This study explores the importance of general chemistry as a prerequisite for organic chemistry lecture courses. The students taking organic chemistry were categorized into three groups: (1) those who had finished the prerequisite before starting organic chemistry, (2) those who had not finished the prerequisite before starting organic chemistry,…

In an ongoing effort to increase student retention and success in the undergraduate general chemistry course sequence, a fully online preparatory chemistry course was developed and implemented at a large public research university. To gain insight about the efficacy of the online course, an observational study was carried out in which student…

The two major impetuses to improve STEM education are the shift to online learning and increasing active learning and engagement. Although the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a rapid shift to online learning, this shift came at the cost of losing on-ground active learning strategies. This study provides descriptive analytical information on the…

We designed, implemented, and evaluated a game-based learning approach to increase student motivation and achievement for an undergraduate physical chemistry course. By focusing only on the most important game aspects, the implementation was realized with a production ratio of 1:8 (study load in hours divided by production effort in hours).…

A first-year chemistry course is ideal for introducing students to finding and using scholarly information early in their academic careers. A four-pronged approach (lectures, homework problems, videos, and model solutions) was used to incorporate library research skills into a large lecture-based course. Pre- and post-course surveying demonstrated…

A student-centered learning technique, process-oriented, guided-inquiry learning (POGIL), has been developed as a pedagogical technique that facilitates collaborative and cooperative learning in the chemistry classroom. With the use of this technique, students enhance their higher-order thinking skills and process skills synergistically. In…

A peer mentoring program was added to an introductory chemistry course at a large university. The introductory chemistry course prepares students with little or no previous chemistry background to enter the mainstream general chemistry sequence and is part lecture and part small-group problem-solving. Faculty instructors are responsible for the…

We report the results of a study designed to investigate the effectiveness of peer-led, small-group discussions in a large (N greater than 400) general chemistry course usually taught in a traditional lecture format. The administrative structure, the training of the peer facilitators, and the achievement of students exposed to this environment…