ERIC Number: EJ895887
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-4308
EISSN: N/A
Non-Mathematical Problem Solving in Organic Chemistry
Cartrette, David P.; Bodner, George M.
Journal of Research in Science Teaching, v47 n6 p643-660 Aug 2010
Differences in problem-solving ability among organic chemistry graduate students and faculty were studied within the domain of problems that involved the determination of the structure of a molecule from the molecular formula of the compound and a combination of IR and [to the first power]H NMR spectra. The participants' performance on these tasks was compared across variables that included amount of research experience, year of graduate study, and level of problem-solving confidence. Thirteen of the 15 participants could be classified as either "more successful" or "less successful." The participants in this study who were "more successful" adopted consistent approaches to solving the problems; were more likely to draw molecular fragments obtained during intermediate stages in the problem-solving process; were better at mining the spectral data; and were more likely to check their final answer against the spectra upon which the answer was based. Experience from research, teaching, and course work were found to be important factors influencing the level of participants' success. (Contains 3 figures and 2 tables.)
Descriptors: Graduate Students, Success, Organic Chemistry, Problem Solving, Science Instruction, College Science, Molecular Structure, Educational Attainment, Self Esteem, Educational Research
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A