Trustworthiness as Central Design Principle for Introducing Uncertainties of Measurements to Students

Abstract Two curricula for the introduction of measurement uncertainties for high school students have been developed. The central design principle was “trustworthiness of experiments and data” following the GUM (Guide to the Expression of Uncertainties in Measurement) recommendations of Type-A and Type-B methods. A time-delayed test demonstrated the long-term acceptance of the key ideas. In lower secondary level, the curriculum starts with an experiment that leads to measurement uncertainties. Sources for uncertainties and the trustworthiness are discussed and data are analysed by simple statistical means. In upper secondary level, students first build a measuring instrument by themselves for introducing Type-B uncertainties. Both curricula together provide a complete introduction in ISO standardized methods how to deal with uncertainties of measurement. It turned out that trustworthiness as a central design principle for curricula to introduce measurement uncertainties in lower and upper secondary high school, is an effective approach to ensuring a thorough comprehension of the concept of uncertainties.