Academic success in context-based chemistry : Demonstrating fluid transitions between concepts and context

Curriculum developers and researchers have promoted context-based programmes to arrest waning student interest and participation in the enabling sciences at high school and university. Context-based programmes aim for student connections between scientific discourse and real-world contexts to elevate curricular relevance without diminishing conceptual understanding. This interpretive study explored the learning transactions in one 11th grade context-based chemistry classroom where the context was the local creek. The dialectic of agency/structure was used as a lens to examine how the practices in classroom interactions afforded students the agency for learning. The results suggest that first, fluid transitions were evident in the student–student interactions involving successful students; and second, fluid transitions linking concepts to context were evident in the students’ successful reports. The study reveals that the structures of writing and collaborating in groups enabled students’ agential and fluent movement between the field of the real-world creek and the field of the formal chemistry classroom. Furthermore, characteristics of academically successful students in context-based chemistry are highlighted. Research, teaching, and future directions for context-based science teaching are discussed.

Higher order thinking in chemistry curriculum and its assessment

Higher-order thinking has featured persistently in the reform agenda for science education. The intended curriculum in various countries sets out aspirational statements for the levels of higher-order thinking to be attained by students. This study reports the extent to which chemistry examinations from four Australian states align and facilitate the intended higher-order thinking skills stipulated in curriculum documents. Through content analysis, the curriculum goals were identified for each state and compared to the nature of question items in the corresponding examinations. Categories of higher-order thinking were adapted from the OECD’s PISA Science test to analyze question items. There was considerable variation in the extent to which the examinations from the states supported the curriculum intent of developing and assessing higher-order thinking. Generally, examinations that used a marks-based system tended to emphasize lower-order thinking, with a greater distribution of marks allocated for lower-order thinking questions. Examinations associated with a criterion-referenced examination tended to award greater credit for higher-order thinking questions. The level of complexity of chemistry was another factor that limited the extent to which examination questions supported higher-order thinking. Implications from these findings are drawn for the authorities responsible for designing curriculum and assessment procedures and for teachers.

Using formative feedback to identify and support first year chemistry students with missing or misconceptions. A Practice Report

Students entering tertiary studies possess a diverse range of prior experiences in their academic preparation for tertiary chemistry so academics need tools to enable them to respond to issues in diversity in conceptual models possessed by entering students. Concept inventories can be used to provide formative feedback to help students identify concepts that they need to address to improve construction of subsequent understanding enabling their learning. Modular, formative learning activities that can be administered inside or outside of class in first year chemistry courses have been developed. These activities address key missing and mis-conceptions possessed by incoming student. Engagement in these learning activities by students and academics will help shift the culture of diagnostic and formative assessment within the tertiary context and address issues around the secondary/tertiary transition. This diagnostic/intervention framework is currently being trialed across five Australian tertiary institutions encompassing a large heterogeneous sample of students.

Comprehensive study of surface chemistry of MCM-41 using 29Si CP/MAS NMR, FTIR, pyridine-TPD, and TGA

A comprehensive study was conducted on mesoporous MCM-41. Spectroscopic examinations demonstrated that three types of silanol groups, i.e., single, (SiO)3Si-OH, hydrogen-bonded, (SiO)3Si-OH-OH-Si(SiO)3, and geminal, (SiO)2Si(OH)2, can be observed. The number of silanol groups/nm2, ?OH, as determined by NMR, varies between 2.5 and 3.0 depending on the template-removal methods. All these silanol groups were found to be the active sites for adsorption of pyridine with desorption energies of 91.4 and 52.2 kJ mol-1, respectively. However, only free silanol groups (involving single and geminal silanols) are highly accessible to the silylating agent, chlorotrimethylsilane. Silylation can modify both the physical and chemical properties of MCM-41.

Outcomes of the Chemistry Discipline Network Mapping Exercises: Are the Threshold Learning Outcomes met?

The Chemistry Discipline Network has recently completed two distinct mapping exercises. The first is a snapshot of chemistry taught at 12 institutions around Australia in 2011. There were many similarities but also important differences in the content taught and assessed at different institutions. There were also significant differences in delivery, particularly laboratory contact hours, as well as forms and weightings of assessment. The second mapping exercise mapped the chemistry degrees at three institutions to the Threshold Learning Outcomes for chemistry. Importantly, some of the TLOs were addressed by multiple units at all institutions, while others were not met, or were met at an introductory level only. The exercise also exposed some challenges in using the TLOs as currently written.

Reflections on chemistry sessions at the 2012 Healthy Buildings Conference

Scores of well-researched individual papers and posters specifically or indirectly addressing the occurrence, measurement or exposure impacts of chemicals in buildings were presented at 2012 Healthy Buildings Conference. Many of these presentations offered advances in sampling and characterisation of chemical pollutants while others extended the frontiers of knowledge on the emission, adsorption, risk, fate and compositional levels of chemicals in indoor and outdoor microenvironments. Several modelled or monitored indoor chemistry, including processes that generated secondary pollutants. This article provides an overview of the state of knowledge on healthy buildings based on papers presented in chemistry sessions at Healthy Buildings 2012 (HB2012) Conference. It also suggests future directions in healthy buildings research.

'In the Room' and 'School Chemistry Class'

Two poems in journal Axon. 2013 Issue 4.

