A Specifications-Graded, Sports Drink-Themed General Chemistry Laboratory Course Using an Argument-Driven Inquiry Approach

Abstract

This paper describes the creation of a theme-based first quarter, of a two quarter sequence, general chemistry laboratory course following an argument driven inquiry format and employing specifications grading. The course contains four, two-week projects investigating the chemistry of a popular sports drink. The sugar content, dye concentration, buffering capacity, and the kinetics of dye decomposition are investigated for various flavors of Gatorade. Specifications grading is used to foster teamwork and to provide an opportunity for revision and resubmission of student work. A modified LCAS survey measured student perception of course content.

A Specifications-Graded, Spice-Themed, General Chemistry Laboratory Course Using an Argument-Driven Inquiry Approach

“…GCL-II’s ADI course structure like GCL-I contains four 2-week projects. The learning outcomes (Table ) are inseparable from the seven-step ADI process (Figure ): Guiding Question (LO1): To prepare for a project’s first laboratory session (the fundamental skills (FS) session), students are given an initial guiding question (Table , second column) and provided general technique information.…”

“…This grading method was first introduced by Linda Nilson in 2014 . Examples of specifications grading have been reported for general chemistry, biochemistry, biology, math, anatomy and physiology, engineering, and physics lectures, as well as scientific writing courses, general, and organic chemistry laboratory. ,− …”

“…Performance on the prelaboratory quizzes dictates the assignment of + or – to the letter grade. This requirement is the same as published for GCL-I (SI Section VII).…”

“…Instead of a broad expository coverage of topics, the new GCL-II course still takes advantage of the corequisite organic lecture (OC-I), but is structured around four spice-themed projects following the argument-driven inquiry (ADI) format developed for GCL-I. Theme-based instruction in general chemistry laboratory courses has been used to contextualize course content for students. − Thematic connections between experiments provide students a conceptual framework, make course content more relevant, , and increase student understanding , and engagement. ,,,, Because of this and the positive student response to the Gatorade theme in GCL-I, we also adopted a theme for GCL-II . Spices were chosen because their organic nature resonates with students concurrently enrolled in OC-I while still utilizing concepts from GC-II to remain accessible to off-sequence students.…”

“…Additionally, the encouraging results of the Laboratory Course Assessment Survey (LCAS) given to GCL-I students led us to continue the ADI approach in GCL-II . The LCAS measures student perception of peer collaboration, knowledge discovery, and iteration (revision and repetition) for course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) .…”