Development and Use of a Flowchart as a Scaffolding Tool for Isomeric Relationships in Organic Chemistry

Abstract

Isomerism is an important concept in organic chemistry, causing compounds with the same molecular formulas to show different physical and chemical properties as a result of different arrangements of the atoms. In this study, a flowchart that brings together various concepts related to isomerism for different topics in organic chemistry courses and that helps students determine the isomeric relationships between compounds was developed, and its effectiveness was examined. This flowchart comprises two main concepts: constitutional isomers and stereoisomers. The main concept of stereoisomers includes the concepts of conformers and configurational isomers. The generated flowchart was carefully developed to be comprehensive in terms of the concepts it contained and appropriate for the undergraduate level. The study was carried out with 36 students enrolled in Organic Chemistry I and II courses of a state university. The students were given a set of questions consisting of 20 items, and they were asked to determine the isomeric relationships between pairs of compounds and to write justifications with and without the flowchart. In addition, all students were interviewed, and their opinions about the effectiveness of the flowchart were obtained. The findings revealed that the students’ use of the flowchart significantly improved their performance in determining and explaining isomeric relationships. In addition, the students found the flowchart useful in the process of answering the questions, because it helped them remember concepts and also guided them. These results show that the flowchart developed in this study as a pedagogical tool for isomerism in organic chemistry is effective.