Connecting Theory to Life: Learning Greener Electrochemistry by Taking Apart a Common Battery

Autor/inn/en	Keen, Clarissa; Couture, Steven; El Meseh, Nayer Abd; Sevian, Hannah
Titel	Connecting Theory to Life: Learning Greener Electrochemistry by Taking Apart a Common Battery
Quelle	In: Journal of Chemical Education, 97 (2020) 4, S.934-942 (9 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Sevian, Hannah)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0021-9584
Schlagwörter	Chemistry; Equipment; Knowledge Level; Science Experiments; Outcomes of Education; Science Instruction; College Freshmen; Active Learning; Decision Making + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Chemie; Wissensbasis; Lernleistung; Schulerfolg; Teaching of science; Science education; Natural sciences Lessons; Naturwissenschaftlicher Unterricht; Studienanfänger; Aktives Lernen; Decision-making; Entscheidungsfindung
Abstract	Electrochemistry is omnipresent in our lives, but students often do not recognize that the electrochemistry they learn in general chemistry happens in the batteries on which we depend. Students also may not recognize that they have the power to make greener choices about batteries using their knowledge of chemistry. This 4 h general chemistry laboratory activity challenges students to take apart a common battery, figure out how it works, map it to what they have learned about electrochemical cells in a general chemistry course, and then design and test an improvement on the battery they took apart. Learning outcomes include electrochemical cell functionality, principles of green chemistry, and decision making based on benefits-costs-risks analysis in chemistry. Students in 16 lab sections were randomly assigned to treatment and control groups, which conducted this green context-based experiment and a traditional electrochemistry experiment, respectively. Students in the treatment group demonstrated positive outcomes on measures of the personal relevance of electrochemistry, understanding how an electrochemical cell works, and increased interest in the lab. Students in the treatment group also outperformed those in the control group on applying the Nernst equation and benefits-costs-risks reasoning on the environmental impact of batteries. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Division of Chemical Education, Inc. and ACS Publications Division of the American Chemical Society. 1155 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 800-227-5558; Tel: 202-872-4600; e-mail: eic@jce.acs.org; Web site: http://pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01