Spectroscopy for Student-Designed General Chemistry Explorations and Advanced Chemistry

该项目将紫外可见分光光度计的使用纳入化学课程，以调整低级化学的实验室重点，并促进学生设计和开展实验以及技术工具的应用。通过将光谱仪器的早期引入与生化主题相结合来提高创造力和相关性。我们的第一个目标是调整入门化学，使其包含由实验室实验工作指导的课程内容，在实验室实验工作中，学生在教师的指导下，设计和执行基础化学练习(化学计量、平衡、生物分离、定量生物分析)和中心光谱应用。第二个目标是将生化内容纳入入门课程，并在正规生物化学/细胞生物学课程之外的其他方面加强对其的重视。第三个目标是在整个化学课程中增加学生在化学结构和分析问题上的知识和应用，并在后期(快速获取动力学、全局光谱分析、反应机理)增加复杂性，并增加对本科生研究的支持。这项为期两年的项目涉及该系的所有化学系教员。总体而言，该项目正在转向一种围绕学生或学生团队实验室调查与教师引导的讨论相结合的课程结构，并正在采用以威斯康星大学为中心的新传统化学倡议开发的方法和程序。该项目为发表在《化学教育杂志》上的关于及早将光谱原理引入课程的重要性的工作进行了示范。该项目还采用了《化学教育杂志》中的一些方法和实验，并利用这些方法和实验在整个课程范围内强调光谱学。新的入门化学练习和高级级别的改变，将从第一年开始进行介绍和评估，此后继续进行。根据学生对方法和经验的反应，这两种方法都在不断地重新开发。化学概论是一门核心课程，因此改变的对象是理科和非理科专业。理科学生应该为更高级别的课程做好更好的准备，同时总体上变得更有技术能力。

This project incorporates the use of UV-VIS spectrophotometers into the chemistry curriculum in order to modify the laboratory emphasis of lower division chemistry and promote student design and conduct of experiments and application of technological tools. Creativity and relevance are improved by coupling an early introduction of spectroscopic instrumentation with biochemical subject matter. Our first goal is to adapt introductory chemistry to involve course content guided by laboratory experimental work in which students, under faculty guidance, design and carry out fundamental chemical exercises (stoichiometry, equilibria, bioseparations, quantitative bioanalysis) with central spectroscopic applications. A second goal is to incorporate biochemical content at the introductory level, and to increase its emphasis at other points outside of formal biochemistry/cell biology courses. A third goal is to increase student knowledge and application of spectroscopy to questions of chemical structure and analysis throughout the chemistry curriculum and with increasing sophistication at the latter stages (fast acquisition kinetics, global spectral analysis, reaction mechanisms), and to increase support for undergraduate research. The two-year project involves all chemistry faculty in the department. The project overall is moving to a course structure built around student or student-team laboratory inquiries integrated with guided discussions led by faculty and, to do so, is adapting methods and procedures developed by the New Traditions Chemistry Initiative, centered at the University of Wisconsin. The project models work published in the Journal of Chemical Education on the importance of the early introduction of spectroscopic principles into the curriculum. The project also adapts a number of methods and experiments found in the Journal of Chemical Education and uses these to create the curriculum-wide emphasis on spectroscopy. New exercises in introductory chemistry, and upper division changes, are being introduced and evaluated starting in the first year and continuing thereafter. Both are being continuously redeveloped based on student responses to the methods and experiences. Introductory chemistry is a core curriculum course, so the changes target science and non-science majors. Science students are expected to be better prepared for higher division classes while generally becoming more technologically competent.