Gamification has a strong track record of improving student engagement and learning in the chemical sciences. Meta-analyses of different approaches to gamification have highlighted that providing a game fiction, encouraging students to work in teams, and breaking games into smaller "quests" are particularly effective. Here, we aimed to…

Transforming the chemistry curriculum to an interdisciplinary perspective is essential for preparing students to meet interdisciplinary career demands and to brace themselves for the challenges of complex environmental and health issues. The study introduces four interdisciplinary electrochemistry STEM-lab activities as an alternative to the…

A classroom based Problem Based Learning (PBL) activity was adapted to run as a remote activity during the COVID-19 pandemic using an approach described as virtual Problem Based Learning (vPBL). vPBL is based on (i) identification of a suitable learning platform that supports collaborative working in a way that mimics the classroom based activity…

Over the past decade, the increasingly globalized society has continually redefined the qualities and skills of an ideal engineering graduate for industry and academic careers, and, more recently, in light of a global pandemic in 2020, the pedagogical environment has shifted toward a virtual classroom setting. Because the engineering and social…

Industrial drug discovery teams encompass scientists from multiple specialties and require participants to communicate effectively across disciplinary boundaries. In this paper, we present an undergraduate or graduate classroom simulation of this environment. Over a series of five workshops, student teams of mixed scientific backgrounds perform…

Active learning environments are ideal settings to help students develop process skills such as teamwork, critical thinking, and problem solving. However, implementing active learning pedagogies where students have the opportunity to develop these skills can be challenging in large enrollment courses. With the assistance of undergraduate teaching…

A Quantitative Analysis Lab class was developed that began with 9 weeks of student preparation for the Quant Escape Game (QEG) where the students learned the fundamentals of quantitative analysis. The preparation was followed by the four-week QEG, an active-learning, cooperative-learning, and problem-based learning experience in which the students…

Identification and further motivation of gifted students are widely discussed among the science education community. In the context of the educational system of the Czech Republic, competitions serve as one of the main ways to identify those gifted in precollege education. In this article, we report the foundation of a team-based open-book…

Environmental forensics is the application of knowledge from geosciences and chemistry in a legal setting, e.g., to determine the origin and consequences of contamination events. Teaching environmental forensics requires reactivating prior knowledge from different fields of natural sciences, filling knowledge gaps, and connecting pieces of…

Launching Your Research is a new course offering designed to engage undergraduate students in research at an early stage of their academic careers (sophomore-second year). This learning opportunity required students to identify research best practices and develop effective time, teamwork, and project management skills to succeed. With the aid of…

Project-based learning (PJBL) is student-centered and teamwork educational activity that prepares students for the challenge of real-world problems. This kind of instructional method is highly recommended by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).This paper describes an authentic project that focuses on the preparation of…

Despite the importance of chemistry in addressing many of society's most significant challenges, there is a growing stigma associated with chemicals in our nation, often termed "chemophobia". We sought to appeal to the public, not only through education, but also through art as an avenue for appreciation with the development of a new…

The increasing integration of software and automation in modern chemical laboratories prompts special emphasis on two important skills in the chemistry classroom. First, students need to learn the technical skills involved in modern scientific computing and automation. Second, applying these techniques in practice requires effective collaboration…

Sustainable practices in process chemistry are highlighted by a novel, 9 week team project of 8-12 students, in collaboration with AstraZeneca chemists, in an organic chemistry laboratory. Students synthesize the antiulcer medicine esomeprazole, which involves the asymmetric oxidation of pyrmetazole. To provide insight into the modern process…

As the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic spread throughout the world, universities were faced with extraordinary challenges. Shelter-in-place orders were given, in-person classes were canceled, and at the University of California Irvine, instructors had less than 2 weeks to convert spring quarter classes from a face-to-face to an online format. A team-based…