VIPEr

Course Level:

Topics Covered:

Corequisites:

No Corequisites

Subdiscipline:

Learning Goals:

Faculty will

understand the "backward design" concept
learn to write learning outcomes and assessments using the verbs ("activities") and "products" provided
learn how a rubric can be used to discriminate students' levels of achievement

Implementation Notes:

These slides are a quick and dirty summary of a longer hands-on faculty development workshop I do. They provide an introduction to the Understanding by Design process, help in writing learning goals, suggestions for developing assessments of student learning, and helpful hints for preparing a VIPEr learning object.

Time Required:

15 minutes to read the slides; a lifetime to practice the skill :)

Evaluation

Evaluation Methods:

I hope that faculty will use these slides to aid their writing of learning goals and assessments for the VIPEr site.

16 Jan 2020

Time-Integrated Rate Laws and the Stability of Gold(III) Anticancer Compounds

Submitted by Jack F Eichler, University of California, Riverside

Evaluation Methods:

1) Performance on the pre-lecture online quiz

2) Performance on the in-class activity (clicker scores or hand-graded worksheet)

Evaluation Results:

Students generally score on average 70% or higher on the pre-lecdure quiz, and on average 70% or more of students correctly answer the in-class clicker questions.

Description:

This is a flipped classroom module that covers the concepts of time-integrated rate laws. This activity is designed to be done at the end of the typical second quarter/second semester general chemistry kinetics unit. Students will be expected to have learned the following concepts prior to completing this activity:

a) how instantaneous rates of reactions are determined by measuring changes in concentration of reactants and/or products at the beginning of the reaction;

b) understanding basic rate laws and how rate laws are determined for a chemical reaction using instantaneous rates;

c) understanding why the rates of reactions slow down as the time of reaction increases.

Acknowledgement: This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1504989. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Learning Goals:

Students are expected to achieve the following learning goals:

a) conceptually understand how time-integrated rates laws can be used to describe the kinetics of a chemical reaction;

b) use time-integrated rate laws to determine the rate constant for a first or second order reaction;

c) use time-integrated rate laws to determine the half-life of a decomposition reaction;

d) use Excel to plot time-integrated rate laws and generate best-fit linear trend lines.

Corequisites:

General Chemistry

Equipment needs:

Students need a laptop or tablet device capable of operating a spreadsheet/graphing program.

Course Level:

Prerequisites:

Topics Covered:

Kinetics

Subdiscipline:

Implementation Notes:

See attached instructor notes.

Time Required:

50-80 minutes

9 Jan 2020

Marvin suite from ChemAxon

Submitted by Anthony L. Fernandez, Merrimack College

Evaluation Methods:

As my students draw structures, I usually observe them and make suggestions to improve their drawings.

Evaluation Results:

While I do no formal assessment of this activity, I have observed that students seem to learn how to use the program fairly quickly and then use it without much difficulty for the rest of the semester.

Description:

It is important for students to be able to effectively communicate the results of their scientific work. This does not only inlcude written and oral communication, but the creation of appropriate representations of the complexes they have investigated. It is crucial that students learn how to draw molecules using electronic structure drawing programs, but site licenses for structure drawing programs can be prohibitive for some institutions.

Marvin suite is a software package from ChemAxon that is freely avaialble for educational institutions. It contains a structure drawing program (MarvinSketch) and a viewer (MarvinView), as well as tools that allow for the calculation of many molecular and spectroscopic properties of molecules. This is a very useful suite of programs that can be used by all students and faculty at an instituion once an Academic License is obtained.

A set of directions for drawing a coordination complex in MarvinSketch is also included as part of this learning object. These directions will guide the user as they draw the structure of a square-planar coordination complex, trans-[Ni(NCS)₂(PMe₃)₂].

Topics Covered:

Acid-base chemistry

Communication skills

Computer modeling

Visualization

Corequisites:

No Corequisites

Prerequisites:

Subdiscipline:

Spectroscopy and Structural Methods

Course Level:

Guideline for drawing chemical structures

Second year

Upper Division

Learning Goals:

After following the instructions, students should be able to draw a chemical structure electronically using a chemical structure drawing program.

Once the structure in drawn in the program, a user would then be able to access the many other functions available in the software.

Related activities:

Drawing, visualizing and interpreting 3-D molecular structure (2019 Community Challenge #2)

Implementation Notes:

During the first week of our semester, lab sections are usually not held for courses so that student enrollment issues can be sorted out. In an advanced course such as Inorganic Chemistry, I want to take advantage of every week that I can so I use the first lab meeting time to have students learn how to use several software programs that they wil use over the course of the semester.

