Chemistry Outlook

Chemistry Outlook 1

Chemistry OutlookAn Activity of

The Committee on Chemistry in the Two-Year CollegesDivision of Chemical Education

American Chemical Society

continued on page 2

1 Notes from the Chair 2 Conference Calender; Join 2YC3 Online!-Twitter

and Facebook 3 2YC3 officers/support staff;

Membership form 4 190th Conf. Program Info. 7 191st Conf. Prelim. Prog. 8-9 News from the RABs 10,12 Articles of Interest - K.

Capps; B. Dewprashad 11 Call for Applications -

Chair Elect 2YC3 201213-14 College & Industrial Spon-

sors 15 Bill Mooney Memoriam

INSIDE THIS ISSUEVol. 2010 – IV

Lance Lund, Chair

otes From The Chair7

N14.0067

Nitrogen

Website: http://2yc3.org We’re Now on Facebook and Twitter! - See page 2

Lance S. Lund Anoka Ramsey Community College Coon Rapids, MN

As I write this, it is nearing the end of July and I am relaxing at my rustic cabin that sits on an island on the Canadian border. The cabin has been my primary refuge from the modern rat race that many of us live on a day-to-day basis and ordinarily, I wouldn’t be doing any business up here. However, I forgot all about the newsletter due date before I left home and if I don’t get this written soon, I am sure I will have an email from the newsletter editor asking me where it is.

Moments ago, I received a notification on my iPhone that a former 2YC3 chair had commented on my Facebook status. Earlier today, my oldest son sent me a text message telling me that he got his first job. We are happier than you can imagine, as my wife and I left our two teenage boys home alone for an extended time for the first time ever and told them to look for work while we were gone. Telling them to look for work is nothing new...we’ve been doing it for over a year, but to get a job within 24 hours of leaving them home alone is worth celebrating.

I mention these things because they involve a couple things with which we deal, as two-year college faculty, on a daily basis – technology and young adults. I’ve actually been thinking about technology quite a bit lately. I like to speculate where technology will be heading down the road, particularly as it pertains to education. Keeping up with Facebook and text messaging are a very tiny fraction of what these phones can do today. I am doing more with my iPhone everyday.

Earlier this week, one of my students had his cell phone out during the

Chemistry Outlook 2

190th CONFERENCE (Eastern) November 12-13, 2010Wake Technical Community CollegeRaleigh, NCConctact: Dee Dee Allen Email: [email protected]

191st CONFERENCE (Western) March 25-26, 2011Mt. San Antonio CollegeWalnut, CAConctact: Charlie Newman Email: [email protected]

192nd CONFERENCE (Midwestern) May 5-7, 2011Stark State Community CollegeCanton, OHConctacts: Amy Jo Sanders Email: [email protected] Michele Turner Email: [email protected]

6

C12.011Carbon

onference Calendar

2010 - 2011

“Notes from the Chair” ...continued from page 1

final and I asked him to put it away. He rebelled, telling me that it was the only calculator he owned. Well, duh! I use the calculator app on my iPhone all the time, too. I stood firm and asked him to put it away as I loaned him one of my scientific calculators. I have often wondered how long it took for faculty still using slide rules to come around and allow calculators, or for those using basic calculators to allow scientific calculators, or for those using scientific calculators to allow graphing cal-culators. I still have a few colleagues that do not allow graphing calculators on their exams, though I realize that many of today’s standardized exams do not allow them either, including the ACS exams. I am sure there are some faculty out there now that think their peers are out of touch with reality if their students are still required to purchase calculators. After all, if someone spends good money on a phone and they can get a calculator app for free or $0.99, why should they have to buy a standalone calculator? I think they have

a point. Things WILL change – I am pretty confident of it, but it won’t happen with my generation. It will happen with the generation raised on these devices. What else will we do with these phones? There are a few e-texts and Wiki texts out there now, but they will soon become more commonplace than most of us care to admit. Perhaps you use clickers in your classroom, but with most students on some sort of texting plan, their cell phone quickly becomes a clicker through the use of an enabled website. If there aren’t temperature probes and pH probes sending data to phones or iPods via Bluetooth or wireless already, there will be soon. Of course, I can’t help but think where technology will be in another 10 years. What new technology will be in place that we maybe haven’t even imagined yet? As a technology geek, I am excited about the possibilities and yet wonder if or how I will even be able to keep up.As I close in writing my final Notes from the Chair, I would like to thank you for electing me and allowing me to serve in this capacity. I will serve three more years as Past Chair, with responsibilities as the Regional Advisory Board (RAB) Coordinator, a position that will be vacated by Michaeleen Lee as she finishes out her term. I hope to maintain and build upon the excellent work that Michaeleen has done with the RABs. Oh yeah…I meant to say something about young adults. Perhaps my boys taught me a lesson today. Maybe, just maybe…if you are clear in your expectations and just leave them alone, they might just surprise you and show you what they can do.

