Many University of Minnesota students encounter difficulties with the introductory chemistry courses required to go on to more advanced coursework in many science majors.
Instructors, for courses like Introduction to Chemistry (CHEM 1015), Chemical Principles I (CHEM 1061) and Chemical Principles II (CHEM 1062), have implemented strategies and new curriculum to help students in the classes.
Arya Lucht, a second-year ecology student who took CHEM 1015 and is now enrolled in CHEM 1061, said it is hard to learn in the chemistry classroom.
“There is no engagement within the classroom,” Lucht said. “It is mostly students working in groups and completing worksheets, and there is no involvement with the teacher.”
Most classes range from 100 to around 350 students with some sections offered online and some in-person. One section of CHEM 1015 offered online has a maximum capacity of 900 students.
Lucht added she often hesitates to ask her instructors for help due to fear of her concerns not being heard.
“When you do try to reach out to them and ask for help, they seem very condescending, especially in emails,” Lucht said. “So it’s not very encouraging to reach out for help in an environment like that.”
Michelle Driessen, the University’s general chemistry director and professor of CHEM 1015 and CHEM 1061, said she has implemented active learning in her classroom since 2012.
Driessen added her students watch lecture content before coming to class. Once in class, students complete worksheet problems together and she goes around the room to help them understand specific topics.
“It is really annoying when we are just given the worksheets to do in class,” Lucht said. “There is no question and answer or, ‘Hey, here’s a problem, let’s work on it together and then go over the answer,’ there’s none of that.”
Alex Wu, a first-year pre-med student currently taking CHEM 1061 completely online, said he struggles with the overall structure of the course.
“Oftentimes, the lectures will rapidly skim over topics, and the textbook has little to no relevance as to what is mentioned in the lecture,” Wu said.
Wu added he struggles with the lack of sample answers provided for the homework since it aids his understanding of the material.
“I don’t know if I have the full conceptual understanding of the topic, and at worst, I have an incorrect understanding and don’t know because I have no answers or anything to compare it to,” Wu said.
Emily Pelton, an assistant chemistry professor who also teaches sections of CHEM 1015 and CHEM 1065, said strategies students used in high school may not work in college.
“I really encourage students to work on little chunks of material over an extended period of time,” she said.
Pelton added she has implemented several Canvas site strategies designed to help her students.
Lee Penn, the director of undergraduate studies in the Department of Chemistry, said as of this semester, CHEM 1061 includes a new paradigm called Chemistry, Life, the Universe and Everything (CLUE).
Driessen said the CLUE approach builds from the basics and incorporates the background students have in science.
“We start with first principles and things that students have seen before, probably in physics or math, and we really keep coming back to those and revisiting them,” Driessen said.
Driessen added this approach makes the progression of topics more fluid and logical.
“The other piece we have embedded is learning assistants in the classroom to help students work on some of these ideas,” Driessen said.
Christine Yao, a third-year student who took all three introductory courses and is now a learning assistant for CHEM 1061, said she struggled in the courses but eventually overcame these challenges.
“As a learning assistant, I wanted to be a resource for other students that would come in and take this course,” Yao said. “I wanted to help students that were struggling like myself to feel confident in their chemistry abilities and be more enthusiastic about chemistry in general.”
According to Yao, the Chemistry Tutor Room in Smith Hall is a resource for students to drop in and get the help they need.
Driessen added the chemistry department is working hard to improve these courses, but they have resource constraints.
“We are using evidence-based approaches to really improve what’s going on, not only on the content side,” Driessen said, “but we are also worried about the climate and making sure students feel welcome.”