Environmental Chemistry Course Research Articles

Student Involvement in Online Tutorial Activities for Environmental Chemistry Course

Distance education students learn through networks. This study aims to analyze student involvement in online tutorial activities. This research is a survey research to all students participating in the online tutorial of the Environmental Chemistry course. Data was obtained from 26 students who filled out and returned questionnaires from 42 students who participated in online tutorial activities for environmental chemistry courses. The instrument used is a questionnaire containing questions developed from 6 indicators of student involvement in learning. The data obtained are analyzed descriptively. The results obtained show that: 1) Students tend to be motivated to follow online tutorials (agree = 76.53%, strongly agree = 14.44%), 2) Students are able to collaborate with friends in tutorials (agree = 71.42%, strongly agree = 28.57%), 3) Students are able to solve cognitive problems (agree = 90.46%, strongly agree = 9.53%), 4) Students are able to interact with lecturers (agree = 88.56%, strongly agree = 11.44%), 5) Students feel supported by the community (agree = 92.85%, strongly agree = 5.36%), and 6) Students are able to manage their learning (agree = 76.17%, strongly agree = 21.92%). Other research results in the form of student expectations statements, namely: 1) Online tutorial materials should be made more innovative, 2) increase practice questions, 3) prefer if lecturers respond directly to the results of discussions in a faster time so that students can improve discussions and become more active. Other responses conveyed by students are: 1) students like to gain knowledge and open new interesting insights related to environmental problems, 2) students want to deepen the material, 3) students are motivated to find solutions to problems faced in the field, 4) tutors pay enough attention because they remind students of the deadlines for completing discussions and assignments.

Implementing team-based learning in a large environmental chemistry course and its impact on student learning and perceptions

Team-based learning (TBL) is an instructional strategy where students participate in a set of activities including, applying course concepts to real-life case studies in instructor-selected teams. Here, we describe how TBL has been incorporated into a 3rd year, large, environmental chemistry course and investigate the benefits of using this strategy. A combination of pre/post survey and coursework data were analyzed to understand: (1) What were student perceptions of TBL? (2) How did using TBL to deliver content influence student learning, measured by exam performance? (3) How did students’ team skills evolve? Post-survey results indicate that students perceived TBL as enhancing their interest in course content, creating real-world connections, and most helpful for achieving practical critical thinking skills. Student performance on TBL-related final exam items was significantly better (Mean = 73%, SD = 21%) than non TBL-related final exam items, (Mean = 65%, SD = 21%), despite the level of complexity being similar between the two categories. The pre/post survey results indicate that, as compared to the start of term, students reported being significantly more comfortable expressing opinions in group meetings (t(78) = 4.25, p < 0.001, Cohen's d = 0.48), and leading group discussions (t(78) = 3.11, p = 0.003, Cohen's d = 0.35), by the end of the term. The one-minute reflections (completed following the first and fifth TBL activities) indicated that there was a 14% increase (77% vs. 91%) in the number of students reporting on collective team decision making. This study demonstrates the wide-ranging positive impacts of TBL to student learning in a large Environmental Chemistry course all while enhancing active learning and applying chemistry concepts to relevant and real-life case studies.

Development of Test Instruments Based on Cognitive Processes and Knowledge Dimensions on Environmental Chemistry

This research aims to develop an instrument that can measure the achievement of student learning outcomes in chemistry education in Environmental Chemistry courses, which refers to Bloom's Taxonomy, which has been revised along with the dimensions of knowledge from Anderson & Krathwohl. The research method used in this research is research and development with 4 (four) stages of research 1) define; 2) design; 3) develop; and 4) dissemination. The validation of this instrument was carried out by two experts in the field of chemistry and tested on 20 students. The instrument used is in the form of a description that takes the cognitive domains C1 to C3. In addition, in the instrument there are also 4 (four) dimensions of knowledge tested, namely factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive. Based on the results of expert validation, it was found that in content there were no problems only in the use of verbs in the instrument requiring more operational verbs and based on the test results it was found that all the questions given showed that 30.15% of the questions were categorized as easy, 44, 80% were categorized as moderate and 25.05% were categorized as difficult. This study shows that the knowledge dimension in Bloom's taxonomy needs to be applied by considering the knowledge dimension to develop thinking skills in students.