Connect with 2YC3 online!

Twitter: twitter.com/2yc3

Get short, timely messages from 2YC3.Twitter is a rich source of instantly updated informa-tion. It’s easy to stay updated on an incredibly wide variety of topics. Join today and follow “@2YC3”.

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ Search “2YC3”or type in your browser: bit.ly/aGyPgp

Once 25 people join our Facebook page, we’ll have a normal Facebook address: facebook.com/2yc3

Chemistry Outlook 3

Newsletter Editor Jim Schneider, Portland Community CollegeP.O. Box 19000, Portland, OR 97280-0990Office: (503) 977-4618 Fax: (503) 977-8020 Email: [email protected]

Industrial Sponsors ChairMichele Turner, University of Akron - Wayne College1901 Smucker Rd, Orrville, OH 44667-9758Office: (330) 972-8925 Email: [email protected]

Immediate Past ChairCandice McCloskey, Georgia Perimeter College - Dunwoody2101 Womack Road, Dunwoody, GA 30338Office: (770) 274-506071 Email: [email protected]

Past Chairs (Members of COCTYC)Jeff Cramer, Stark State College 6200 Frank Ave NW, North Canton, OH 44720Office: (330) 966-5457 Ext 4377 Fax: (330) 494-05 Email: [email protected]

Michaeleen Lee, Bucks County Community College275 Swamp Road, Newtown, PA 18940Office: (215) 968-8364 Fax: (215) 968-8294 Email: [email protected]

2YC3 Webmaster http://2yc3.org Luca Preziati, Stark State College6200 Frank Ave NW, North Canton, OH 44720(330) 966-5457 Ext 5267 Email:[email protected]

2YC3 Membership FormPlease consider supporting the 2YC3 by becoming a member or renewing your membership. Annual dues are only $25.

There is no longer a special rate on joint membership with DivCHED. If you are interested in joining DivCHED, please go to http://www.divched.org/ and click the Membership link on the left.

I wish to: _____ Become a member of 2YC3 _____ Renew my 2YC3 MembershipI am a: _____ Two-Year College Teacher _____ Four-Year College Teacher _____ High School Teacher _____ Other

Your Name: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________

Institution: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Address: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Street City, State 9-Digit Zip Code

Phone: ________________________________________________ Email: __________________________________________

Current Member of: _____ ACS _____ DivCHED

Names of current members are posted on the 2YC3 website. The list includes names, institutional affiliation, and membership expiration date only. Email addresses and phone numbers are NOT listed. If you do NOT want your name listed, check here _____.

NEW! Membership dues can now be paid by credit card or PayPal on the 2YC• 3 website by visiting http://www.2yc3.org/membership/

If paying by check, please send your check• , payable to 2YC3, for $25 to: Frank Ramdayal, Bergen Community College, 400 Paramus Road, Paramus, New Jersey, 07652.

2010 COCTYC AND SUPPORT STAFFDivision of Chemical Education, Inc

American Chemical Society2010 Roster of Committee Members

ChairLance S. Lund, Anoka-Ramsey Community College11200 Mississippi Blvd. NW, Coon Rapids, MN 55433Office: (763) 433-1273 Email: [email protected]

Chair-Elect 2010Mark Matthews, Durham Technical Community College1637 Lawson St., Durham, NC 27703Office: (919) 686-3773 Email: [email protected]

Chair-Elect 2011Jason Jadin, Rochester Community and Technical College851 30th Ave SE, Rochester, MN 55904Office: (507)-285-7299 Email: [email protected]

Treasurer/College SponsorsJulie Ellefson-Kuehn, Harper College1200 West Algonquin Road, Palatine, Illinois 60067Office: (847) 925-6694 Email: [email protected] Membership ChairFrank Ramdayal, Bergen Community College400 Paramus Road, Paramus, New Jersey 07652Office: (201) 493-3671 Email: [email protected]

Chemistry Outlook 4

190th 2YC3 Conference Education, Technology and Green Chemistry

Conference Program November 12-13, 2010

Wake Technical Community CollegeNorth CampusRaleigh, NC

27 Co 58.933 Cobalt

nference Information

For registration, lodging information, travel directions, and the latest information on the conference program, visit the conference web-site: http://www2.waketech.edu/blogs/2yc3/ (A link will also be provided on the 2YC3 website: www.2YC3.org). Before that, please contact

Program Chair: DeeDee Allen [email protected] 919-866-5585Local Arrangements: Tracy Cheatham [email protected] 919-866-5311Exhibits Coordinator: Ajit Dixit [email protected] 919-532-5612

