A key part of the practice of chemistry is the analysis of chemical composition, including through gravimetric analysis and spectrophotometry. However, the complexity of doing multiple calculations to obtain analytical evidence, such as that required to determine an empirical formula, presents a challenge if such analytical methods are to be…

A national survey of chemists (n = 174) explored the self-reported format and focus of postsecondary inorganic chemistry instructional laboratory curricula. Multiple instructional laboratory course formats were observed, including stand-alone inorganic chemistry instructional laboratory courses, inorganic chemistry laboratory instruction as a…

As college biology educators we want students learning how to conduct their own scientific investigations. This means designing laboratory curricula in which students exercise control and responsibility over the knowledge building actions of an investigation--that is, in which they exercise "epistemic agency." Our current understanding…

In an idealized General Chemistry Laboratory curriculum, students would hone their experimental design ability with practice encouraged by laboratory exercises designed to be open-ended. However, traditional General Chemistry Laboratory courses often lack opportunities for students to design their own experiments, instead opting to provide…

This study reviewed the green and sustainable chemistry education (GSCE) research that provided training at the tertiary level from 2000 to 2024. The Web of Science and ERIC databases were screened using title and abstract review. In total, 49 studies were analysed. The analysis instrument has two main parts, namely, general characteristics of the…

Practical skills in chemistry are considered an essential outcome of an undergraduate chemistry degree. To achieve this, chemistry curricula are designated a substantial number of hours in teaching laboratories. However, the general method of a summative assessment of these sessions is through a written laboratory report and not through the actual…

Reform efforts in Taiwan have added a mandatory 'Scientific Inquiry and Practice' curriculum for all high school students, emphasising 'inquiry-based learning content' including observing and questioning, planning and carrying out an investigation, argumentation and modelling, and expression and sharing. The purpose of this study was to develop an…

We reported a redesign of a physical chemistry laboratory course (CHEM 166) for our chemistry majors at the University of Vermont carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic. We started to teach this course after a curriculum reform, which split an upper-division undergraduate laboratory course into physical and analytical chemistry laboratories. To…

A physics laboratory instructor used action research to effectively implement a 5E instructional approach, which incorporated scientific practices. The instructor explored how to integrate the instructional approach into practice, challenges present in the implementation, and students' learning experiences. The data were collected during three…

Writing a lab report can be an opportunity for students to engage in scientific thinking. Yet students' lab reports often do not exhibit evidence of such engagement. Students' writing can appear focused on "filling in" required components and reporting on predetermined conclusions. We conducted a design experiment in an introductory…

Laboratory practicals engage students in complex thinking to build their scientific knowledge and understanding. Surprisingly few studies connect the development of students' cognitive and metacognitive skills for learning in the laboratory practical with foundational skills for researching. Librarians strive to establish teaching partnerships…

Providing opportunities for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics undergraduates to engage in authentic scientific practices is likely to influence their view of science and may impact their decision to persist through graduation. Laboratory courses provide a natural place to introduce students to scientific practices, but existing…

Leading voices in the biological sciences have called for a transformation in graduate education leading to the PhD degree. One area commonly singled out for growth and innovation is cross-training in computational science. In 1998, the University of Tennessee (UT) founded an intercollegiate graduate program called the UT-ORNL Graduate School of…

In experimental physics, lab notebooks play an essential role in the research process. For all of the ubiquity of lab notebooks, little formal attention has been paid to addressing what is considered "best practice" for scientific documentation and how researchers come to learn these practices in experimental physics. Using interviews…

The Next Generation Science Standards ("NGSS") were developed by teachers, scientists, and leaders in science and science education from around the country and are endorsed by the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), a partner in the development of the "NGSS." This article presents an example of how to modify a lab to…