Chemical Education Today
Especially for High School Teachers
by Erica K. Jacobsen
Comment Communication I’m a fairly casual blog follower. There are only a few links Secondary School Featured Articles of that sort in my Web browser’s bookmarks bar, all maintained ◭ JCE Classroom Activity #102. Investigating Self-Assembly by geographically distant friends. When I have a few minutes of with Macaroni by David A. Burgan and Lane A. Baker, downtime and the laptop is running, I’ll “drop in” for a quick p 704A. update on what’s happening in their lives. It’s an easy way to stay ◭ Teaching Is More Than Lecturing and Learning Is More connected. As the header of one friend’s blog states “Since we’re Than Memorizing. 2007 James Flack Norris Award by so bad at actual letter writing…” However, Diane Bunce, pp 674–680. the flow of information tends to be oneway. Even though I read the majority of the posts on these particular blogs, I rarely invites others to contribute their own research tutorirespond to any by posting a comment. als to the collection. Are you involved in research or Why is this? Laziness over the extra bit of know someone who is? What do you wish students time it takes to comment? Not feeling I knew about that work? have anything earth shaking to comment? The pressure of writing something that Laura’s Take on the Issue sounds intelligent? Knowing that what In the Book & Media Reviews (p 691) there are I write will be Web crawled and cached A bead necklace is used to illustrate the idea of primary and reviews of six Electronic Homework Management online? I’m not sure. Are you aware that this column, secondary structures of proteins in Systems, each written by a university-level faculty editor John Moore’s editorial, and other the Web-based tutorial, “Today’s member who uses that particular system in his or her selected commentaries, have been blogged Science for Tomorrow’s Scientists”, courses. I appreciate how Cheryl Baldwin Frech, the new editor for this column, coordinates reviews. as part of the National Science Digital described on p 757. I, too, use an electronic homework system at Library (NSDL) at http://expertvoices.nsdl. the high school level. It took me three years to decide which org/chemeddl/ (accessed Apr 2009) since fall 2007? Based on the system to use based on the cost per student and “teacher-time” monthly data I collect using Google Analytics tools, I see that a required to manage the systems I evaluated. I had evaluated growing number of people are visiting this blog portion of the some of the systems reviewed in this issue, but decided to use Chemical Education Digital Library (ChemEdDL) pathway CALM: Computer Assisted Learning Method (1). It is not one of the NSDL. However, it was only recently that the first comof the systems reviewed, but I selected this system because it was ment about the Especially for High School Teachers column not tied to a specific textbook and was free to the teacher and was posted. It came by a roundabout journey. I was pleased to students. I found that it was simple to implement CALM into have Dick Moran, a teacher I met at the American Chemical my curriculum. I assign at least one set of electronic homework Society conference in Boston, email me about the March 2009 assignments (5–8 problems) a week. My students also really like column topic of curriculum change. I encouraged him to share using CALM and many of them go back and use the questions his thoughts with a wider audience by posting a comment on the I assign when reviewing for tests. Bettyann Howson and Diane blog. Do you have thoughts to share as you read this or other Krone also talked about their use of CALM in their presentation Especially columns, whether you read hard copies or online? during the High School Program at the ACS National Meeting Why not share them? Can we open up a dialogue and transform in Salt Lake City this past March. I think that many of you the communication into a two-way flow? We know you have will find this information about electronic homework systems something worthwhile to say and contribute to the chemical helpful as you explore the various systems available to you. Like education community. Laura and I both repeat it often, but I’ll Erica, I encourage you to share your ideas about these or other say it again: We would love to hear from you. electronic homework systems that would be helpful for other If you haven’t yet taken the time to visit the ChemEd DL high school teachers. Blog your comments at http://expertvoices. (http://www.chemeddl.org/, accessed Apr 2009), Pharr’s article nsdl.org/chemeddl/. (p 757) might be the perfect prompt. She describes the project Today’s Science for Tomorrow’s Scientists, that is “a Web-based Literature Cited tutorial that introduces current scientific research into middle 1. CALM: Computer Assisted Learning Method. http://calm. school and high school classrooms while simultaneously correindiana.edu/ (accessed Apr 2009) lating with National Science Education Standards.” The resource is freely available as part of the ChemEdDL collection (http:// Supporting JCE Online Material www.chemeddl.org/collections/TSTS/, accessed Apr 2009). Three http://www.jce.divched.org/Journal/Issues/2009/Jun/abs669.html tutorials focus on the work done by three chemistry research groups from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. They Full text (HTML and PDF) with links to cited URLs cover the topics of organic chemistry/astrochemistry, inorganic Blogged at http://expertvoices.nsdl.org/chemeddl/ chemistry/catalysis, and biochemistry/peptide design. Pharr also
© Division of Chemical Education • www.JCE.DivCHED.org • Vol. 86 No. 6 June 2009 • Journal of Chemical Education
669
