High School Chemistry Students Research Articles

A three-attribute transfer skills framework – part II: applying and assessing the model in science education

In an era in which information is rapidly growing and changing, it is very important to teach with the goal of students' engagement in life-long learning in mind. This can partially be achieved by developing transferable thinking skills. In our previous paper – Part I, we conducted a review of the transfer literature and suggested a three-attribute transfer skills framework presented graphically as a cube. The goals of this paper – Part II are (a) to investigate the application of the three-attribute transfer skills framework by conducting two studies; and (b) to demonstrate the value of the framework as a tool for design of assignments and assessment of students' transfer skills. In this paper, we have applied the three-attribute transfer skills framework to design assignments and to assess middle and high school students. In order to achieve the first goal we conducted two studies: (1) investigating high school chemistry students in a computerized laboratory setting, and (2) exploring middle school students who were exposed to a science enrichment program. Study 1 took a case-based chemistry approach and included assessment of high school honor chemistry students' transfer skills. In Study 2, we evaluated the transfer skills of ninth grade students who had participated in a science enrichment academic program with emphasis on physics and we compared boys to girls. Findings of Study 1 indicated an increase in students' far transfer skill as expressed by the progress students made in transferring knowledge from chemistry to other science domains and by using more chemistry understanding levels in their responses. In Study 2, we found that the near transfer skill of middle school boys was significantly higher than the same skill among girls who participated in the same enrichment program. Both parts, the review and the three-attribute transfer skills framework (previous paper – Part I) and the research (this paper – Part II), contribute to narrowing the gap between the theory of transfer, empirical research, and the practice of transfer in science classrooms.

Effects of the Flipped Classroom Model on Student Performance for Advanced Placement High School Chemistry Students

This mixed-methods study investigated the effects of the flipped classroom on academic performance of high school advanced placement chemistry students. Student perceptions about the approach were also studied. The control group consisted of students from the 2011–2012 academic year, in which traditional teaching methods were used. The treatment group consisted of students from the 2012–2013 academic year, in which the flipped classroom approach was used. Identical assessments were administered and analyzed through both descriptive statistics and independent t tests. A statistically significant difference was found on all assessments with the flipped class students performing higher on average. In addition, most students had a favorable perception about the flipped classroom noting the ability to pause, rewind, and review lectures, as well as increased individualized learning and increased teacher availability. This contribution is part of a special issue on teaching introductory chemistry in the context of the advanced placement (AP) chemistry course redesign.

Conflicts in Chemistry: The Case of Plastics, A Role-Playing Game for High School Chemistry Students

Conflicts in Chemistry: The Case of Plastics, an innovative role-playing activity for high school students, was developed by the Chemical Heritage Foundation to promote increased public understanding of chemistry. The pilot program included three high school teachers and their students at three different schools and documented implementation and participants’ experiences using a third-party evaluator. The activity allows students to engage in debate regarding current science policy issues linked to competing values and interests. Developers crafted the activity so that students could learn about the chemistry of plastics, formulate arguments regarding issues affecting their daily lives and learn to relate those arguments to public policy, think critically about how the history of science and technology provides perspectives on contemporary life, and cultivate their ability to question simple narratives and consider multiple viewpoints. Analysis of students’ written products and survey responses suggest th...

“But Aren’t Diesel Engines Just for Big, Smelly Trucks?” An Interdisciplinary Curriculum Project for High School Chemistry Students

In a collaboration between the University of North Florida College of Education and Human Services and Sandalwood High School in Duval County, Florida, social studies and science education professors and a science teacher worked together to develop student understanding about the limited use of diesel-fueled cars in the United States when compared to the countries of Europe. On the basis of discussions with a Sandalwood science faculty member and calls for subject matter integration from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the National Research Council, the National Science Teachers Association, and the National Council on the Social Studies, we developed a collaborative teaching experience to both enhance high school science instruction and build stronger professional connections between college and high school faculty. Through this instruction, high school chemistry students examined the costs and benefits of using diesel vehicles and used this analysis to explain the differences be...

The Impact of Argumentation on High School Chemistry Students’ Conceptual Understanding, Attitude towards Chemistry and Argumentativeness

Argumentation activities, which have become prominent in the education literature, are an important process to improve conceptual understanding. According to researchers there is a relationship between the argumentation and conceptual change, and thus argumentation enhances conceptual understanding since an argument deals with disagreement, which is the first step of conceptual change. The purpose of this research is to explore the impact of classroom-based argumentation on high school students’ conceptual understanding of chemistry concepts, their attitude towards chemistry, and argumentativeness when compared to traditional teaching approach. A quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest, control group design was used. The study was conducted with 53 students in Grade 9 and with the same students in the Grade 10. Implementations lasted 13 weeks in the first year and 8 weeks in the second year. The concept tests, attitude scale towards the chemistry, and argumentativeness scale were applied on both groups. Interviews to reveal the level of student understandings not defined by the concept tests were conducted at the end of each year with 6 students from each group. According to multivariate analysis of variance results, it was found that the experimental group students’ conceptual understanding, attitude toward chemistry, and argumentativeness were significantly higher than those of the control group students.