Analysis of the relationship between students’ argumentation and chemical representational ability: a case study of hybrid learning oriented in the environmental chemistry course

Abstract Engaging students in collaborative learning fosters the expression of ideas, deepens understanding, and hones argumentation skills. Argumentation is pivotal, and instructors should facilitate opportunities for its practice. In the study on an environmental chemistry course, class conversations were recorded to analyze students’ contributions to online learning. Participants shared opinions, raised objections, and built on others’ answers. The instructor played a crucial role in harmonizing collaboration and guiding comprehensive argumentation. The study found claims and data as the most basic and common elements of argumentation. However, more complex components like rebuttal and backing warrants often need instructor intervention. While claims and data typically relied on one form of representation, such as macroscopic or symbolic, warrants demanded multiple dimensions, predominantly symbolic and submicroscopic. Toulmin’s arguments and Mahaffy’s tetrahedral ability of chemical representation were used for analysis. The findings highlighted that argumentation skills and chemical representation are intertwined, with certain argumentative components calling for specific representational dimensions. Collaborative online learning, thus, can enhance student participation and multifaceted skill development.

Interactive Learning for Water Pollution Awareness: A Game-Based Approach

This research explores the potential of interactive educational games as a tool to enhance environmental literacy, with a specific focus on water pollution issues. The study introduces a designed game encompassing various interactive modules, such as word games, drag-and-drop tasks, multiple-choice questions, evaluations, and an environmental literacy survey. The validation test was carried out by three validators consisting of material expert lecturers and media experts. The average rcount value for validation test results across material aspects, language aspects, and display (media) aspects was calculated as follows: 0.85, 0.92, and 0.84, resulting in an overall rcount value of 0.87. This overall value signifies high validity and strong interpretational significance. Furthermore, the feasibility test was carried out on 15 chemistry education students who had taken environmental chemistry courses. The average rcount of the feasibility test results from all aspects obtained a percentage value of 87%. This study highlights the importance of game design, evaluating long-term impacts, and integrating interactive games into educational curricula.

How Partial Anonymity May Reduce Students’ Anxiety During Remote Active Learning─A Case Study Using Clubhouse

Active learning, a common practice in higher education, has been shown to promote higher order thinking and skills. Class discussions have been chosen to be the medium to incorporate active learning in schools‘ curriculum. However, the rate of class participation could be low for certain courses. Literature has shown that the fear of negative evaluation from peers is the most common reason as to why students choose not to partake in class discussions. Anonymity via clickers or applications such as Kahoot! has shown to be useful in reducing students’ anxiety and increasing class participations. However, this is not a viable method to employ if vocal discussion is required for the course. Here, partial anonymity (voice only), Speak Your Mind, was applied into an environmental chemistry course with 20 students in the National University of Singapore (NUS) to study its correlation with students‘ anxiety and class participation. Participants survey results suggested that a reason for not participating in class discussions was the fear of being judged by their peers. Remote learning was conducted due to COVID-19 and partial anonymity was obtained by a proxy application: Clubhouse. This application allowed students to partake in a podium discussion while maintaining psychological safety via partial anonymity. Participants survey responses indicated that partial anonymity reduced their anxiety (Cohen’s d = 0.58) and slightly increased their self-reported class participation rate (Cohen’s d = 0.21); it was noted that partial anonymity did not have much effect on their fears of being judged if they provided the wrong answer (Cohen’s d = 0.11).

Pengembangan Instrumen Penilaian Kreativitas Mahasiswa pada Matakuliah Kimia Lingkungan

This study aims to develop creative research instruments for prospective chemistry teacher students in environmental chemistry courses. This instrument was developed using the 4D model, but was carried out until the expert validation test stage was carried out by 3 expert validators who were competent in the field. The results of the validation carried out by the three validators obtained an average score of 3.62 with very valid criteria. The instrument questions were made based on the TTCT-V (Torrance Test of Creative Thinking Verbal) on water pollution. Besides being able to see creative thinking abilities, this test can also show students' cognitive abilities and problem solving. However, it is necessary to carry out further research to see the practicality and effectiveness of the developed test instrument.

Measuring Perfluoroalkyl Acid Contamination at a Local Hot Spot: An Authentic Field-Based Laboratory Experience in a Senior Analytical Environmental Chemistry Course

Measuring Perfluoroalkyl Acid Contamination at a Local Hot Spot: An Authentic Field-Based Laboratory Experience in a Senior Analytical Environmental Chemistry Course

Field-Based Environmental Chemistry Course for Interdisciplinary, Project-Based Learning

Faculty in the Chemistry and Environmental Science programs at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas, collaborated to develop an undergraduate course in Field-Based Environmental Chemistry. The course was developed and implemented as a 2-semester, 1-semester, and online, synchronous course offered during the 2020/21 COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the course, chemistry and environmental science majors designed and executed a sampling and laboratory analysis plan for monitoring the physical and chemical conditions of soil and/or water in a local, urban setting. As part of a goal to help students develop communication skills, they presented their work to stakeholders from the local community. Through participation in an active learning model, students demonstrated significant gains in the student learning outcomes. Students in the 2-semester sequence showed gains in their understanding of the scientific process, more comfort with the uncertainty and the ambiguity of natural environments, and appreciation for the importance of statistics in data analysis. The online course and COVID-19 pandemic restrictions did not allow for student field or laboratory work but did engage students in a project typical of a work environment.

Profile of Computational Thinking Skills in Environmental Chemistry Courses for Prospective Science Teacher Students

Computational thinking skills are not only provided to students in computer-related courses, but also in all courses, including Environmental Chemistry courses. Environmental chemistry courses are considered important because they orient students to the achievement of scientific literacy and awareness. Therefore, optimization of learning in environmental chemistry courses also needs to be carried out to support the achievement of CPL which includes 21st-century life skills, including computational thinking skills. science teacher candidates. The research method follows 3 stages of field study, namely preparation, data collection, and data analysis. The results of the study show that the Science Education Study Program has poured CT skills into CPL, environmental chemistry lectures are still dominated by theoretical explanations by lecturers, lecturers do not understand the concept of CT, and CT skills are very important to provide students.

ХИМИЯ МУГАЛИМДЕРИНИН ЭКОЛОГИЯЛЫК БИЛИМДЕРИН ӨРКҮНДӨТҮҮ

At present, environmental education and the upbringing of schoolchildren and university students remains one of the most important issues of the day. In this regard, acquaintance with the scientific research of different countries showed that there are certain activities in the field of Chemical and Environmental Education in schools. For example, the program of the "environmentalism" Chemistry Course, developed in Russia and in the Kyrgyz Republic, provides an ecological approach to the study of Chemistry ainall types of schools. The need to introduce the twelve principles of Green Chemistry presented in the book "Green Chemistry: Theory and Practice" was explained by interpreting the several questions. This paper emphasizes that Chemistry Teachers need to not only teach the subject but also to improve their environmental knowledge and skills in addition to their chemical knowledge. Keywords: Environmental Education and Training, Environmental Problems / Issues, Environmental Chemistry Course, "Green Chemistry", Goals and Principles of the Green Chemistry.

Teaching Reform and Practice in the Environmental Chemistry Course from a Mining and Metallurgy Perspective

Teaching Reform and Practice in the Environmental Chemistry Course from a Mining and Metallurgy Perspective

Applying Electron Spin Density Visualization to Teaching Free Radical Related Reaction in Environmental Chemistry Course

Applying Electron Spin Density Visualization to Teaching Free Radical Related Reaction in Environmental Chemistry Course

Analisis Kemampuan Awal Literasi Lingkungan Mahasiswa dalam Pembelajaran Kimia Lingkungan

This study aims to determine the initial environmental literacy ability of prospective chemistry teacher students in environmental chemistry courses. This research is a descriptive research with a quantitative approach. The research population is 90 students who take environmental chemistry MK. The sample is a saturated sample, so all the population is used as the research sample. The results showed that the initial ability of prospective chemistry teacher students from the three indicators observed was Concern for the environment with an average score of (3.10) categorized as moderate. Knowledge of the environment with an average score of (3.35) is categorized as moderate. The application of environmental knowledge with an average score of (3.8) is categorized as good.

Environmental chemistry course assisted problem-based learning in developing students’ higher-order thinking skills and characters.

Character development and higher-order thinking abilities are crucial in environmental chemistry courses because they can motivate students to care about the environment. Environmental chemistry courses can benefit from a problem-based learning approach. Students learn to think critically and analytically, as well as locate and use relevant learning resources, through problem-based learning. This was a quasi-experimental study that used a pre-test post-test design. The goal of this study was to describe how problem-based learning was implemented in environmental chemistry classes and how it influenced the development of higher-order thinking abilities and student personalities. Data was gathered through an essay test that required higher-order thinking skills, and students' personalities were determined through an inventory. ANOVA statistics were used to evaluate the data. The stages of concept presentation, presentation of factual problems in various forms, group discussions, and class discussions were used to implement problem-based learning in the Environmental Chemistry course; (2) problem-based learning can significantly improve students' higher-order thinking skills and characters; and (3) high-order thinking skills contribute significantly to character development.

Kinetics and Pathways of the Aqueous Photolysis of Pharmaceutical Pollutants: A Versatile Laboratory or Remote Learning Investigation

In this laboratory experiment, students explore the aquatic photochemical fate of ranitidine and cimetidine, two common pharmaceutical pollutants found in wastewater. It provides an engaging environmental context for students to develop knowledge of reaction kinetics and photochemistry as well as skill in using analytical instrumentation. This versatile experiment consists of two basic modules, three optional advanced modules, and additional add-ons that may be performed in various combinations to meet the unique learning objectives of general, analytical, physical, and environmental chemistry courses and science outreach activities. It may be performed as a traditional lab experiment or as an entirely remote exercise with an increased focus on data analysis and interpretation using provided example data sets. All of the photolysis experiments are carried out by preparing solutions of ranitidine or cimetidine in various matrices, irradiating the samples, and periodically removing subsamples for HPLC analysis of the compound of interest. Pseudo-first order kinetic plots are then generated to determine rate constants that are used to draw conclusions about photolysis pathways or to calculate additional kinetic parameters. In the two basic modules, cimetidine is found to degrade appreciably only when irradiated in the presence natural organic matter (NOM), indicating an indirect, photosensitized degradation pathway. In contrast, ranitidine degrades in pure buffer and in the presence of NOM with comparable rate constants, highlighting the predominant role of direct photolysis. In the advanced modules, students calculate ranitidine direct photolysis quantum yields and examine the significance of singlet oxygen as a photochemically produced reactive intermediate. The two basic modules may be completed in two 3 hour lab periods, while the advanced modules require additional time. This experiment requires only an HPLC instrument, inexpensive chemicals, and common glassware and lab equipment if performed in person and a personal computer if performed remotely.

Extracting and Quantifying Deuterated Bisphenol A from Planaria Using Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry: An Integrative Laboratory Experiment

With the enormous reliance on plastics in the world today, bisphenol A, an additive used in the synthesis of many plastics, such as polycarbonate, has been found almost everywhere in our environment including in soil, in natural waters, and inside organisms including humans. A multidisciplinary experiment is presented that involves using flatworms (Planaria), which are model organisms common to undergraduate biology courses, to study the extent of retention or absorption of bisphenol A following exposure. Planaria were exposed to micromolar concentrations of deuterated bisphenol A in order to distinguish the amount of the compound retained from the (undeuterated) bisphenol A that is present as a contaminant in the environment. Liquid extraction was used to remove retained deuterated BPA from Planaria, and the extract was derivatized and quantified using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. This experiment is geared toward students in a laboratory research course or independent study experience. It would also be appropriate in analytical or environmental chemistry courses to help students understand how contaminants in our environment brought about from manufacturing processes can be measured and quantified. Students will learn standard techniques in extraction and analysis to quantify their findings.

Yoshihara Laboratory, Material and Environmental Chemistry Course, Department of Fundamental Engineering, School of Engineering, Utsunomiya University

Yoshihara Laboratory, Material and Environmental Chemistry Course, Department of Fundamental Engineering, School of Engineering, Utsunomiya University

Collaborative Environmental Science Courses: Bridging between Undergraduate Research into Energy Issues in Malaysia and the United States

With support from the EnviroLab Asia initiative at the Claremont Colleges, I redeveloped my Environmental Chemistry course for undergraduates to focus on environmental issues in Asia. I collaborated with a colleague from the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) who was teaching a similar course for master’s-level students in Bangi, Malaysia. Our students worked on projects together comparing different aspects of renewable energy in the two countries. At the end of the semester, my students traveled to UKM for a symposium with my colleague’s students and continued working on their research projects to turn them into publishable papers. The Claremont Colleges students greatly benefited from both the academic and cultural learning that occurred during our travel. I am currently developing a network of faculty at universities in Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies who have their students work on data-gathering and/or analysis projects that can be useful for policymaking by the APEC Energy Working Group.

Exploration on the Reform of Ideological and Political Teaching of Environmental Chemistry Course

To carry out curriculum ideological and political education is to thoroughly implement the whole staff, the whole process, and all-round education. Taking the environmental chemistry course as an example, it introduces the feasibility of developing ideological and political education, and analyzes how to realize the integration of environmental chemistry courses and ideological and political education from the aspects of changing concepts, carefully designing teaching content, and playing the role of training courses and experimental courses. Integration has achieved certain results, providing reference and reference for environmental majors to carry out related courses ideological and political education.