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Standards Based Grading Learning Objective For The Chemistry, Life, The Universe, And Everything General Chemistry Curriculum, Dawn Del Carlo, Laura Strauss

Open Educational Resources

This document details the Learning Objectives (LOs) and accompanying rubrics used in CHEM 1110 and CHEM 1120 at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) and are aligned with the Chemistry, Life, the Universe, and Everything (CLUE) Curriculum (Cooper & Klymkowsky, 2019). These rubrics were first developed and implemented in the Fall 2021, underwent substantial modification and then implemented again in Fall 2022. Minor modifications were made again and this document represents the rubrics to be implemented in the Fall 2023. As with all curriculum, these will also likely undergo minor changes.

The State Of Safety Training, Facilities, And Resources For Chemistry Teachers: A National Survey, Lydia Richardson, Dawn Del Carlo Ph.D.

Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) Symposium

This study is examining the current state of secondary science teachers' chemical safety training, facilities in the school, and the resources available. A survey is being conducted at the start of August and collection will be concluded at the end of September. Data analysis will begin in October, with four main goals in mind to begin with. Teachers’ variation in training is going to be looked at along with what form of safety training is most common. The timing of training will also be looked at to see how frequently training is occurring. With regard to facilities, reported parts of …

Attitudes Toward The Chemistry Laboratory Learning Environment Using Different Pedagogies And Assessment Protocols, Lydia Richardson, Dawn Del Carlo Ph.D.

Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) Symposium

The Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) and Argument Driven Inquiry (ADI) are evidence-based laboratory approaches that emphasize the process of scientific argumentation (Burke et al., 2006; Rudd et al., 2001; Walker et al., 2011). The University of Northern Iowa utilized the SWH approach for over 10 years until research indicated that the cognitive load associated with the pre-lab, specifically, hindered students’ ability to participate in authentic scientific inquiry for the rest of the laboratory experiment (Bonde & Del Carlo, 2018). In response to this, a hybrid model of instruction integrating elements of both the SWH and ADI laboratory approaches was created …

Effects Of Stepwise Guided Inquiry On Students' Attitudes And Depth Of Knowledge From Written Lab Reflections In High School Chemistry, Melissa Rae Campbell Johnson

Graduate Research Papers

Many teachers find it challenging to embed guided inquiry into high school chemistry courses. Although guided inquiry provides excellent opportunities for students to engage in data analysis, misconceptions and loss of class time are teacher stated problems with guided inquiry. A stepwise inquiry project can slowly introduce students to the inquiry process of data analysis in high school chemistry.

This stepwise inquiry project examined three different inquiry labs designed around the anchoring phenomenon, “ Which toothpaste protects our teeth the best?”Each lab progressed in inquiry level. Lab one was written at inquiry level one,confirmation. The second lab was written at …

Measuring Meaningful Learning In A Chemistry Laboratory, Kylie Engstrom

Honors Program Theses

In the past, students in general chemistry classes at the University of Northern Iowa have struggled with pre-labs due to cognitive overload. To better prepare students for the lab portion of the class and to reduce the amount of cognitive load, professors can provide students with strategies to scaffold information for students. The CLUE General Chemistry curriculum, which emphasizes the use of scientific practices, paired with a new SWH/ADI hybrid laboratory model was implemented in one of the sections of CHEM 1110 in the Fall 2019 semester. The goal of including these new features was to provide more scaffolding for …

Development And Evaluation Of A Hybrid Adi/Swh Model Pre-Laboratory Curriculum, Tabitha Alitz, Dawn Del Carlo

Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) Symposium

Previous Research:
• Students value each part of the pre-lab differently, struggle to connect all of the components, and therefore fail to see the big picture
• Students find the pre-lab moderately helpful in understanding both the concepts and mechanics of the lab, but find it less helpful at the end of the semester compared to beginning
• The cognitive load demands of the SWH pre-lab hinders students’ ability to participate in authentic scientific inquiry

Development Of Curriculum For Next Generation Science Standards In High School Chemistry, Jennifer L. Brown

