University students' scientific knowledge levels regarding chemical reaction arrows and electron arrows

Abstract

This study investigated undergraduate students' recognition of chemical reaction arrows and electron arrows and their understanding of their functions. The research was conducted using a comparative research design. A four-tier diagnostic test for chemical reaction arrows and electron arrows was developed. 181 university students participated in the test development phase. The difficulty and discrimination indices of the test items were calculated. The reliability coefficient of the test was found to be 0.76. The four-tier diagnostic test was then administered to 174 university students to determine whether the participants' levels of scientific knowledge of chemical reaction arrows and electron arrows differed by gender, department and grade levels. The results showed that the university students had an inadequate level of scientific knowledge about chemical reaction arrows and electron arrows. It was found that more than half of the university students were deficient in all questions. It was also found that the level of scientific knowledge of the participants did not differ according to gender, but did differ according to grade level and department. These differences were in favour of fourth year students and against electrical and electronics engineering students.