Survey of Long-Term Integrated Laboratory Use in Undergraduate Chemistry Programs

Implementation of a Student-Customized Integrated Upper-Level Chemistry Laboratory Course

“…A 1979 survey to which 34 North American academic departments responded revealed that chemistry faculty perceive both academic and logistical benefits, and philosophical and academic objections, to the use of integrated experiments . A 1995 survey which sought to explore the use and longevity of integrated laboratories indicated that while integrated laboratories were generally judged to be superior to nonintegrated alternatives in terms of student learning, 6 out of 12 responding institutions reported that they had stopped or would soon stop using them, citing educator time, engagement, and issues around assigning responsibility as reasons for the discontinuation . Similar findings appear in reports of integration initiatives at single institutions. ,, Educators have reported that framing their reformation effort as addressing a specific problem, fostering departmental “ownership” of the program, supporting faculty members to spend time on the development work, establishing a collaborative body with responsibility for the laboratory program, and considering how to optimize the physical laboratory space appeared to support successful implementation of an integrated delivery model.…”

“…Student experiences of integrated laboratory delivery and the perceived benefits have been explored mainly via educator perspectives. 4 An educator suggested that an increase in student numbers may have been the result of their integrated delivery model for laboratories. 12 While several accounts of initiatives mention advantages and/or disadvantages for students, 8,11,15,17 and one includes direct quotes from students, 20 detailed explorations of student experiences do not appear to be available in the published literature.…”

“…In terms of organization and curriculum, such courses may be linked to classroom-based courses, stand alone, focus on a single area of chemistry, or focus on certain parts of the scientific process. Here the focus is upon “integrated” models for laboratory instruction, where “integration” refers to the bringing together of two or more traditionally disparate areas of chemistry in laboratory experiences . At our institution, four series of upper-level undergraduate laboratory experiments, each focusing on a specific area of chemistry, have recently been combined into a single, stand-alone course.…”

“…Various delivery models for laboratory instruction in chemistry involving some form of “integration” have been reported for more than 40 years . This term is used to describe both entire courses ,− and individual experiments. ,, In terms of courses, a range of implementations of integration have been reported.…”

Integrating Lecture and Laboratory Work for a Materials Chemistry Course to Engage and Motivate Students through Highly Visual and Intriguing Syntheses

“…Other examples of courses based on materials science are described in the literature. 12 For more than 40 years, 13 different approaches including the term "integrated" have been undertaken in order to improve undergraduate chemistry education. This term can have different meanings such as a laboratory course in the same physical space 14 or a program of study combining subdisciplines of chemistry into a single laboratory sequence.…”