In the Classroom
Writing and Computing across the USM Chemistry Curriculum Nancy R. Gordon, Thomas A. Newton, Gale Rhodes, John S. Ricci, Richard G. Stebbins, and Henry J. Tracy* Department of Chemistry, University of Southern Maine, P.O. Box 9300, Portland, ME 04104-9300; *
[email protected] The University of Southern Maine’s chemistry faculty is committed to graduating students whose writing and computer skills complement their proficiency as chemists. To reach this goal, the department developed a “Writing across the Curriculum” program that has become a vital component of our laboratory curriculum. The objective is to graduate seniors who are able to write with clarity and precision, employing the rules and principles of English grammar. Since computers are important tools to reinforce concepts taught in the classroom, the emphasis on teaching computer skills followed as a natural accompaniment to our writing program. This Journal has published many articles on both technical and scientific writing in the discipline (1), including a bibliography covering this and other journals devoted to science education (2). None have addressed the issue across the entire chemistry curriculum. Kovac and Sherwood recently published a handbook that addresses design, strategy, and grading of writing assignments in general chemistry (3). This paper describes the writing and computer components of our curriculum-wide program, the goals of each, and the specific tasks we have designed to help our students develop skills in scientific writing and reporting. We show how the writing and computer components are integrated. Finally, we discuss the effects of the program as perceived by some graduating students and our faculty as we continue to evaluate our progress. The Program
its Web page, it explains to each incoming class the objectives and goals of the department’s policy (4). It lists five statements illustrating what is important for its students to know about writing and the reasons for the emphasis on writing skills. The five statements are: 1. Writing is a means of communicating effectively to others. 2. Writing is a means of enhancing learning. 3. Writing is a method of focusing on the pertinent aspects of the subject. 4. Writing functions as a reevaluation process when it includes revision. 5. Writing is a lifelong dedication to improving one’s ability through continuous practice.
To help students achieve the goal of writing clear, concise scientific reports, the department divides a traditional research article into six sections: (i) abstract, (ii) introduction, (iii) experimental, (iv) results, (v) discussion, and (vi) references. The faculty concentrates on each section sequentially as students progress through the curriculum of laboratory courses, tailoring the writing requirement of each course to the students’ level of proficiency. The USM chemistry department requires all majors to take two semesters of general chemistry, two of organic, one of analytical, and two physical chemistry courses with labs. Majors must also complete a selection of advanced courses, two of which have labs (one in biochemistry and one in instrumental analysis). The writing and computing components associated with each laboratory course are listed in Table 1.
The USM chemistry faculty has stipulated the requirements students must meet for the writing and computing program. The department has fashioned a series of writing assignments that become progressively more sophisticated as students progress through successive courses. Instructors regularly review students’ laboratory Table 1. Writing and Computing Requirements for USM Chemistr y notebooks and request revisions of the text if Curriculum there is ambiguity in the presentation or flaws Course Writing Requirement Computing Requirement in the construction and logic. Thus, from the General Chemistry Lab I Abstracts Word processing beginning, students are aware of the Spreadsheet/graphing department’s commitment to the discipline of General Chemistry Lab II Abstracts Word processing writing. The faculty also requires that students Laboratory notebooks Spreadsheet/graphing complement their work with computer assignOrganic Chemistry Lab I Laboratory notebooks Molecular modeling Internet-based programs ments. Assignments such as modeling molecuOrganic Chemistry Lab II Laboratory notebooks Molecular modeling lar motion help students grasp concepts more Laboratory procedures Internet-based programs readily. We have found that their understandAnalytical Chemistry Lab Laboratory notebooks Word processing ing leads to greater clarity in the written work. Interpretation of results and Advanced spreadsheet The molecular modeling exercises help students propagation of experimental error in results section reinforce their knowledge, leading to better rePhysical Chemistry Lab I & II Results section Word processing tention. We believe that students’ ease with Biochemistry Lab I & II Discussion section Advanced spreadsheet word processing, graphing, and spreadsheet Instrumental Analysis Lab Complete report Advanced molecular modeling programs constitutes useful skills for the world Computerized data collection outside the classroom and for future employment. Internet-based programs The department disseminates widely its Senior Seminar Analysis and summary of Online searching primary literature policy on writing for the laboratory courses. On JChemEd.chem.wisc.edu • Vol. 78 No. 1 January 2001 • Journal of Chemical Education
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In the Classroom
