In the Classroom
An Innovative Model: Undergraduate Poster Sessions by Health Profession Majors as a Method for Communicating Chemistry in Context Marie Dunstan and Pat Bassinger York College of Pennsylvania, York, PA 17405 As chemistry educators of majors in health-related professions, one of our primary goals is to help students learn chemistry content in the context of the health professions, everyday activities, and contemporary issues. A secondary goal is to encourage students in their continuing development of skills in library usage, writing, and oral communication. These issues have been addressed frequently in this Journal (1–3). The goals can be accomplished by having each student conduct library research and submit a report on a chemistry-related topic of his or her choice. The assignment is enhanced if the student can give an oral presentation to classmates; this exposes all students to a wide variety of interesting topics, thus reinforcing the chemistry-in-context principle. Since the class-time commitment needed to accommodate oral presentations by a large freshman chemistry class makes this approach impractical, an alternative format was designed to accomplish these goals. A poster session assignment provides an especially valuable opportunity for sharing information because it extends the activity beyond the classroom walls, involving the college community-at-large. At our college, chemistry instruction for healthprofession majors encompasses a two-semester course. The first semester concentrates on general chemistry; the second emphasizes organic chemistry and biochemistry. In the established lecture–laboratory sequence, large lecture groups are broken into smaller, more manageable groups for laboratory sessions. Therefore the poster session assignment is scheduled in the laboratory portion of the course during the latter part of the second semester. Instruction for the Assignment Early in the second semester, students are given a general explanation of the assignment so they can begin to develop ideas for the project. After four weeks of class, when there is some understanding of organic chemistry, students are required to select a topic. A sample list of topics is available for consideration. Some interesting projects might be the chemistry of hair dyes or cosmetics, synthetic blood, caffeine, food irradiation, recycling, and diabetes. A laboratory session is devoted to library instruction, which is directed toward the accomplishment of three goals: (i) use of library resources to locate appropriate reference literature, (ii) appreciation of the value of poster sessions and their prevalence in meetings of professional organizations, and (iii) introduction to the mechanics of poster construction. The instruction session, conducted by library faculty members, examines the difference between popular and scholarly literature sources. Students are encouraged to search for scholarly materials for background information as well as recent developments in the field. A handout highlights the available resources and a classroom demonstration simulates search techniques in a variety of indexes. Students become familiar with general reference sources,
science indexes both in paper copy and on-line, newspaper indexes, and Internet resources. General reference sources include titles such as McGraw Hill Encyclopedia of Chemistry and the Merck Index. Students are introduced to a variety of science indexes including the General Science Index, Medline, Carl UnCover, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. Major newspaper indexes such as the New York Times and Washington Post can provide access to reliable science information. Sources such as the Environmental Protection Agency and Chemical Industry homepages may also be easily accessed via the Internet through library and computer-center terminals or home computers. The second part of the library instruction class is centered on the design and construction of the poster itself. The librarians explain that most professional organizations include poster sessions as part of meeting or conference activities. Poster sessions are widely used in all disciplines as a means to visually represent research and share information with an audience (4–6). Students are given specific instructions for the assignment that include overall poster size, font and point guidelines for print, appropriate documentation of sources, and advice on generating visual impact. They are encouraged to create visual displays for the posters (graphs, charts, diagrams, photographs) and to keep text to a minimum. Lettering should be at least 24 point and in a clear font. Various lettering devices are available in the audiovisual services area in the library, but students may also use outside sources. Students are encouraged to be creative when designing their posters and they may use a wide variety of objects and materials. Examples of objects used to enhance presentations include inhalers, syringes, recycled materials, product packaging materials, balloons, and gallstones. Anything that is nonhazardous and legal may be used to better illustrate the topic. In addition to the poster, students prepare a one-page handout that is distributed to people who attend the poster session. The handout includes a 300–400-word summary of the topic and related references for further information. Many students prepare a brochure-style handout with computer-generated graphics. Students have approximately eight weeks to complete the project. During that time help is available from the chemistry instructors, library faculty and staff, academic computer center staff, and the writing center, which is a writing tutorial service staffed by the English department and utilized campus-wide for assistance in writing assignments across the curriculum. Poster Session Presentation Examples of students’ posters are shown in Figures 1– 4. The actual poster sessions take place during the last week of classes for the semester. The students of each laboratory class exhibit their posters for a two-hour period during their
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In the Classroom regularly scheduled lab meeting time. Most students will speak with 10 to 20 different people during their session. Students are encouraged to prepare a short statement (2–3 minutes) about their topics. As people browse through the poster session, the prepared statement serves to acquaint the viewer with the subject matter and can lead to additional exchanges on a question-and-answer basis. We remind students that they should be using their poster as a visual aid to enhance the exchange of information with the public. All of the poster sessions are videorecorded and a sample of the handouts are collected. The tape and handouts are put on reserve in the library for students to view later, and are also available as resource materials for future students. Assessment Evaluation of student projects is done during the poster session time. The laboratory instructor interviews each student, views the poster, and asks questions. The grade depends on both the verbal exchange and the poster. Evaluation is based on these questions: Does the student convey an understanding of the topic? Is the chemistry level appropriate and accurate? Is the poster used to enhance the information exchange? Does the poster, by construction and design, present the information in an easy to understand manner? Much of the success of the project depends upon the willingness of the college faculty, staff, and students to become involved in this activity. Many faculty participate themselves, and many others bring their students from classes that meet during poster session time. The poster sessions are promoted through several methods. The an-
nouncement is in The Daily Bulletin, a daily campus list of activities and events. An ad is placed in the weekly student newspaper and the sessions are announced on the campus radio station. An invitation is also given at the monthly meeting of the Faculty Senate. Fliers are posted throughout the campus and given to interested students. The administration, departmental secretaries, maintenance staff workers, business office staff, and library personnel have attended some of the poster sessions. Students invite roommates, sorority sisters, fraternity brothers, and friends. Many commuting students bring parents, siblings, children, or spouses who are interested in attending. This presents a unique experience for family members to be actively involved in the education process, something we rarely do in the sciences. Poster sessions have been successfully conducted at our college for the last six years. The quality of many posters and handouts approaches professional levels. The poster sessions have been an enjoyable experience for the students who present their work, as well as those who attend. Since our audience includes people campus-wide and from the community, the poster sessions increase interest in contemporary chemistry-related topics and can also contribute to the enhancement of science literacy in the community at large. Literature Cited 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
McHale, J. L. J. Chem. Educ. 1994, 71, 313–314. Sullivan, D. M. J. Chem. Educ. 1992, 69, 133–135. Kennedy, J. H. J. Chem. Educ. 1985, 62, 1104. Matera, R. M.; Gucciardo, J. P. RN 1992, 55(5), 22–26. Coulston, A. M.; Stivers, M. J. Am. Diet. Assoc. 1993, 93, 865–866. 6. Pacer, R. A. J. Chem. Educ. 1991, 68, 549–550.
Figure 1. Poster by Heather Galactic uses computer graphics, photographic enlargements, and matting.
Figure 3. Poster by Kelly Duncan uses graphics, photographs, and a product brochure.
Figure 2. Shonna Stump uses chemical structures and a simplified balance design to emphasize her points.
Figure 4. Poster by Julie Myers incorporates a graph, die-cut figures, and shadow lettering.
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