Epistemic Impact on Group Problem Solving for Different Science Majors

TL;DR

This study investigates how epistemic views influence group problem solving in physics labs across different science majors, revealing that majors' epistemic orientations affect their conceptual understanding and group dynamics.

Contribution

It identifies how framework-based and performance-based epistemic orientations vary among majors and impact learning outcomes in physics group exercises.

Findings

Health science majors show different epistemic views than life science majors.

Epistemic orientations correlate with pre-post conceptual understanding.

Group dynamics are influenced by students' epistemic games.

Abstract

Implementation of cognitive apprenticeship in an introductory physics lab group problem solving exercise may be mitigated by epistemic views toward physics of non-physics science majors. Quantitative pre-post data of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) and Colorado Learning Attitudes About Science Survey (CLASS) of 39 students of a first-semester algebra-based introductory physics course, while describing typical results for a traditional-format course overall (g = +0.14), suggest differences in epistemic views between health science majors and life science majors which may correlate with differences in pre-post conceptual understanding. Audiovisual data of student lab groups working on a context-rich problem and students' written reflections described each group's typical dynamics and invoked epistemic games. We examined the effects of framework-based orientation (favored by biology majors) and performance-based orientation (favored by computer science, chemistry, and health science majors) on pre-post attitude survey performance. We also investigated possible correlations of these orientations with individual quantitative survey results, and with qualitative audiovisual data of lab groups' choice of epistemic games.