We describe student difficulties in applying the superposition principle in combination with Gauss's law. We addressed these difficulties by developing a tutorial that uses guided inquiry. Students who used this tutorial following lecture-based instruction performed significantly better on these topics than those who did not. Instructors can assign the tutorial as classwork or homework.
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See supplementary material online for the pre-test, post-test, and tutorial.
© 2023 Author(s). Published under an exclusive license by American Association of Physics Teachers.
2023
Author(s)
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