From Lead Solder to Kiwi Fruit Reshaping Introductory Chemistry Labs with Investigative Team Projects Peter G. Mahaffv. Kenneth E. Newman. and Hank D. Bestman . . The King's College, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5H 2M1 Recent calls for the radical reshaping of undergraduate science education in North America have taken on a new sense of urgency in light of reports of low levels of scientific literacy in the general population, projected shortages of scientists, mathematicians and engineers, and the need to cope with social changes rooted in highly specialized tech- nologies (I). A February 1991 national colloquium sponsored by Proj- ect Kaleidosco~e is one example of a recent maior United States initiative to strengthen undergraduate science and mathematics education at liberal arts institutions. Thc draR reoort of thls ~roicct indudes a olan of action for the " restructuring of courses in science and mathematics, with increased emphasis on "learning that is experiential, in- vestigative, hands-on, and steeped in research from the very first courses for all students in science and mathemat- ics to capstone courses for science and mathematics ma- jors' (2). Another study has examined the "hemorrhaging" of would-be science majors that occurs in frst-year science courses, and suggests that introductory courses need to provide opportunities for student creativity and finesse, rather than the 'tyranny of technique" that occurs in tra- ditional, cookbook-oriented courses (3). In a similar vein, the Center for Continuing Education of Women at the Uni- versity of Michigan examined why women drop out of sci- ence, and calls for new approaches to science courses that incorporate more cooperative and interactive modes of learning and link scientific knowledge more closely to im- portant societal issues, thus tapping important sources of motivation for students (4). Finally, an evaluation of representative textbooks used in introductory chemistry courses for science majors found that these texts, which shape the non-laboratow compo- nent of most courses, do not often stress the diverse con- texts for chemical reactions and processes, thus making it dimcult for students to see relationships between their sci- entific work and the world around them (5). While we have observed the extensive use by North American undergraduate institutions of open-ended re- search projects to introduce students in advanced and "capstone" courses to the interdisciplinary approaches and prohlem-solving skills required in scientific careers, re- ports of investigative, student-directed projects in the first-year chemistry laboratory are much less frequent (6). This paper reports one attempt to introduce into the first- year chemistry curriculum relevant, investigative re- search projects, carried out by student teams. It describes and evaluates the incorporation of an open-ended, four- week research project into the first term of the full-vear introductory chemistry course for science majors at-'The King's College, a small degree-g~anting liberal arts college. Based, in p a t on a presentation to the 74th Canadian Society for Chemistry Conference. Hamilton, Ontario, June 6, 1991. 76 Journal of Chemical Education Rationale for Incorporation of Special Projects The framework for our introductory chemistry labs has been set hv the adoption of a fairlv standard manual for the majority of our laboratory program (7). In the hands of most of our students, these well-designed experiments have given a balanced introduction to techniques, calcula- tions and concepts central to this experimental science. We have, however, had concerns about the overall laboratory experience of first-year students exposed only to standard- ized experiments. Our reasons for adding a significant open-ended component to our introductory chemistry labs, despite the requisite commitment of time and energy could be summarized as follows. .Modelling Chemistry Outside the Teaching Lab While our standardized and synchronized (8) laboratory ex- emises with fill-in-the-blank reports develop student skills of manipulation, observation, and organization (91, they do not accurately model chemistry outside of the teaching lab. Re- search in chemistry, and scientific work in general, have be- come increasingly interdisciplinary. Today'8 scientist must be able to work in a team, understand the scientific Literature (in- cluding the use of computerized data bases), independently solve problems, and communicate results intelligihly. Pedagogical Implications ofEmphasis on Getting "the Right Answer" In carrying out traditional laboratory exercises, students often seem to expend more creative energy on coming up with "the right answer" than on trying to understand observations and to analyze their own explanations critically in light of pre- vious work. Wrong explanations, when following logically from the student's framework at a particular point of study, offer excellent opportunities for learning, but they have ofien been undervalued or dismissed. Mahrig (10)and Moore (11) mention the pedagogical advantages of allowing students to "royally screw up" laboratory experiments. Giving Students a Stake (Besides a Grade) In our experience, students have had little ownership of tra- ditional introductory labs. They usually have no hand in the selection of problems or the methods used to solve them. Their enthusiasm for the labs and interest in further work in the discipline often seems directly proportional to the time, energy, and creativity they invest in selecting problems and designing solutions. Also, the topics chosen by our students indicated that they want to see the relevance of their academic work to their everyday lives. .Fostering Cwpemtwn The intense competition for grades that usually acmmpan- ies learning scientific concepts has usually discouraged stu- dents from cooperatingwith each other in analyzing data and understanding anomalies. Tobias, in They're Not Dumb, They're Different, records the observationsmade by Eric, a par- ticipant-ahserver in introductory physics: "My class is full of intellectual warriors who will some day hold jabs in technolog- ically-basedcompanies where they will he assigned to teams or groups in order to collectively work on projects. [But] these people will have had no training in working collectively. In fact, their experience will have taught them to fear coapera- tion, and that another person's intellectual achievement will be detrimental to their own" (12).