How has the pandemic accelerated the transformation of Analytical Chemistry education from Generation Z to Alpha?

Mariela Pistón
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There was no time to identify with any generation… suddenly we were all Zs (the digital generation) and additionally began to know about Generation Alpha. From my point of view, as a woman of Generation X (mavericks seeking success), and as a Professor of Analytical Chemistry, having started as an assistant in classes of this discipline in 1996, I would like to share my experience on how the pandemic irreversibly accelerated the use of digital tools, not to get closer to Generation Z, but without realizing it, reaching a transition to Generation Alpha (those born in the 2010s), despite the fact that they have not yet arrived at university. Generation X and earlier were used to face-to-face classes, to the university coexistence of many hours in the classrooms and in the libraries. Then we began to think about virtual classes, digital platforms, enabling work to be done with the help of internet resources, but suddenly... chaos! In 2020, there were worldwide restrictions on face-to-face access to university classrooms, and now what do we do? Thinking about Analytical Chemistry, we could teach the theoretical content online, but what about the experiments in the laboratory? The use of instruments? Exams and evaluations? It was real chaos; teachers experienced anxiety and higher levels of burnout. Communications via cell phones and messages became the form of contact and the number of e-mails skyrocketed. Teleworking, with the family around, work without a fixed schedule and an infringement of privacy, became the norm. Those were difficult times; those teachers closest to Generation Z adapted more quickly; for those of the Baby Boomer generation the situation accelerated their retirement processes; and for those of us from Generation X or Y... we could be considered survivors. Once the pandemic ended, at least in our university, we waited with great enthusiasm for the return to classrooms expecting to see them full of students; however, we went through another shock: the theoretical classrooms were empty. During the pandemic, a lot of recorded material was generated through digital platforms that the students themselves later requested to the authorities to be kept online, so they stopped attending theoretical classes. Now they say, “we are the owners of our time, and we can watch the videos at any time”. The first feeling was of great frustration, but we consider that this is already irreversible, so how do we adapt to these new times of post-covid teaching? In my opinion, the current teaching of Analytical Chemistry can be improved in several aspects. First, many programs focus on theory and memorizing concepts; this is rejected by the Z and Alpha generations who value focusing on the practical application of analytical methods. Furthermore, the teaching of Analytical Chemistry is often limited to traditional methods and does not focus enough on new technologies and trends in the discipline. This can leave students outdated and not well prepared for the professional world. These aspects are often the product of scarce economic resources that disable the access of undergraduate students to use sophisticated instruments; however, it is important to achieve such access, at least with several experiments throughout their careers. Based on the literature, some surveys carried out with students in our faculty, and my own experience, it is time to jump directly to what Generation Alpha will demand. Use interactive and visual materials, avoid extensive texts, and use short videos, animations, and simulations instead to explain complex chemical concepts. Relate chemistry to real-life situations since they will be interested and concentrated if they can see how it applies to their daily lives. If we explain how chemical reactions affect their heath, the food they eat, and the environment, with examples taken from the news, and generate social network content, we will catch their attention. Encourage experimentation so they can learn through hands-on experiences. Incentivize them to participate in peer-to-peer learning to promote collaboration. Another novelty is to “gamify learning” since these generation are “gamers”; for example, we can use rewards, badges, and leaderboards. This experience was used in courses of Instrumental Analysis in our faculty this year and it was a very successful strategy. The students also learn how to lead and negotiate with other students, which is very valuable because in terms of communication, Generation Alpha was diagnosed to be more closed and behave more individually than Zs; besides, they are known as “tech thumbs” (an individual action). It has been reported that this could be due to the behavior of their parents, depending on which generation the parents belong to. These are just some tips. Professors can try to make chemistry education more engaging and effective for these generations, tracking the characteristics of these generations, thus having a broad perspective to be prepared for the future. In summary, despite having been one of the teachers who suffered burnout during the pandemic, reinforced by belonging to Generation X, this crisis left, from my point of view, great learning, and adaptability. I believe that we can continue enjoying the teaching of Analytical Chemistry by adapting to new trends and that it is important to know the characteristics of the new generations. Finally, I leave my colleagues with one final question... are you ready for the era of ChatGPT and artificial intelligence?","PeriodicalId":9115,"journal":{"name":"Brazilian Journal of Analytical Chemistry","volume":"51 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1000,"publicationDate":"2023-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Brazilian Journal of Analytical Chemistry","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.30744/brjac.2179-3425.point-of-view-mpiston.n41","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"CHEMISTRY, ANALYTICAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
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Abstract

