Science Assessment ~ Topics ~ Energy: Forms, Transformation, Transfer, and Conservation ~ Item RG099002 ~ Student Performance

A child is playing with toy cars. Both cars are moving along a track. Car A and Car B are both moving in the same direction. Car B is moving slower than Car A, and Car A bumps into the back of Car B.

Which of the following correctly describes Car A’s and Car B’s speeds after the bump and why?

After the bump, Car A is moving slower and Car B is moving faster because energy was transferred from Car A to Car B.
After the bump, Car A and Car B are both moving slower because some energy was destroyed when Car A hit Car B.
After the bump, Car A and Car B are both moving faster because the cars create energy as they move.
After the bump, Car A and Car B are both moving at the same speed because no energy was transferred when Car A hit Car B.

Distribution of responses
Answer Choice		Overall	Grades			Gender		Primary Language
		n = 3833	4–5 n = 750	6–8 n = 1569	9–12 n = 1514	Male n = 1721	Female n = 2001	English n = 3419	Other n = 288
A.	After the bump, Car A is moving slower and Car B is moving faster because energy was transferred from Car A to Car B.	64%	61%	63%	66%	67%	62%	65%	57%
B.	After the bump, Car A and Car B are both moving slower because some energy was destroyed when Car A hit Car B.	18%	19%	18%	17%	16%	20%	18%	22%
C.	After the bump, Car A and Car B are both moving faster because the cars create energy as they move.	10%	12%	10%	9%	10%	10%	10%	10%
D.	After the bump, Car A and Car B are both moving at the same speed because no energy was transferred when Car A hit Car B.	8%	8%	8%	8%	7%	8%	7%	11%

Science Assessment

Item RG099002: After one car bumps into another car, the first car moves slower and second car moves faster because energy was transferred from the first car to the second..