Analysing the distribution of questions in the gas law chapters of secondary and introductory college chemistry textbooks from the United States

Abstract

This study analysed the distribution of questions from the gas law chapters of four high school and four college chemistry textbooks based on six variables—Book Type (secondary versus introductory college), Cognitive Skill (lower-order versus higher-order), Question Format (calculation versus multiple-choice versus short-answer), Question Placement (in-chapter versus end-of-chapter versus test-bank), Question Type (qualitative versus quantitative), and Representation (macroscopic versus particulate versus symbolic). The questions in these chapters were homogeneously distributed for the Cognitive Skill and the Representation variables, but showed differences in question distribution based on the Book Type, Question Format, Question Placement, and Question Type variables. The loglinear analysis method used in this study provides one way to analyse the distribution of different types of questions appearing in chemistry textbooks, and these differences in question distribution can be helpful for textbook authors to evaluate the types of questions appearing in their textbooks and how they are presented, and can be helpful for chemistry instructors to determine how they need to adapt their instructional lessons to prepare students for course examinations or college/career placement examinations.