Friday, November 128:00 – 5:00 Exhibits

8:00 – 9:00 Registration, Continental Breakfast, and Exhibits

9:00 – 9:15 Welcome and Opening Remarks 9:15 – 10:45 Keynote Address Debunking the Kermit myth: It IS easy being green. Deborah Exton, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR

10:45 – 11:15 Refreshment Break and Exhibits

11:15 – 12:30 Presentation Session 1Addressing the Challenges of an Online Lab CourseA. Riham Mahfouz, Thomas Nelson Community College, Hampton, VA

Resistance (to Active Student Learning) Is FutileB. Margaret (Peggy) Geiger, Gaston College, Dallas, NC

12:30 – 1:30 Lunch Break and Exhibits

1:30 – 2:00 2YC3 General Membership Meeting

2:00 – 3:00 Presentation Session 2Development of a Chemical Inventory Database Using Microsoft Office Access 2007A. R

Dr. Sybil K. Burgess, Brunswick Community College, Supply, NC

Forensic Chemistry at WCC – Reflections on My First YearB. Ashton T. Griffin, Wayne Community College, Goldsboro, NC

2 Hour Workshop (TBA)C.

Chemistry Outlook 5

Continued next page...


3:15 – 4:15 Presentation Session 3Teaching General Chemistry (CHM 110) to a Diverse Student Body - What are the Challenges and Realistic A. Expectations for Success?Dr. Stuart C. Cohen, Horry-Georgetown Technical College, Myrtle Beach, SC

ACS Lab Exams – Test Your Students’ Lab Skills OnlineB. TBA

4:15 – 5:15 Presentation Session 4Titles to be determinedA. TBA

7:00 – 9:00 Dinner Banquet and Address Speaker TBA

Saturday, November 13

8:00 – 1:00 Exhibits

8:00 – 9:00 Registration and Refreshments

9:00 – 10:00 Presentation Session 5DIM DIM DEMO for Virtual Office HoursA. DeeDee Allen and Tracy Cheatham, Wake Technical CC, Raleigh, NC

Teaching Analytical Chemistry Techniques to High School FreshmanB. Dr. Lin Coker and Bethany C. Starnes, Campbell University, Buies Creek, NC

Going Green: How to Modify Your Current Labs (2 hour workshop)C. Deborah Exton, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR


10:15 – 11:15 Presentation Session 6Mathematical Skills and Biological Chemistry StudentsA. Dr. Angela Allen, Lenoir Community College, Kinston, NC

Title to be determinedB.

11:15 – 12:15 Presentation Session 7Build a Content Package using SoftChalkA. Tracy Cheatham, Wake Technical Community College, Raleigh, NC

Facile Microwave-Assisted Green Syntheses of Au and Ag NanoparticlesB. Marc N. Muniz and Dr. Maria T. Oliver-Hoyo, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC

12:15 – 1:00 Lunch Break and Exhibits

1:00 – 2:00 Panel Discussion ILab Solutions for Online ClassesA. Led by Mark Matthews, Durham Technical Community College, Durham, NC

Open Your Bag of Tricks and Share Your Best Lecture Activity?B. Led by (TBA)

Chemistry Outlook 6

2:00 – 3:00 Panel Discussion IITechnology Swap – Share What You Use and How You Use ItA. Led by DeeDee Allen, Wake Technical Community College, Raleigh, NC

Lab Safety and Inventory ChallengesB. Dr. Sybil K. Burgess, Brunswick Community College, Supply, NC

3:00 – 3:30 Closing Session

Registration

Registration for the conference can be completed on-line or by a mail-in form that can be downloaded at the conference website: http://www2.waketech.edu/blogs/2yc3/. This form can be mailed with your payment to complete registration.

Lodging

Hampton Inn Raleigh-Capital Blvd. NorthReservations at the conference hotel must be made by October 21st to secure the conference block of rooms. Use the Group Code when making your reservations. 3621 Spring Forest Road, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA 27616 Tel: 1-919-872-7111 Fax: 1-919-872-0950 (50 rooms are reserved at the rate of $89/night. Tax is 13.5%)www.hampton-inn.com/hi/raleigh-capitalGroup Code is 2YC.

