Use of Online Homework (MasteringChemistry) in General Chemistry - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Use of Online Homework (MasteringChemistry) in General Chemistry Course Redesign

David V. Dearden Brigham Young University

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General Chemistry Course Structure

Conceptual, “atoms first” approach No concurrent lab Mixed application for mixed clientele: 1-semester, stand-alone course for engineers first of a 2-semester series in general chemistry for many others

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General Chemistry Students

Pre-professional (30%), engineering (40%), science majors (15%), others (15%) ~85% have had high school chemistry, but course is taught with no prerequisites Typical enrollment 2500 students/year 250 students/lecture (3x/week) 25 students/recitation section (2x/week) Dropout/fail/withdraw typically < 10%

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Challenges

Large sections little personal interaction inability to give adequate, personal feedback (old homework system as example) diversity of student preparation/background Course content (volume!)

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Goals in Technological Redesign

Engage students during lecture Give individual feedback Do this without sacrificing content increasing instructor load I use technology primarily for pedagogical reasons; assessment is a distant secondary purpose this avoids potential concerns about security /cheating

“I love technology”

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Redesign Strategies We Have Used

Use of recitation sections Use of Blackboard / “Micro Exams” Use of Chem Tutor ( http://www.chem.byu.edu/faculty/jdl/ChemTutorII/ ) Use of iClicker quizzes Use of online homework (Mastering Chemistry)

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Online Homework (MasteringChemistry)

Use provided problems or write your own (or use a mixture) Gives graded feedback can be in form of “hints” or answer-based instruction Instructor can monitor Computer does the grading Learning curve for students and instructor

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MasteringChemistry Implementation

Faculty participation was voluntary in Fall ’07 By Winter ’08, all sections had adopted Ranged from 1st time teachers to a retired faculty member who returned to teach “Easier than I thought it would be” Use has since spread to the follow-on course (Chem 106) and to 2 courses in the GOB series

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MasteringChemistry “Best Practices”

Use the publisher-provided best practices Have students do introductory exercises Allow ample retries with small penalties for looking at hints points are like candy! give most of the credit for completion Allow ample “drops” Be flexible with due dates early on Leave problems available for review Work problems yourself before allowing student access

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My Personal Experience with MasteringChemistry

Adopted initially in fall 2007 2 sections of ~225 students each Using again currently 1 section of ~250 students Used the same multiple-choice exams both before and after adoption Conducted in-class surveys of student perceptions

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Dearden General Chemistry, Winter 2009

"So far, how helpful to you is each of the following in learning general chemistry?"

0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 1 2 3 4 5

Effectiveness ranking (1=low, 5=high)

Lecture Recitation & DR Text problems MasteringChemistry ChemTutor Textbook

Student Perceptions-Midterm

3.47 ± 1.09 3.59 ± 1.33 2.71 ± 1.26 3.96 ± 1.05 3.96 ± 1.04 3.48 ± 1.09

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Student Perceptions-Final

Dearden General Chemistry, Fall 2007

"How helpful to you is each of the following in learning general chemistry"

0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 1 2 3 4 5

Effectiveness ranking (1=low, 5=high)

lectures recitation end-of-chapter problems MasteringChemistry ChemTutor Textbook

3.74 ± 0.90 3.97 ± 1.04 2.32 ± 1.23 4.35 ± 0.95 4.10 ± 1.09 3.38 ± 1.07

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Before & After Mastering Chemistry

25.0 35.0 45.0 55.0 65.0 75.0 85.0 95.0 Macro1 Macro2 Macro3 Final W07 Mean (Before) F07 Mean (After) W09 Mean (After)

Exam Scores

54.5 ± 24.5% 54.5 ± 24.5% 60.6 ± 21.7% 60.6 ± 21.7%

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Acknowledgments

BYU Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Chem 105 instructors National Science Foundation

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