Organic Chemistry and Native Plants of the Sonoran Desert: A New Model for the Undergraduate Laboratory

梅萨社区学院正在开发一门有机化学实验课程，该课程使用在当地原生植物中发现的天然产物作为引导学生探究的起点。该项目的目标包括：从本地植物中识别和分离材料；对学生进行NMR、HPLC等关键有机实验室仪器的培训；向学生介绍植物中化合物的各种应用，例如药用、农业和其他环境；鼓励学生在实验课之外参与自主学习。学生将设计并实施从植物中提取、纯化和衍生有机分子的实验活动，并使用仪器对这些化合物进行分析。学生将受益于将实际研究方法应用于当代相关科学课题的实践经验。该项目正在通过形成性和总结性评价进行评价。知识价值。该项目通过开发新的活动和教学主题来推进STEM教育，该主题结合了当地可用的本地植物和化学知识，这些知识是学生或教师在新活动过程中产生可发表数据时从研究中获得的。该项目将实验室课程转变为引导探究练习，采用广泛的主题前提，吸引和吸引学生。对当地植物的关注提供了跨学科的体验，可能的活动和扩展是无数的。它提供了一个易于理解的主题和一个简单、灵活的方法，可以根据当地条件或学生和教师的兴趣轻松修改。本地植物资料随处可得：学生可自行收集，但须属非濒危或受保护物种；如有必要，可在校园温室中栽培；或者也可以购买，通常成本很低。更广泛的影响。在项目的后期及以后，项目的成果将通过出版物、演讲和基于网络的传播技术与其他机构分享。该项目鼓励本科生化学实验室经验的转变。有机化学实验室的内容和教学方法多年来一直保持相对静态，最近对基于探究的方法越来越感兴趣。该项目基于其范围和独特的前提，为这一公认的趋势增添了动力。该项目还有助于西班牙裔和美洲原住民学生参与化学课程，因为它使用了对这些人群具有历史和文化重要性的本地植物。

Mesa Community College is developing an organic chemistry laboratory curriculum that uses the natural products found in local native plants as a starting point for guided student inquiry. Objectives of the project include: to identify and isolate materials from native plants; provide training for students on NMR, HPLC, and other key organic laboratory instrumentation; introduce students to a variety of applications of the compounds found in plants, e.g., medicinal, agricultural and other contexts; and encourage student participation in independent study outside the laboratory classes. Students are designing and implementing laboratory activities to extract, purify, and derivatize organic molecules from plants, and are using instrumentation to perform analytical procedures on these compounds. The students are benefiting from hands-on experience with applying actual research methods to contemporary and relevant scientific topics. The project is being evaluated by using formative and summative assessments.Intellectual Merit. This project is advancing both STEM education, by the development of new activities and the pedagogical theme that incorporates local, usable native plants, and chemical knowledge, obtained from the research as students or faculty produce publishable data in the course of the new activities. This project is transforming a laboratory curriculum into guided inquiry exercises by using a broad thematic premise that intrigues and engages students. The focus on local plants provides an interdisciplinary experience, and the possible activities and extensions are numerous. It offers an accessible theme and a simple, flexible approach that is easily modified based on local conditions or student and instructor interests. Local plant materials are readily available: they can be collected by students, if not endangered or protected species; they can be cultivated in campus greenhouses, if necessary; or they can be purchased, often at very low cost. Broader Impacts. In the later stages of the project and beyond, the results of the project will be shared with other institutions through publications, presentations, and web-based dissemination techniques. The project is encouraging a shift in the undergraduate chemistry laboratory experience. The content and pedagogy of organic chemistry laboratories have remained relatively static for years, with increasing recent interest in an inquiry-based approach. The project is adding momentum to that recognized trend based on its scope and distinctive premise. The project also is contributing to the engagement of Hispanic and Native American students in the chemistry curriculum because of its use of native plants that are historically and culturally important to these populations.