This investigation focuses on the development of students' problem solving strategies in general chemistry and measures the alignment of these strategies to those of expert chemistry instructors. Problems solving strategies and their characterizations were measured for both students in general chemistry and expert chemists, who also teach general chemistry. Each participant, then, was presented with two chemistry problems. As each participant solved each problem, eye movements while reading and solving the problem were tracked. Following the solution of each problem, each participant was asked to describe the strategy they used to solve the problem. Coding of data sets has helped determine: (1) the alignment of experts' actual problem solving strategies with those they describe teaching; (2) the alignment of students' actual problem solving strategies with those they describe experiencing in class, and; (3) the alignment of students' actual problem solving strategies with experts' actual problem solving strategies.

Alignment of students' problem solving strategies with expert practices and instruction in general chemistry classrooms

246th National Meeting (2013)

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