Results Our experience with the program has proved rewarding. At the introductory level, students benefit from learning to summarize the important aspects of their laboratory experience. In the first-semester general chemistry laboratory course, students write three brief abstracts of their experiments. The course syllabus contains a list of seven guidelines for writing abstracts (see box). To encourage writing skills, the instructor requires students to rewrite unsatisfactory reports, stressing Edited Standard Written English protocol (5). We also encourage students to submit their abstracts ahead of deadline for feedback from the instructor. In this way students can profit from individual attention, learn from their mistakes, and rewrite their manuscripts. The faculty also encourages students to review and edit each other’s documents, but does not require it. In some of our advanced classes the students become demanding of one another and we believe this oral editing helps them develop and refine a critical sense. Students use a computer to write their abstracts and to generate graphic representations of the data collected in the laboratory, which gives them exposure to spreadsheet and graphing computer software (6 ). Toward the semester’s end, students apply a rudimentary molecular modeling program to visualize the three-dimensionality of molecules (7). The exercises they are required to perform involve making two-dimensional Lewis electron dot diagrams, converting these into three-dimensional representations, and then interpreting whether the molecule is polar. Students make further progress in writing abstracts in the second semester of general chemistry laboratory. At this time they receive basic guidelines for how to write and maintain laboratory notebooks. These notebooks are the primary focus of the organic and analytical laboratory courses. As in the beginning courses, students receive examples of scientific record keeping and the instructors regularly review students’ notebooks and make suggestions for improvement. Students are
Requirements for an Abstract a. Maximum length is 1⁄2 page, single spaced—be brief. b. Write the abstract using a word processor. c. Topic sentence—in the first sentence of an abstract, state the goal of the experiment. d. Next, briefly summarize the method(s) employed in the experiment; do not give details of the procedures. Instead, name the methods you used and describe the chemistry involved. e. Finally, state your results, with an assessment of their precision based on your knowledge of the precision of the measuring devises that you used. If possible, compare appropriate literature values with your experimental values. Include brief explanations for any discrepancies. If the experiment includes an unknown, treat the results of measurements on the unknown as your most important results. Do not give intermediate results, such as data from which you calculated your results. f. Make the abstract an example of your best writing. Organize it logically and make sure it is free of errors in grammar and spelling. g. Ask your instructor about the voice to use in your abstract. First person, active voice is becoming more common because of its brevity and clarity. Follow your instructor’s preference.
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graded weekly on their notebooks. The organic laboratory instructors require students to write in the first person active voice to underscore their engagement in the laboratory experience. We have found that writing in the first person forces students to become more actively involved in the recording of the experiment. A qualitative organic analysis project in the second semester of organic chemistry requires that students write two or three procedures used throughout the laboratory sequence to illustrate reaction sequences specific to various functional groups. The analytical laboratory course focuses on an analysis of how the propagation of experimental errors affects the final results. Statistical errors and confidence limits are also stressed. These analyses are routinely performed on advanced spreadsheet programs. We have found that Writing and Computing across the Curriculum prepares students to write critically rigorous scientific reports that include sophisticated computer analyses. All junior-level laboratory courses, for example, require the writing of several reports. In all cases, students get the opportunity to revise their documents. Their grades depend on the clarity and sophistication of the graphs, tables, and figures included in the reports. Detailed propagation of error treatments must be submitted when appropriate. Finally, Senior Seminar, the capstone chemistry course, introduces students to major references. Students learn how to analyze primary literature and develop techniques in online searches in Chemical Abstracts (8), the Internet (9), and science databases. The literature search is not likely to be students’ first exposure to delving into primary sources, but the department’s rigorous and focused emphasis reinforces and builds on previous skills. We believe exposure to the best scientific literature can help students develop their own writing skills. In its writing assignments, the chemistry faculty has sought to be clear and concise about what constitutes acceptable grammar. We have found that Edited Standard Written English protocol offers the most satisfactory method. We present a description of this protocol to all students and make it available on the USM chemistry department’s Web page. We preface it with the following statement. Work submitted to fulfill writing requirements should conform to the standard of Edited Standard Written English. Manuscripts should be examples of your best writing, prepared with the same care that you would take in an English essay course. Choose words with precision and spell them correctly. Construct sentences that are logical and grammatically correct. Develop only a single topic in each paragraph. Arrange paragraphs in sensible order. Shortcomings in these areas will lower the grade. At least for the first one or two assignments of each type, the instructor will return unsatisfactory work, with suggestions, and the student will revise and resubmit the work until it is satisfactory.
