Undergraduate students perceive physical chemistry as the most difficult content to master, partly because of its inherently mathematical nature. Considering availability of wide variety of mathematical and analytical software, computational chemistry software and that the computational power has dramatically increased in the recent years, it is intuitive to ask “can student engagement and interest in learning physical chemistry concepts be enhanced by exploiting these computational software?” This presentation focuses on evaluating use of computational software in physical chemistry II course, which concentrates on quantum mechanics and spectroscopy, at Bridgewater State University. Specifically, this report will present preliminary student survey data on usefulness of Maple (a mathematical and analytical software) and computational chemistry laboratories in easing students’ anxiety and thereby enhancing their understanding of fundamentals and applications of quantum mechanics in spectroscopy.

Computational software: Can it help increase student engagement in physical chemistry courses?

255th National Meeting (2018)

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