Advocating Science for All
The June 2013 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education is now available online(link is external). This latest issue of JCE plus the content of all past issues, volumes 1 through 90, are available(link is external).
Cover: Electrolysis
In Visual Observation of Dissolution of Copper Ions from a Copper Electrode(link is external), Isao Ikemoto and Kouichi Saitou describe an electrolysis demonstration in which an electrolytic cell is constructed using copper for the electrodes and sodium polyacrylate for the electrolyte. Use of common materials and the colorless, transparent electrolyte solution make this highly visual demonstration particularly useful for teaching high school and first-year college students about electrolysis.
Editorial on Next Generation Science Standards
Melanie Cooper discusses Chemistry and the Next Generation Science Standards(link is external) and how, as states adopt the NGSS, significant changes will be required in all areas of science education, including the development of new curricula and assessments. Support for both pre- and in-service teachers will be crucial, and so will changes in the way chemistry is taught at the college level.
Research on Laboratory Goals
Development, Implementation, and Analysis of a National Survey of Faculty Goals for Undergraduate Chemistry Laboratory(link is external) by Aaron D. Bruck and Marcy Towns
How To Recognize Success and Failure: Practical Assessment of an Evolving, First-Semester Laboratory Program Using Simple, Outcome-Based Tools(link is external) by Liz U. Gron, Shelly B. Bradley, Jennifer R. McKenzie, Sara E. Shinn, and M. Warfield Teague
Research on Understanding Gas Laws
Concept Learning versus Problem Solving: Evaluating a Threat to the Validity of a Particulate Gas Law Question(link is external) by Michael J. Sanger, C. Kevin Vaughn, and David A. Binkley
Seeing Chemistry through the Eyes of the Blind: A Case Study Examining Multiple Gas Law Representations(link is external) by Jordan Harshman, Stacey Lowery Bretz, and Ellen Yezierski
Communicating Chemistry
Reading Journal Articles for Comprehension Using Key Sentences: An Exercise for the Novice Research Student(link is external) by Nicole S. Bennett and Brett F. Taubman
Using a Progressive Paper To Develop Students’ Writing Skills(link is external) by Scott E. Van Bramer and Loyd D. Bastin
Using a Collaborative Critiquing Technique To Develop Chemistry Students’ Technical Writing Skills(link is external) by Jeremy M. Carr
Innovative Classroom Approach
Using Quantum Mechanics To Facilitate the Introduction of a Broad Range of Chemical Concepts to First-Year Undergraduate Students(link is external) by Romualdo T. deSouza and Srinivasan S. Iyengar
Interviews with Advocates for Chemistry, Education, and Science
This issue contains an interview with Peter J. Fensham(link is external) by Liberato Cardellini. Interviews by Liberato Cardellini with a number of other advocates for science include: Peter Atkins(link is external); Carl Djerassi(link is external); Ronald J. Gillespie(link is external); J. Dudley Herron;(link is external) Roald Hoffmann(link is external); Alex H. Johnstone(link is external); Joseph J. Lagowski(link is external); Harold W. Kroto(link is external); Joseph D. Novak(link is external).
In the Laboratory
There are innovative laboratories in every issue of JCE, such as Fitting It All In: Adapting a Green Chemistry Extraction Experiment for Inclusion in an Undergraduate Analytical Laboratory(link is external) by Heather L. Buckley, Annelise R. Beck, Martin J. Mulvihill, and Michelle C. Douskey.
Pigments
This issue contains two activities involving pigments:
Plant Pigment Identification: A Classroom and Outreach Activity(link is external) by Kathleen C. A. Garber, Antoinette Y. Odendaal, and Erin E. Carlson
A Green Approach To Separate Spinach Pigments by Column Chromatography(link is external) by Aubrey Johnston, Jon Scaggs, Chris Mallory, Andrea Haskett, Don Warner, Eric Brown, Karen Hammond, Michael M. McCormick, and Owen M. McDougal
From the Archives: JCE Classroom Activities
The Journal has published many hands-on activities over the years. A compilation of fifteen of our most popular activities(link is external) is available as well as a listing of over 100 JCE Classroom Activities(link is external).
With over 1000 Issues Available, There’s Always Lots More to Explore with JCE
You will find all of the articles mentioned above(link is external), and many more, in the Journal of Chemical Education(link is external). Articles that are edited and published online ahead of print (ASAP—As Soon As Publishable(link is external)) are also available.
The January 2013 issue(link is external) will be available as a sample issue for the entire year; if you like what you read, consider a subscription(link is external).