Scientific visualisations for developing students’ understanding of concepts in chemistry : some findings and some lessons learned

Scientific visualisations such as computer-based animations and simulations are increasingly a feature of high school science instruction. Visualisations are adopted enthusiastically by teachers and embraced by students, and there is good evidence that they are popular and well received. There is limited evidence, however, of how effective they are in enabling students to learn key scientific concepts. This paper reports the results of a quantitative study conducted in Australian chemistry classrooms. The visualisations chosen were from free online sources, intended to model the ways in which classroom teachers use visualisations, but were found to have serious flaws for conceptual learning. There were also challenges in the degree of interactivity available to students using the visualisations. Within these limitations, no significant difference was found for teaching with and without these visualisations. Further study using better designed visualisations and with explicit attention to the pedagogy surrounding the visualisations will be required to gather high quality evidence of the effectiveness of visualisations for conceptual development.

Gas-Phase Transformation of Phosphatidylcholine Cations to Structurally Informative Anions via Ion/Ion Chemistry

Gas-phase transformation of synthetic phosphatidylcholine (PC) monocations to structurally informative anions is demonstrated via ion/ion reactions with doubly deprotonated 1,4-phenylenedipropionic acid (PDPA). Two synthetic PC isomers, 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (PC16:0/18:1) and 1-oleoyl-2-palmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (PC18:1/16:0), were subjected to this ion/ion chemistry. The product of the ion/ion reaction is a negatively charged complex, \[PC + PDPA - H](-). Collisional activation of the long-lived complex causes transfer of a proton and methyl cation to PDPA, generating \[PC - CH3](-). Subsequent collisional activation of the demethylated PC anions produces abundant fatty acid carboxylate anions and low-abundance acyl neutral losses as free acids and ketenes. Product ion spectra of \[PC - CH3](-) suggest favorable cleavage at the sn-2 position over the sn-1 due to distinct differences in the relative abundances. In contrast, collisional activation of PC cations is absent of abundant fatty acid chain-related product ions and typically indicates only the lipid class via formation of the phosphocholine cation. A solution phase method to produce the gas-phase adducted PC anion is also demonstrated. Product ion spectra derived from the solution phase method are similar to the results generated via ion/ion chemistry. This work demonstrates a gas-phase means to increase structural characterization of phosphatidylcholines via ion/ion chemistry. Grant Number ARC/CE0561607, ARC/DP120102922

The Chemistry of Mycotoxins

Mycotoxins – from the Greek μύκης (mykes, mukos) “fungus” and the Latin (toxicum) “poison” – are a large and growing family of secondary metabolites and hence natural products produced by fungi, in particular by molds (1). It is estimated that well over 1,000 mycotoxins have been isolated and characterized so far, but this number will increase over the next few decades due the availability of more specialized analytical tools and the increasing number of fungi being isolated. However, the most important classes of fungi responsible for these compounds are Alternaria, Aspergillus (multiple forms), Penicillium, and Stachybotrys. The biological activity of mycotoxins ranges from weak and/or sometimes positive effects such as antibacterial activity (e.g. penicillin derivatives derived from Penicillium strains) to strong mutagenic (e.g. aflatoxins, patulin), carcinogenic (e.g. aflatoxins), teratogenic, neurotoxic (e.g. ochratoxins), nephrotoxic (e.g. fumonisins, citrinin), hepatotoxic, and immunotoxic (e.g. ochratoxins, diketopiperazines) activities (1, 2), which are discussed in detail in this volume.

Macromolecular engineering via RAFT chemistry : from sequential to modular design

Sequential Design Molecular Weight Range Functional Monomers: Possibilities, Limits, and Challenges Block Copolymers: Combinations, Block Lengths, and Purities Modular Design End-Group Chemistry Ligation Protocols Conclusions

Size- and orientation-selective Si nanowire growth : thermokinetic effects of naeoscale plasma chemistry

A multiscale, multiphase thermokinetic model is used to show the effective control of the growth orientation of thin Si NWs for nanoelectronic devices enabled by nanoscale plasma chemistry. It is shown that very thin Si NWs with [110] growth direction can nucleate at much lower process temperatures and pressures compared to thermal chemical vapor deposition where [111]-directed Si NWs are predominantly grown. These findings explain a host of experimental results and offer the possibility of energy- and matter-efficient, size- and orientation-controlled growth of [110] Si NWs for next-generation nanodevices.

Nanoscale plasma chemistry enables fast, size-selective nanotube nucleation

The possibility of fast, narrow-size/chirality nucleation of thin single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) at low, device-tolerant process temperatures in a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is demonstrated using multiphase, multiscale numerical experiments. These effects are due to the unique nanoscale reactive plasma chemistry (NRPC) on the surfaces and within Au catalyst nanoparticles. The computed three-dimensional process parameter maps link the nanotube incubation times and the relative differences between the incubation times of SWCNTs of different sizes/chiralities to the main plasma- and precursor gas-specific parameters and explain recent experimental observations. It is shown that the unique NRPC leads not only to much faster nucleation of thin nanotubes at much lower process temperatures, but also to better selectivity between the incubation times of SWCNTs with different sizes and chiralities, compared to thermal CVD. These results are used to propose a time-programmed kinetic approach based on fast-responding plasmas which control the size-selective, narrow-chirality nucleation and growth of thin SWCNTs. This approach is generic and can be used for other nanostructure and materials systems.

Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals : controlled synthesis and surface chemistry in organic media

Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals (CS-NCs) possess compelling benefits of low-cost, large-scale solution processing, and tunable optoelectronic properties through controlled synthesis and surface chemistry engineering. These merits make them promising candidates for a variety of applications. This review focuses on the general strategies and recent developments of the controlled synthesis of CS-NCs in terms of crystalline structure, particle size, dominant exposed facet, and their surface passivation. Highlighted are the organic-media based synthesis of metal chalcogenide (including cadmium, lead, and copper chalcogenide) and metal oxide (including titanium oxide and zinc oxide) nanocrystals. Current challenges and thus future opportunities are also pointed out in this review.