Contemplates reasons for the reluctance of chemists and scientists in general to expose their teaching to peer review. Describes the American Association for Higher Education's (AAHE) peer review project, the issues of fear, the arguments for peer collaboration and review, the results and impact of peer review on teaching, and future plans for the…

This activity takes students through the process of fermentation. Requires an entire month for the full reaction to take place. The reaction, catalyzed by bacterial enzymes, produces lactic acid from glucose. (SAH)

Describes how to incorporate the concept of significant figures into science activities to promote understanding. Provides helpful classroom examples using measurements of volume and length. (SAH)

Presents a plan for getting all students, including students that normally sit in the back of the room, to participate in class lectures. This plan is geared for classes that have 30-150 students enrolled. (SAH)

Explores specific places where a component of ethical decision-making can be incorporated into the undergraduate chemistry curriculum and the effect on students' moral development. Presents several case studies. (SAH)

Describes how to evaluate the effectiveness of demonstration assessments as assessment tools and instruments for developing conceptual understanding and critical thinking. (SAH)

Presents several student responses to viewing a can-crushing demonstration in which a soda can containing a small amount of water was heated on a hot-plate to boil the water, removed from the heat, and sealed by inverting over a container of cold water. Students were given a quiz, made predictions, and explained what happened on a molecular level.…

Describes a review of research that addresses the effectiveness of simulations in promoting scientific discovery learning and the problems that learners may encounter when using discovery learning. (WRM)

Summarizes ideas for new demonstrations, experiments, and science-in-society topics for teaching chemistry. (WRM)

Summarizes several articles on safety in the science laboratory, an article on the science and history of chocolate, and an article on teaching nuclear physics from an historical perspective. (WRM)

Describes the water-repelling behavior of "magic sand". Suggests some demonstrations and activities to compare the properties of magic sand with those of regular sand. (WRM)

Surveys the roots of the common names of organic compounds most likely to be encountered by undergraduate organic chemistry students. Includes information for 19 amino acids, 17 aromatic compounds, and 21 carboxylic acids. (WRM)

Describes an exercise designed to allow for student introductions at the beginning of a new semester while simultaneously revealing ways in which research questions can be constructed to collect data. (WRM)

Describes a concrete teaching model designed to eliminate students' misconceptions about current flow in electrochemistry. The model uses a semi-permeable membrane rather than a salt bridge to complete the circuit and demonstrate the maintenance of cell neutrality. Concludes that use of the model led to improvement in students' understanding at…

Presents an analysis of undergraduate students' experiences in and attitudes toward small group learning in chemistry. Finds that small group learning activities provide a mechanism for students to build a feeling of community in the classroom. (Contains 21 references.) (WRM)