<p> In this dissertation I analyze the process of crafting definitions whose purpose is classification. The context I examine is undergraduate upper-division physical science majors defining and naming sub-categories of a physical phenomenon in the context of a design task over an extended period of time. The goal of the design task is one of classification: help people better identify the phenomenon out in the world. </p><p> I first develop an analytic framework for the process of improving a definition. This framework involves an interplay between four main elements: the current state of the definition, criteria for what makes a good definition, examples, and definitionally unarticulated knowledge (DUK). By DUK, I mean implicit judgments that definers make about categorization that have not been incorporated into the definition, per se. I show how criteria and the practices associated with meeting them guide the refinement work. </p><p> Once participants craft their definition a question emerges: to what extent does it serve them as a tool when they make sense of new examples? I zoom in on moments where new examples are introduced by participants or the facilitator and describe the extent to which students rely on their own crafted definition. The consideration of a new example can sometimes lead to participants naming a new sub-category and I analyze this process as well. </p><p> The detailed empirical analysis is bookended by a set of workshop design principles that made the analysis possible and some educational implications of the work. I lay out a set of design principles for creating activities wherein people engage productively in collaboratively defining. I conclude by exploring the educational implications for college physics teaching as well as more general instances where one is interested in crafting a definition for the purpose of classification.</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:3616699 |
| Date | 04 June 2014 |
| Creators | Little, Angela Jean |
| Publisher | University of California, Berkeley |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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