Analytical chemistry has often been a difficult subject to teach in a classroom or lecture-based context. Numerous strategies for overcoming the inherently practical-based difficulties have been suggested, each with differing pedagogical theories. Here, we present a combined approach to tackling the problem of teaching analytical chemistry, with…

In this article, the author describes a chemistry gas experiment that she developed with the intent of integrating inquiry and Problem-Based Learning (PBL). The lab activity follows the principles of Ambitious Science Teaching (AST). Teachers (1) engage students with important science ideas, (2) elicit students' ideas while making visible what…

The realisation that education may, in part, have contributed to non-sustainable environmental practices warrants rethinking about what learners experience at school. One approach could involve the promotion of education for sustainable development (ESD). This study analysed the opportunities to integrate ESD presented by the chemistry component…

Improving communication between people in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields and the public is critical to the future of STEM. Partnerships between institutions of higher education with K-12 schools are identified as one effective strategy to support community engagement. We have employed a service-learning model to…

Chemical equilibrium is one of the most important yet difficult topics to teach. The purpose of this study was to examine how two science teachers experienced the mediation of and how they mediated learning of this topic, chemical equilibrium, to high-achieving students. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, lesson observations and…

Many students enroll in college general chemistry with an interest in a medical career. In those (and alternative) careers, they will need to make critical decisions about data and how that data are acquired. A significant portion of introductory lab experiments are, in principle, but not necessarily in practice, devoted to understanding how…

This research investigates the use of student-generated animations in the teaching and learning of chemistry. Previous research has identified the potential for animations to contribute to student learning in science. In particular, animations have the capacity to represent the dynamic process and motions that may be inherent in some chemical…

Connection-making among multiple representations is a crucial but difficult competence in STEM learning. Prior research has focused on one type of learning process involved in connection-making: sense-making processes leading to conceptual understanding of connections. Yet, other research suggests that a second type of learning process is…

Laboratories studying the anisotropic rotational diffusion of bromobenzene using nuclear spin relaxation and molecular dynamics simulations are described. For many undergraduates, visualizing molecular motion is challenging. Undergraduates rarely encounter laboratories that directly assess molecular motion, and so the concept remains an…

This article presents a qualitative study, descriptive-interpretive in profile, of the effectiveness in learning about the nature of science (NOS) of an activity relating to the historical controversy between Pasteur and Liebig on fermentation. The activity was implemented during a course for pre-service secondary science teachers (PSSTs)…

The purpose of this research is to comparatively investigate the efficacy levels of pre-service science (Science, Biology, Physics, and Chemistry) teachers enrolled at the Undergraduate Program of Science Teacher Education and Pedagogical Formation Program. A total of 275 pre-service teachers who were studying in different programmes in the…

Numerous computational and spectroscopic studies have demonstrated the decisive role played by nonadiabatic coupling in photochemical reactions. Nonadiabatic coupling drives photochemistry when potential energy surfaces are nearly degenerate at avoided crossings or truly degenerate at unavoided crossings. The dynamics induced by nonadiabatic…

The four representative models that define oxidation-reduction reactions are often used differently in different situations or contexts in chemistry textbooks. Although integrated models have been suggested to overcome the confusion caused by this, they have not been successful. We therefore aim to interpret the causes for difficulties in the…

The Periodic Table of Elements is central to the study of modern Physics and Chemistry. It is however, considered by teachers as difficult to teach. This paper reports on a case study exploring reflections on teaching periodic table concepts in five secondary schools from South Africa. Qualitative methodology of interviews and document analysis…

As students increasingly use online chemistry animations and simulations, it is becoming more important to understand how students independently engage with such materials and to develop a set of best practices for students' use of these resources outside of the classroom. Most of the literature examining students' use of animations and…