I post the download link and the license file for the software on the course LMS before the lab period and I ask the students to download and install the software. You should make sure that students update their Java installation before installing the Marvin suite. (I also place a link to the Java download site on the course LMS as well, but students tend to ignore it.) Aside from the Java issue, I have found that there are no real issues encountered by students when they install the software.

When we meet, I ask the students to follow the linked instructions to create a drawing of a coordination complex. Once they complete that successfully, I ask them to draw several other structures. I do not have any specific structures that I use, but I try to choose complexes with different geometries (octahedral, tetrahedral, square pyramidal, etc.) around the metal center.

The Marvin suite of programs provides the students with a number of useful tools, not just a structure drawing progam. Students use this to calculate or estimate a number of different things, such as the molecular mass, the elemental analysis, a mass spectrum, ¹H and ¹³C NMR, and charge distribution.

To obtain a license file, the faculty member must log into the ChemAxon site and request an Academic License. Once approved, the instituion is allowed to use the software for 2 years and the license can be easily renewed when it expires.

Time Required:

30 minutes

Web Resources:

Marvin webpage

Request an Academic License

Marvin webpage

8 Jan 2020

How to Read a Journal Article: Analyzing Author Roles and Article Components

Submitted by Catherine McCusker, East Tennessee State University

Evaluation Methods:

Follow up small group work with a class discussion of the correct answers. Grade students on participation and completness

Description:

This literature discussion uses a recently published article on solvatochromic Mo complexes to introduce students to the different components of a research article. The activity is divied into to two parts. Before class students read the paper and focus on defining terms, investigating the "meta" data of the paper, and the different sections iof the paper. In class the students work in groups to investigate the scientific content of the paper

Topics Covered:

Chemical literature

Communication skills

Computer modeling

Electronic spectroscopy

Prerequisites:

Course Level:

Corequisites:

Learning Goals:

Students should be able to:

Interpret the roles that authors play in a research project
Recognize the different sections of a research article and the purpose of each section
Understand how to access supporting information and the type of information found there
Find key conclusions of a research paper and the experimental evidence the author used to make those conclusions

Subdiscipline:

Spectroscopy and Structural Methods

Related activities:

Analyzing a journal article for basic themes, roles of authors, and the scientific method

Analyzing a journal article for non-content issues of style and convention

Time Required:

~30 min (if students complete part 1 before class)

Web Resources:

http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.1021/acs.inorgchem.9b02955

8 Jan 2020

Visualization of Solid State Structures using CrystalMaker and Physical Models

Submitted by Hilary Eppley, DePauw University

Evaluation Methods:

I usually grade one student handout per pair and typically have 1 pt per answer on the worksheet, but take the total out of 60 pts (which ends up giving them a couple of free points).

Evaluation Results:

Last semester my 17 students had an average of 47 out of 60 on the lab--a bit lower than usual for that lab. The high was a 57 and the low was a 39. There were lots of different individual errors, but errors in identifying which of the first structures were closest packed and errors in % of holes occupied were common.

Description:

This first-year laboratory is designed to give students an introduction to basic solid-state structures using both CrystalMaker files and physical models. I think this would work in a foundations level inorganic course as well. It could be used alternatively as an in-class activity or take-home problem set depending on the instructor. It was adapted by me and later, David Harvey, from an original activity that was posted as an educational resource on the CrystalMaker website in the mid 2000s.

Course Level:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Subdiscipline:

Solid State and Materials Chemistry

Learning Goals:

Students will be able to

articulate how the atoms in a simple cubic, face-centered cubic, and body-centered cubic unit cell are arranged
determine the coordination number of particular atoms in a unit cell
count the atoms or ions in a unit cell and determine the empirical formula based on that
determine the length of a side of a unit cell based on the radius of an atom
visualize the holes in different kinds of unit cells and see how ionic solids can be built by putting ions in those holes
describe the forces holding different solids together
calculate the % of filled and empty space in lattices
identify closest packed structures

Topics Covered:

Bonding models: Extended systems

Extended structure

Solids & solid state chemistry

Equipment needs:

Computer lab (approximately two students per computer) with CrystalMaker installed (it can be the student version if necessary)

and/or

Physical models from Klinger Educational Products
- simpe cubic
- fcc
- bcc
- hcp
- ccp
- NaCl
- zinc blende
- CaF₂
- CsCl
- wurtzite
- diamond
- rutile
- calcite

