A First-Year Chemistry Undergraduate “Course Community” at a Large, Research-Intensive University

Franier, Brian De La; Diep, Jenny; Menzies, Perry J. C.; Morra, Barbora; Koroluk, Katherine J.; Dicks, Andrew P.

doi:10.1021/acs.jchemed.5b00280

Cited by 8 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…In particular, these efforts were modeled on the persistence framework, which is an established guide to best practices to increase retention of undergraduate STEM majors [3]. The framework identifies three interventions that increase student learning and professional identification as scientists: early research experiences [16], active learning in the classroom [6,17,18], and enrollment in STEM learning communities [4,19,20]. At our university, we are in the beginning stages of putting the framework into action.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Improving the Success of First Term General Chemistry Students at a Liberal Arts Institution

2018

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General Chemistry is a high impact course at Benedictine University where a large enrollment of~250 students each year, coupled with low pass rates of a particularly vulnerable student population from a retention point of view (i.e., first-year college students), make it a strategic course on which to focus innovative pedagogical development. Although our institution is not alone in the challenges that this particular course presents, we have prioritized implementing interventional strategies targeting academically underprepared students to increase their success by providing a preparatory course prior to this gateway course. Focusing on the persistence framework to guide curricular decisions, progress towards aligning our general chemistry curriculum to the academic profile of our students has afforded much higher pass rates than even two years ago.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Improving the Success of First Term General Chemistry Students at a Liberal Arts Institution

2018

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“…However, each year approximately 120 physical science students enroll in a specialized two-semester course: CHM 151Y (Chemistry: The Molecular Science) that provides a unique environment for those especially interested in pursuing a chemistry degree. This course is different to CHM 135H and CHM 136H in that it covers additional and advanced chemistry content, includes a cocurricular mentorship program, 23 and has an enhanced research-related laboratory experience. Significantly, by incorporating an introduction to the "Theory" and "Laboratory Skills" learning objectives of the Green Chemistry Commitment into each of CHM 135H, CHM 136H, and CHM 151Y, In Experiment 1 ("Gas Stoichiometry"), students generate hydrogen gas from the reaction of magnesium metal with hydrochloric acid as part of an introduction to green chemistry metrics (Supporting Information, p S2).…”

Section: Overviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Systems Thinking Department: Fostering a Culture of Green Chemistry Practice among Students

et al. 2019

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Green chemistry and sustainability concepts have been woven into the University of Toronto undergraduate curriculum for almost two decades. This has been achieved through (i) development of expository, discovery-based, and student-directed laboratory experiments; (ii) evolution of several upper-year courses; and (iii) strategic integration of these components into two academic programs. In conjunction with the establishment of a graduate student-run organization known as the Green Chemistry Initiative who assists with curricular redesign, a committed departmental attitude has developed toward sustainability education. The notion of systems thinking (where links are forged between varying systemic components which affect each other in different ways, and separate components are considered as a whole) influences both specific green instructional practices and the broader Department of Chemistry approach to sustainable education and research. This article outlines the departmental mindset in relation to green chemistry, and how systems thinking has inherently informed the progress made. The connection between systems thinking and green chemistry is solidified through discussion of the Green Chemistry Commitment (GCC) learning objectives. The GCC is a voluntary initiative designed by a nonprofit organization (Beyond Benign) to assist in the preparation of chemists whose skills are aligned with the needs of the planet and its inhabitants in the 21st century.

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“…Despite calls for reform, it is fair to say that the recent chemical education literature concerning the introductory chemistry sequence has focused as much on course and laboratory pedagogy as on course curriculum, content, or structure, with a continued emphasis on the incorporation of research-based instructional strategies (RBIS) such as flipped classrooms and studio-style courses, 1−6 processoriented guided inquiry learning, 7 peer-led team learning, 8,9 and learning communities. 10 Notable efforts in the development of the content and structure of the general chemistry curriculum include the "atoms-first" curriculum 11,12 and studies of the impact of an atoms-first sequencing, 12 a refocusing and restructuring of the curriculum, 13−15 reflections from a redesign of the advanced placement chemistry curriculum, 16 restructuring to encourage higher order thinking using learning taxonomies, 17 teaching introductory chemistry with rich contexts, 18,19 structures centered around key ideas, 20 anchoring concepts, 21 or chemical thinking, 22 the CLUE project, 23 and the recent Chemistry Unbound project at Emory. 24 In addition, several models for integrated one-semester courses have been reported.…”

Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is therefore not surprising that the design of the first-year course of study has attracted much interest, and variations in the content and the ordering of content are significant, reflected also in the wide range of available textbooks. Despite calls for reform, it is fair to say that the recent chemical education literature concerning the introductory chemistry sequence has focused as much on course and laboratory pedagogy as on course curriculum, content, or structure, with a continued emphasis on the incorporation of research-based instructional strategies (RBIS) such as flipped classrooms and studio-style courses, − process-oriented guided inquiry learning, peer-led team learning, , and learning communities …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Restructuring a General College Chemistry Sequence Using the ACS Anchoring Concepts Content Map

Reid

2020

J. Chem. Educ.

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Many STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) disciplines require a two-semester sequence of introductory college chemistry, which are thus critical gateway courses to a variety of majors. Recognizing the benefit to educators of a structure of content learning across the chemistry curriculum, in 2012, the American Chemical Society (ACS) developed the Anchoring Concepts Content Map, or ACCM. The development and subsequent revision of the general chemistry ACCM inspired the restructuring of our first-year chemistry sequence. Thus our CHEM 1001 and 1002 courses, taught in an atoms-first framework, were reorganized into a set of nine modules, each intentionally linked to one (or more) anchoring concept of the ACCM. In this initial effort, we have developed the course modules and subtopics and a set of learning objectives for each module and linked these to the general chemistry ACCM. To facilitate the initial teaching of the courses, the redesign occurred during the academic year, and the courses were taught in summer term 2019 using a flipped classroom design with three weekly 100 min face-to-face discussion meetings and two weekly laboratories for the 6 week long courses. Herein we describe the course design and its mapping onto the ACCM and discuss the results of the initial implementation, with suggestions given for future adaptations.

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A First-Year Chemistry Undergraduate “Course Community” at a Large, Research-Intensive University

Cited by 8 publications

References 8 publications

Improving the Success of First Term General Chemistry Students at a Liberal Arts Institution

Improving the Success of First Term General Chemistry Students at a Liberal Arts Institution

A Systems Thinking Department: Fostering a Culture of Green Chemistry Practice among Students

Restructuring a General College Chemistry Sequence Using the ACS Anchoring Concepts Content Map

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