To succeed in organic chemistry, students must review foundational chemistry skills from general chemistry, and transfer that knowledge into the context of organic chemistry. Prior studies indicate that many students lack necessary pre-requisite knowledge, and even more struggle to apply it to organic chemistry. Additionally, students frequently express significant nervousness and lack of confidence in their chemistry abilities, which further hinders their success in organic chemistry. In our study, we addressed this challenge by developing a summer program that students complete remotely before starting organic chemistry in the fall: OrgoPrep. OrgoPrep is based on a step back, translate, and extend model to help remediate attrition of fundamental chemistry skills (step back), build a bridge to organic chemistry (translate), and prepare students for the upcoming organic coursework (extend). The six-week program is led by former Learning Assistants, peers with pedagogy and course content training. Each of the weekly OrgoPrep lessons is comprised of three components: self-paced question-embedded videos (QEVs), a practice worksheet based on the video content, and a live Zoom webinar (group problem solving session). After completing the QEVs and practice worksheet asynchronously, the students engage in a face-to-face remote webinar during which they practice problem-solving with other students, led by their peer mentor. Students in OrgoPrep commit around three hours per week, and the program supports a wide breadth of introductory organic chemistry material: drawing molecules, resonance structures, hybridization and molecular shape, molecular orbitals, acid-base chemistry, and limiting reagents. Students who completed OrgoPrep substantially outperformed their peers who did not participate in the program, despite having statistically identical general chemistry performances. We found a 4-fold decrease in withdrawals for students in OrgoPrep, as well as a 3-fold decrease in failing grades (C-, D, F). Additionally, OrgoPrep students also received nearly double the number of A grades (40%), compared to their peers. Finally, 97% of students reported that they were highly likely to recommend OrgoPrep to a friend. Overall, OrgoPrep is a student-friendly program that reinforces the foundational chemistry skills students lack and leads to significant improvement in course performance in organic chemistry.

OrgoPrep: Improving student outcomes in organic chemistry through a peer-led remote intersession program

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.