Session: Undergraduate Research Posters: Chemistry Education:

More than ever there is a need for resources to support students’ individual learning of introductory chemistry in an online environment. One common student difficulty is conceptualizing solutions and the submicroscopic interactions between particles, especially as they pertain to differences in acid solutions. Though literature shows that particulate-level simulations benefit students’ conceptual understanding of the submicroscopic world, there is little research regarding how to best support students’ independent use of these simulations outside of the traditional classroom environment. The ChemSims project aims to develop and evaluate materials to help students effectively use simulations for learning core chemistry concepts. As part of this larger project, we developed an introduction to acid solutions that students completed individually outside of class, engaging either with guided use of a PhET simulation or a screencast of an instructor using that same simulation. Analysis of our initial pre and post-assessments revealed students struggled with defining an acid as well as differentiating between acid concentration and acid strength. Our iterative design approach allowed for us to reimagine and revise our original screencast into two mini screencasts, and a self-exploration of acid concentration. The first screencast targets relative acid strength, the second focuses on determining pH through its inverse relationship with hydronium ions, and then in the last part students engage with the simulation to explore concentration. This poster will present the results of our initial pre-post analysis and how this along with prior findings from the ChemSims project informed the materials redesign.

Ryan Sweeder

Michigan State University

Appearances