Hilton Garden Inn Raleigh Triangle Town Center(This hotel is nearby, but rooms have not been reserved for the conference.)6412 Capital Blvd, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA 27616 Tel: 1-919-876-5650 Fax: 1-919-876-5605www.hgi.com

Hilton North Raleigh/Midtown(This hotel is nearby, but rooms have not been reserved for the conference.)3415 Wake Forest Road, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States 27609-7330Tel: 1-919-872-2323 Fax: 1-919-876-0890www.hilton.com

Getting to Wake Technical Community College-North Campus

The North campus of WTCC is located in northern Raleigh just off the 540 Interstate, approximately 18 miles from Raleigh Durham International Airport. Options for getting to the North Campus include rental car, taxi, and public transportation. Please check out the following link for directions and options (by car): http://northerncampus.waketech.edu. Click the “directions” next to the address to be taken to a Google Maps page. If you click on the “Directions” link there and type in “RDU Airport” as your starting point, you will be provided with driving directions. The RDU website provides additional information on taxi, rental car and public transportation options: http://www.rdu.com/groundtrans/groundtrans.htm. There will also be a shuttle available between the hotel and the campus.

Enjoying your stay in Raleigh

Raleigh is a friendly city located in the heart of North Carolina between the mountains and the beach. It’s an area rich in aca-demic, historical and cultural interests. There is always something for everyone – restaurants, museums, cultural arts and shop-ping. For more information, go to http://www.visitraleigh.com/. There will also be suggestions posted on the conference website: http://www2.waketech.edu/blogs/2yc3/.

Chemistry Outlook 7

191st 2YC3 Conference Preliminary Information and Call for Papers

TIPSTransformative Instructional Practices and Strategies

March 25 – 26, 2011 Mt. San Antonio College

Walnut, CA

Conference Theme: The primary focus of the 191st 2YC3 conference will be on increasing student interest, motivation and engagement in all our Chemistry courses: Chemistry for Allied Health Science Professionals, Introduction to General Chem-istry, General Chemistry and Organic Chemistry. Symposia speakers will share ideas, techniques, strategies and tools that have increased student retention and success. In addition, current and former students will share their experiences and highlight the areas that have impacted them.

Preliminary Information: How can we capture the imagination and motivation of today’s students who are computer savvy, visually ori-ented and intensely focused on social networking? As educators, we must be able to answer to the, “Why is this material important to me?” in such a way that will challenge them to think, explore and to be actively engaged in the learning process.

Conference participants will discuss student success and retention through the use of lecture and laboratory re-sources, hands-on activities, chemical demonstrations, STEM scholarships, research programs, outreach programs and student clubs. This conference proposes to include symposia, open discussion forums, a panel discussion, student poster sessions on individual research projects, a poster session on Chemistry and related Clubs, a section on alternative Green Chemistry Applications, Nanotechnology in Lower Division education, Laboratory Safety and Web based activities.

Call for Papers: If you would like to contribute as a program speaker, from one of the previously mentioned topics, please contact the Program Chair.

Contact Information:Program Chair: Charles Newman [email protected] (909) 594-5611 ×4014Arrangements Chair: Jenny Leung [email protected] (909) 594-5611 ×6311Exhibit Chair Eileen DiMauro [email protected] (909) 594-5611 ×4533

Chemistry Outlook 8

Eastern RABBrahmadeo Dewprashad, Chair

Summer is often an opportunity for many faculty members to reflect on their work during the last academic year and plan for the upcoming academic year. We would like to share the good work done by faculty members of two colleges in our region: Hostos Community College and Queensborough Community College. Both of these colleges are located in New York City and are part of the City University of New York.

Hostos Community college had been enhancing its chemistry curriculum with a goal of bringing higher academic standards to their science courses. The latter serve the growing population of students enrolled in the Associate in Sciences degree and both the dual Programs of Forensic Science and Engineering with senior colleges . These changes imply both the em-bedding of academic skills and a variety of ways for approaching the content attuned with modern society. As part of this process, Prof. Debasish Roy has introduced and taught Organic Chemistry I and II (lecture and laboratory) for Science majors since the last three semesters. Prof. Nelson Nunez-Rodriguez and Yoel Rodriguez devised and introduced a writ-ing intensive course for chemistry in Spring 2010. This course also has a growing online component, not only to empower

What’s Happening in My Area? News From the Regional Advisory Boards (RABs)

Western RABDick Gaglione, Chair

The Chemistry Department at Mt. San Antonio College (Mt. SAC) in Walnut, CA has been very active in implementing the latest in technology in its curriculum, offering hands-on experiences with instrumentation such as GC, IR, and NMR to students, involving them early in undergraduate research. These programs have been created and offered with significant support from the National Science Foundation. For example, Dr. Charles Newman has used NSF support from the ATE program to establish a Chemical Technology Certificate Program in the department. Dr. Iraj Nejad and Dr. Jenny Chen have acquired NSF support for two CCLI projects to purchase an Anasazi FT- NMR spectrometer, which is now routinely used by students in their general and organic chemistry courses, and to introduce computational chemistry using Spartan into the chemistry curriculum.

