The course-based undergraduate research experiences (CURE) approach is increasingly being used in undergraduate experimental courses. Here, we describe the implementation of CURE in an upper-level inorganic chemistry course, in which students were assigned different current themes to study. This paper focuses on the theme of quantum dots,…

The use of primary literature can be an effective way to expose students to the scientific research process. At the same time, primary literature can be intimidating to many students, particularly those with limited exposure to science research. The CREATE (consider, read, elucidate hypotheses, analyze and interpret the data, and think of the next…

Of the three main subdivisions in chemistry, physical chemistry often presents a challenge when delivered to those not majoring in chemistry or its cognate disciplines. This is, at least in part, due to the seemingly unrelatedness of the subject to students' anticipated career. We describe the redesign of a nested physical chemistry course for…

The skills and knowledge of the employers of chemists have been explored in varying degrees of specificity. Some studies have argued that the current university curriculum does not prepare students for modern industry adequately, while others have provided an overview of the job market for graduates with a bachelor's degree in chemistry. In order…

Chemical waste should be reduced to minimize environmental pollution, and it is important that the amount of waste is minimized in chemistry teaching laboratories to reduce the negative impact on environment as well as the disposal costs of university. There are several ways to minimize the waste generated in chemistry teaching laboratories,…

Developing a broadly based positive culture of safety in undergraduate instructional laboratory settings remains a significant challenge for chemical educators. An enhanced safety component has been developed for an upper-level laboratory course based on earning a Chemical Hygiene and Safety badge. The badge requires student engagement in…

"Beer Brewing: Chemical and Biochemical Principles" is a 15 week laboratory and lecture course specifically designed for nonscience majors as an introduction to science literacy via structured laboratory experiments that encourage student engagement. It provides students with a foundation in chemical and biochemical principles using a…

A teaching team composed of a faculty member (lecture) and a graduate teaching assistant (lab) endeavored to engage students enrolled in several sections of the same organic chemistry course through the use of social media. Students were encouraged to follow both instructors on Twitter and were asked to share aspects of the class using the social…

An original integrated course called "Chemistry: Magical Science" at Montpellier University (France) is presented. This approach mixes tutorials and practical work by using the pretext of high-tech materials synthesis to teach students knowledge, skills, and practical techniques. It also educates students about chemical risks and…

During a short chemometrics course in the seventh semester of the chemistry undergraduate program, students receive a brief theoretical introduction to multivariate calibration, focused on partial least-squares regression as the most commonly employed data processing tool. The theory is complemented with the use of MVC1_R, an easy-to-use software…

A semester-long hypothesis-driven laboratory project for second-semester biochemistry has been developed. Working independently, students propose a hypothesis about the role of one amino acid residue in the active site of 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate synthetase (MTHFS). They then test this hypothesis by site-directed mutagenesis of a plasmid…

Green chemistry and sustainability have garnered more awareness in the chemical industry in recent years, but green chemistry classes are still not commonplace for either the undergraduate or graduate student curriculum. Additionally, many departments are seeking avenues to reach greater numbers and types of learners through online courses. To…

Cheminformatics is a widely used interdisciplinary field that is important for many chemistry areas. Cheminformatics skills are necessary for dealing with a large amount of chemical information and are considered essential for various tasks such as data analysis, visualization, storage, etc. This paper presents the basic cheminformatics chemistry…

Introductory-level laboratory courses provide students with hands-on experience using the discipline's tools and theories. These courses often rely on recipe-based experiments due to the constraints of large enrollments, short lab periods, and the desire to minimize complexity. In addition, covering a breadth of topics can lead to a fragmented…

Many students associate grades with the completion of course work rather than learning the course content. While research has heavily focused on teaching strategies and instructional tools to improve students' learning in general chemistry, less focus has been given to assessments as a learning tool to improve students learning. Standards-based…