General Chemistry Investigations: An Interdisciplinary, Research Team Laboratory

这个为期两年的项目描述了一个面向理工科专业的普通化学实验室的模式，使学生能够学习如何作为实习科学家和工程师发挥作用。他们将以小组形式开展跨学科、开放式、基于探究的项目，以反映当前代表其职业目标的学科中的技术挑战。来自生物化学、化学和各种工程学科的教师帮助开发了这些项目，并将作为教师和顾问与学生合作。学生将通过其他学生同行评审的科学论文和口头海报演示来交流结果。将创建普通化学网络期刊，学生可以在其中向全国观众报告他们的研究结果。在与学生合作的过程中，合作教师将面临挑战，探索以学生为中心的教学方法，学生通过这种方法自己制定调查性问题。对学生学习的评估将部分基于书面科学论文和口头海报会议。一个咨询委员会，由来自其他学术机构的化学和工程教师、高中教师和工业科学家组成，将每两年举行一次会议，以帮助评估学生和教师的进步。形成性和终结性评估将由教育系的一名教员进行，使用对科学过程技能和对科学的理解的前后测试，并采访学生和教职员工关于他们的学习经验。完成课程后，学生将在长达五年的时间内定期接受调查。传播途径包括学生网络期刊、圣安塞姆和伦斯勒理工学院的测试版网站、国家会议报告、配套/手册的商业性出版物以及在著名期刊上发表。

This two-year project describes a model for a General Chemistry Laboratory for science and engineering majors that enables students to learn how to function as practicing scientists and engineers. They will work in teams on interdisciplinary, open-ended, inquiry-based projects reflecting current technical challenges in the disciplines representing their career goals. Faculty from biochemistry, chemistry, and various engineering disciplines helped develop the projects and will work with students as instructors and consultants. Students will communicate results via scientific papers peer-reviewed by other students and via oral poster presentations. A Web Journal of General Chemistry will be created in which students can report their findings to a national audience. As they work with students, collaborating faculty will be challenged to explore student-centered pedagogy through which students formulate the investigative questions themselves. Assessment of student learning will be based in part on the written scientific papers and oral poster sessions. An Advisory Committee, consisting of faculty members from chemistry and engineering at other academic institutions, high-school teachers, and industrial scientists, will meet biannually to help evaluate student and faculty progress. Formative and summative evaluations will be performed by a faculty member in the education department using pre- and post-test of science process skills and understanding of science, and interviews with students and faculty about their learning experiences. Students will be surveyed periodically for up-to five years after completing the course. Dissemination routes include the student Web Journal, beta-test sites at St. Anselm and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, national meeting presentations, commercial publication of the companion/manual and publication in prominent journals.