The latest department project, which is also supported by a $600,000 grant from the NSF SSTEM program, provides up to 40 “academic scholarships” each semester to financially eligible full-time students interested in obtaining an associate degree in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) or transfer to a four-year university to attain higher education degrees in STEM disciplines. Besides receiving the scholarship in the amount of $2,700 to support their education, students in the program attend group study and problem-solving sessions led by experienced students for major-level STEM courses, and also receive individual advising, mentoring and academic support by experienced STEM faculty throughout the year to succeed in their education.

The second component of the SSTEM program which has proven to be a huge success is the summer research opportunities for Mt. SAC students at neighboring four-year institutions. Using funds from the SSTEM program, ten “research scholar-ships” in the amount of $3,000 each summer are provided to SSTEM students, selected competitively from the scholar’s cohorts, to do 8 weeks of full-time research in the laboratories of leading STEM researchers at one of the partner institu-tions. This aspect of this SSTEM program has led to establishing outstanding collaborations between the Mt. SAC chemistry department and the University of California at Irvine, California State University Fullerton, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and Harvey Mudd College. Competition for these scholarships is very intense among their students as they have learned about the invaluable experience that these opportunities provide and they show a more positive attitude about science and scientific careers.


Chemistry Outlook 9

students’ critical thinking and problem solving skills, but also to develop their writing. It was found that the development of writing assignments such as revised laboratory reports, laboratory flow chart and initial laboratory questions empowered student performances during the laboratory sessions. Prof. Francisco Fernandez and Prof. Vania de Paoli have implemented these strategies in Chemistry 220 (general Chemistry II) as well. New approaches regarding the laboratory result analysis will be piloted this upcoming semester in both Chemistry 210 (general Chemistry I) and Chemistry 220 in order to rein-force the hands-on experience outcomes. Prof. Mohammed Sohel has piloted the Peer Led Team instructor as part of their constant search of effective teaching and learning strategies. Prof. Yoel Rodriguez and Prof. Nelson Nunez-Rodriguez have also devised field trips linked to the class contents and game-based strategies to motivate students in the learning process. A contest-format game has been implemented in the recitation/workshop classes. The described strategies reinforces faculty members’ commitment to validating their students’ learning styles with due consideration to their plethora of academic and cultural backgrounds. It also exposes them to different teaching and learning strategies that will ultimately prepare them for their subsequent academic and professional journeys.

Dr. Moni Chauhan’s research at Queensborough Community College (QBCC) focuses on integrating basic concepts of nanosci-ence and nanotechnology to undergraduate education. The research involves simple synthetic strategies to nanoparticles and their applications to catalysis and medicine. This year has been quite productive as students working in her group have made presentations in national and regional meetings. C. Echeverri and E. Kim working on silver nanoparticles made presenta-tions at the ACS-Mid Atlantic Regional Meeting 2010 and Undergraduate Research Symposium of New York section of ACS 2010 and also will be presenting posters at the ACS National Meeting in Boston, 2010. Presently, Dr. Chauhan’s group is investigating the self assembly and cross-linking of a new type of silicon based template [Tris(3-trimethoxysilylpropyl)isocyanurate] TTPI to generate porous host materials. The important goal of this study will be to examine incorporation of silver nanosized particles into these materials to open new avenues for metallic nano composites and its varied effects on mammalian cells. In collaboration with Professor M. Tawde of biology department at QCC, Dr. Chauhan is aiming to generate basic understanding of the cellular processes or components that are affected by nano silver particles. They are very confident that the knowledge base generated by this project will contribute to fundamental understanding of cellular principles involved in the interaction of these or other engineered materials with the living systems and environmental fac-tors. Upon successful completion, their studies would likely offer major contributions to understanding of basic molecular mechanisms of cellular toxicity and DNA damage post exposure to nano silver. These findings would lead to better design the engineered nano materials, not only nano silver, for safe human use. Dr. Chauhan further plans to unravel the specific cellular targets of nano silver toxicity so that the scientific community may be able to exploit these targets in therapeutic use such as anticancer therapy. The research carried out in Dr. Chauhans’ group provides underprivileged students an excellent opportunity to be exposed to newer biotechnology concepts and get hands-on experience in techniques such as UV-Vis spec-troscopy, electron microscopy, cell-culture, DNA gel Electrophoresis, digital fluorescent microscopy at QCC and Brookhaven National Lab. Due to early on exposure to research experiences, more students will likely get motivated to pursue STEM careers which will facilitate the overall retention in STEM disciplines. Dr. Chauhan will also be disclosing the results of these studies as an invited talk at Pacific Chem 2010 meeting in Hawaii in December 2010.

