NSF Grant
Concept Inventory Test
This test was given to spring quarter 2000 GS108 Oceanography students (42 students) at the beginning of the course and the end of the course
Concept Inventory. The purpose of this test is to find out how students think about concepts in science and technology. Please answer all of the following questions as best you can. For multiple choice questions check the answer that you think is most correct. For short answer questions provide a brief explanation or drawing to illustrate the concept as best you understand it. In addition to each question check the choice that best indicates your level of confidence with the answer you provided. Turn in your completed test and record the test number next to your name on the instructor's roster.
1. Which direction do rivers flow and why?
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #1
2. What is the bulk of our planet made of?
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #2
3. Examine the following graph of ocean water. List two different observations that you can derive from the data.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #3
4. Tides are caused by:
____ wind ____ magnetism ____ gravity ____ ocean currents ____ solar energy ____ centrifugal forces
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #4
5. From where does the ocean get its salt?
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #5
6. Check all of the following statements that apply to Earth's rocks:
____ They are pretty much all the same age.
____ They vary widely in age.
____ They have not changed much since they formed.
____ They form primarily from soil.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #6
7. Draw a picture showing the locations of the Sun, Earth and Moon in space, together with their orbital paths with respect to each other.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #7
8. Examine the following graph showing a long-term record of coastal tides. What, if any, predictions can you make from the data?
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #8
9. For each of the following statements place an “I” next to those which represent interpretations.
____ Whales can swim to great depths because they can hold their breath a long time.
____ Major ocean currents flow counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere
____ Most sand along the northern Oregon coast comes from erosion by rivers
____ Fish breathe by extracting oxygen from water.
____ Mid oceanic ridges are composed of volcanic rock.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #9
10. Draw and label a flow diagram of the hydrologic cycle showing the distribution and movement of all water on Earth. Include arrows showing the direction of movement of water.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #10
11. Examine the following graphs of ocean temperature and salinity and then select the appropriate responses.
____ The temperature of the ocean varies a lot more than the air temperature in Bend.
____ Regions of high salinity occur at 25 degrees N & S latitude because of low rainfall.
____ Ocean temperature is remarkably uniform and cold.
____ Regions of high salinity occur near the equator because it is hot.
____ Regions of low salinity occur near the equator because it rains a lot.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #11
12. List two examples of how dolphins are different from sharks.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #12
13. Examine quality of the following set of water data. Check the statements that reflect your sense of the quality of the data.
| Depth (meters) |
Temperature (Centigrade) |
| 1 | 18.4 |
| 4 | 17.6 |
| 8 | 11.4 |
| 18 | 6 |
| 40 | 5.114 |
| 176 | 3.9 |
____ The data look fine. No changes are needed.
____ Throw out the highest and lowest values and keep the rest.
____ Recalibrate the instrument and redo the exact same analyses.
____ A more closely spaced sampling interval may be required.
____ Some of the data may overstate or understate the accuracy of the instrument and should be redone.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #13
14. During the winter, waves produce near-shore currents of 100 cm/sec, whereas summer waves produce near shore currents of about 1-2 cm/sec. Use the accompanying chart to hypothesize the types of annual changes that a sand and gravel beach will experience.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #14
15. Place a check mark next to all of the following statements that show a correct cause and effect relationship.
____ Two independently moving land masses result in separate polar wander curves
____ Submarine canyons form by underwater erosion of the continental shelf and slope
____ Most of the ice in an iceberg is underwater because they are so big
____ The Earth's rotation causes the Gulf Stream current
____ Earthquakes create volcanoes.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #15
16. Examine the following graph showing the distribution of sea floor heat and age as plotted with distance from the crest of a typical mid oceanic ridge. What hypothesis can you can make regarding the development of ocean basins?
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #16
17. Check all of the following statements which are reasonable interpretations based upon the evidence provided.
____ Ozone is responsible for global warming
____ Warm ocean water near the equator is responsible for hurricanes and typhoons.
____ The Gulf Stream current flows clockwise because the ocean is a liquid lying on a rotating sphere.
____ El Nino causes warm ocean water temperatures to occur in the Eastern Pacific
____ The temperature of the ocean varies little with time because it is a large mass with a high specific heat capacity.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #17
18. What organism in the ocean serves a similar function as trees? What function does it share?
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #18
19. This question was deleted from the post test because it was determined to be an ambigious question.
20. Check all of the following instruments which are used for making measurements ?
____ navigation compass ____ ruler ____ electronic calculator ____ stop watch ____ human eye
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #20
21. What conclusions can you make from the examination of the following sediment core obtained from a coastal estuary.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #21
22. Check all of the following statements which are true regarding fish.
____ They can swim to great depths because they can hold their breath a long time.
____ Most fish live in shallow water because they need sunlight to survive.
____ They breathe by extracting oxygen from the water molecule.
____ All fish are carnivores.
____ Any given specie can live in either fresh or salt water.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #22
23. Draw and label a simple cross section of what you think the sea floor off the coast of Oregon out to a distance of about 500 miles looks like.
Assess your level of certainty in answering this question: ____ very sure ____ kind of sure ____ wild guess ____ don't know
Summary of student responses to Q #23
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