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Research-based assessments (RBAs) measure how well a course achieves discipline-specific outcomes. Educators can use outcomes from RBAs to guide instructional choices and to request resources to implement and sustain instructional transformations. One challenge for using RBAs, however, is a lack of comparative data, particularly given the skew in the research literature toward calculus-based courses at highly selective institutions. In this article, we provide a large-scale dataset and several tools educators in introductory physics courses can use to inform how well their courses foster student conceptual understanding of Newtonian physics. The supplemental materials include this dataset and these tools. Educators and administrators will often target courses with high drop, withdrawal, and failure rates for transformations to student-centered instructional strategies. RBAs and the comparative tools presented herein allow educators to address critiques that the course transformations made the courses “easier” by showing that the transformed course supported physics learning compared to similar courses at other institutions. Educators can also use the tools to track course efficacy over time. 

Computer simulations for physics labs may be combined with hands-on lab equipment to boost student understanding and make labs more accessible. Hybrid labs of HTML5-based computer simulations and hands-on lab equipment for topics in mechanics were investigated in a large, algebra-based, studio physics course for life science students at a private, research-intensive institution. Computer simulations were combined with hands-on equipment and compared to traditional hands-on labs using an A/B testing protocol. Learning outcomes were measured for the specific topic of momentum conservation by comparing student scores on post-lab exercises, related quiz and exam questions, and a subset of questions on the Energy and Momentum Conceptual Survey (EMCS) administered before and after instruction for both groups. We find that students who completed a hands-on lab vs. a hybrid lab showed no difference in performance on momentum assessments. 

Research-based assessments (RBAs; e.g., the Force Concept Inventory) that measure student content knowledge, attitudes, or identities have played a major role in transforming physics teaching practices. RBAs offer instructors a standardized method for empirically investigating the efficacy of their instructional practices and documenting the impacts of course transformations. Unlike course exams, the common usage of standardized RBAs across institutions uniquely supports instructors to compare their student outcomes over time or against multi-institutional data sets. While the number of RBAs and RBA-using instructors has increased over the last three decades, barriers to administering RBAs keep many physics instructors from using them.1,2 To mitigate these barriers, we have created full-service online RBA platforms (i.e., the Learning About STEM Student Outcomes [LASSO],3 Colorado Learning Attitudes About Science Survey for Experimental Physics [E-CLASS],4 and Physics Lab Inventory of Critical thinking [PLIC]5 platforms) that host, administer, score, and analyze RBAs. These web-based platforms can make it easier for instructors to use RBAs, especially as many courses have been forced to transition to online instruction. We hope that this editorial can serve as a guide for instructors considering administering RBAs online. In what follows, we examine common barriers to using RBAs, how online administration can remove those barriers, and the research into online administration of RBAs. In the supplementary material,6 we also include a practical how-to for administering RBAs online and sample student email wording. 

This study investigates differences in student participation rates between in-class and online administrations of research-based assessments. A sample of 1,310 students from 25 sections of 3 different introductory physics courses over two semesters were instructed to complete the CLASS attitudinal survey and the concept inventory relevant to their course, either the FCI or the CSEM. Each student was randomly assigned to take one of the surveys in class and the other survey online at home using the Learning About STEM Student Outcomes (LASSO) platform. Results indicate large variations in participation rates across both test conditions (online and in class). A hierarchical generalized linear model (HGLM) of the student data utilizing logistic regression indicates that student grades in the course and faculty assessment administration practices were both significant predictors of student participation. When the recommended online assessments administration practices were implemented, participation rates were similar across test conditions. Implications for student and course assessment methodologies will be discussed. 

Research-based assessments (RBAs), such as the Force Concept Inventory, have played central roles in many course transformations from traditional lecture-based instruction to research-based teaching methods. In order to support instructors in assessing their courses, the online Learning About STEM Student Outcomes (LASSO) platform simplifies administering, scoring, and interpreting RBAs. Reducing the barriers to using RBAs will support more instructors in objectively assessing the efficacy of their courses and, subsequently, transforming their courses to improve student outcomes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which RBAs administered online and outside of class with the LASSO platform provided equivalent data to tradi- tional paper and pencil tests administered in class. Research indicates that these two modes of administering assessments provide equivalent data for graded exams that are administered in class. However, little research has focused on ungraded (low-stakes) exams that are administered outside of class. We used an experimental design to investigate the differences between these two test modes. Results indicated that the LASSO platform provided equivalent data to paper and pencil tests. 

This study investigates differences in student responses to in-class and online administrations of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), Conceptual Survey of Electricity and Magnetism (CSEM), and the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS). Close to 700 physics students from 12 sections of three different courses were instructed to complete the concept inventory relevant to their course, either the FCI or CSEM, and the CLASS. Each student was randomly assigned to take one of the surveys in class and the other survey online using the LA Supported Student Outcomes (LASSO) system hosted by the Learning Assistant Alliance (LAA). We examine how testing environments and instructor practices affect participation rates and identify best practices for future use.