Graduate Research Papers

The aim of this project is to develop a unit relevant to students, aligned with three-dimensional performance expectations, and beneficial to teachers in helping students to meet those standards. To effectively meet those goals, an understanding of what curriculum is and how to develop it is needed. Curriculum is “the high-quality delivery system for ensuring that all students achieve the desired end – the attainment of their desired grade- or course-specific standards” (Ainsworth, 2010, p. 4). Without a clear goal for student performance and a detailed plan for how to get them there, lasting, meaningful learning is not likely to …

A Qualitative Comparison Of General Chemistry And Advanced Placement Chemistry Students’ Misconceptions Regarding Solution Chemistry, Megan Vandersee

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

There has been much research on student misconceptions regarding the particulate nature of matter and its relation to solution chemistry (e.g. Adadan & Savasci, 2012; Calik & Ayas, 2005; Calik, Ayas, & Coll, 2009; Pinarbasi & Canpolat, 2003; K. J. Smith & Metz, 1996). However, there is a lack of information regarding student misconceptions in areas of solution chemistry such as factors affecting solubility, polarity & molecular interactions and colligative properties. This research compared the misconceptions in solution chemistry held by students who are approaching the end of an Advanced Placement (AP) chemistry course in the high school setting with …

A Qualitative Comparison Of General Chemistry And Advanced Placement Chemistry Students' Misconceptions Regarding Solution Chemistry, Megan J. Vandersee

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study focused on identifying misconceptions which high school AP and collegiate general chemistry students hold with regards to solution chemistry topics and comparing the misconceptions held by each student group. Previous research has found that misconceptions can greatly impact students’ understanding of material and have a negative impact on student learning. However, not all solution chemistry topics had been explored in previous research. In addition, it has been suggested that collegiate students have reached a higher level of cognitive development as they are older and more advanced in their studies. If this is the case, one could assume that …

The Effect Of Learning Styles And Attitude On Preservice Elementary Teachers' Conceptual Understanding Of Chemistry And The Nature Of Matter In A Simulation-Based Learning Environment, Mo H. Al-Jaroudi

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This causal-comparative descriptive study investigated the achievement of pre-service elementary teachers taking an introductory physical science course that integrates inquiry-based instruction with computer simulations. The study was intended to explore if pre-service elementary teachers with different attitudes towards science as well as students with different learning styles would benefit differentially. Four research questions including four hypotheses were developed. The first major question consist of four specific hypothesis that addressed preservice elementary teachers' learning styles (Active/Reflective, Sensing/Intuitive, Visual/Verbal, and Sequential/Global) and their conceptual understanding of chemistry and the particulate nature of matter in a science class which use hands-on learning integrated …

Effective Models As Instructional Designs To Build Student Motivation In Learning, Karla S. Lammers

Graduate Research Papers

Effective Models As Instructional Designs to Build Student Motivation in Learning: A Review of Literature examines some of the research and academic literature related to successful designs/models that educators can use to build motivation in learners. Views of different motivations, extrinsic and intrinsic, as a learner are also discussed. Examples of designs/models are examined that integrate technology. The author concludes by presenting a technology-assisted, literature-based curriculum product that integrates these models to enhance learners' motivation.

The Effects Of Student Manipulated Lewis Structure Models On Chemistry Achievement According To Cognitive Level, Kimberly M. Ross

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a correlation between teaching method or cognitive development and achievement in a unit on Lewis electron dot structures. Forty-six students were taught a unit on Lewis electron dot structures using the traditional paper and pencil method. Thirty-eight students were taught the same unit using a manipulative model instead of the traditional method. Both groups of students were given pre and post-tests on Lewis electron dot structures and their gains after instruction were measured. The Group Assessment of Logical Thinking measured student's cognitive level. Students were categorized as concrete, transitional …

Piagetian Developmental Reasoning Levels Of High School Students In Differentiated First Year Chemistry Courses, Pamela Kay Brewer-Michael

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This research studied the developmental reasoning levels of students in three different first year high school chemistry courses as related to achievement defined by cumulative grade point average and course selection. The Lawson Test of Formal Operations modified by Roy Unruh and Bruce Perry at the University of Northern Iowa was used to determine cognitive developmental level of subjects. A consumer type chemistry course, a traditional high school chemistry course, and an honors course under consideration with Marshalltown Community College for credit status were the three courses utilized in this study. Data was collected in a classroom group setting over …

