Science Teaching Reconsidered: A Handbook (1997)
Chapter: Appendix C: Laboratory Issues
Appendix C
Laboratory Issues
RESOURCES ON INQUIRY-BASED LABS
Attracting Students to Science: Undergraduate and Precollege Programs, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Bethesda, Md., 1992.
Describes HHMI-funded projects, including laboratory projects, at 96 different colleges and universities.
BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium
John R. Jungck and Patti Soderberg, Directors
Department of Biology, Beloit College
700 College Street
Beloit, WI 53511
(608) 363-2743
The BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium is a consortium of biologists, science education researchers, historians and philosophers of biology, computer scientists, academic computing specialists, designers, cognitive psychologists, curriculum theorists, and others who are committed to transforming biology education through the extensive use of research and research-like experiences in learning biology. Members are interested in issues related to teaching and learning biology, the use of technological innovations, and the potential impact of these technologies on learning theory and the structure of schools. One of BioQUEST's major goals is the creation and dissemination of innovative and flexible instructional learning tools and the establishment of a communication network for like-minded biology faculty.
Workshop Physics Project
Priscilla W. Laws
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Dickinson College
Carlisle, PA 17013
(717) 243-1242
The Workshop Physics project at Dickinson College represents an attempt to redesign the teaching methods in introductory physics courses to take advantage of recent findings in physics education research and introduce students to the use of modern computer tools. Students meet in three two-hour sessions each week. There are no formal lectures. The course content has been reduced by about 25 percent as compared with the normal curriculum. Each section has one instructor, two undergraduate teaching assistants, and up to twenty-four students. Each pair of students shares the use of a microcomputer and an extensive collection of scientific apparatus and other gadgets. Among other things, students pitch baseballs, whack bowling balls with rubber hammers, pull objects up inclined planes, attempt pirouettes, build electronic circuits, explore electrical unknowns, ignite paper with compressed gas, and devise engine cycles using rubber bands. The Workshop labs are staffed during evening and weekend hours with undergraduate teaching assistants.
Successful Approaches to Teaching Introductory Science Courses, William J. McIntosh and Mario W. Caprio, editors, Society for College Science Teachers, 1992.
This monograph contains descriptions of eleven unique introductory science courses. These courses are taught at a wide variety of institutions, from community colleges to research universities, and cover all of the sciences. Each paper contains an in-depth discussion of a particular course as well as some theoretical background about why the course was changed and de signed. Some of the techniques described in the papers include having students design their own lab experiments, using computers to link lectures and laboratories, and requiring students to complete individual research projects.
RESOURCES ON UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH ACTIVITIES
In addition to the organizations listed below, many professional societies (Appendix A) have committees or programs on undergraduate research in their field, and we urge you to contact them for specific information.
Council on Undergraduate Research
John G. Stevens, National Executive Officer
University of North Carolina at Asheville
One University Heights
Asheville, NC 28804-3299
CUR'S goal is to promote research in the sciences and mathematics at predominately undergraduate institutions. CUR publishes directories of departments whose faculty and students are involved in undergraduate re search, holds regional and national conferences, publishes a newsletter, and has a National Information Center for Undergraduate Research at its national office in Asheville, N.C.
National Conferences on Undergraduate Research
c/o Professor Tom Werner
Union College
Department of Chemistry
Schenectady, NY 12308
(518) 388-6789 (fax)
National meetings are held every spring for undergraduate students in all fields to present the results of their research or artistic or scholarly work in oral and poster sessions. Over 1,200 students from all academic disciplines gather each year for these presentations by their peers from hundreds of colleges and universities.
LABORATORY SAFETY
Berry, K. O. 1989. Safety in the chemical laboratory: safety concerns at the local laboratory. J. Chem. Educ. 66(2):A58-A60.
Furr, A. K., ed. 1990. CRC Handbook of Laboratory Safety, 3rd ed. Boca Raton, Fla.: CRC Press.
Gannaway, S. P. 1990. Chemical handling and waste disposal issues at liberal arts colleges. J. Chem. Educ. 67(7):A183-84.
Gass, J. R. 1990. Chemistry, courtrooms, and common sense. Part I: Negligence and duty. J. Chem. Educ. 67(1):51-55.
Mahn, W. J. 1991. Fundamentals of Laboratory Safety: Physical Hazards in the Academic Laboratory. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
National Research Council, Committee on Prudent Practices for Handling, Storage, and Disposal of Chemicals in Laboratories. 1995. Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Disposal of Chemicals. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
Rayburn, S. R. 1990. The Foundations of Laboratory Safety: a Guide for the Biomedical Laboratory. New York: Springer-Verlag.
