Topics-+Weathering,+Erosion,+Deposition

Topic: Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition
Below is a list of key ideas related to Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition. For each key idea, you will find a list of sub-ideas, a list of items, results from our field testing, and a list of student misconceptions. After clicking on a tab, click on it again to close the tab.

The surface of the earth is changed as rock material is broken, carried, and dropped in new locations.
//Students are expected to know that:// //Boundaries//:
 * [|Sub-Ideas]
 * [|Items & Student Performance]
 * [|Misconceptions]
 * 1) Wind and water (including glaciers, and water from rain, rivers, streams, and oceans) break, carry, and drop rocks as they move.
 * 2) The rock that is broken includes earth’s solid rock layer (bedrock) and loose rocks that range from large boulders to rocks so small that they can only be seen with a microscope (i.e., smaller than sand). These rocks are carried and dropped in new locations by wind and water, and they can hit and break other rocks as they are moved.
 * 3) The breaking, moving, and dropping of rock material makes mountains smaller, changes the shape of valleys and makes them deeper, and changes the shape of cliffs and coastlines and paths of rivers. The motion of wind and water causes these changes by removing rock material from one place and adding rock material in another. These changes can occur anywhere on or near earth’s surface, including under lakes, rivers, and oceans.
 * 4) Both slow-moving and fast-moving water can break and can move rocks, and both large volumes and small volumes of water can move and break rocks. Both slow-moving and fast-moving wind can move and break rocks.
 * 5) Rock can be broken when plant roots grow into cracks in the solid rock layer and cracks in loose rocks.
 * 6) Because water expands when it freezes, rock can be broken when water freezes in cracks in rocks.
 * 7) Rock can be worn away by dissolving. As water moves across and through the solid rock layer and loose rocks, it dissolves minerals that make up the rock and carries them away. The rock left behind then has less mass.
 * 8) Minerals that are dissolved in water can stay dissolved as the water flows over long distances, or the minerals can come out of solution and be deposited as solid minerals along the water’s path.
 * 1) The terms “weathering” and “erosion” are not used. All processes that involve the breakdown of rock material are described as “wearing away.”
 * 2) Students are not expected to know the different effects of wind and water on different rock types.
 * 3) Students are not expected to know which minerals dissolve easily in water, how minerals are dissolved, or how dissolved minerals are deposited as solid minerals.
 * 4) Students are not expected to know that in addition to the breakdown processes that are mentioned specifically, rocks also break down in other ways (such as by chemical reactions that change minerals).
 * 5) Students are not expected to distinguish mechanical from chemical processes of wearing away rock material.
 * 6) This topic exclusively addresses wearing away of rock material. Students are not assessed on the wearing away, moving, and dropping of soil (as distinct from rock material) as part of this topic.
 * 7) At the middle school level, this topic treats wind and water themselves as the agents of erosion, and it does not specifically address the fact that rocks carried by the wind and water are the primary cause for erosion.
 * 8) Ideas about earth’s outer rock layer are assessed in the topic of plate tectonics and, therefore, are not assessed as part of this topic.

Percent of students answering correctly (click on the item ID number to view the item and additional data)||~ Item ID Number ||~ Knowledge Being Assessed 6–8 ||~ Grades 9–12 ||~ Select This Item for My Item Bank ||
 * ~ Grades
 * [|WE028003] || [|Wind and water can change the shape of a coastline and the path of a river.] || 60% || 65% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2530"]] ||
 * [|WE007002] || [|Both the growth of plant roots and the freezing of water can break earth's solid rock layer.] || 60% || 64% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2197"]] ||
 * [|WE027002] || [|Wind and water can change the earth's surface over time by wearing away mountains and making valleys deeper.] || 59% || 61% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2366"]] ||
 * [|WE011002] || [|Ice that freezes in the cracks of the solid rock layer, and glaciers that move against the solid rock layer, can change the surface of the earth by breaking the solid rock layer.] || 56% || 64% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2336"]] ||
 * [|WE015003] || [|Water can make a valley deeper by breaking the solid rock layer and carrying loose rocks away from the valley.] || 60% || 58% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2339"]] ||
 * [|WE012003] || [|Both a small stream and ocean waves can erode the solid rock of a cliff over time.] || 55% || 57% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2337"]] ||
 * [|WE042002] || [|Water can break rocks, carry them, and deposit them in new locations.] || 55% || 57% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2369"]] ||
 * [|WE009002] || [|Water can wear away rocks by breaking off pieces of rocks, and water can wear away rocks by dissolving minerals in rocks.] || 54% || 55% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2333"]] ||
 * [|WE064001] || [|A rock in a stream can get smaller by colliding with other rocks or by some of it dissolving in water.] || 51% || 59% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2446"]] ||
 * [|WE016004] || [|Both the growth of plant roots and the freezing of water can break off pieces of rock from earth’s solid rock layer.] || 48% || 57% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2483"]] ||
 * [|WE060001] || [|The shape of a valley floor changes when ice breaks rocks as it moves (as in a glacier) and also when water freezes in cracks in the rock of the valley floor.] || 49% || 56% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2441"]] ||
 * [|WE014004] || [|Wind, water, and the growth of plant roots can wear away the solid rock of a valley.] || 49% || 56% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2514"]] ||
 * [|WE053001] || [|Wind can both break and move rocks the size of a grain of sand.] || 50% || 45% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2434"]] ||
 * [|WE029003] || [|Wind can change earth’s solid rock layer and the loose rock material on top of the surface of the earth by breaking rocks and moving them to new locations.] || 47% || 45% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2368"]] ||
 * [|WE052001] || [|A very strong wind can both break and move a rock the size of a baseball.] || 40% || 43% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2433"]] ||
 * [|WE032003] || [|Water can dissolve rock material, move the dissolved material to a new location, and deposit the dissolved rock material as solid rock.] || 35% || 39% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2447"]] ||
 * [|WE051001] || [|A very strong wind can both break and move rocks the size of boulders.] || 24% || 26% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2432"]] ||