Learning quantum chemistry via a visual-conceptual approach: students' bidirectional textual and visual understanding

Most undergraduate chemistry courses and a few high school honors courses, which focus on physical chemistry and quantum mechanics, are highly mathematically-oriented. At the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, we developed a new module for high school students, titledChemistry – From “the Hole” to “the Whole”: From the Nanoscale to Microelectronics. The module is based on a qualitative approach to teaching quantum chemistry, emphasizing interdisciplinary real-life applications and integration of visualization. While aimed at honors high school chemistry students, the module was also partially implemented and assessed in an undergraduate chemistry course. The research objective was to investigate the effect of the module on the visual and textual understanding of quantum mechanical concepts among 122 honors and 65 volunteer undergraduate chemistry students. The research tools included students' pre- and post-questionnaires. High school honors and undergraduate students, who were exposed to the module, significantly improved their textual and visual understanding of quantum mechanical concepts and their ability to move across illustrations and explanations. Honors and undergraduate students minimized the gap that had existed between them in terms of integrating micro and quantum levels into their post-questionnaire answers. Our findings augment the current set of the four chemistry understanding levels – macro, micro, symbol and process – by adding the quantum mechanical level as a fifth level of chemistry understanding. The study contributes to teaching physical chemistry by providing a tool for learning, assessment, and research of chemistry understandingviaboth visual and textual modes.

Microfluidics for High School Chemistry Students.

We present a laboratory experiment that introduces high school chemistry students to microfluidics while teaching fundamental properties of acid-base chemistry. The procedure enables students to create microfluidic systems using nonspecialized equipment that is available in high school classrooms and reagents that are safe, inexpensive, and commercially available. The experiment is designed to ignite creativity and confidence about experimental design in a high school chemistry class. This experiment requires a computer program (e.g., PowerPoint), Shrinky Dink film, a readily available silicone polymer, weak acids, bases, and a colorimetric pH indicator. Over the span of five 45-min class periods, teams of students design and prepare devices in which two different pH solutions mix in a predictable way to create five different pH solutions. Initial device designs are instructive but rarely optimal. During two additional half-class periods, students have the opportunity to use their initial observations to redesign their microfluidic systems to optimize the outcome. The experiment exposes students to cutting-edge science and the design process, and solidifies introductory chemistry concepts including laminar flow, neutralization of weak acids-bases, and polymers.

Photosynthesis in Dynamic Animations

Our contribution provides information about an educational program called “Photosynthesis in Dynamic Animations”. This program was created in Adobe flash and is designed for high school chemistry students.

An Inquiry-Based Investigation of Controlled-Release Drug Delivery from Hydrogels: An Experiment for High School Chemistry and Biology

A laboratory experiment on controlled-release drug delivery systems is presented. The intended audience is high school chemistry and biology students. The exercise is meant to complement curriculum on diffusion, enzyme reactions, and polymerization. In the experiment, students used a gelatin hydrogel as the drug delivery system and food dye as a drug. Bromelain, a protease found in pineapples, was used to mimic the enzyme-rich environment of the human body. Bromelain cleaved the gelatin fibers, thus increasing the rate of release. The release of the food dye from the gelatin was measured by spectrophotometry. Students generated and tested hypotheses regarding the effect of gelatin and enzyme concentrations on release. Students were then asked to analyze the release data and to determine if their conclusions matched their hypotheses. The experiment can be adapted as structured, guided, or open inquiry-based instruction.

How Dynamic Visualization Technology can Support Molecular Reasoning

This paper reports the results of a study aimed at exploring the advantages of dynamic visualization for the development of better understanding of molecular processes. We designed a technology-enhanced curriculum module in which high school chemistry students conduct virtual experiments with dynamic molecular visualizations of solid, liquid, and gas. They interact with the visualizations and carry out inquiry activities to make and refine connections between observable phenomena and atomic level processes related to phase change. The explanations proposed by 300 pairs of students in response to pre/post-assessment items have been analyzed using a scale for measuring the level of molecular reasoning. Results indicate that from pretest to posttest, students make progress in their level of molecular reasoning and are better able to connect intermolecular forces and phase change in their explanations. The paper presents the results through the lens of improvement patterns and the metaphor of the “ladder of molecular reasoning,” and discusses how this adds to our understanding of the benefits of interacting with dynamic molecular visualizations.

Displacement between Orders of Magnitude Method for SI Unit Conversion

The displacement between orders of magnitude (DBOM) method was introduced to help high school chemistry and physical science students perform conversions between units of the international system (SI). Students were taught how to numerically solve for the total number of placements between a set of units. The integer value, representing the DBOM, determines the multiples of 10 by which the coefficient should be reduced or increased. Further, the DBOM method gives a scaling factor between dissimilar SI units. This communication defines and gives instruction on how to teach the DBOM method within the classroom.

Can Collaborative Knowledge Building Promote Both Scientific Processes and Science Achievement?

This study investigated the role of collective knowledge building in promoting scientific inquiry and achievements among Hong Kong high-school chemistry students. The participants included 34 Grade 10 (15-16 years old) students who engaged in collective inquiry and progressive discourse, using Knowledge Forum@, a computer-supported learning environment. A comparison class of 35 students also participated in the study. The instructional design, premised on knowledge-building principles including epistemic agency, improvable ideas and community knowledge, consisted of several components: developing a collaborative classroom culture, engaging in problem-centered inquiry, deepening the knowledge-building discourse, and aligning assessment with collective learning. Quantitative findings show that the students in the knowledge-building classroom outperformed the comparison students in scientific understanding with sustained effects in public examination. Analyses of knowledge-building dynamics indicate that the students showed deeper engagement and inquiry over time. Students’ collaboration and inquiry on Knowledge Forum significantly predicted their scientific understanding, over and above the effects of their prior science achievement. Qualitative analyses suggest how student’s knowledge-creation discourse, involving explanatory inquiry, constructive use of information and theory revision,can scaffold scientific understanding.

Novel Model-Based Inquiry of Ionic Bonding in Alginate Hydrogels Used in Tissue Engineering for High School Students

Because of cost and time, it is difficult to relate to students how fundamental chemical principles are involved in cutting edge biomedical breakthroughs being reported in the national media. The laboratory exercise presented here is aimed at high school chemistry students and uses alginate hydrogels, a common material used in tissue engineering, to help students explore the relationship between chemical bonding and material properties while relating it to the field of tissue engineering. In addition, this lab is designed as a model based inquiry exercise to provide a better understanding of how contemporary science is practiced. The lab is intended to be used as part of a four day curriculum on tissue engineering but can be done together with the supporting curriculum or separately. The exercise is inexpensive, approximately $6.00 per student group and can be performed in low-resource laboratories, as it requires no elaborate equipment. The students who completed these exercises showed enhanced understanding of ionic bonding and were able to describe how such bonding related to the properties of materials.

South Korea Tops Chemistry Olympiad

With each of its four participants earning a gold medal, the 44th International Chemistry Olympiad team from South Korea emerged as the top performer in the event, held on July 21–30 at the University of Maryland, College Park. Dow Chemical was the sole sponsor of this year’s competition, and ACS’s Education Division, under Director Mary M. Kirchhoff, provided all planning for the event. In all, 34 gold, 58 silver, and 87 bronze medals were awarded to 283 of the top high school chemistry students from 72 countries. In other highlights, the teams from Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), Russia, and India each earned three gold medals and a silver. China earned two gold and two silver medals. Gold medalist Florian Berger of Germany had the highest individual score. Members of the U.S. team put on a solid performance. Christopher Hillenbrand earned a gold medal, and team members Jason Ge, James Deng, and ...

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ PROFICIENCY AND CONFIDENCE LEVELS IN DISPLAYING THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF BASIC ELECTROLYSIS CONCEPTS

This study was conducted with 330 Form 4 (grade 10) students (aged 15 – 16 years) who were involved in a course of instruction on electrolysis concepts. The main purposes of this study were (1) to assess high school chemistry students’ understanding of 19 major principles of electrolysis using a recently developed 2-tier multiple-choice diagnostic instrument, the Electrolysis Diagnostic Instrument (EDI), and (2) to assess students’ confidence levels in displaying their knowledge and understanding of these electrolysis concepts. Analysis of students’ responses to the EDI showed that they displayed very limited understanding of the electrolytic processes involving molten compounds and aqueous solutions of compounds, with a mean score of 6.82 (out of a possible maximum of 17). Students were found to possess content knowledge about several electrolysis processes but did not provide suitable explanations for the changes that had occurred, with less than 45 % of students displaying scientifically acceptable understandings about electrolysis. In addition, students displayed limited confidence about making the correct selections for the items; yet, in 16 of the 17 items, the percentage of students who were confident that they had selected the correct answer to an item was higher than the actual percentage of students who correctly answered the corresponding item. The findings suggest several implications for classroom instruction on the electrolysis topic that need to be addressed in order to facilitate better understanding by students of electrolysis concepts.

