication

The multiple-choice questions on the IBCDC were developed based on a taxonomy of relevant topics decided by experts in physics, and subsequently underwent expert review. The IBCDC was given to over 2500 high school and introductory college students, at many institutions in the US and Lebanon in several phases. A subset of students was interviewed about their responses. The questions were revised, given to a new group of students, and tested again in student interviews. Appropriate statistical analysis of reliability was conducted, and reasonable values found. Males were found to outperform females. The IBCDC has been given to over 2500 students. There are no peer-reviewed publications about this assessment.

From: Halloun, I. A. (2007). Evaluation of the Impact of the New Physics Curriculum on the Conceptual Profiles of Secondary Students. Beirut, Lebanon.

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Language Translator(s)  
French Ibrahim Halloun

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Typical Results

 The average pre-test score for US college students is 38%.*

*Halloun, I. A. (2007). Evaluation of the Impact of the New Physics Curriculum on the Conceptual Profiles of Secondary Students. Beirut, Lebanon.

The latest version of the IBCDC, released in 2006, is version F06.