Student Misconceptions

What are student misconceptions? They are simply concepts, views, facts, and/or knowledge and understandings the student either comes to you with OR we give him/her/it. We are ALL guilty as charged of producing misconceptions from time to time. A slip of the tongue, an incomplete answer to a student's question, an actual fabrication of an answer trying to cover up the fact that WE don't know what we are talking about. Students will invariably fill in any blanks we leave them with their own notions and things they pick up on the mean streets of Toontown & Hollywood. Following is a semi-list of student misconceptions I've picked up from several sources. Many are from a list compiled by the AIP OPERATION PHYSICS. Thanks to Bill Weiler of Univ Illinois for posting most of these via the PHYS-L listserv group. [Note along the way the cartoons contained here. Some demonstrate a misconception. Some are just funny. Can you spot the miscons?]

1. Stars and constellations appear in the same place of the sky all the time.
2. The sun rises exactly in the East and sets exactly in the West everyday.
3. The sun is directly overhead at 12:00 NOON.
4. The tip of a shadow always moves across an east-west line.
5. We experience seasons because of the earth's changing distance to the sun - closer in summer, farther in winter.
6. The earth is the center of our solar system.
7. The moon is only visible at night.
8. The moon does not rotate on its axis as it revolves around the earth.
9. The phases of the moon are caused by other things in the solar system either getting in the way or casting a shadow on it.
10. The phases of the moon are caused by the shadow of the earth.
11. The earth is the largest object in the solar system.
12. The solar system is crowded.
13. Meteors are falling stars.
14. All the stars in a constellation are near each other.
15. Stars are evenly distributed throughout the universe.

1. Dinosaurs and cavemen existed at the same time.
2. Acquired characteristics can be inherited.
3. Winter weather can be predicted by studying the coats of many animals.
4. Humans are responsible for the extinction of the dinosaurs.
5. Some human races have not evolved as far as some others.

COLOR & VISION

1. The lens is responsible for focusing images in the eye.
2. A white light source produces light of only one color - white.
3. When white light passes through a prism, color is added.
4. The primary colors are red, yellow, and blue.
5. When white light passes though a colored filter, the filter adds color to the light.
6. Color is a property of the object itself.
7. White light is colorless and clear, allowing you to see the "true" color of an object.
8. Black is a color.

1. Positively charged objects have gained protons.
2. All atoms are charged.
3. A charged object can only attract other charged objects.
4. Gravitational forces are stronger than electrostatic forces.
5. Batteries have electricity inside them.
6. Energy is a thing.
7. The term energy and force are interchangeable.
8. An object at rest has no energy.
9. The only type of potential energy is gravitational.
10. Gravitational potential energy depends only on the height of the object.
11. Doubling the speed of an object doubles its kinetic energy.
12. Doubling the speed of a car doubles its stopping distance.
13. Things "use up" energy.
14. There is no relationship between matter and energy.
15. Energy is not conserved! Because we are running out of it.

1. The natural motion of an object is to be at rest.
2. If an object is at rest, no forces act on it.
3. Force is a property of an object.
4. The motion of an object is always in the direction of the applied force.
5. Large objects exert a greater force than smaller objects.
6. A force is needed to keep an object moving.
7. Friction always hinders motion, thus reducing friction is always desired.
8. Acceleration is the same as speed.
9. Acceleration always occurs in the same direction as motion.
10. If an object has a speed of zero, it has no acceleration.

• TOON: Just cute, I think....

1. Objects float because they are lighter than water.
2. Wood floats and metal sinks.
3. Objects containing air float.
4. Heat rises.
5. Pressure and force are the same.
6. Liquids rise in a straw due to "suction".
7. Heat is a substance.
8. Heat is not energy.
9. Temperature is a property of a substance.
10. Heat and cold are different things.
11. Boiling is the maximum temperature a substance can reach.
12. Ice cannot change temperature.
13. The bubbles in boiling water are oxygen and hydrogen.

1. Rocks must be heavy.
2. Earth is solid except for the oceans.
3. All metals are attracted to a magnet.
4. All magnets are made of iron.
5. The magnetic pole of the earth is a north pole and the South Pole is a south pole.
6. Gases are not matter.
7. Particles of solids have no motion.
8. Mass and weight are the same thing.
9. Heat and temperature are the same.
10. The heavier a pendulum, the slower its swing.
11. Heavy objects fall faster then light ones.
12. There is an up and down in space.
13. Plants, fungi, eggs, and seeds are not living things.
14. Penguins and turtles are amphibians. Whales, jellyfish, and starfish are fish.
15. Daughters inherit their characteristics from their mothers and sons from their fathers.
16. We see because we look, it has nothing to do with light.

• Phil Plait's BADASTRONOMY - A MUST SEE SITE!
• Science Hobbyist.
• Bad Science
• Misconceptions in Biology
• BAD Meteorology
• BAD Chemistry
• BAD Physics in Textbooks