Chemical Education Today edited by
Erica K. Jacobsen Associate Editor, Precollege Chemistry
Laura E. Slocum
Collaborating with Others
Assistant Editor, Precollege Chemistry
Laura E. Slocum and Erica K. Jacobsen
I have heard the phrase in the title so often and wondered, what does it really mean for me, for my students, and for others? Webster defines collaboration as “to work jointly with others or together, especially in an intellectual endeavor” (1). However, I am not always involved in things with an intellectual focus when I am collaborating with others. In the past few months, I have found myself participating in several projects that just needed to be completed because someone else needed them to be done and asked for my help; however, from my perspective, none of them were “intellectual endeavors”. One project involved painting walls at a church, one was a school-related project, and one was a social justice project. For me, instead of focusing on Webster's “intellectual endeavor” label, collaboration is more about working together to complete a task, to accomplish a goal, perhaps to give of yourself so another can complete or accomplish their project. At my school, one place that collaborating with others happens is within the January Term courses. January Term is a three-week term where students focus on only one course, all day long. The faculty often teach together in teams, frequently completely outside of our fields. For example, I co-taught a Journalism course with an English teacher my third year at the school, teaching the students about technical writing, but nothing specifically about chemistry. Collaborating with my colleague from the English department to teach a mini-course that was new to me was an opportunity to work outside of my comfort zone at the far edges of my discipline (reporting results in clear, factual writing supported by credible sources). Co-teaching this course also gave me a rare chance to see how someone else worked with the same students in the same environment with similar material, highlighting differences in approaches. As teachers, our collaboration partners are most often the students in our classes. For example, like many of you, I use drawings and pictures to help students understand chemical concepts. Waner's article “Particulate Pictures and Kinetic-Molecular Theory Concepts: Seizing an Opportunity” (DOI: 10.1021/ ed100304q) describes how “these pictures offer educators an opportunity for a variety of exercises aimed at a greater inquiry into the kinetic-molecular theory and the representation of scale”. I have found that pictures are really helpful for students, and although I am not a great artist, I use pictures that I draw on the board to help explain molecular level concepts to my students. My students often laugh at my finished drawings, but I have also found that visual learners, in particular, are really helped by these illustrations. One of my students' favorites is the drawing I use to explain boiling in a solution. The students say that it helps them to understand why the boiling point changes. All I have drawn is a beaker above a Bunsen burner and then particles in different shapes for water and the solute. Serving as the illustrator and teacher and the students as learners, we collaborate in the meaning of the picture more than just the drawing: We talk about the whole process and have lots of arrows
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Figure 1. A small square of unused disposable diaper containing superabsorbent polymers added to a dilute Cu2þ solution. See “JCE Classroom Activity #106. Sequestration of Divalent Metal Ion by Superabsorbent Polymer in Diapers”, J. Chem. Educ. 2010, 87 (DOI: 10.1021/ ed100415e).
on the drawing by the time we are done. I never would have thought of it as being their favorite or the most helpful, but it is the drawing and description students cite the most often in the end of course evaluation as their favorite or most helpful. Collaborating with others also comes when we present together at conferences, so that others can learn new ways of doing things or gain greater understanding of a difficult concept. It is also helping another colleague give their first presentation when they are really scared and afraid no one will attend their talk or they might really mess up. These are all the things, and more, that Jeff Hepburn, the 2010 Conant Award winner, has done for me. Jeff is one of those teachers who consistently encourages others to try new ideas and to be better teachers. I had the honor of seeing Jeff receive his award at the ACS National meeting in San Francisco this March. I think you will find “The Magic of Good Chemistry: An Interview with Jeffrey Hepburn, 2010 Conant Award Winner” by Jeffrey Hepburn and Erica K. Jacobsen (DOI: 10.1021/ed100651u) a wonderful introduction to Jeff if you have not yet met him. Erica's Take on the Issue Even after over a decade of working with JCE Classroom Activities that use common grocery store and hardware store materials to illustrate chemistry concepts, I still get excited when I see a consumer chemical application that is new to me. Pinhas' (DOI: 10.1021/ed1003492) laboratory experiment “A Kinetic Study Using Evaporation of Different Types of Hand-Rub Sanitizers” describes such an application. Students perform a simple procedure of spreading a small amount of sanitizer on a glass or metal plate, placing it on a balance, and then recording mass changes over the space of 15 min. They then investigate the
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r 2010 American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc. pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc Vol. 87 No. 9 September 2010 10.1021/ed100699r Published on Web 07/19/2010
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kinetics of the evaporation by plotting the data as zeroth, first, and second orders. With the H1N1 flu being at the forefront of the news over the 2009-2010 flu season, I definitely noticed a jump in locations where hand sanitizer was made available, including strategically placed baskets in my local church sanctuary. Students will likely be able to link this product to their everyday lives. Similarly, disposable diapers and Ivory soap are familiar items to many students. JCE Classroom Activity #106 is published in this issue and uses these common materials in an unusual way, allowing students to investigate the science behind superabsorbency in disposable diapers (see Figure 1). National Chemistry Week (NCW) 2010 is fast approaching. Next month's issue will contain several resources that focus on the American Chemical Society (ACS) NCW theme, Behind the Scenes with Chemistry. This month, Gmurczyk and Collins (DOI: 10.1021/ed100640z) describe NCW resources available through ACS to help get you started in planning your celebration. The International Year of Chemistry 2011 will also be here before you know it. ACS has several events planned, along with
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resources for 365 days of celebration: see http://www.cendigital. org/cendigital/sample/?pg=49 (accessed Jul 2010). Precollege Chemistry Featured Articles 5Hepburn, J.; Jacobsen, E. K. The Magic of Good Chemistry: An Interview with Jeffrey Hepburn, 2010 Conant Award Winner. J. Chem. Educ. 2010, 87 (DOI: 10.1021/ ed100651u). 5Chen, Y.-H.; Lin, J.-Y.; Lin, L.-P.; Liang, H.; Yaung, J.-F. JCE Classroom Activity #106: Sequestration of Divalent Metal Ion by Superabsorbent Polymer in Diapers. J. Chem. Educ. 2010, 87 (DOI: 10.1021/ed100415e). Literature Cited 1. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary Web Entry for “Collaboration”. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/collaboration (accessed Jul 2010).
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