Waste, a byproduct of human activity, can cause environmental pollution if released without proper processing. It can accumulate in piles, disturbing natural beauty and emitting unpleasant odors. The aim of this research is to from the students to care about the environment by learning with the Bubble Wrap Recycling Project, Used Plastic and…

Four distinct plastics recycling projects created by middle school students emerged from a one-week long plastics recycling activity incorporated within a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) residential summer camp at a research-intensive university. The plastics recycling activity was a project-based learning (PBL) activity…

Makerspaces have become very popular in education because they "provide hands-on, creative ways to encourage students to design, experiment, build, and invent as they deeply engage in science, engineering, and tinkering" (Cooper 2013). Not only do makerspaces provide a safe learning environment for students to develop their 21st century…

A multiple day activity for students to create large-scale plastic objects from the biopolymer chitin (major component of lobster, crab, and shrimp shells) is described. The plastic objects created are durable and made from benign materials, making them suitable for students to take home to play with. Since the student-created plastic objects are…

An upper-division undergraduate polymer chemistry course was developed as a blended/hybrid course. The students met face-to-face once a week for 75 min with all other components being available online. Face-to-face meetings were used for class discussions/problem-based lectures, student presentations, hands-on activities, and examinations. Online…

A project in which students designed environmentally responsible food packaging is described. The problem definition; research on topics such as waste paper, plastic, metal, glass, incineration, recycling, and consumer preferences; and the presentation design are provided. (KR)

Each Tuesday during the fall of 2002, teams of high school students from three South Carolina counties conducted a four-hour polymer institute for their peers. In less than two months, over 300 students visited the Charleston County Public Library in Charleston, South Carolina, to explore DNA, nylon, rubber, gluep, and other polymers. Teams of…