Being able to contextualise and solve complex problems is a highly valued skill in STEM graduates--a skill which we strive to nurture in our students. Since its introduction into undergraduate teaching, laboratory teaching has been used to consolidate students conceptual understanding, develop their practical skills and inculcate an evidence based…

We propose the use of a smartphone based apparatus as a valuable tool for investigating the optical absorption of a material and to verify the exponential decay predicted by Beer's law. The very simple experimental activities presented here, suitable for undergraduate students, allows one to measure the material transmittance including its…

An integrated laboratory experiment applying concepts and techniques from organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and instrumental analysis is presented for use in the undergraduate curriculum. This experiment highlights the synthesis, characterization, and use of tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (TPMA) to make complexes with different metal salts. It…

Many types of batteries power an ever-growing number of devices. Electrochemical devices like batteries and fuel cells can, in principle, exceed Carnot efficiency for energy conversion. In this novel laboratory experiment, students explore the partitioning of the enthalpy change of a battery's electrochemical reaction between useful electrical…

Recent advances in spectroscopy and computational chemistry facilitate the introduction of current spectroscopic and computational methods at the undergraduate level. Students obtain and analyze experimental and calculated vibrational spectra (infrared and Raman) of a set of alkyne molecules to determine the role of symmetry with respect to gross…

We have developed an integrated, project-oriented curriculum for undergraduate molecular biology and biochemistry laboratory courses spanning two semesters that is organized around the "ldhA" gene from the yogurt-fermenting bacterium "Lactobacillus bulgaricus," which encodes the enzyme d-lactate dehydrogenase. The molecular…

A simple and reliable didactic laboratory has been developed to illustrate fundamental concepts of hydrophilicity, hydrophobicity, wetting, and spreading phenomena for undergraduate students. The described laboratory includes preparation of surfactant solutions at different concentrations and applying droplets of these solutions on a hydrophobic…

Unlike the large number of laboratory experiments on phase-transfer catalysis (PTC) that focus on a catalyzed chemical process, the present laboratory emphasizes the mechanism of phase transfer catalysis itself. Students can follow visually the actual transfer of the reagent by the catalyst, and its consumption in the organic phase, in a…

Although lab activities play an important role in physics teaching, many of these activities do not attain the expected objectives. Many reasons can be advanced for this, such as a lack of apparatus/equipment in schools, limits to the lab time allocated, teachers' lack of knowledge and skills about lab-oriented teaching methods or the teachers'…

We report a case study of model-based reasoning in which a small group of fourth-grade students analyzes the energy flow when a solar panel is used to power an electric motor that spins a propeller. In developing their explanation of energy flow, the students draw on a general model of energy developed collectively by their class in the course of…

Medical laboratory technology major was set up to meet rapid development of science and medical research technology in 2013. Students majoring in medical laboratory had learnt a lot of techniques distributed among different specialized courses. But, they did not understand why they had to learn these techniques and how they were applied in a…

The development and evaluation of a two-session laboratory class, based on Geneswitch technology and sex determination in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, is described. Geneswitch system allows conditional control of gene expression. A laboratory exercise has been devised for sophomores in order to illustrate how Geneswitch technology can be…

This research reports the assessment of pre-service teachers' reception and attitudes towards virtual laboratory experiments in Life Sciences with the aim of advancing adaptability to digital learning. Using sequential mixed-methods in a quasi-experimental design, 68 pre-service teachers in the 3rd year of a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) program…

To be able to design a laboratory course it is important to know what laboratory skills students possess before the course starts. This way the course can focus on developing skills in areas that are lacking. Despite the extensive literature on laboratory education, there are few studies on what laboratory skills students have at this stage of…

Three days into the academic year, the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly led to emergency remote teaching, ERT, of Chemical Experimentation--a revised alternative to the majors' General Chemistry Laboratory at the University of Costa Rica. The course was reoriented to support students' development of nontechnical experimentation skills and scientific…