Workshop for science teachers draws regional response

A workshop on the Discovery-Based approach to teaching science, hosted by chemistry Professor Kim Frederick, recently drew more than two dozen high school and college chemistry teachers from throughout the region to Skidmore. The teachers-turned-students spent the day learning how to enhance student learning.

The July 1 workshop was supported by a $200,000 grant that Frederick has received from the National Science Foundation's Course, Curriculum, and Laboratory Improvement Program. Guest instructors were David Parkin from Adelphi University, who discussed Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) and Richard Herrick of Holy Cross, who talked about Discovery Chemistry.

The Discovery-Based model of teaching is applicable to a broad range of student abilities and relies on inquiry-based, laboratory-driven courses for general chemistry students. The model originated at the College of the Holy Cross, where Frederick taught before joining the Skidmore faculty in 2009. The model mimics authentic scientific inquiry by asking students to construct new knowledge, based on the results of their experiments.

Teachers enrolled in the Skidmore workshop learned the basics of the Discovery-Based approach to teaching chemistry as well as the Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL). According to its web site, "POGIL is a classroom and laboratory technique that seeks to simultaneously teach content and key process skills such as the ability to think analytically and work effectively as part of a collaborative team.

"A POGIL classroom or lab consists of any number of students working in small groups on specially designed guided-inquiry materials. These materials supply students with data or information followed by leading questions designed to guide them toward formulation of their own valid conclusions?essentially a recapitulation of the scientific method. The instructor serves as facilitator, observing and periodically addressing individual and classroom-wide needs."

Workshop participants assumed the role of students, trying to do group work together, in order to get a better sense of their students' perspective and how it is for them when they are learning new concepts and absorbing new information. Frederick called such role-playing "very valuable." She added, "It was good to be reminded that not all students learn effectively in the same way."

Feedback was positive. One participant called the exercises "very useful. I appreciated that they were very honest about how to implement these changes and that the transition can be difficult. This helps me know what to expect when I try it with my own students." Another said the session was a "great introduction" to a new teaching model, while a third found it helpful to be in "student mode" to participate in the exercises.

Frederick's NSF grant, awarded in January 2010, is geared to looking at ways to adapt traditional approaches in teaching chemistry to meet the needs of today's students. She has made numerous presentations on innovative approaches to teaching, including to the American Chemical Society and the Consortium on High Achievement and Success.