Journal of Chemical Education最新文献

A series of experiments, including organic ligand synthesis, spectroscopic characterization, metal binding studies, and spectroscopic titrations, were designed for second- and third-year undergraduate students in the Department of Chemistry at Capital Normal University. Over the course of 2 weeks, all four students, each with varying GPAs, successfully completed the entire process, and all students learn to interpret NMR titration data to distinguish 2:1 vs 1:1 lanthanide binding stoichiometries. Participants were expected to have a foundational understanding of organic chemistry, coordination chemistry, and analytical chemistry. This comprehensive training reinforced students’ theoretical understanding and provided practical experience applicable to future studies in metal coordination and extraction. Moreover, through literature research and team-based learning, the students deepened their understanding of lanthanide chemistry and solution coordination behavior through NMR techniques. This experience will better equip them for advanced studies in graduate school.

To enhance innovative awareness, practical skills, and environmental consciousness of students, an innovative chemical experiment focusing on the green and low-carbon synthesis of Ag₉(SiO₄)₂NO₃ (ASN) and the photocatalytic degradation performance and mechanism of antibiotics was introduced to undergraduates. In this experiment, students were guided to synthesize ASN via a coprecipitation method and subsequently perform comprehensive analyses using various characterization techniques, including phase, morphological, and photoelectrochemical analyses. The photocatalytic degradation performance was then evaluated using antibiotics (oxytetracycline and ciprofloxacin) as target pollutants. This teaching practice has shown that ASN synthesized by students exhibited significantly superior antibiotic degradation performance compared with P25 and g-C₃N₄. The integrated system encompassing synthesis, characterization, application, and mechanistic study effectively cultivated interdisciplinary knowledge integration skills, instrument operation proficiency, and data analysis literacy of students, while reinforcing green chemistry principles and innovative scientific thinking. The course employed a multifaceted quantitative assessment system along with a team-based discussion and feedback mechanism, creating a teaching closed-loop that deeply integrated foundational training with innovative practice. This model offers a replicable approach for talent cultivation in the fields of new materials and environmental chemistry.

The integration of knowledge from various chemical subdisciplines into postgraduate education is helpful for developing students’ versatile problem-solving skills. This study demonstrates a practical experiment designed for postgraduates that successfully merges concepts and techniques from inorganic, analytical, and food chemistry. In this experiment, students first synthesized silver nanoparticles using the classical sol–gel method (inorganic chemistry). They then employed UV–vis absorption and Raman spectroscopy (analytical chemistry) to detect nitrite via its diazo reaction with toluidine blue, which yields a clear visual color change and a quantifiable decrease in signal intensities. Finally, we apply this method to analyze nitrite levels in real food samples (food chemistry). This integrated approach provides students with hands-on experience in nanomaterial synthesis, spectroscopic detection, and food safety analysis, effectively bridging the gap among different fields of chemistry.

Headspace gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (headspace GC-MS) is a gold standard for identifying and confirming volatile compounds. This laboratory experiment introduces gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, and other important instrumental concepts and theories that apply to many disciplines of chemistry. This is achieved through the analysis of commonly targeted volatile compounds in forensic toxicology laboratories including ethanol, isopropanol, 1,1-difluoroethane, and acetone. This experiment is suitable for a wide variety of chemistry courses and addresses multiple learning outcomes, including those related to hands-on batch sample preparation and analytical data processing. Students are tasked with preparing aqueous calibrators and controls to determine the concentration of ethanol and the presence or absence of qualitative analytes in a simulated vitreous humor sample. Students then objectively evaluate the data through complex analysis methods using acceptance criteria. This experiment was conducted in a Forensic Toxicology course over three Spring semesters, with over a 92% success rate of students reporting accurate results. This experiment is easily adjustable based on student skill level, number of students, and resources available. Headspace GC-MS as an analysis tool also offers the benefits of minimal sample preparation and minimal instrument maintenance compared with GC-MS with liquid sampling and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry.

In undergraduate STEM programs, students typically develop their teamwork and communication skills by working in groups to solve problems, complete projects, and conduct laboratory experiments. While such active learning exercises positively impact the achievement and retention of students, they can also be a significant source of anxiety, especially for those with identities marginalized in STEM (e.g., women, racial/ethnic minorities, mental health differences). Yet, these demographic factors have not commonly been considered when designing and evaluating such exercises. To address this gap, we collected survey data exploring the ways students feel about working in groups and analyzed how identity characteristics and factors related to achievement. Our findings revealed significant relationships between anxiety regarding group work, STEM identity, and the interaction of gender and mental health (including psychosocial distress and neurodevelopmental differences) upon academic performance. Female students reported higher levels of group work anxiety and lower STEM identity compared to their male counterparts. Similarly, students with mental health conditions experienced elevated group work anxiety and lower STEM identity. This is particularly concerning since stronger STEM identity is related to higher academic performance. Our findings suggest an urgent need for chemical educators to carefully design group work experiences in consideration of both visible and invisible student identities, taking into consideration potential impacts of psychosocial stress and neurodevelopmental differences, especially since introductory chemistry courses act as gateway courses for most STEM majors.

