Since 2014, the first-year chemistry course for self-selected science majors at Suffolk University also fulfills the lab-based Science, Technology and Engineering core requirement for non-science majors seeking a B.S. degree from the College. Thus, the 100-level foundation chemistry course comprises a diverse community of novice scientists. In 2014, the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Suffolk University employed backward course design and converted the ordering of General Chemistry topics to reflect the atoms first approach. Students’ graded assignments probe their ability to demonstrate competency in Departmentally agreed upon key learning outcomes. The key learning outcomes are inherently derived from the course objectives; specific tasks chemistry students will be able to do upon successful completion of the course. The course objectives relate to the broad educational goals of the course, which are constructively aligned throughout the curriculum to ensure deep understanding of the fundamentals of chemistry. For the first time since converting to the atoms first ordering of topics, in fall 2017, the lecture portion of the course was assigned to a designated Collaborative Learning Classroom (CLC). In order to take advantage of the built-in classroom technology, active learning modules were created using publisher provided content. The active learning modules are accessed by students organized in six groups of five or six students via the MasteringChemistry account of the group leader. Each module comprises four problem-solving activities specific to the key learning outcome(s) for the lecture. The activities are organized according to Bloom’s taxonomy and students are given immediate online-generated feedback specific to their answer via the application.

Incorporating in-class active learning modules using online-accessed content in a collaborative learning classroom

255th National Meeting (2018)

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