Science Assessment ~ Topics ~ Energy: Forms, Transformation, Transfer, and Conservation ~ Item NG049004 ~ Student Performance

A student compresses a spring and holds a cart next to the spring. The graph shows the amount of elastic potential energy the spring has when it is compressed and the amount of kinetic energy (motion energy) the cart has before it starts moving.

After he lets go of the cart, the spring pushes the cart, and the cart rolls across the floor.

Which of the following graphs represents the elastic potential energy of the spring and the kinetic energy (motion energy) of the cart when the cart is rolling across the floor and the spring is no longer in contact with the cart? (Assume that no energy is transferred between the spring and its surroundings, and no energy is transferred between the cart and its surroundings.)

Distribution of responses
Answer Choice	Overall	Grades			Gender		Primary Language
	n = 1538	4–5 n = 0	6–8 n = 884	9–12 n = 654	Male n = 716	Female n = 795	English n = 1411	Other n = 103
A.	12%	N/A	13%	11%	13%	12%	12%	15%
B.	26%	N/A	28%	24%	26%	27%	26%	26%
C.	36%	N/A	33%	40%	36%	37%	37%	32%
D.	25%	N/A	26%	25%	26%	25%	25%	27%

Science Assessment

Item NG049004: When a spring is used to shoot a cart across the floor, the spring transfers energy to the cart. (This item uses bar graphs to illustrate the amount of elastic energy the spring has and the amount of motion energy the cart has as the cart is rolling across the floor.)