Aqueous solutions have proved to be a challenging topic for chemistry students at all levels. An understanding of what is happening at the molecular level in aqueous processes such as dissolution is key to understanding the macroscopic properties of the system as well as to communicating fluently with chemical symbols. In this study, we examined…

Successful problem solving is a complex process that requires content knowledge, process skills, developed critical thinking, metacognitive awareness, and deep conceptual reasoning. Teaching approaches to support students developing problem-solving skills include worked examples, metacognitive and instructional scaffolding, and variations of these…

Scaffolds can be seen as a suitable tool to support students' learning chemistry. Digital task navigators, written scaffolds that support students in solving tasks in organic chemistry, were developed, used, and evaluated for this study. A paper task navigator was further developed into a digital task navigator, which included links to…

There has been extensive work within chemistry education research to characterize organic chemistry students' engagement in key science practices like "constructing explanations" and "engaging in argument from evidence". Less has been done to consider how organic chemistry students interact with empirical data, outside of…

A structured series of activities has been designed and implemented to promote analysis and data reporting skills for second-year organic chemistry students. Student report sheets were developed to assist students in reporting necessary data for their compounds. A series of rubrics have been utilized by students to promote metacognition and by…

Marble, formed by the metamorphism of limestone, is commonly used in the construction industry and sculpting. The mineral in marble is either calcite [CaCO[subscript 3]] or dolomite [CaMg(CO[subscript 3])[subscript 2]] or sometimes both. The pure white Carrara marble from Italy was made a household name by Michelangelo, the famous sculptor of the…

The use of large language model Generative AI (GenAI) systems by students and instructors is increasing rapidly, and there is little choice but to adapt to this new situation. Many, but not all, students are using GenAI for homework and assignments, which means that we need to provide equitable access for all students to AI systems that can…

We describe a scaffolded assessment activity that introduces students to the essential theories and principles of chromatography. This summative assessment was redesigned to introduce scaffolded and "fill-in-the-blank" questions about the chromatographic separation of mixtures. In addition to analyzing chromatograms and interpreting…

Reading and understanding scientific literature is an essential skill for any scientist to learn. While students' scientific literacy can be improved by reading research articles, an article's technical language and structure can hinder students' understanding of the scientific material. Furthermore, many students struggle with interpreting graphs…

Molecular symmetry plays an important role in many areas of chemistry, and students are generally taught to identify intramolecular symmetries at the undergraduate level. Intermolecular symmetry, the symmetry among groups of molecules, is of great importance in topics such as X-ray crystallography, but it receives substantially less attention.…

In chemistry, building arguments and applying concept knowledge is closely linked to evaluating claims, supporting claims with evidence, and justifying the linkage of evidence to claim with reasoning. However, previous studies revealed that, when building arguments, students experience challenges either in differentiating between argument…

General Chemistry I is known as a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) gatekeeper, often playing a role in determining students' STEM college pathways and their career prospects. However, there have been recent efforts to transform General Chemistry I from a gatekeeper course into a gateway course by implementing equity approaches.…

Powerful arguments have been made recently to advocate for the introduction of systems thinking in chemistry education to equip graduates to address sustainability challenges. This contribution describes systems thinking activities and an assessment tool that enables meaningful learning in first-year organic chemistry as students engage with the…

In this report we present a method to incorporate applied catalysis research into the multiyear educational undergraduate program of Chemical Engineering at the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences (UAS). In this way the total student population is introduced to research and thereby contributes to the scientific output of the department, and…

With many universities now admitting students into their science programs with little or no prior knowledge of the relevant field, significant challenges arise in the way these fields are introduced. Challenges mount with various preconceived ideas regarding the levels of difficulty, thus necessitating introductory concepts be presented in…