Teaching Generation Z (Zs or Centennials) has become a great challenge since students arrived at the university classrooms meeting professors of different generations, from Baby Boomers, through Generations X and Y (Millennials) and even young assistants of the same generation. This became an interesting challenge to tackle, and we thought this transition was going to take a while. But suddenly, in the year 2020, a pandemic began, something totally unexpected that left us in shock, and without a reaction time for transitions, those of us who teach experimental sciences in universities were forced overnight by the most incredible challenges to improve our creativity to maintain the quality of teaching of Analytical Chemistry. There was no time to identify with any generation… suddenly we were all Zs (the digital generation) and additionally began to know about Generation Alpha. From my point of view, as a woman of Generation X (mavericks seeking success), and as a Professor of Analytical Chemistry, having started as an assistant in classes of this discipline in 1996, I would like to share my experience on how the pandemic irreversibly accelerated the use of digital tools, not to get closer to Generation Z, but without realizing it, reaching a transition to Generation Alpha (those born in the 2010s), despite the fact that they have not yet arrived at university. Generation X and earlier were used to face-to-face classes, to the university coexistence of many hours in the classrooms and in the libraries. Then we began to think about virtual classes, digital platforms, enabling work to be done with the help of internet resources, but suddenly... chaos! In 2020, there were worldwide restrictions on face-to-face access to university classrooms, and now what do we do? Thinking about Analytical Chemistry, we could teach the theoretical content online, but what about the experiments in the laboratory? The use of instruments? Exams and evaluations? It was real chaos; teachers experienced anxiety and higher levels of burnout. Communications via cell phones and messages became the form of contact and the number of e-mails skyrocketed. Teleworking, with the family around, work without a fixed schedule and an infringement of privacy, became the norm. Those were difficult times; those teachers closest to Generation Z adapted more quickly; for those of the Baby Boomer generation the situation accelerated their retirement processes; and for those of us from Generation X or Y... we could be considered survivors. Once the pandemic ended, at least in our university, we waited with great enthusiasm for the return to classrooms expecting to see them full of students; however, we went through another shock: the theoretical classrooms were empty. During the pandemic, a lot of recorded material was generated through digital platforms that the students themselves later requested to the authorities to be kept online, so they stopped attending theoretical classes. Now they say, “we are the owners of our time, and we can watch the videos at any time”. The first feeling was of great frustration, but we consider that this is already irreversible, so how do we adapt to these new times of post-covid teaching? In my opinion, the current teaching of Analytical Chemistry can be improved in several aspects. First, many programs focus on theory and memorizing concepts; this is rejected by the Z and Alpha generations who value focusing on the practical application of analytical methods. Furthermore, the teaching of Analytical Chemistry is often limited to traditional methods and does not focus enough on new technologies and trends in the discipline. This can leave students outdated and not well prepared for the professional world. These aspects are often the product of scarce economic resources that disable the access of undergraduate students to use sophisticated instruments; however, it is important to achieve such access, at least with several experiments throughout their careers. Based on the literature, some surveys carried out with students in our faculty, and my own experience, it is time to jump directly to what Generation Alpha will demand. Use interactive and visual materials, avoid extensive texts, and use short videos, animations, and simulations instead to explain complex chemical concepts. Relate chemistry to real-life situations since they will be interested and concentrated if they can see how it applies to their daily lives. If we explain how chemical reactions affect their heath, the food they eat, and the environment, with examples taken from the news, and generate social network content, we will catch their attention. Encourage experimentation so they can learn through hands-on experiences. Incentivize them to participate in peer-to-peer learning to promote collaboration. Another novelty is to “gamify learning” since these generation are “gamers”; for example, we can use rewards, badges, and leaderboards. This experience was used in courses of Instrumental Analysis in our faculty this year and it was a very successful strategy. The students also learn how to lead and negotiate with other students, which is very valuable because in terms of communication, Generation Alpha was diagnosed to be more closed and behave more individually than Zs; besides, they are known as “tech thumbs” (an individual action). It has been reported that this could be due to the behavior of their parents, depending on which generation the parents belong to. These are just some tips. Professors can try to make chemistry education more engaging and effective for these generations, tracking the characteristics of these generations, thus having a broad perspective to be prepared for the future. In summary, despite having been one of the teachers who suffered burnout during the pandemic, reinforced by belonging to Generation X, this crisis left, from my point of view, great learning, and adaptability. I believe that we can continue enjoying the teaching of Analytical Chemistry by adapting to new trends and that it is important to know the characteristics of the new generations. Finally, I leave my colleagues with one final question... are you ready for the era of ChatGPT and artificial intelligence?
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疫情是如何加速分析化学教育从Z世代向Alpha世代的转变的?
