ERIC Number: EJ1100275
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016-Apr
Pages: 6
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0021-9584
EISSN: N/A
Incorporating Sustainability and Life Cycle Assessment into First-Year Inorganic Chemistry Major Laboratories
Guron, Marta; Paul, Jared J.; Roeder, Margaret H.
Journal of Chemical Education, v93 n4 p639-644 Apr 2016
Although much of the scientific community concerns itself with ideas of a sustainable future, very little of this interest and motivation has reached the classroom experience of the average chemistry major, and therefore, it is imperative to expose students to these ideas early in their careers. The focus of most undergraduate chemistry curricula rests on the preparation of the next generation of researchers, ensuring that students are capable and effective in the laboratory. A majority of laboratory experiences focus on building basic technical skill sets for chemists. However, little time is spent ensuring that students are aware of the impacts of their research, as it pertains to chemical waste and the sustainability of research, in general. At Villanova, an existing first-year undergraduate inorganic chemistry laboratory course was modified to promote novel ideas in research with an emphasis on life-cycle thinking and analysis in terms of sustainability. Initial results are reported, as well as an outline of the novel aspects of the course.
Descriptors: Chemistry, Science Instruction, Majors (Students), Sustainability, Laboratory Experiments, Student Motivation, College Freshmen, Science Curriculum, Discovery Learning, Problem Solving, Decision Making, Lecture Method, Scientific Concepts, Science Laboratories
Division of Chemical Education, Inc and ACS Publications Division of the American Chemical Society. 1155 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 800-227-5558; Tel: 202-872-4600; e-mail: eic@jce.acs.org; Web site: http://pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Pennsylvania
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A