Investigating a Method of Scaffolding Student-Designed Experiments

The process of designing an experiment is a difficult one. Students often struggle to perform such tasks as the design process places a large cognitive load on students. Scaffolding is the process of providing support for a student to allow them to complete tasks they would otherwise not have been able to complete. This study sought to investigate backwards-design, one form of scaffolding the experimental design process for students. Students were guided through the design process in a backwards manner (designing the results section first and working backwards through typical report components to the materials and safety sections). The use of reflective prompts as possible scaffold for metacognitive processes was also studied. Scaffolding was in the form of a computer application built specifically for this purpose. Four versions of the computer application were randomly assigned to 102 high school chemistry students and students were asked to the design of an experiment, producing a report. The use of backwards-design scaffolding resulted in significantly higher performance on lab reports. The addition of reflective prompts reduced the effect of backwards-design scaffolding in lower-level students.

Assessing high school chemistry students’ modeling sub-skills in a computerized molecular modeling learning environment

Much knowledge in chemistry exists at a molecular level, inaccessible to direct perception. Chemistry instruction should therefore include multiple visual representations, such as molecular models and symbols. This study describes the implementation and assessment of a learning unit designed for 12th grade chemistry honors students. The organic chemistry part of the unit was taught in a Computerized Molecular Modeling (CMM) learning environment, where students explored daily life organic molecules through assignments and two CMM software packages. The research objective was to investigate the effect of the CMM learning unit on students’ modeling skill and sub-skills, including (a) drawing and transferring between a molecular formula, a structural formula, and a model, and (b) transferring between symbols/models and microscopic, macroscopic, and process chemistry understanding levels. About 600 12th grade chemistry students who studied the CMM unit responded to a reflection questionnaire, and were assessed for their modeling skill and sub-skills via pre- and post-case-based questionnaires. Students indicated that the CMM environment contributed to their understanding of the four chemistry understanding levels and the links among them. Students significantly improved their scores in the five modeling sub-skills. As the complexity of the modeling assignments increased, the number of students who responded correctly and fully decreased. We present a hierarchy of modeling sub-skills, starting with understanding symbols and molecular structures, and ending with mastering the four chemistry understanding levels. We recommend that chemical educators use case-based tools to assess their students’ modeling skill and validate the initial hierarchy with a different set of questions.

A Simple System for Observing Dynamic Phase Equilibrium via an Inquiry-Based Laboratory or Demonstration

This article describes an activity that can be used as an inquiry-based laboratory or demonstration for either high school or undergraduate chemistry students to provide a basis for understanding both vapor pressure and the concept of dynamic phase equilibrium. The activity includes a simple setup to create a closed system of only water liquid and vapor where volume can be varied. As volume is varied, the vapor pressure remains constant. However, this challenges common misconceptions and can be contrasted with the same system containing only gaseous air. Through discussion, students are challenged to understand the molecular basis for the difference between the two systems and conclude that the liquid–vapor system maintains constant pressure due to phase equilibrium. Through further reasoning, the idea of dynamic equilibrium is illustrated and students come to see that particles are in constant movement within a system even though it appears stationary from the macroscopic view.

Household Water Treatments in Developing Countries

Household water treatments (HWT) can help provide clean water to millions of people worldwide who do not have access to safe water. This article describes four common HWT used in developing countries and the pertinent chemistry involved. The intent of this article is to inform both high school and college chemical educators and chemistry students of this important application of chemistry and to inspire current and future chemists to participate in the global effort to develop effective, sustainable methods to purify water at the household level.

High School Chemistry students' scientific epistemologies and perceptions of the nature of laboratory inquiry

This quantitative study investigated the relationship between Chemistry students' scientific epistemologies and their perceptions of the nature of laboratory inquiry. Seventy-two Advanced Level Chemistry students were surveyed. The students were sampled from twelve schools in three of Zimbabwe's nine administrative provinces. Students' scientific epistemologies were determined through a 31-item Likert-type questionnaire. Their perceptions of the nature of inquiry in A-level Chemistry laboratory work were assessed through a 25-item Likert-type questionnaire. A correlational analysis revealed a very weak relationship between students' scientific epistemologies and their perceptions of the nature of inquiry in their laboratory work. Seventy-two percent of the sampled students were found to hold largely positivistic and fairly traditional scientific epistemologies. As a group, the surveyed students were found to perceive the level of inquiry in their A-level Chemistry laboratory work to be generally low. The twelve sampled schools were reasonably homogeneous with respect to both scientific epistemologies and perceptions of the nature of laboratory inquiry. Both students' scientific epistemologies and perceptions of the nature of laboratory inquiry were found not to be related to gender. Implications for both the theory and practice of chemistry education are raised.