Research Interests

My research is to treat the teaching and learning of chemistry as an area of study and investigation. There are many possible issues that impact the education of students in college or graduate school and the University has several teaching missions that cover both graduate and undergraduate students. The Department of Chemistry provides introductory courses for a large variety of clientele. The opportunity to use technology to help the instructor and student has given rise to new pedagogical methods and has brought into question some traditional practices. The goal is to identify problems, especially those dealing with large enrollment, introductory courses and propose interventions to address those issues.

My current interests and activities include the following general areas:

• The interface among mathematical skills, understanding word problems, and chemical concepts in general chemistry classes
• Teaching laboratory or experimental skills via distance-learning courses, especially to K-12 teachers and the general public
• Self-assessment and self-help software for general and organic chemistry and strategies for using them in traditional large-enrollment classes
• Inquiry-centered learning in the undergraduate laboratory and coupling its implementation with electronic data collection
• A graduate course and materials (e.g., book and CD-ROM) to prepare graduate students and new faculty for the teaching aspects of academic careers