Evaluation The USM chemistry students have pronounced Writing and Computing across the Curriculum a user-friendly program. And they report that their writing has improved because of it. Typically, one student claimed that the writing assignments
Journal of Chemical Education • Vol. 78 No. 1 January 2001 • JChemEd.chem.wisc.edu
In the Classroom
had taught her to think more clearly and write more concisely, not only in chemistry classes but in physics courses as well. Another student said that a particular computer program involving element analysis was directly applicable to her parttime job. A graphic artist who returned to college after 20 years said that computer modeling helped her visualize the classroom lectures and also made it possible to do experiments that would be impossible to carry out in a laboratory. One student said the stress on grammatically correct, detailed, and readable lab reports helps students prepare “for the outside world”. Another concurred, noting that rewriting reports forced him to write “quality papers”. A student volunteered that he liked the practice of peer review. He said classmates are quick to point out when something is unclear and in need of revision. “You begin to develop good habits of mind,” said the student. Conclusion After several years of the program’s operation, the USM Chemistry faculty is convinced that Writing and Computing across the Chemistry Curriculum is successful beyond expectations. Our faculty reports a noticeable improvement in the writing and even oral presentations of the students. Faculties in other disciplines have commented on the skills of the chemistry students. One of us (HT), who is a member of a university-wide writing across the curriculum committee, has presented this program plus some students’ work to colleagues in the humanities and received enthusiastic response. A prominent local employer claims that the recent USM Chemistry graduates “know how to present their results”. Our program is still evolving as we seek to develop a commitment to clear and concise writing from our students. We stress that
the commitment must expand beyond the discipline of chemistry to serve our graduates throughout their lives. Literature Cited 1. Kovac, J. D. J. Chem. Educ. 1999, 76, 120–124. Bunting, R. K. J. Chem. Educ. 1999, 76, 1407–1408. Kovac, J. D.; Sherwood, D. W. J. Chem. Educ. 1999, 76, 1399–1403. Hunter, A. D. J. Chem. Educ. 1998, 75, 1424. Rossi, F. M. J. Chem. Educ. 1997, 74, 395–396. Schmidt, M. H. J. Chem. Educ. 1997, 74, 393–394. 2. Shires, N. P. J. Chem. Educ. 1991, 68, 494–495. 3. Kovac, J.; Sherwood, D. W. Writing Across the Chemistry Curriculum: A Faculty Handbook; The University of Tennessee: Knoxville, 1998. 4. USM Chemistry Homepage, Writing Policy. http://www.usm. maine.edu/chy/writepol.htm#Heading2 (accessed Oct 2000). 5. Edited Written Standard English protocol was adapted from material provided by Barbara E. Walvoord, Professor of English, University of Notre Dame. For references, see her Web site, http://www.nd.edu/~kaneb/walvoord.html (accessed Oct 2000). A brief description of EWSE is available at the USM chemistry department’s Web site. 6. Excel; Microsoft Corporation: Redmond, WA. 7. Molecules3D, version 2.1; Mosby: St. Louis, MO, 1995. 8. STN Express, version 4.1; Chemical Abstract Services; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1989–98. 9. UnCover; The UnCover Co.; Denver, CO; http://uncweb. carl.org/ (accessed Oct 2000). PubMed; National Library of Medicine: Bethesda, MD; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Entrez/ medline.html (Medline) (accessed Oct 2000). Protein Data Bank; National Institute of Standards and Technology: Gaithersburg, MD; http://www.rcsb.org (accessed Oct 2000).
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