FAQ

No - this quiz is not assessable.  BUT we have found that doing this quiz and using the feedback better prepares you for your first year of university, and thus improves your grades.

On completion of the test, you will receive an individual report showing areas you may need to revise.

Academics teaching first-year courses receive aggregated feedback for the entire cohort. They do not have access to individual results.

After obtaining some background data on you, the quiz focuses on subjects that underpin your first year courses (e.g. mathematics, physics, chemistry etc.).

You might need a basic scientific calculator and it may take from 30 to 60 minutes of your time.

Don’t panic if you didn’t do high school Physics (or Chemistry or Maths C for that matter). We want you to have a go. Each question has an option of “Never seen before”, but it can be quite surprising what knowledge you have absorbed even without knowing it.

After long summer holidays or long breaks away from studying, it can take a while to get back to full speed. Again, we want you to have a go. Each question always has an option of “Can’t remember how to do it” or, if you need a quick refresher, a link to a helpful online resource.

The result matrix will be of the greatest benefit if you use this quiz to assess what you REALLY know.

However, if you do know how to do the question but have just forgotten the details, we have included a link on each question page to an appropriate resource.  If you need a quick refresher, then use this link during the quiz.  (One of our objectives is to get you to brush up on concepts that you may have forgotten in preparation for first year courses so this link is also available in the final result matrix.)

BE(Hons): Email Yr1Eng@uq.edu.au or come to the First Year Learning Centre (FYELC, 50-C201).

BSc: Contact Michael Jennings (msj@maths.uq.edu.au). If you have questions about course selection please visit www.science.uq.edu.au/welcome-letter or contact science.enquiries@uq.edu.au

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS (Material for this quiz came from the following sources.)

CHEM I Chemistry Inventory I (Jim Birk, Foundation Coalition)    

CHEM II Chemistry Inventory II (Jim Birk, Foundation Coalition)    

Thermodynamics Concept Inventory (Clark Midkiff, Foundation Coalition)    

Adams, P., Jennings, M. & O'Moore, L. (The University of Queensland), MATH1050 Entry Skills Survey/Quiz, Semester 1, 2007    

Gurgenci, H. (The University of Queensland) Engineering 1010 Module 1 Introduction    

Halloun, I., Hake, R. & Masca, E. (1955) Force Concept Inventory (Mechanics Survey) revised version, (From Hestenes, D., Wells, M.M. & Swackhamer, G., 1992, The Physics Teacher, March)    

Kavanagh, L., O’Moore, L. & Samuelowicz, K. (2009), Characterising the first year cohort knowledge. Proceedings of the 2009 AaeE Conference, Adelaide [2009]    

Lawrie, G. (The University of Queensland) Diagnostic Survey: Your Prior chemistry experience before beginning this course (CHEM1030) [2008]    

Mulford, D. & Robinson, W. (Purdue University) An Inventory for Alternative Conceptions among First-Semester General Chemistry Students (From Mulford, D. & Robinson, W. (2002) An Inventory of Alternate Conceptions among First Semester General Chemistry Students. J. Chemical Education, 79 (6))    

Shallcross, D. (The University of Melbourne) Material & Energy Balance Concept (Version3 2/2007)    

Shallcross, D. (The University of Melbourne) ESD2 CONCEPT Inventory [2009]    

Smaill, Rowe G. and Godfrey, E. (2008) What do they know? An entry-level test for electricity, Proceedings of the 2008 AaeE Conference,

Yeppoon [2008]. Thornton, R. & Sokoloff, D. (1998), Assessing student learning of Newton’s laws: The force and motion conceptual evaluation and evaluation of active learning laboratory and lecture curricula. American Association of Physics Teachers, pp. 338-352