Investigating students' understanding of electric fields at boundaries

Students often find it difficult to connect abstract ideas to complex problem solving.While much of the research on student difficulties in problem-solving focuses on mechanics, comparatively fewer studies have addressed challenges in electricity and magnetism, where boundary conditions near conductors are a topic that has received very little attention.This study explores student misconceptions related to electric fields in the context of conductive surfaces through a qualitative analysis of interview data.Six open ended interview questions were designed, focusing on key concepts such as electric field orientation on the surface of a conductor, surface charge distribution and importance of these kind of questions.Student responses were analyzed using NVivo, enabling the identification and categorization of common themes and misconceptions.Based on these findings, ten multiple choice questions were developed to serve as the basis for a future quantitative study.