Student-Generated Infographics for Learning Green Chemistry and Developing Professional Skills

Abstract

This paper addresses the incorporation of a scaffolded infographic project into a majors' organic chemistry laboratory. Students were given the freedom to choose their topic with the stipulation that it must be relevant to both organic and green chemistry. This scaffolded project consisted of the following eight phases: (i) summarizing and evaluating an existing infographic, (ii) delving into green chemistry literature, (iii) proposing infographic topic, (iv) gathering components for the infographic, (v) analyzing infographic maker websites, (vi) creating infographic and providing peer feedback on first drafts, (vii) revising infographic and providing final feedback, and (viii) posting infographic on Twitter. Since this was a semester-long project implemented in a remote environment, a variety of instructional technologies including Flipgrid, Perusall, FeedbackFruits Peer Review, Google Jamboard, and chemical drawing software were utilized. The analysis of the project's impact on cognitive gains through Student Assessment of Learning Gains and through pre-and post-test responses indicated the achievement of positive learning gains on green chemistry knowledge and skills. This activity was viewed favorably by students, with most indicating a desire for similar assignments implemented in future courses.

Development and Implementation of a Bioinfographic Assignment in Second-Semester Biochemistry: Metabolic Pathways beyond the Classroom

“…Student feedback through comments on the postsurvey (see SI, pages S27−S28) revealed that students generally appreciated interacting with other students, which agrees with the findings of the collaborative infographic assignment described by Sahai and Ivanova. 14 As highlighted by Grieger and Leontyev, 13 students greatly appreciated the hands-on experience of learning how to prepare infographics and use scientific software required for figure preparation. Notably, several students in the postsurvey described how beneficial the peer review process was, suggesting that this component of the project be emphasized.…”

“…8,9 A number of pedagogical articles have highlighted using infographics as an educational tool in a classroom setting. 10,5,11,2,12,13,3,14 However, most of these assignments were incorporated into interdisciplinary courses or foundational courses, such as organic, green, and analytical chemistry. At many colleges and universities, cellular metabolism is the central topic of second-semester biochemistry courses, 15 including the metabolism of carbohydrates, nucleic acids, and amino acids.…”

“…Students were asked about their expectations for this assignment during a presurvey and were also asked to reflect on their experiences in a postsurvey. While other projects have used social media to disseminate these infographics, − we took a more targeted approach of displaying these bioinfographics at our home institutions and on a publicly accessible website hosted by the SUNY Cortland library. This paper describes the details of this assignment, presents sample student bioinfographics, and provides suggestions for instructors who would like to include a similar assignment in their courses.…”

Should We Ban Single-Use Plastics? A Role-Playing Game to Argue and Make Decisions in a Grade-8 School Chemistry Class

“…This need to incorporate socioscientific issues into the classroom is included in national educational standards for countries such as the USA, Germany, the UK, or Spain. 8 In the case of the Spanish curriculum, 9 objectives such as assessing scientific research and its impact on industry and the development of society, or interpreting information on scientific issues of an informative nature in publications and the media, are included. These goals show the concern of public officials in approaching novel educational tools to tackle socio-scientific issues.…”

“…The study of chemistry-related socio-scientific issues helps to improve scientific literacy and create citizens with an understanding of chemistry that can be used to improve our society. , Thus, students also learn to question, discuss aspects of chemistry, or make decisions, all of which may affect their lives and society in general. This need to incorporate socio-scientific issues into the classroom is included in national educational standards for countries such as the USA, Germany, the UK, or Spain . In the case of the Spanish curriculum, objectives such as assessing scientific research and its impact on industry and the development of society, or interpreting information on scientific issues of an informative nature in publications and the media, are included.…”