me.
mthe forum Curricular Change Digests edited by BARD W. LLOYD
Capital University Columbus. OH 43209-2394
The Art of Teaching Chemistry The Pfizer Foundation recently has awarded grants to 11 indeoendent colleges and universities to he used for curriculum improvement in their introductory chemistry courses. The . uuroose of the uroeram, develoued hv the Foundation with the cooperation of Pfizer Inc., is to encourage improvements i n the teaching of introductory chemistry that will make this experience more positive and engaging for students, especially women and minorities. The selection process was based upon the assumption that teaching chemistry requires creativity, innovation, and vision. In the collection of descriptions below that were provided by the project directors named, I believe you will find all of these characteristics in full measure. May they serve to inspire you and your program to see the possibilities that ensue when the teaching of chemistry is considered "as much a n a r t a s a science". Many thanks to the vision of the Pfizer Foundation and Pfizer Inc for supporting such endeavors.
-
A
A
-
.
Bennett College Susan Curtis Greensboro, NC 27401
The main feature of the Art of Teaching ..Chemistrv Project of rhe Department of (.'hemistry at l h n r t t CoIIt:gc. w~llbe a weekls one-hour tutorial rcriion thal will be mandatory for all "students in the general chemistry course. Each section of the tutorial session will contain a maximum of six students. Students with similar tutorial needs will he assigned to a particular section. During the tutorial sessions, concepts presented in lectures will he reinforced and reviewed. Different teaching techniques will he used during the sessions to take into account the different learning styles of students. Three-dimensional models of atoms and molecules will be used extensively to help students who initially do not gain a good understanding of the principles of chemistry just from looking a t pictures of atoms and molecules in textbooks. Comuuter uroerams concernine orincioles of chemistry that ;se interactive learning te%iques also will he u s 2 in tutorial sessions to provide students immediate feedback of their level of understanding of the concepts being presented to them. Each student will he requested to present solutions to chemistry problems to other students, in order to to identifv problems that the student may have understanding c ~ & ~ t sStudents . will he trained to identify the major concepts presented in assigned readings and how to predict the products of reactions by understanding the mechanism of reactions rather than by rote memorization of reactions.
Motivational sessions will be included in the tutorial uroeram to improve student confidence and self-esteem in . pursuing careers in chemistry and other sciences. Discussion of the contributions of women and minority scientists to chemistrywill he incorporated into the tutorial sessions. A workbook will be developed for the sessions, designed specifically for the academic needs of the population of students of Bennett College. Particular attention will be placed on the application of mathematical skills to concepts in chemistry. The workbook will emphasize the solving of problems that will allow students to understand hetter basic concepts such a s atomic structure, the concept of a n element, and the basic properties of chemical bonds.
-
Canisius College Frank J. Dinan and Joseph F. Bieron Buffalo, NY 14208
Our project involves the development of a team learning method in which students will work in small, four- to six-person permanent groups chosen by the instructor to maximize the diversitv of academic abilities. racial. and gender characteristics. The students are given a "learning -wide" for each class containing the suecific text readine assignment for that class, a prorblem assignment designei to bring out important points in the learning guide, and a detailed list of the specific tasks that the students should be able to accomplish upon completion of the learning guide. Upon amval in class, students gather in their learning groups and are given 10 minutes to discuss and help each other with any aspects of the day's learning guide. Next a short answer "minitest" based upon the day's learning guide is given. The minitest is first taken individually, then in groups working collahoratively. The minitests are graded immediately and are returned. The whole class is invited to discuss the minitest and its answers. The instructor may choose to lecture briefly on difficult aspects of points raised by the minitest. A n overhead transparency of the learning guide is then projected and questions are encouraged on any of its aspects. The mouu structure facilitates active pakicipation in these question periods. The learning guide for the next class is then distributed. Hour examinations, given every third or fourth week will he taken by individuals and, collaboratively by the learning groups. The hour examinations are discussed in the same manner a s the minitests. Course grades are based on these aspects of student performance: individual and group grades on minitests and hour examinations, individual (only) performance on the final examination, and Volume 71 Number 11 November 1994
925
-
- --
oeer evaluation erades. The weiehtine eiven to each of these components, except for the final examination, the weightine of which is decided solelv . bv- the instructor, are negotiated by the groups to reach a class-wide consen&. Our method will be augmented by the introduction of case studies that will allow an enhanced critical thinking dimension as well as the introduction of a variety of current scientific-social issues into the course. Assessment studies are planned dealing with the cognitive, attitudinal, student retention, and critical thinking dimensions of this experiment.
