Development of the Four-Tier Diagnostic Test to Identify Student Misconceptions in the Static Fluids Chapter

Abstract

Misconceptions about static fluid concepts in physics are common among students, making it essential for teachers to identify and address them. This research aims to develop and evaluate the quality of a four-tier diagnostic test instrument and identify student misconceptions in the static fluid chapter. The sample for this research comprised 91 grade 11 students from the State Madrasah Aliyah in Bantul, Indonesia, selected using a purposive sampling technique. The findings of this research indicate that the four-tier diagnostic test instrument is suitable for identifying student misconceptions. The test validation results showed 17 valid test items and 1 invalid test item. This diagnostic test is reliable, with a person reliability coefficient of 0.73, an item reliability coefficient of 0.96, and a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.72. The test items include two very difficult, seven difficult, and nine moderate items. The discrimination power of the 17 test items is good, except for one, which is poor. This instrument also found that the most common student misconceptions were in the hydrostatic pressure sub-chapter (71% of students) and in surface tension (66% of stude0ts).