Evaluating the Impact of Undergraduate Physics Instruction on Student Understanding of Measurement Uncertainty

Student conceptions of measurement uncertainty across classical and quantum mechanics have been shown to differ between introductory-level and more advanced undergraduates. Given these results, it is reasonable to suggest that at least some of the physics curriculum affects their understanding of these topics, but it is unclear when and how the shift from novice to expert occurs. Using a previously-validated survey, we assessed students across 15 higher-education institutions at both the beginning and end of their participation in either a physics lab course or a quantum mechanics course. The survey assesses their understanding of sources of uncertainty, how uncertainty can be minimized, and whether a true value even exists to be measured. In this talk I will present the results from two terms of data collection and discuss the shifts that do (and do not) occur in students' thinking at each level. In the future, these findings will be cross referenced with instructional materials to provide context about the type of instruction these students received in an effort to better understand how students are led to an expert-like understanding.