Gray Wittmann Vokos and Scherr on energy diagrams and the NGSS

Kara E. Gray, Michael C. Wittmann, Stamatis Vokos, and Rachel E. Scherr

Drawings of energy: Evidence of the Next Generation Science Standards model of energy in diagrams

Physical Review Physics Education Research 15, 010129.

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) provide a succession of objectives for energy learning and set an expectation for teachers to assess learners’ representations of energy in a variety of science contexts. To support teachers in evaluating the extent to which representations of energy display NGSS objectives, we have (i) discerned the constituent ideas that comprise the NGSS model of energy in the physical sciences and (ii) developed a checklist for assessing the extent to which an energy diagram provides evidence of the NGSS energy model. This energy diagram checklist is representation independent (so that diverse diagrams in a course may all be evaluated) and scenario independent (so that it can be applied throughout the physical science curriculum). We demonstrate the use of the checklist for assessing both pedagogical energy diagrams and learner-invented energy diagrams, including measuring a class’s increased facility with energy diagrams.