Southern RABKen Capps, Chair

I wish to remind everyone of the Late Fall 190th conference, November 12-13, 2010 at Wake Technical Commu-nity College in Raleigh, North Carolina. Anyone wishing to present should contact Program Chair Dee Dee Allen ([email protected]) as soon as possible. For registration information, please visit http://www2.waketech.edu/blogs/2yc3/. Hope to see you there!

Midwestern RABAmy Jo Sanders, Chair

I would like to announce a call for papers and extend an invitation to you for the 192nd Spring Conference at Stark State College in North Canton, Ohio on May 20-21, 2011. Please Join us for a celebration of the 50th anniversary of 2YC3! Anyone wishing to present should contact one of our Program Chairs: Michele Turner or myself at [email protected] or [email protected], respectively. Registration information will soon be available on the website.

Chemistry Outlook 10

Developing Our First Hybrid Chemistry CourseKenn Capps

Central Florida Community College3001 SW College Road352-854-2322(ext 1458)

[email protected]

This summer, my institution (College of Central Florida) offered its first hybrid chemistry course. Due to a recent explosion in enrollment, a dwindling of classroom and laboratory space, and the need to increase the availability of our courses in terms of days and times, the department felt that a hybrid or online chemistry course was clearly needed. As one of two full-time chemistry professors in the depart-ment, I decided to take on this challenge of developing one of our chemistry courses into a hybrid format. A hybrid course at my institu-tion is defined as one in which more than 25 percent of the course is conducted on campus and the remainder conducted at a distance. I decided to try this format with our “CHM1025C: Introductory Chemistry” course. CHM1025C is a very popular chemistry course at our college that is targeted at students with little or no chemistry experience with the goal of preparing students to take General Chemistry I. While some colleges have instituted online chemistry courses in which students never have to step foot on campus (even for lab), I felt that it was best to offer this course as a hybrid instead of an online course. I am not a big fan of using virtual labs or at-home chemistry sets to replace traditional face-to-face laboratory activities. Having taught only face-to-face chemistry courses, I was somewhat skepti-cal; however, having taken numerous education courses online, I have experienced both the good and the bad of distance education and planned to use my experience in developing this course.

During the Spring 2010 semester, I submitted the application required to develop a hybrid course at my college and after approval, I began the long and tedious process of developing my first hybrid course. Over the next 16 weeks or so, I recorded my lectures in my office using Panopto CourseCast. Panopto is a flexible and easy-to-use presentation capture platform that lets users capture, edit, stream, archive and share recordings of PowerPoint, whiteboard and/or desktop. I decided to record my lectures in my office instead of one of the classrooms for better sound, lightning, and to make the recordings more personable to the students. In addition to Panopto, I utilized a Wacom Bamboo tablet with SmoothDraw software. SmoothDraw is an easy natural painting and digital free-hand drawing software that can be downloaded for free. All recordings were uploaded to ANGEL, our course management system.

In the summer of 2010, a single section of the course was offered. The course immediately filled (although all of our science courses fill quickly due to demand) and was run in a six-week format. Students were given an hour face-to-face introduction and then allowed to leave and begin work on the course at either home or anywhere they have an internet connection. After the introduction, students came to campus only for an hour long problem-solving/review session, which was followed by a three hour laboratory experiment. Over the summer, students came to campus only twice a week for the course, however, during the regular semesters (Fall and Spring) students would have to come to campus only once a week. Students submitted written assignments on the days they were on campus, in addition to completing Plato computer modules, online quizzes and online tests.

At the end of the course, students (20 total) were given a survey with the results shown at the end of this article on the next page.

Overall, the results were impressive. Students had very little technical difficulty, if any, watching the recordings. Students noted that the recordings were clear and easy to follow, while the ANGEL site was well organized (an essential element in my opinion to a success-ful hybrid or online course). Students liked having the ability to watch the recordings at their convenience and as many times as they desired. In tracking student usage, I noted that the majority of students watched the recordings multiple times and at all times of the day. With Panopto software, students are able to search for terms during the lecture that they did not understand. For example, if students did not understand the concept of “ionization energy”, then they could search for that term and only watch that part of the recording. Some students who had never taken a distance learning course before did note that this course forced them to be more disciplined than the traditional face-to-face course; however, they appeared to adjust to this in the first week or so. Students also commented that they found the problem-solving/review session very beneficial as this gave them an opportunity to ask questions on topics and concepts that they did not understand during the recordings or in reading their textbook. As for grade distribution, student performance was similar to face-to-face courses; however, additional data is needed to support this.

In summary, using Panopto to develop a hybrid introductory chemistry course was very successful. While it was a lot of work to develop, it is appears to be a viable option for students. While my college does not plan to eliminate all face-to-face sections of this course, we do plan to offer at least one hybrid section per semester as an option for students. There are also plans to develop our General Chemistry courses into a similar format.


