The effective implementation of evidence-based teaching (EBT) in large college courses benefits from the successful use of instructional teams. An instructional team's feedback allows instructors to act based on evidence of student learning, addressing students' needs. This feedback may be particularly important for novice instructors or…

As the 21st century progresses, we are increasingly reminded of the importance of and need for green chemistry, which also leads to the corresponding need for green chemistry education. The UC Berkeley Department of Chemistry developed a green chemistry laboratory curriculum-the "General Chemistry Green Curriculum" ("GC[superscript…

A novel teaching approach is aimed at elucidating the concept of bond enthalpy for general chemistry students. Through the integration of a hands-on candy pulling activity, students in a large lecture class were provided a tangible experience to explore bond strengths using rope candy and a luggage scale. Feedback from students indicated a clear…

Concerns regarding students' difficulties with the concept of energy date back to the 1970s. They become particularly apparent for systems involving adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which plays a central role in maintaining the nonequilibrium state of biological systems and in driving energetically unfavorable processes. One of the most…

The great development of high-throughput molecular biology techniques and the consequent generation of massive data have made Bioinformatics essential for undergraduate Bioscience students. The importance of this scientific discipline is evidenced by the huge number of specialized publications, tools, and databases available. Training in…

Background: It is well established in the literature that active learning instruction in introductory STEM courses results in many desired student outcomes. Yet, regular use of high-quality active learning is not the norm in many STEM departments. Using results of a national survey, we identified 16 departments where multiple instructors reported…

The utilization of computer simulators in university education is progressively being embraced to offer students a practical exposure to industrial bioprocesses. Bioreactor computer simulators hold various advantages over conventional laboratory experiments, such as cost-effectiveness and enhanced safety. The research objective is to assess the…

A comprehensive teaching experiment plan tailored forthird-yearundergraduates has been developed. Initially, instructors synthesize(E)-2-(4-((4-(2-hydroxyethoxy)-3-methylphenyl)­diazenyl)­phenoxy)-ethan-1-ol­(M-Azo-2)monomer as part of the preclass preparation. Subsequently, studentsperform an acylation reaction experiment to prepare an…

Many undergraduate chemistry and biochemistry students pursue careers in healthcare. Biomaterials, designed to harmonize with the complexity of the human body, have become increasingly significant in medicine as implants, drug delivery vehicles and tissue scaffolds. We believe it is essential that undergraduates are exposed to biomaterial…

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Instructional labs: Improving traditions and new directions.] This study investigated the development of four new novice graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) and one nontenure track (NTT) faculty member assigned to teach an introductory physics laboratory course based on the investigative science…

The ability to express scientific concepts in mathematical terms and integrate scientific and mathematical reasoning about a phenomenon is a foundational cognitive process involved in scientific thinking. This process called "blended math-science sensemaking" (MSS) is a desired skill for all science, technology, engineering, and math…

This paper analyzes the relationship between the development of pedagogical innovation projects in experimental sciences and the establishment and evolution of Professional Learning Communities (PLC) in higher education, within an open innovation framework. To achieve this, an evaluative study employing a mixed-methods approach was conducted,…

The Ouchterlony double immunodiffusion technique is used as a teaching tool for studying immune responses and exemplifying differences in antigen-antibody reactions. Although commonplace in undergraduate labs, standardized commercial kits limit learning experiences because they have fixed modalities of use, a low shelf-life, and impose budgetary…

Research from other STEM disciplines suggests that a systems thinking approach can motivate students to learn content meaningfully and in a way that empowers them to use their knowledge to benefit the world around them. However, systems thinking is not currently widespread in chemistry education. As instructors' beliefs influence their classroom…

Triterpenic acids (TA), a class of triterpenoids, are widely distributed as secondary metabolites in plants. They have a pentacyclic structure and show high structural diversity. In this work, a simple but efficient method for extraction and detection of TA derivatives from apple peels is described. The method is technically straightforward and…