2011/12/14 by Eugene Torigoe, Torigoe, Eugene
Mathematics · Social Sciences · #FOS: Physical sciences #Mathematics Education and Teaching Techniques #Physics Education (physics.ed-ph) #Science Education and Pedagogy #Statistics Education and Methodologies
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1112.3229
openalex publication_date 2011/12/14 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Previous research has found that introductory physics students perform far better on numeric problems than on otherwise equivalent symbolic problems. This paper describes a framework to explain these differences developed by analyzing interviews with introductory physics students as they worked on analogous numeric and symbolic problems. It was found that information about the physical situation, as well as the problem solving process are represented in subtly different ways in numeric problems compared to symbolic problems. In almost every respect the inclusion of numbers makes information more transparent throughout the problem solving process.