Original Project
Models
The usefulness of a model in thinking about objects, events, and processes depends on how closely its behavior m…
Item MO066004: In order to accurately represent what would happen to a real human in a car crash, crash test dummies should be about as strong and sturdy as a real human body is.
Car companies try to design cars that will keep people safe if there is a car crash. To
see
if a car is safe, they sometimes crash a car on purpose. When they crash a car, they do not
have people in the car because that would be dangerous. Instead, they use “crash test
dummies” to take the place of people in the car. Which of the following would be the most useful features of a crash test dummy?
- A dummy built with parts made of strong materials like steel, so it will not get damaged in the crash
- A dummy built with parts that make it about a strong and sturdy as a human, so that if the dummy does not get damaged in the crash, it is likely that a person would be okay too
- A dummy built with parts that are very cheap to replace if they are broken
- A dummy built with parts made of any materials, as long as it looks exactly like a real person, so that when the crash test is performed, there appears to be a real person in the car
- Distribution of Responses
- Students Responding Correctly
| Group | Correct | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 3323 | 4604 | 72% |
| Grades | |||
| 6–8 | 1946 | 2840 | 69% |
| 9–12 | 1365 | 1748 | 78% |
| Gender | |||
| Male | 1516 | 2193 | 69% |
| Female | 1725 | 2296 | 75% |
| Primary Language | |||
| English | 3052 | 4157 | 73% |
| Other | 197 | 326 | 60% |