Box of pennies
Mineral samples of calcite, fluorite, and NaCl (if you want to do the bonus)

Related activities:

Solid State Models with ICE Solid State Model Kits

Looking at Solid State Structures

Implementation Notes:

I usually take one day of class to introduce students to CrystalMaker and all of the basic definitions and ideas of this lab before they start working on the stations. Typically I will work through the first station and then part of NaCl to show them some of the main ideas they will be using, asking them to provide answers (which are typically wrong on the first try!). I am typically circulating around answering questions as the students work through the lab. For a lab section of 24 working in 12 pairs, having one set of physical models seems adequate, but particularly at the beginning of the lab it might be helpful to have two sets of the face-centered cubic and body-centered cubic structures. The 12 computer "stations" are arranged in folders inside a Solid State Lab folder on the desktop of the lab computers, so students can just click on the correct folder and correct files as they work their way through the lab.

Time Required:

3h lab period

2 Jan 2020

Reaction Mechanisms: Energy Profiles and Catalysts

Submitted by Wesley S. Farrell, United States Naval Academy

Evaluation Methods:

Students will report answers to the class. The instructor should use the quality of these responses to gauge understanding.

Evaluation Results:

N/A

Description:

This in class activity consists of two demonstrations to be performed by the instructor, followed by a worksheet that students may work on independently or in groups. The demonstrations allow the students to determine when a reaction has occured, when it has not occured, and generate qualitative reaction energy profiles to match these observations. This activity is designed to take place during a description of kinetics in general chemistry. Detailed descriptions of the procedure and activity may be found in the "Overview for Instructor."

Learning Goals:

Students should be able to create qualitative reaction energy profiles which match a series of reactions, catalyzed and uncatalyzed.

Subdiscipline:

Equipment needs:

Three 8” test tubes
3% H₂O₂
Small cubes of potato, both raw and cooked
250 mL Erlenmeyer flask
Pt spiral (preferably in glass tube with hook for support)
Methanol
Bunsen burner (with striker)

Course Level:

Corequisites:

Prerequisites:

Topics Covered:

Implementation Notes:

Please see the "Overview for Instructor" document for implementation notes.

Time Required:

15 minutes

5 Dec 2019

Flipped Class Module - Lewis Structures of Industrially and Environmentally Relevant Molecules

Submitted by Jack F Eichler, University of California, Riverside

Evaluation Methods:

1) Performance on the pre-lecture online quiz

2) Performance on the in-class activity (clicker scores or hand-graded worksheet)

Evaluation Results:

Students generally score on average 70% or higher on the pre-lecdure quiz, and on average 70% or more of students correctly answer the in-class clicker questions.

Description:

This is a flipped classroom activity intended for use in a first semester general chemistry course. Students are expected to have prior knowledge in identifyng the difference between molecular and ionic compounds, understanding the conceptual framework for how covalent bonds form, and how to draw Lewis dot symbols for atoms, and how to determine the number of valence electrons for atoms.

.

The activity includes:

1) pre-lecture learning videos that guide students through learning how to draw valid Lewis structures, determining how to caculate the formal charge for atoms in molecular compuonds/Lewis structures, and using formal charge to determine which Lewis structure is most stable if multiple Lewis structures are possible for a given molecule;

2) pre-lecture quiz questions; and

3) an in-class activity that requires students to apply their knowledge of chemical bonding in drawing Lewis structures.

Acknowledgement: This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 1504989. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Learning Goals:

Students should be able to:

a) draw Lewis structures of molecular compounds;

b) determine the formal charge of atoms in molecular compounds;

c) use formal charge to predict the most stable Lewis structure.

Subdiscipline:

Molecular Structure and Bonding

Equipment needs:

Suggested technology:

1) online test/quiz function in course management system

2) in-class response system (clickers)

Course Level:

Corequisites:

General Chemistry

Prerequisites:

Bonding models: Discrete molecules

Topics Covered:

Molecular structure

Implementation Notes:

Attached as separate file.

Time Required:

50-80 minutes

9 Oct 2019

2019 Nobel Prize - Li-ion battery LOs

Submitted by Barbara Reisner, James Madison University

Congratulations to the 2019 recipients of the Nobel Prize - John B. Goodenough, M. Stan Whittingham and Akira Yoshino. It's a well deserved honor!

There are several LOs on VIPEr that talk about lithium ion batteries and related systems. The 2019 Nobel is a great opportunity to include something about these batteries in your class.

