CTS Guide: Magnetism, pp 184-185- Section IV Research Summaries

Concept of Magnet and Magnetism

  • Barrow (1987) investigated students’ awareness of magnets and magnetism across age ranges and found that they were aware of magnets through their everyday experiences of sticking objects to refrigerators with magnets. However, before instruction, few students could offer explanations of magnetism, especially in terms of forces and how magnets work.

Conditions for Magnets to Work

  • Bar and Zinn (1989) sampled 98 students ages 9–14 and found that 40% believed that a medium (air) was necessary in order for magnets to have an effect on objects.

Linking Magnetism and Gravity

  • Research has shown that some students are inclined to link gravity with magnetism (Driver et al. 1994). If they believe gravity is necessary for magnets to work and also believe that gravity has no or less of an effect under water, they may believe magnets will not attract objects in water.

  • Bar and Zinn (1989) sampled 98 students ages 9–14 and found that 20% of these students made a link between gravity and magnetism.