Strongly Agree

Somewhat Agree Neutral Somewhat

DisagreeStrongly Disagree

I preferred having this course as a hybrid instead of being face-to-face 9 10 0 1 0

The lecture recordings were easy to follow and understand. 17 3 0 0 0

Having this course as a hybrid made it more difficult. 1 4 6 5 4

The review sessions prior to lab were beneficial. 18 2 0 0 0

Have the course as a hybrid made it much more convenient. 15 3 1 1 0

My grade in this course would have been higher if it were face-to-face. 1 6 7 3 3

The course was well organized on ANGEL. 20 0 0 0 0

I would prefer that General Chemistry I is offered in a smilar format. 10 2 6 2 0

Application for Chair-Elect for 2012 must include:A. Pertinent personal data such as name, college, job title, address, etc.B. Brief statement of pertinent qualification, signed by the nominee.C. A statement indicating a willingness to serve signed by the nominee.D. A statement of support from an appropriate person in the applicant’s school.

To be eligible to be nominated an individual must:1. be a two-year college chemistry teacher2. have been a dues paying member of 2YC3 a minimum of three years prior to nomination3. be a member of DivCHED4. have demonstrated leadership and organizational ability by serving as Chair or Co-Chair for a

conference and in one or more of the following capacities:a. served three years on the COCTYC.b. served as Program Chair, Local Arrangements Chair, or Exhibits Chair for a 2YC3 Conference.c. chaired a sub-committee of the COCTYC.d. contributed within the past three years two or more ways such as:

-acted as local industrial sponsor coordinator,-chaired a conference section,-presented a paper at a conference,-moderated a panel at a conference,-other ways an individual has contributed

-Applications must be received by the Chair no later than OCTOBER 1, 2010.-The COCTYC will serve as a nominating/screening committee to generate a slate of candidates.-Each 2YC3 member shall vote for one nominee per office and the candidate who receives the greater number of votes shall be declared elected.-Ballots must be received by the Chair postmarked no later than 12/31/2010.

Call for applications for the office of Chair-Elect of 2YC3 for the year 2012


Difficulties-theSeedsofUnderstandingBrahmadeo Dewprashad

Dept. of Science, Borough of Manhattan Community [email protected]

We often pride ourselves that we can recognize the concepts/topics that students find difficulty, particularly after having taught a course several times. The dedicated educators in us compels us to very carefully explain these topics, often several times, and only move on to a new topic after we have been assured by nodding heads that students have indeed understood the concepts taught. Yet, we are often disappointed when we find out from grading exam papers that students did poorly on questions assessing their understanding of those concepts. We look for reasons to explain this and seek assurances from students that they did in fact understand the concepts. Often times, they indicate that they did, but that this was not reflected in the exam either because they were nervous, are “poor testers”, did not get to study enough due to family or job demands or other very familiar reasons. Being compassionate and caring individuals, we recognize that our students battle very challenging circumstances daily and that there is often truth to such statements. As such, we may feel somewhat guilty and take a second look at the exam to ascertain that it was indeed “fair”. We might even consider “curving” the grades such that students’ aspirations are not dragged down by poor grades. We console ourselves that next semester it will better, and we resolve to spend even more time explaining those “difficult” concepts. Yet, the story repeats itself in the next semester. After several semesters of trying, we are tempted to resign ourselves to the belief that many students find some concepts “difficult” and those we to make the best of it and move on. However, trying to find the underlying causes as to why students find particular topics/concepts dif-ficult might be worthwhile pursuit.

Students’ “difficulties” and often be traced to their earlier beliefs and understanding. Many students are not constructing appropriate understanding of fundamental concepts at the very beginning of their studies. This affects their understanding of subsequent concepts (Nakhleh 1992). Such observations are consistent with the cognitive model of learning (Bodner et. al. 2001; Chi et. al. 1994). This model presupposes that students come to the classroom with a range of prior knowledge and beliefs, some of which are incomplete and even inaccurate. It is through this prism that they view new concepts presented to them. As such, many difficulties that students have arise from their attempts to build new knowledge from a platform of knowledge which is either incomplete or even false. As such, overcoming such difficulties requires understanding the reason(s) underlying the difficulties. However, understanding student’s reason-ing cannot be easily discerned from exams, homework and class discussions which tend to focus students knowledge and applications of concepts taught in a current course.