教授Z世代(Z世代或千禧一代)已经成为一项巨大的挑战,因为学生们来到大学教室,遇到的是不同世代的教授,从婴儿潮一代到X世代和Y世代(千禧一代),甚至是同一代的年轻助理。这成为了一个有趣的挑战,我们认为这种转变需要一段时间。但突然之间,在2020年,一场大流行开始了,一些完全出乎意料的事情让我们震惊,没有反应时间进行过渡,我们这些在大学里教授实验科学的人在一夜之间被迫面对最难以置信的挑战,提高我们的创造力,以保持分析化学的教学质量。我们没有时间去认同任何一代人,突然间我们都成了z世代(数字世代),并且开始了解Alpha世代。从我的观点来看,作为一个女人的X一代(小牛寻求成功),分析化学教授,开始在1996年作为助理类的学科,我想分享我的经验的大流行不可逆转地加速数字工具的使用,不要接近Z一代,但没有意识到这一点,达到过渡到一代α(出生在2010年代),尽管他们还没有来到大学。X一代和更早的一代习惯了面对面的课程,习惯了在教室和图书馆里共处许多小时的大学生活。然后我们开始考虑虚拟课程,数字平台,使工作能够在互联网资源的帮助下完成,但是突然之间……混乱!2020年,世界范围内对面对面进入大学教室进行了限制,现在我们该怎么办?想想分析化学,我们可以在网上教授理论内容,但是实验室里的实验呢?仪器的使用?考试和评估?真是一片混乱;教师经历了焦虑和更高程度的倦怠。通过手机和短信交流成为联系的方式,电子邮件的数量猛增。有家人在身边的远程办公、没有固定时间表的工作和侵犯隐私成为了常态。那是一段艰难的时期;那些最接近Z世代的教师适应得更快;对于婴儿潮一代来说,这种情况加速了他们的退休进程;对于我们这些X世代或Y世代的人来说……我们可以算是幸存者。疫情结束后,至少在我们的大学里,我们怀着极大的热情等待着重返教室,期待看到教室里坐满了学生;然而,我们经历了另一个震惊:理论教室是空的。在疫情期间,许多记录材料是通过数字平台生成的,学生们后来要求当局将这些材料保存在网上,因此他们停止了理论课。现在他们说,“我们是时间的主人,我们可以在任何时候看视频”。第一种感觉是非常沮丧,但我们认为这已经是不可逆转的,那么我们如何适应后疫情教学的新时代?在我看来,目前的分析化学教学可以从几个方面进行改进。首先,许多课程侧重于理论和记忆概念;这被Z和Alpha世代所拒绝,他们重视分析方法的实际应用。此外,分析化学的教学往往局限于传统的方法,对学科的新技术和发展趋势关注不够。这可能会让学生过时,没有为职业世界做好充分准备。这些方面往往是经济资源稀缺的产物,使本科生无法使用复杂的仪器;然而,获得这样的机会是很重要的,至少在他们的职业生涯中要进行几次实验。根据文献、对我们学院的学生进行的一些调查,以及我自己的经验,是时候直接跳到阿尔法一代的需求了。使用互动和视觉材料,避免冗长的文本,使用短视频、动画和模拟来代替解释复杂的化学概念。将化学与现实生活联系起来,因为如果他们能看到化学如何应用于他们的日常生活,他们就会感兴趣并集中注意力。如果我们用新闻中的例子解释化学反应如何影响他们的健康、他们吃的食物和环境,并生成社交网络内容,我们就会引起他们的注意。鼓励他们进行实验,这样他们就可以通过亲身体验来学习。鼓励他们参与点对点学习,促进合作。另一个新奇之处是“游戏化学习”,因为这一代人是“游戏玩家”;例如,我们可以使用奖励、徽章和排行榜。 这一经验被用在了今年我们学院的仪器分析课程中,这是一个非常成功的策略。学生们还学会了如何领导和与其他学生谈判,这是非常有价值的,因为在沟通方面,阿尔法一代被诊断为比z一代更封闭,行为更个人化;此外,他们被称为“科技拇指”(一种个人行为)。据报道,这可能是由于父母的行为,这取决于父母属于哪一代。这些只是一些建议。教授可以尝试让化学教育对这几代人更有吸引力和更有效,跟踪这几代人的特点,从而拥有广阔的视野,为未来做好准备。总之,尽管我是一名在疫情期间精疲力竭的教师,而且我属于X一代,但在我看来,这场危机给我留下了很好的学习能力和适应能力。我相信,通过适应新的趋势,我们可以继续享受分析化学的教学,了解新一代的特点是很重要的。最后,我留给同事们最后一个问题……你准备好迎接ChatGPT和人工智能的时代了吗?
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来源期刊
CiteScore
1.60
自引率
14.30%
发文量
46
期刊介绍: BrJAC is dedicated to the diffusion of significant and original knowledge in all branches of Analytical Chemistry, and is addressed to professionals involved in science, technology and innovation projects at universities, research centers and in industry.
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