Letter pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Deep Thinking. What Lectures Are Useful For Liberato Cardellini* Dipartimento SIMAU, Università Politecnica della Marche, Ancona 60131, Italy ABSTRACT: Online courses are gaining popularity because of the benefits they can offer. Among our students, we also have those who are weak in scientific reasoning and students with little motivation to study. To engage them, as well as the strong students, in deep thinking and to enjoy learning, more than online courses are necessary, because education is about more than acquiring skills. KEYWORDS: General Public, Public Understanding/Outreach, Internet/Web-Based Learning, Curriculum, Learning Theories, Student-Centered Learning found the editorial “Online Courses in Chemistry: Salvation or Downfall?”1 to be interesting and thought provoking. Just like other educational activitieslaboratory work, textbooks online courses are neither bad nor good in themselves. The usefulness and quality of the tool depend on the way it is used and on the results it produces. I seriously doubt that online courses are for all students. I remember a case study about student competence, “What Can We Do about Sue?”,2 in which Sue is a student with severe difficulties in solving chemistry problems. Among my students, I have several similar cases, and their number increases course after course. Can online courses in chemistry be a salvation for those students? From my experience, only personal care, encouragement, and self-esteem building can help them and get them interested in chemistry. It is very much true that, “The real question is how one can get students interested in learningmore correctly, interested in learning those things that adults deem worthwhile. Seduction, I think.”3 In a sense we have to win the interest of our students to motivate them. As colleagues have written, “the goals of teaching and learning science include knowledge (cognition), emotion and motivation.”4 Perhaps the generalization, “lectures are not an optimal method for promoting thought, teaching behavior, or changing attitudes”, is excessive. According to McKeakie,5 Lectures also have motivational values.... Research on student ratings of teaching as well as on student learning indicates that the enthusiasm of the lecturer is an important factor in affecting student learning and motivation. The promise of cost savings is a powerful and appealing argument. But we need to also consider other aspects. Education is such a complex activity that it requires much more than tools to achieve what society considers a valuable product of education: responsible citizens and competent professionals. Technology can provide new opportunities for engaging students and I am a fan of technology in education. In the 1980s I developed software for chemistry instruction6 and in 2010 my blended course in chemistry was awarded.7 Yet deep thinking requires more than information. According to Richard Zare, “Inspiration is more important than information.”8 Education is under threat, especially from lowquality lectures. If an online course is just as good or better than
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© 2013 American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc.
the traditional lecture, it is wise to use it. But enthusiastic instructors able to create opportunities can make a difference in the life of many students, maybe also using a blended form of teaching.
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AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Author
*E-mail:
[email protected]. Notes
The authors declare no competing financial interest.
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REFERENCES
(1) Pienta, N. J. Online Courses in Chemistry: Salvation or Downfall? J. Chem. Educ. 2013, 90 (3), 271−272. (2) Herron, J. D.; Greenbowe, T. J. What Can We Do about Sue: A Case Study of Competence. J. Chem. Educ. 1986, 63 (6), 528−531. (3) Cardellini, L. An Interview with J. Dudley Herron. J. Chem. Educ. 2002, 79 (1), 53−59 (p 57). (4) Shavelson, R. J.; Ruiz-Primo, M. A.; Wiley, E. Windows into the Mind. High. Educ. 2005, 49 (4), 413−430 (p 414). (5) Svinick, M. D.; McKeakie, W. J. McKeakie’s Teaching Tips. Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers, 14th ed. (international ed.); Wadsworth Cengage Learning: Stamford, CT, 2011; p 59. (6) Cardellini, L. Chimicaware. Un Progetto Software per l’Istruzione Chimica; didaComp:: Ancona, 1986; in Italian. (7) Moodle course listings at Università Politecnica della Marche. http://moodle.univpm.it/course/category.php?id=23 (accessed Oct 2013). (8) Coppola, B. P. Progress in Practice: Three Plenaries I. Richard N. Zare, Enhance, Enable, and Elucidate. Chem. Educator 1998, 3, No. 3:s00897980215a.
Published: October 17, 2013 1418
dx.doi.org/10.1021/ed4004035 | J. Chem. Educ. 2013, 90, 1418−1418
