Measuring students’ conceptual understanding of real functions: A Rasch model analysis

Anela Hrnjičić; Adis Alihodžić

doi:10.29333/iejme/13942

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Anela Hrnjičić ¹ ^* , Adis Alihodžić ¹

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¹ Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, University of Sarajevo, Sarajevo, BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

Understanding the concepts related to real function is essential in learning mathematics. To determine how students understand these concepts, it is necessary to have an appropriate measurement tool. In this paper, we have created a web application using 32 items from conceptual understanding of real functions (CURF) item bank. We conducted a psychometric analysis using Rasch model on 207 first-year students. The analysis showed that CURF is a dependable and valid instrument for measuring students’ CURF. The test is uni-dimensional; all items are consistent with the construct and have excellent item fit statistics. The results indicate that the items are independent of each other and unbiased towards the gender and high school background of the students.

Keywords

conceptual understanding
real function
mathematics assessment
Rasch model
multiple representations

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

INT ELECT J MATH ED, Volume 19, Issue 1, February 2024, Article No: em0761

https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/13942

Publication date: 01 Jan 2024

Online publication date: 28 Nov 2023

Article Views: 1114

Article Downloads: 884

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How to cite this article

APA

Hrnjičić, A., & Alihodžić, A. (2024). Measuring students’ conceptual understanding of real functions: A Rasch model analysis. International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education, 19(1), em0761. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/13942

Vancouver

Hrnjičić A, Alihodžić A. Measuring students’ conceptual understanding of real functions: A Rasch model analysis. INT ELECT J MATH ED. 2024;19(1):em0761. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/13942

AMA

Hrnjičić A, Alihodžić A. Measuring students’ conceptual understanding of real functions: A Rasch model analysis. INT ELECT J MATH ED. 2024;19(1), em0761. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/13942

Chicago

Hrnjičić, Anela, and Adis Alihodžić. "Measuring students’ conceptual understanding of real functions: A Rasch model analysis". International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education 2024 19 no. 1 (2024): em0761. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/13942

Harvard

Hrnjičić, A., and Alihodžić, A. (2024). Measuring students’ conceptual understanding of real functions: A Rasch model analysis. International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education, 19(1), em0761. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/13942

MLA

Hrnjičić, Anela et al. "Measuring students’ conceptual understanding of real functions: A Rasch model analysis". International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education, vol. 19, no. 1, 2024, em0761. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/13942