The Effects Of Computer Animations On Secondary Students’ Understanding Of The Crushing Can Chemical Demonstration, Resa Marie Kelly

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Understanding chemistry requires the ability to think at three different levels: submicrochemistry, macrochemistry, and representational chemistry. Students often have difficulty making connections among these three areas due to the abstract nature of many chemistry concepts. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how computer animations affected secondary students' understanding of the Crushing Can Demonstration. This investigation compared two groups of chemistry students at a large, suburban high school. The treatment group viewed the animation after seeing and discussing the crushing can demonstration, while the control group received the same instruction as the treatment group but did not see the …

Portfolio Assessment In High School Chemistry, Mark M. Laporte

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This is a report of one high school chemistry teacher's experience of implementing portfolio assessment in his classroom. This project was carried out using a teacher as researcher model. The chemistry classes were p1imarily composed of 11th grade students in a rural midwestern high school setting. This thesis reviews some of the literature regarding alternative assessment focusing particularly on the literature related to portfolio assessment. The chemistry portfolio design is explained in detail including a rationale for each of the portfolio elements. The teacher developed nine portfolio elements of which the students were required to complete five. The nine elements …

Historical Science: Stephen Jay Gould At The Nsta, Paul E. Rider Sr.

Iowa Science Teachers Journal

Stephen Jay Gould, the Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology at Harvard University, recently spoke at a meeting of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) in Washington, D.C. An eloquent spokesperson for the earth sciences, Gould holds a degree in paleontology from Columbia University. The American Geological Institute has made a video tape of his talk available for purchase. This article, a review of the tape, is for the benefit of science teachers who may wish to buy a copy.

Survey Shows Chemistry Textbooks And Teaching Practices In Iowa To Be Conventional, Robert W. Hanson

Iowa Science Teachers Journal

Part of a survey of the 485 high school chemistry teachers in Iowa in the spring of 1984 dealt with the textbooks used in chemistry courses offered in their schools and with changes in emphasis in teaching chemistry during the past three years. The target group of teachers included 455 from public schools and 30 from parochial schools. Seventy-eight percent of the public school and fifty percent of the parochial school teachers responded. Schools and school districts of all sizes were represented among the respondents.

High School Chemistry In Iowa: Current Status, Recent Trends, And Future Prospects, R. W. Hanson

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

A survey of Iowa's 485 high school chemistry teachers and information from the Department of Public Instruction provide the basis for a description of the "typical" Iowa chemistry teacher in terms of age, experience, academic background, salaries, and teaching practices. Trends in student attitudes and modification of teaching practice during the 1981-84 period when the "crisis" in science education in the United States was being emphasized in the media were assessed from responses from 365 teachers. Results indicate that Iowa's chemistry teachers are conservative in making innovations in teaching practice, and the goal of increasing student exposure to chemistry is …

The Current Status Of The Limnology And Bottom Fauna Of Lakes West And East Okoboji, David D. Gale, Everette E. Drevs, Michael P. Gross

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

Lakes West and East Okoboji, Dickinson County, Iowa, were the site of a 1970 summer investigation on the density and diversity within the macroscopic bottom organisms, physical and chemical measurements of the water and substratum chemistry study. These data on Lake West Okoboji were compared with a 1918 and 1950 study of the macroscopic bottom fauna, water analyses dating from 1934, and oxygen and temperature data from as far back as 1915. The sparse species composition of the bottom fauna has remained unchanged; however, pollution indicator tubificid worms have increased in density. Water analysis, oxygen, and temperature data are little …

Two Program Processors For The Preparation Of Instructional Materials In Chemistry, Lloyd V. Gayman

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The use of inductive or inquiry techniques in the teaching of science has been emphasized. A possible technological aid to the inquiry process is the electronic computer. A review of the literature in this area led to the development of two program processors, one to produce simulated experiments, the other to generate problems for student use.

The first processor, SIM/G, can be used to produce tables or charts. Five sample programs were prepared to illustrate the use of the SIM/G processor. Directions for use of the processor have been given. Documentation has included both a complete verbal explanation and a …

Table Of Contents

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

No abstract provided.