To address the challenge of teaching the abstract concepts underlying solution microstructures in physical chemistry, we developed a progressive instructional module integrating molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, which was successfully implemented in undergraduate physical chemistry and statistical thermodynamics courses. This scaffolded learning approach employs three representative systems (methanol–water, ethanol–water–sodium carbonate, and butanol–water systems) across three sequential phases: (1) model construction using GROMACS software, (2) simulation and dynamic visualization of nanocluster formation, and (3) quantitative analysis of microscopic structural features including radial distribution functions, hydrogen-bonding networks, and three-dimensional spatial density distributions. Assessment data indicate that incorporating molecular simulation into courses enhances students’ understanding of theory and concepts, which are often difficult to convey through traditional lectures or media. The module also successfully stimulated student interest in computational chemistry research. Implemented nationally through China’s Virtual Simulation Platform (2,700 participants), this work provides a transferable model for incorporating research-based molecular simulation methods into physical chemistry education.

There has been an increased awareness of the hazardous properties of certain chemicals in recent years, and hexavalent chromium has hazardous properties that are recognized both in the United States and in the European Union. Several compounds containing this species have traditionally been used in school chemistry laboratories, and there is a need to find alternatives. In this article, a way to perform precipitation titration of chloride in seawater without the use of potassium chromate as the indicator is presented. A microscale titration activity that uses hydrogen phosphate and thymolphthalein as indicators was developed, and the activity contains a motivation part where the students are presented with a problem, a case where they must help an oceanographer identify her mixed samples. The activity was tested not only by high school students but also with chemistry teachers as well. Feedback from students and teachers indicates that the laboratory activity is enjoyable and easy to perform and that the chemistry is in alignment with high school curricula in the Nordic countries.

Chemistry achievement goals are a widely studied motivational variable in the field of education and a key noncognitive factor. They refer to an individual’s intrinsic reasons for completing specific tasks in chemistry learning and their understanding of the tasks. Under the guidance of multiple goal theory, this study utilized the Perceived Teacher Support Scale and the Chemistry Achievement Goal Scale, the trichotomous achievement goal framework. Using Latent Profile Analysis, the study explored the characteristic patterns of chemistry achievement goals among Chinese high school students, ultimately identifying the three chemistry achievement goal profiles as the optimal classification model: the Low Goal Group, the Moderate Group, and the Achievement-Oriented Group. The study employed the robust three-step method (R3STEP) and the BCH method to establish a regression mixture model. The results showed that perceived teacher support and students’ class positions had a significant impact on the involvement profiles of chemistry achievement goals. Students who perceived stronger teacher support were more likely to belong to the Achievement-Oriented and Moderate Goal Groups, while students with class positions were more likely to belong to the Achievement-Oriented Group, compared to those without class positions. Based on these findings, specific teaching strategies were proposed for different goal groups to develop students’ core competencies in the chemistry subject.

In an era marked by climate change, resource depletion, and environmental degradation, there is a growing imperative to integrate sustainability into science and engineering education. To effectively address the present global challenges, tertiary-level students pursuing science and engineering, must not only develop expertise in their respective technological fields but also acquire competencies to analyze the sustainability aspects of their work. Tertiary education, therefore, entails an effective integration of sustainable competencies into science and engineering curricula. One essential competency in this aspect is the ability to perform Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)─a useful tool that helps to evaluate the environmental impact of materials and products across their entire lifespan. While the incorporation of quantitative LCA is common for postgraduate programs, its integration at the undergraduate level remains limited. This article describes an instructional approach for introducing LCA to undergraduates as part of a science-based sustainability module. This pedagogical model aims to foster critical thinking and environmental awareness by encouraging students to assess the environmental impact of a product holistically throughout its life cycle (i.e., cradle-to-grave) from raw material acquisition to production, use, and end-of-life disposal. Designed for first-year undergraduate students at Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) with limited prior exposure to sustainability science, this methodology implements an innovative dual-tool pedagogical strategy─use of both Excel-based spreadsheets and commercial LCA software (Ansys Granta EduPack). Furthermore, this pedagogical approach is complemented by guided worksheets as well as real-world case studies providing students with structured support and practical context for applying Life Cycle Assessment. Subsequently, students apply these insights in their design projects. Given the size of the first-year enrollment at SUTD (approximately 500 students), this instructional model also addresses logistical challenges in delivering individualized learning experiences. Nonetheless, this paper offers a practical guide for educators in sustainability, science, and engineering to incorporate LCA into their teaching, thereby empowering the next generation with tools to tackle global sustainability challenges.

Scientific models play a critical role in chemistry education, serving as tools for explaining, predicting, and illustrating complex phenomena. Numerous studies have demonstrated that students struggle with conceptualizing the transition from macroscopic observations to submicroscopic particle models. Despite extensive research, effective teaching strategies for this conceptual transition remain an active area of investigation. Models and their coherent representations offer potential explanatory approaches to address these challenges. This study investigates the impact of three model types, Augmented Reality (AR), Haptic-Interactive (HI), and Illustrative (IL), on students’ epistemological understanding of the particle model. A quasi-experimental design was implemented with 248 eighth-grade students across six schools. Results demonstrate that both AR and IL models significantly improved students’ epistemological understanding compared to HI models, with no significant difference between AR and IL. These findings highlight the potential of AR and IL for fostering conceptual understanding in science education. Implications for pedagogical practice and future research directions are discussed.