Niina Ronkainen, Professor, Physical Sciences, has published a chapter in book entitled “Engaging Chemistry Students with Real-World Context: Volume 1”
“Bringing Chemistry to Life in the Classroom. Chemistry is a difficult topic for students to learn and creates challenges for instructors to teach. When content is introduced in an abstract way, it is difficult for students to connect the material to their everyday experiences. When real-world connections are introduced, students become more engaged. Incorporating real-world examples takes time, effort, and resources. Educators who teach courses at all levels will be able to find examples of real-world context that are appropriate for their courses/students, including information about how to add contextual material into the curriculum.”
“Ethics Assignments in Graduate Biochemistry Course”Niina RonkainenChapter 5, 59-69DOI: 10.1021/bk-2023-1460.ch005Publication Date (Web): December 13, 2023
Abstract“Ethics is interspersed in the conduct and professional endeavors of scientists and health care providers, making it also an imperative learning outcome for science programs. I have integrated ethics assignments into biochemistry courses in a way that mirrors current issues, scientific research discoveries, technological advancements, and complexity of present-day society. Training literate critical thinkers and problem solvers has become a high priority in the digital world that has transformed our education, learning, and access to information. Using relevant context for assignments and instruction has previously been shown to improve student engagement and level of motivation. The development, implementation, and assessment of ethics assignments, and student growth throughout a Biochemistry course is described in this chapter. The ethics assignment scenarios range from lead in potable water to specimens in older anatomical collections, access to care, informed consent, the opioid crisis, COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, falsification of data in research, and life extension. Students are guided to examine their responsibilities and values, and to scrutinize their behavior as they contemplate how to ethically respond in complex situations that they will encounter as professionals.”
Engaging Chemistry Students with Real-World Context: Volume 1Editor(s): Daniel B. King1 & Gail H. Webster2Volume 1460eISBN: 9780841297135DOI: 10.1021/bk-2023-1460Publication Date (Web): December 13, 2023Copyright © 2023 American Chemical Society1 Chemistry Department, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States2 The POGIL Project, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United StatesSponsoring Division: American Chemical Society Division of Chemical Education
