Praxis Physics 5265 case studies
Praxis Physics 5265 · Put your knowledge to work in context.
Praxis Physics (5265) is a subject-matter content test used by states and teacher-preparation programs as one piece of evidence that a candidate has the physics knowledge expected of a beginning secondary physics teacher. Most candidates take it near the end of an alternative or traditional certification route, often alongside coursework in education. The Praxis Physics 5265 case studies are 5 cases and about 4,383 words.
1Cart on an Incline: Deciding What the Missing 15% Really Is
A lab group places a 0.500 kg dynamics cart on a track inclined at 8.0° ± 0.5° and ties it by a light string over a small pulley to a 0.200 kg hanging mass. A motion sensor records velocity, and a straight-line fit to the first 0.60 s of data - the cart is released 0.15 s after recording starts - gives a = 1.55 m/s².
927 words, about 5 min2Voltmeter Loading a High-Resistance Divider
A student builds a voltage divider from two nominal 1.0 MΩ, ±5% carbon-film resistors in series across a regulated 12.00 V supply and expects 6.00 V across the lower resistor. A digital multimeter, specified as having 10 MΩ input resistance on every DC voltage range, reads 5.71 V.
842 words, about 4 min3Double-Slit Wavelength Measurement That Disagrees with the Laser Label
An advanced lab group measures the wavelength of a diode laser labelled 650 nm ± 10 nm using a double slit with separation d = 0.250 mm (manufacturer tolerance ±2%) and a screen at L = 2.00 m. Using a steel rule, they mark the centre of the first bright fringe to one side of the central maximum and the centre of the tenth bright fringe on the same side; the separation is 47.5 mm.
865 words, about 4 min4Calorimetry Result That Is 6% Low: Four Effects, One Number
In a calorimetry lab, a 50.0 g metal sample is boiled for several minutes, lifted out with tongs and dropped into a nested aluminum cup of mass 50.0 g holding 100.0 g of water at 21.0 °C. A thermometer already in the water reads a maximum of 27.5 °C after stirring.
863 words, about 4 min5Photoelectric Effect Stopping Potentials That Are Uniformly Low
A student uses a phototube with a potassium cathode (accepted work function 2.30 eV) to measure stopping potentials for two mercury lines isolated with interference filters: 435.8 nm and 404.7 nm. The retarding potential comes from a calibrated ten-turn potentiometer and is read with a digital voltmeter; the photocurrent is monitored with a picoammeter, and the student records the voltage at which the current first reads zero on the most sensitive range.
886 words, about 4 min