Assessing inquiry in the general chemistry laboratory

CHED 1474

Jimmy Reeves, reeves@uncw.edu, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Rd, Wilmington, NC 28403 and Deborah B. Exton, dexton@uoregon.edu, Department of Chemistry, University of Oregon, 1253 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403.
At the Fall 2007 Boston ACS meeting, Tom Holme, director of the ACS Examinations Institute, presented a seminar on “Assessing Chemistry Laboratory Courses,” in which he asked the audience to explore the question of what key components an ACS laboratory examination should contain. Participants indicated that experimental design and other aspects of inquiry-based learning were important and should be evaluated by such an exam. At UNCW, students in general chemistry carry out laboratory practicals twice each semester based on an open inquiry model. This presentation will discuss this approach and student responses to these practicals, as well as seek suggestions for assessing inquiry on a national ACS exam.
 

Keeping it Real: Inquiry Instruction and the Chemistry Laboratory
8:30 AM-11:35 AM, Tuesday, April 8, 2008 Hilton New Orleans Riverside -- Oak Alley, Oral

Division of Chemical Education

The 235th ACS National Meeting, New Orleans, LA, April 6-10, 2008