ConcepTest: Permeability

ConcepTest questions by David McConnell , David Steer , Walter Borowski, Jeffrey Dick, Annabelle Foos, Jeffrey Knott, Alvin Konigsberg, Michelle Malone, Heidi McGrew, Kathie Owens, and Stephen Van Horn

Created with funding from NSF CCLI Award #0087894.
This material was originally created for Starting Point:Introductory Geology
and is replicated here as part of the SERC Pedagogic Service.

Initial Publication Date: May 8, 2006

Related Links

Question:

Three similar containers were filled with flour, rice or Cheerios. If you were to pour water into each container, how would they rank in terms of permeability (from highest to lowest)?

a. Flour, Rice, Cheerios
b. Rice, Cheerios, Flour
c. Cheerios, Rice, Flour
d. Rice, Flour, Cheerios

Student Responses:

No data yet. The correct response is c.

If you would like to help acquire more Before and After statistics for this example, please contact the authors (see link at top of page).

References and Notes:

The use of ConcepTests and Peer Instruction is discussed in detail on the ConcepTest page.

McConnell, D.A., Steer, D.N. and Owens, K.A., 2003, Assessment and Active Learning Strategies for Introductory Geology Courses, Journal of Geoscience Education, 51(2), 205-216.

McConnell, D.A., Steer et al., 2006, Using Conceptests to Assess and Improve Student Conceptual Understanding in Introductory Courses, Journal of Geoscience Education, (54(1), 61-68.