I have been attempting to discern the underlying causes for the difficulties students in my organic chemistry classes have in writing or-ganic reaction mechanisms, an underlying theme these of these courses and an area in which students nationwide have great difficulties (Friesen 2008; Mullins 2008). Students participating in the study are provided with a diagnostic worksheet pertaining each mechanism being studied. The worksheet asks students to complete a reaction scheme and to write a detailed stepwise mechanism to explain the products proposed. For the steps that they feel confident about, they are asked to indicate with a “√”, and for the steps that they are not confident about, to indicate with a “?”. In addition, students are asked to explain why they have chosen the “√” or “?”. Also, students are asked to identify specific difficulties they have in writing the mechanism. This is an adaptation of a reflective practice used successfully by Salavatori in a composition course (Salavatori 2000). It is envisaged that such writing assignments will not only identify students’ misconceptions, but will provide deeper insights about students thinking about specific concepts. Students are also provided with a companion diagnostic sheet which was designed to find out their understanding of specific aspects of the same mechanism. This diagnostic sheet has a mechanism problem and I propose four different solutions. Students are asked to indicate for each of the solutions, if they think that it is correct and to explain the reasoning underlying their choice. These sheets are reviewed, misconceptions corrected and returned to students who are provided with an opportunity to correct the misconceptions they had and to resubmit for review. Grades are not awarded for this exercise such that students are not penalized for bringing to light incomplete knowledge/misconceptions they have.

The findings of this study were not only interesting but very educational. I have found that many students had difficulties with the same concepts. On closer examination of the explanations they provided of their difficulties, it became clear that in many cases, their “incor-rect” solutions were but logical extensions of their understanding of concepts which they had covered in prerequisite courses and/or their experiences. For example, in writing mechanisms, arrows are used to show the movement of electrons (which have negative charges). An atom which has lost its electron is designated with a “+”, meaning that it has no electrons to give. As such, an arrow cannot be used to show movement of electrons from an atom that is designated with a “+” such as “H+”. Nevertheless, students very commonly used arrows to show movement of electrons from “H+”. For them, donating electron from an “H+” seems logical as very early in Mathematics they are taught that one can donate from number with a positive value but not from one with a negative value. For example, if you have $10 it is + $10, it is real money and if you can give it to someone. However, if have -$10, then you have less than $0 and cannot donate any money, however you can accept. As such it seems logical to students that an “H+” would donate electrons and not receive, and that is what they tend to do instinctively. Another very common incorrect practice that I notice is that students move the electrons in the wrong direction. A molecule is made up of atoms which are joined by bonds made up shared electrons. Often, one atom pulls more on the shared electrons, and as such, more of the shared electrons in its grasp. As such, when students use arrows to show movement of electrons, they show the electrons flowing from the atom which has more of the shared electron in its grasp. This seems logical-electrons should flow from where it is concentrated to where it is not. This seems fair and consistent with their observations of things around us. However, the


opposite occurs. The atoms that have more of the shared electron in its grasp takes even more electrons. As such, more electrons move towards it. Arrows should be drawn showing electrons moving towards the electron rich atom; somewhat akin to “the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer”. I have found a long list of similar misconceptions that stems from logical extensions of students previous incomplete knowledge. Understanding of the basis for such students’ misconceptions has helped me create new analogies that students can use to rectify misconceptions. For example, an “H+” can be equated with a hole; one cannot move it but can only fill it and dig a new hole. In addition, when teaching these “difficult” concepts/topics, I now alert students of the likely misconceptions and their likely origin. This seems to have benefited students.

I suspect that in all disciplines, students have similar difficulties that arise, not from a lack of effort, but from previous incomplete knowl-edge/misconceptions. I feel it would benefit instructors and students if such incomplete knowledge/ misconceptions were uncovered and rectified very early in a course. Difficulties can be the seeds of understanding. Acknowledgements:Gratitude is expressed to students who participated in the study and to CUNY for support of the work in the form of a CUNY Develop-ment Grant.

References:Bodner, G.; Klobuchar, M.; Geelan, D. 2001. The Many Forms of Constructivism. Journal of Chemical Education 78: 1107.• Chi, M. T. H.; Slotta, J.; de Leeuw, N. 1994. Learning and Instruction 4:27–43.• Friesen, J. B. 2008. Saying What You Mean: Teaching Mechanisms in Organic Chemistry. Journal of Chemical Education 85: • 1515-1518.Mullins, J. 2008. Six Pillars of Organic Chemistry. Journal of Chemical Education 85: 83-87.• Nakhleh, M. B. 1992. Why some students don’t learn chemistry: Chemical misconceptions. Journal of Chemical Education • 69:191.Salvatori, M. R. 2000. Difficulty: The Great Educational Divide. In Opening Lines; Approaches to the Scholarship of teaching • and Learning., The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, ed. P. Hutchins, 81-93. Menlo Park: Carnegie Publica-tions.

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