Welcome to CourseSource, an open-access journal of peer-reviewed teaching resources for undergraduate biology and physics

We publish articles that are organized around courses in both biological and physics disciplines, and aligned with learning goals established by professional societies representing those disciplines. Please let us know what you think as you explore the articles and other information in the journal. We welcome your comments, questions, and/or suggestions. You can also follow us @CourseSource on Twitter to receive notifications about newly published articles and announcements! Learn more about CourseSource.

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A Kinesthetic and Collaborative Activity to Improve Conceptual Understanding of Chemical Equilibrium

Roshini Ramachandran*, J. Rachel Prado, Joe L. March

Version: 1.0

Published on 09.2024

While teaching in large lecture halls, it is challenging even for experienced teachers to hold their students’ attention for the entire class period. Owing to the large enrollment in STEM introductory courses, it is especially crucial to incorporate active-learning strategies that enhance student engagement. We have developed a kinesthetic student activity to demonstrate the dynamic nature of chemical equilibrium in a large classroom setting. The activity consists of two parts; the first employs a demonstration utilizing student volunteers participating in a reversible chemical reaction while the second part involves students working in small groups using objects to track the movement of “molecules” for different reversible reactions. The primary learning objectives of the activity are to (i) perform the movement of molecules during chemical equilibrium, (ii) explain the dynamic nature of equilibrium, and (iii) connect the concepts of rate constants and equilibrium constant. This activity has been implemented in a large classroom of 100+ students who were life science majors, with student feedback stating that the activity enhanced their understanding of chemical equilibrium. Pre-activity and post-activity quiz performance were an indicator that learning gains were observed. This report provides a comprehensive set of resources for chemistry faculty to use while implementing this activity in their classroom.

Primary Image: This activity has the potential to aid in addressing common misconceptions about the dynamic nature of chemical equilibrium. It also serves as a useful tool to create connections between chemical equilibrium and reaction kinetics.

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234 Downloads
collaboration, demonstration, chemistry, kinesthetic learning, equilibrium, hands-on learning
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Environmental Injustice: When the Grass is Greener on the Other Side

Darrien L. Caudle, Abby E. Beatty, Ryan D.P. Dunk, Cissy J. Ballen, Jeremiah A. Henning*

Version: 1.0

Published on 08.2024

Environmental pollution is a global threat that is especially prevalent in heavily industrialized and urbanized areas. Pollution can be found in many forms, such as natural and synthetic pollutants from natural and anthropogenic processes. These impact individual, population, and ecosystem health. Additionally, urbanization and industrialization create landscape heterogeneity, which alters socioecological dynamics within environments—often through intentional and systematic processes. For humans, the subjection to and impacts of both pollution and land distribution have disproportionate effects on members of low-income and marginalized communities. Environmental injustice occurs when systemic biases like racism and classism fuel inequalities and inequities among individuals and their communities. The current activity combines predictive graphing and group discussions to help reinforce basic principles of environmental pollution and the sociocultural underpinnings that increase risks of exposure and impacts, using real-life examples of environmental injustice such as the Flint Water Crisis and Cancer Alley Louisiana. Utilizing the “Mapping for Environmental Justice” website, students will predict the cumulative environmental injustice burden across the State of Virginia, resulting from imbalanced land distribution, and compare public health data to examine those to be considered “at risk” based on various demographic characteristics. Students will then think critically and discuss the decision-making behind societal pollution and land management, which influence the presence and intensity of environmental injustices.

Primary Image: Urban air pollution. Downloaded from Unsplash on December 10, 2023, by authors.

189 Views
20 Downloads
human health, environmental injustice, Environmental Pollution, Systemic Biases, Ideological Awareness, Urban Ecology and Development

CourseSource Blog - view more

New Immunology Learning Framework!

December 11, 2023

CourseSource is pleased to announce a new learning framework for Immunology! This framework is endorsed by the Society for Leukocyte Biology (SLB) and is approved for use by ImmunoReach, a Community of Practice focused on interdisciplinary Immunology education. 

This learning framework for undergraduate immunology education was developed as a result of a grassroots effort to address the calls for educational reform noted in the Vision and Change Report (AAAS, 2010). The working group developed a two-part immunology-focused framework that includes concepts and competencies aligned with Vision and Change. This learning framework was developed through an iterative cycle of reviews and revisions, both within the task force and with community feedback. Educators reviewed the document through surveys, focus groups and interviews. The learning outcomes are included as examples, and instructors may adopt them or come up with their own.

Check it out here: https://qubeshub.org/community/groups/coursesource/courses/immunology 

We look forward to seeing your submissions!

 

Publish Your Educational Toxicology Exercises in CourseSource!

August 9, 2022

CourseSource has recently partnered with the Society of Toxicology (SOT), and we are recruiting submissions that utilize the Toxicology Learning Framework to add to the toxicology collection!

Interested in sharing your work? Check out this video recording of the CourseSource workshop held at the 2022 SOT Annual Meeting: Publishing Educational Toxicology Exercises in CourseSource: A Step-by-Step Workshop for Preparing Your Manuscript. This workshop equips educators to use CourseSource and inspires them to submit their inclusive, evidence-based educational resources. In the first part of the workshop, Erin Vinson, the former managing editor of CourseSource, reviews the design of the CourseSource website and its features, and the various types for submissions. In the second part, Lauren Aleksunes (“Repurposing Drugs as Countermeasures for Chemical Weapons: An Interactive Training for Undergraduate Students”), Joshua Gray (“Pick Your Poison: A Semester-Long Toxicology Project Integrating Toxicology Core Concepts and Scientific Communication”), and Mindy Reynolds (“A Case Study Approach to the One Environmental Health Hypothesis”) discuss their curricula and the preparation of CourseSource manuscripts. The last section provides time for participants to prepare their own concepts for submission.

We look forward to seeing your submissions!

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