Frequency of selecting a misconception||~ Misconception ID Number 6–8 ||~ Grades 9–12 || Frequency of selecting a misconception was calculated by dividing the total number of times a misconception was chosen by the number of times it could have been chosen, averaged over the number of students answering the questions within this particular idea.
 * ~ Student Misconception ||~ Grades
 * [|WEM085] || [|Wind cannot break grains of sand (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 41% || 45% ||
 * [|WEM023] || [|The growth of plant roots cannot break rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 45% || 38% ||
 * [|WEM018] || [|Wind cannot break rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 41% || 41% ||
 * [|WEM010] || [|Wind can carry small rocks (e.g., sand) but never carries large rocks (e.g., fist-sized) (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 37% || 34% ||
 * [|WEM077] || [|A small stream cannot wear away the solid rock of a cliff over time (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 36% || 34% ||
 * [|WEM060] || [|Water cannot deposit dissolved rock as solid rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 31% || 38% ||
 * [|WEM089] || [|Wind cannot break solid rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 33% || 35% ||
 * [|WEM088] || [|Wind cannot carry rock and deposit it in a new location (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 31% || 32% ||
 * [|WEM016] || [|Water cannot dissolve rocks (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 29% || 24% ||
 * [|WEM080] || [|Water cannot break rocks (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 26% || 26% ||
 * [|WEM110] || [|Rocks cannot break by colliding with other rocks (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 27% || 21% ||
 * [|WEM040] || [|Wind and water cannot wear away solid rock to change the path of a river (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 23% || 22% ||
 * [|WEM081] || [|Water cannot carry rocks and deposit them in a new location (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 23% || 22% ||
 * [|WEM039] || [|Wind and water cannot wear away solid rock to change the shape of a coastline (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 23% || 19% ||
 * [|WEM061] || [|Ice can only break rock when it moves (as in a glacier) (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 23% || 18% ||
 * [|WEM084] || [|Wind cannot move grains of sand (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 18% || 16% ||
 * [|WEM078] || [|Ocean waves cannot wear away the solid rock of a cliff over time (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 16% || 18% ||
 * [|WEM074] || [|Water cannot make a valley deeper (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 15% || 15% ||
 * [|WEM038] || [|Wind and water cannot wear away the solid rock of a mountain (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 15% || 13% ||
 * [|WEM037] || [|Wind and water cannot wear away solid rock to make a valley deeper or wider (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 14% || 15% ||
 * [|WEM019] || [|Glaciers cannot break rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 15% || 13% ||
 * [|WEM065] || [|Water that freezes in cracks in rock cannot break the rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 15% || 13% ||
 * [|WEM017] || [|Liquid water cannot break rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 10% || 11% ||
 * [|WEM029] || [|Landforms look similar today as they did many millions of years ago. For example, a river on earth today hasn’t changed over time (Dove, 1998; Trend, 1998).] || 8% || 9% ||
 * [|WEM090] || [|Water cannot wear away solid rock (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 7% || 8% ||

The loose rock material on the surface of the earth broke off from the solid rock layer (bedrock) that makes up the outer portion of the earth.
//Students are expected to know that//:
 * [|Sub-Ideas]
 * [|Items & Student Performance]
 * [|Misconceptions]
 * 1) Broken rocks form a relatively thin layer of loose rock material on the surface of the earth.
 * 2) Most of the loose rocks on the surface of the earth originally came from the breaking of the solid rock layer (bedrock) that makes up the outer portion of the earth. These rocks continue to break, such that large loose rocks (e.g., boulders), are broken down to even smaller rocks (e.g., sand).

Percent of students answering correctly (click on the item ID number to view the item and additional data)||~ Item ID Number ||~ Knowledge Being Assessed 6–8 ||~ Grades 9–12 ||~ Select This Item for My Item Bank ||
 * ~ Grades
 * [|WE037004] || [|All loose rock material came from earth's solid rock layer] || 62% || 66% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2528"]] ||
 * [|WE022004] || [|Very large rocks the size of boulders can come from breaking off from earth's solid rock layer and from breaking off from larger rocks.] || 55% || 60% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2527"]] ||
 * [|WE021002] || [|Both large and small loose rocks on the surface of the earth were once part of earth's solid rock layer.] || 35% || 40% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2357"]] ||

Frequency of selecting a misconception||~ Misconception ID Number 6–8 ||~ Grades 9–12 || Frequency of selecting a misconception was calculated by dividing the total number of times a misconception was chosen by the number of times it could have been chosen, averaged over the number of students answering the questions within this particular idea.
 * ~ Student Misconception ||~ Grades
 * [|WEM103] || [|The small loose rocks on the surface of the earth were never part of the solid rock layer (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 50% || 45% ||
 * [|WEM102] || [|The large loose rocks on the surface of the earth were never part of the solid rock layer (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 49% || 46% ||
 * [|WEM100] || [|Very large rocks the size of boulders do not come from breaking off from earth's solid rock layer (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 45% || 40% ||
 * [|WEM099] || [|Very large rocks the size of boulders do not come from breaking off from larger rocks (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 27% || 23% ||
 * [|WEM033] || [|The rock material of sand was never part of earth's solid rock layer (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 25% || 22% ||
 * [|WEM034] || [|Large rocks (such as boulders) have always been loose rocks. They were never part of earth's solid rock layer (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 21% || 19% ||
 * [|WEM098] || [|Very large rocks, such as boulders, have always been the way they are today (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 10% || 10% ||
 * [|WEM109] || [|No loose rock material on the surface of the earth was ever part of the earth's solid rock layer (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 8% || 7% ||

Small changes to the surface of the earth caused by wind and water can add up to large changes over long periods of time (i.e., over thousands to millions of years).
//Students are expected to know that://
 * [|Sub-Ideas]
 * [|Items & Student Performance]
 * [|Misconceptions]
 * 1) Wind and water continuously wears away, moves, and drops rock material, even if it is by such small amounts that the changes cannot be seen without the help of instruments.
 * 2) Changes to the earth’s surface by wind and water that occur over relatively short time periods can add up to very large changes over long time periods. Because mountains and valleys are so large, and because even changes that occur over a year are relatively small compared to the size of the mountain or valley, it often takes many millions of years for wind and water to cause large changes to their shape and size.
 * 3) As a result of the continuous action of wind and water, all places on earth look different today from how they looked in the past and from how they will look in the future.

Percent of students answering correctly (click on the item ID number to view the item and additional data)||~ Item ID Number ||~ Knowledge Being Assessed 6–8 ||~ Grades 9–12 ||~ Select This Item for My Item Bank ||
 * ~ Grades
 * [|WE038002] || [|The continuous movement of wind and water changes the size of mountains over many millions of years] || 58% || 64% || [[image:http://assessment.aaas.org/img/star_16x16_grey.png link="http://assessment.aaas.org/users/itembank/add/2408"]] ||

Frequency of selecting a misconception||~ Misconception ID Number 6–8 ||~ Grades 9–12 || Frequency of selecting a misconception was calculated by dividing the total number of times a misconception was chosen by the number of times it could have been chosen, averaged over the number of students answering the questions within this particular idea.
 * ~ Student Misconception ||~ Grades
 * [|WEM038] || [|Wind and water cannot wear away the solid rock of a mountain (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 12% || 11% ||
 * [|WEM029] || [|Landforms look similar today as they did many millions of years ago. For example, a river on earth today hasn’t changed over time (Dove, 1998; Trend, 1998).] || 12% || 11% ||
 * [|WEM051] || [|Landforms can change in size, but not by the motion of wind and water (AAAS Project 2061, n.d.).] || 11% || 9% ||

==== The surface of the earth is changed as rock material is broken, carried, and dropped in new locations. -and- Small changes to the surface of the earth caused by wind and water can add up to large changes over long periods of time (i.e., over thousands to millions of years). ====
 * [|Sub-Ideas]
 * [|Items & Student Performance]
 * [|Misconceptions]