JCE ChemEd Xchange provides a place for sharing information and opinions. Currently, articles, blogs and reading lists from ChemEd X contributors are listed below. We plan to include other items that the community wishes to share through their contributions to ChemEd X.
Millions of years of evolution has endowed brown (Ursus arctos) and black (Ursus americanus) bears with the enviable metabolic capacity to starve themselves for a long period of time and still survive. Truly, bears are chemist extraordinaires and their hibernation chemistry overall is arguably without equal in the mammalian world. Let's take an introductory look at what's going on.
Ever wonder why some call precipitation reactions "double decomposition". Perhaps (or perhaps not) two (double) salts are sort of splitting apart (decomposing?) and then reforming with other radicals. But a solvent (usually water) is necessary to achieve the desired effect. But is adding water to a salt really decomposition?
The November 2019 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education is now available online to subscribers. Topics featured in this issue include: biochemistry and visualizations; fostering effective explanations and instructions; learning through games and contests; green chemistry; investigations involving light; discovery-based laboratories; innovations in teaching; chemistry teacher experiences; foundations of chemistry; from the archive: infrared imaging.
As high school teachers, we know that understanding how measurement works is crucial for lab skills and for understanding significant figures. We think measurement should be an easy topic for students to learn; especially because we know that teachers begin working with students in elementary school to teach these skills. However, I, and many other teachers, have spent countless hours teaching and reteaching a seemingly simple skill.
A couple of days ago on Twitter, the ever-lasting debate between lecture and active learning reignited due to some talks at an Educational Research Conference held in Dublin. These talks stated direct guidance (which includes lecture) was superior in terms of student learning due its reduction of students’ cognitive load. The main citation used for this argument was an article by Kirschner, Sweller, and Clark published in 2006. So, let’s dive into what this article says.
The Devil's Milkshake is a simple, yet interesting chemistry experiment that fits well as a Halloween demo.
Standards based grading (SBG) is a method of assessment that is gaining in popularity. There is ample research to suggest that students who participate in SBG do just as well or even better than those students in traditional classrooms
Want to heat up a department meeting? Just propose that all courses have an on-line option and watch as some colleagues have strong opinions about it- be it on one side or the other. What overlooked component can be distilled from a normal in-person course into an online that could have a significant impact? Perhaps the face-to-face “live” interaction.
Erica Jacobsen shares highlights from the October 2019 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education of special interest to our ChemEd X community.
The flipped-classroom approach to education is undoubtedly popular, with consistent growth in the number of related books, conference sessions, and educator network memberships. Although active-learning may not be any more beneficial in a flipped classroom compared to a traditional classroom, it is clear that a flipped class can increase the frequency of active-learning opportunities.
