The purpose of this study was to understand if a green chemistry laboratory design facilitated students’ transformative experiences in a first-semester general chemistry course for science majors. The study population consisted of 18 college students enrolled in the course at a small, rural, mid-Atlantic university. Traditional chemistry laboratories were replaced with three signature green chemistry laboratories over a period of 6-weeks at the end of the spring semester. Impact data were collected pre- and post, of the three labs using the Transformative Experience Questionnaire (TEQ) surveys. Open ended guided reflection questions were coded for elements of transformative experience (TE): expansion of perception (EP), experiential value (EV), and motivated use (MU). Process data were also included to provide contextual understanding of the impact data. Results indicate that each lab supported students’ transformative experiences and there is evidence to suggest that students’ TE increased modestly across the 6-week green chemistry laboratory experience. The experiential value (EV) element of transformative experience was most supported by the green chemistry laboratories. These findings suggest that a green chemistry laboratory design has potential to facilitate transformative experiences in chemistry for this population of students. Possible long-term effects include student motivation and retention in STEM fields of study.

Beyond gate-keeping: Improving the first-semester general chemistry laboratory experience

2019 Spring National Meeting

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