Developing a solid understanding of simple electric circuits represents a major challenge to most students in middle school. In particular, students tend to reason exclusively with current and resistance when analyzing electric circuits as they view voltage as a property of the electric current and not an independent physical quantity. As a result, they often struggle to understand the important relationship between voltage and current in electric circuits. Following diSessa’s interpretation of learning as the construction and reorganization of previously loosely connected elements of knowledge (“p-prims”) into a coherent mental structure (“coordination class”), a new curriculum was developed that systematically builds on students’ everyday experiences with air pressure (e.g. with air mattresses and bicycle tires). In order to make voltage rather than current the students’ primary concept when analyzing electric circuits, voltage is introduced as an “electric pressure difference” across a resistor that is as much the cause for an electric current as air pressure differences are the cause for air flow. The objective of the curriculum is to provide a structure for students to develop a qualitative understanding of simple DC circuits that allows them to make intuitive inferences about the electric current based on voltage and resistance. With an effect size of d = .94 the new curriculum has proven to be more effective than traditional approaches for teaching electric circuits in a quasi-experimental field study with 790 students from Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

中文翻译：

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着重于电势差的电路教学

对简单电路的牢固理解是大多数中学学生面临的主要挑战。特别是，学生在分析电路时倾向于只考虑电流和电阻，因为他们将电压视为电流的属性，而不是独立的物理量。结果，他们经常难以理解电路中电压和电流之间的重要关系。在diSessa将学习解释为将先前松散连接的知识要素（“ p-prims”）的构建和重组为连贯的心理结构（“协调班”）之后，开发了一种新课程，该课程系统地建立在学生的日常学习基础之上气压（例如带有气垫和自行车轮胎的气压）。为了在分析电路时使电压而不是电流成为学生的基本概念，电压作为电阻两端的“电压差”引入，这是电流产生的原因，而空气压差是导致空气产生的原因流。该课程的目的是为学生提供一种结构，使他们对简单的直流电路有定性的了解，使他们能够基于电压和电阻对电流进行直观的推断。在准实验性实地研究中，有790名来自德国美因河畔法兰克福的学生在准实验性实地研究中证明，新课程的效果等级为d = .94，比传统方法更有效。电压作为跨电阻器的“电压差”引入，这是造成电流的原因，而气压差是导致气流的原因。该课程的目的是为学生提供一种结构，使他们对简单的直流电路有定性的了解，使他们能够基于电压和电阻对电流进行直观的推断。在准实验性实地研究中，有790名来自德国美因河畔法兰克福的学生在准实验性实地研究中证明，新课程的效果等级为d = .94，比传统方法更有效。电压作为跨电阻器的“电压差”引入，这是造成电流的原因，而气压差是导致气流的原因。该课程的目的是为学生提供一种结构，使他们对简单的直流电路有定性的了解，使他们能够基于电压和电阻对电流进行直观的推断。在准实验性实地研究中，有790名来自德国美因河畔法兰克福的学生在准实验性实地研究中证明，新课程的效果等级为d = .94，比传统方法更有效。该课程的目的是为学生提供一种结构，使他们对简单的直流电路有定性的了解，使他们能够基于电压和电阻对电流进行直观的推断。在准实验性实地研究中，有790名来自德国美因河畔法兰克福的学生在准实验性实地研究中证明，新课程的效果等级为d = .94，比传统方法更有效。该课程的目的是为学生提供一种结构，使他们对简单的直流电路有定性的了解，使他们能够基于电压和电阻对电流进行直观的推断。在准实验性实地研究中，有790名来自德国美因河畔法兰克福的学生在准实验性实地研究中证明，新课程的效果等级为d = .94，比传统方法更有效。