I hope to see more LOs in the coming weeks so we can bring this chemistry into our classrooms!

Subdiscipline:

Bioinorganic Chemistry

Electrochemistry

Solid State and Materials Chemistry

Spectroscopy and Structural Methods

Topics Covered:

Acid-base chemistry

Bonding models: Extended systems

Electron transfer

Extended structure

Physical methods / analytical techniques

Physical properties

Solids & solid state chemistry

Synthesis and reactivity

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Course Level:

18 Jul 2019

Science Information Literacy Badge--Reading the Literature

Submitted by Michelle Personick, Wesleyan University

Evaluation Methods:

I use this activity as a "badge," which is self-paced guided skill-building activity that students complete on their own time outside of class. Badges are designed around fundamental chemistry skills that students wouldn’t necessarily acquire from standard course content and lectures. They carry a very small point value (about 2% of the course total per badge) but my students are very motivated by even small amounts of points. I assign points primarily based on completion and effort and also provide brief written feedback for each student. I have my students turn in badges in Moodle, which makes feedback more streamlined.

Description:

This is an activity designed to introduce general chemistry students to reading the chemistry literature by familiarizing them with the structure of a published article. The activity first presents an article from the Whitesides group at Harvard about writing a scientific manuscript, along with a video about the peer-review process. There are two parts to the questions in the activity, which are based on a specific article from Nature Communications (doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-08824-8). Part I is focused on the structure of the article and where to find key pieces of information. Part II encourages students to use general audience summaries in combination with the original article to best understand the science while making sure they get a complete and accurate picture of the reported work.

Topics Covered:

Chemical literature

Communication skills

Prerequisites:

Course Level:

Corequisites:

Learning Goals:

A student should be able to approach the chemistry literature and determine where to find:

the authors and their affiliations;
the main objective of the research;
the main outcomes of the research;
why the research is important;
experimental details;
supplementary figures and other information.

A student should be able to broadly evaluate the reliability of secondary summaries of scientific articles by comparing them against the key points of the original paper.

Subdiscipline:

Implementation Notes:

This activity is based on a specific article: "Room temperature CO₂ reduction to solid carbon species on liquid metals featuring atomically thin ceria interfaces" (Nat. Commun., 2019, 10, 865. doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-08824-8). However, it's easily adapted to other articles that are more suited to a particular course, and I've used other articles in previous iterations. This article was chosen because the content is at least partly accessible to students in my second semester general chemistry course, who have already had some electrochemistry/redox chemistry, and who have recently learned about kinetics, reaction mechanisms, and catalysis. The topic of liquid metals is new and interesting to the students, because it's not something the'd normally be exposed to, and the application to CO₂ sequestration is something they can connect with.

9 Jul 2019

Constructing a Class Acid-Base Titration Curve

Submitted by Katherine Nicole Crowder, University of Mary Washington

Evaluation Methods:

Students were allowed to keep working until they had correct pH values, so they were graded on participation. Worksheets were collected at the end in order to construct the titration curve.

This could be collected and graded for correctness.

Evaluation Results:

Students were evaluated on similar questions on the subsequent exam. Most students (12 out of 15) scored 11-13 points on a 13 point question where they had to solve for the pH in the four regions of a strong acid titration curve. 8 out of 15 recieved full credit on a question where they had to calculate the pH in the buffer region of a weak acid titration curve.

Description:

In this in-class activity, each student calculates the inital pH, equivalence volume, and pH at the equivalence point for both a strong acid-strong base and a weak acid-strong base titration.

In addition, each student is assigned a unique volume before the equivalence point and a unique volume after the equivalence point for each titration curve.

The data from the class is then assembled in Excel to construct the two titration curves.

This forces each student to do the calculations for each of the four regions of both types of titration curves. This activity could be used to introduce titration curves or to reinforce previously covered lecture material/problem-solving. It could also be switched to do a strong base-strong acid or a weak base-strong acid titration curve.

The constructed titration curves can be used for further discussions of the differences between a strong acid and a weak acid in terms of initial pH, the rapid-rise portion of the curve, and the pH at the equivalence point.

Learning Goals:

A student should be able to

determine the pH of a strong acid solution
determine the pH of a weak acid solution using Ka
use stoichiometry to calculate equivalence volumes for acid-base titrations
employ limiting reagent calculations to determine acid or base concentrations for different regions of a titration curve and determine pH
determine the pH of a weak base solution using Ka, Kb

Subdiscipline: