Development and implementation of multiple-choice chemical literacy survey in acid-base chemistry

Chemical literacy as a learning outcome can be achieved with the implementation of appropriate instructional approaches and the availability of proper teaching materials and assessment instruments. The aims of this research are to develop and to implement a valid and reliable multiple-choice chemical literacy test (MC-CLT) in acid-base chemistry. The test development was carried out through five stages, i.e., (1) literature study, (2) development of items, (3) expert judgment, (4) pilot study, and (5) finalization of the test. The pilot study involved 138 students who had learnt acid-base chemistry. Out of 30 items constructed in this study, six items were found invalid in which two of them were then revised. The final instrument consisted of 26 items with Cronbach’s Alpha reliability coefficient of 0.804. Survey to 64 respondents showed that their average score of chemical literacy was 57.75% (moderate category). At the level of chemical literacy domains, the average score from the lowest to the highest are (a) epistemic knowledge (41.93%); (b) competency to explain phenomena scientifically (57.59%); (c) competency to interpret data and evidence scientifically (58.01%); (d) procedural knowledge (59.16%); (e) competence to evaluate and design scientific inquiry (63.28%); and (f) content knowledge of acid-base chemistry (66.54%). These results suggest that more attention should be given to the development of epistemic knowledge and its role as a theoretical foundation in determining the design of scientific inquiry, explaining phenomena, and the understanding scientific terms and concepts.