- -
Colgate University Peter S. Sheridan Hamilton NY 13346
We propose to develop a two-semester alternative to the current general chemistry course. The new course is called "The Chemistry of the Energy Problemnand will cover the essential t o ~ i c sfound in the traditional chemistry course, but it will fo'llow a sequence that should make sense to the students. Chemistw will be Dresented as a loeical and exciting way of looking a t the world by first showing that an understanding a t the molecular level is necessary before we can understand a given phenomenon ("Does burning coal cause acid rain?" or 'Can't we neutralize nuclear wastes?") The challenge is to create a text and student-oriented lab program that present understanding of some specific topics as crucial to the understanding of energy-related issues. The focus of enerw is an excellent vehicle to Dresent the fundamentals of gemistry. The goal is to have students discover for themselves that an understanding of the fundamentals is essential to making sense of the material world. Real world ~roblemswill be brought into the lab in an unforced way. 'Topics will range from the descriptive chemistrv of metals and nonmetallic oxides (common pollutants),aqueous equilibrium and buffers, and an analisis of local environmental sites to testing of locally obtained fuel and atmospheric gases. Teams of students A l l study a particular energy-related problem using a n analysis profile of their own design. The products of this project will he a redesigned course, a new text with ancillary materials, and an accompanying lab manual.
College of the Holy Cross Richard S. Herrick Worcester, MA 01610
The Chemistrv a t the Colleee of the Holv . De~artment . Cross will use its support to develop softwar~modulesspecifically constructed so students taking courses in the department's Discovery Chemistry sequence can have a focused method of reviewinc information learned durinc a specific experiment. ~isco;ery experiments are crafted-so that student understanding of the concepts in a particular experiment is achieved in three distinct stages. First, they perform the experiment, visually imprinting various observations in their memory. Second, they participate in a discussion in which observations and data points are oreanized and analvzed. Finallv . thev review this material yn the frameworgof the scie&c method to cement their understandine. The software review modules we develo~ will be used i n the third stage. The authoring Dromam that will be used is 7bolBookan object-oriented hypermedia development program for the Microsoft Windows environment. Modules will contain screen navigational tools that will enable students to move
-. -
926
Journal of Chemical Education
to connected topics as necessary instead of simply proceeding in a linear fashion through the material. This platform will allow us to include graphics and bit-mapped pictures along with animation and video in the review modules. Modules will be employed as exercises after the completion of both the associated experiments and the subsequent post-laboratory discussion. Students will have access to the modules as necessary and can explore them in the way that fits their needs. The novelty of these software modules is that they will provide structured reference material for both the content and process (logical reasoning) of each Discovery experiment. The modules will serve to help the students review what thev have discovered in the course. In addition. the modules &ill concentrate specifically on what has been uncovered in individual experiments. This purposeful focus on topics essential to student understanding of the fundae schemistw will allow them to look for mental ~ r i n c i ~ l of connections between diqaratk topics and obtain a mature understanding of the discipline.
Connecticut College Marc Zimmer New London. CT 06320
In an attempt to make the general chemistry class more relevant and interestine to our students we are introducing environmental chemistry as a common thread running through the class and laboratories. The class will not be an introduction to environmental chemistry, but a general chemistry class made more interesting by relating chemical theory to important environmental problems. Most principles taught in general chemistry can be related to environmental phenomena. VSEPR theory and an understanding of dipole moments can be used in the explanation of how greenhouse gases absorb IR radiations. Conceots of bond enerw. kinetics. and thermodvnamics will he used in the explanations of ozone depletion. Hydrophohicity can be made more interesting by relating the bioaccumulation of pesticides, such as DDT, in fat to their hydro~hobicitv.There also are many environmental Dhenomena that can he explained by acid-base theory, mist notable acid rain. Heavy metal poisoning and chelation therapy can be used to liven up discussions of equilibria and solubility. Incorporating experiments based on environmental chemistry into the laboratory sequence will help solve one of our biggest problems, namely that the students feel that the majority of the laboratories are unrelated to material taught in class and are irrelevant to their lives and future careers. At the end of the second semester we will havea threeweek student-driven lab that will serve as a closing experience to the course. In the first week each lab section, containine a maximum of 12 students. will be divided into two group: Each group will be assigned a problem, and they will he reauired to use their lab exoerience and librarv resources to devise a series of experiments to solve the problem. The instructor will join the two groups in the library and will be available for consultation. Before the next lab the m o u ~ swill have to submit a Drocedure to the other group a& the instructor. During thk prelah meeting of the second week, the instructor and students will discuss their proposals before starting the experiments. We also would like to introduce a series of student-directed labs. Each pair of students will be in charge of one exoeriment. Thev will do the exoeriment hefore the lab oeriid and then wiil be responsibie for the pre- and p ~ ~ t - i a b discussions, answering questions, grading, and running their experiment.
-
