Tools for Chemistry Online/Virtual Lab Activities Interactive Flash Animations Online Virtual Experiments CD Virtual Experiments Microscale Experiments-At Home Science LabPaq I have used flash animations, online virtual experiments, CD virtual experiments and microscale hands-on experiments to develop online prelab and hands-on lab activities.

Virtual Experiment-Reaction Rates Iodine Clock Reaction H2O2   +   2I-   +   H+  →  I2 + 2H2O       I2   +   2S2O3-2  →   2I-   +   S4O6-2   Flash Animation We have used Flash animation to create a virtual experiment on reaction rates. In this experiment, the rate of reaction can be determined by measuring the time it takes to make the solution turn blue. The goal of this experiment is to study the effect of concentration and temperature on the reaction rates and the students can study the effect virtually by going over the online flash animation.

Factors Affecting Reaction Rates This table shows the concentrations and the temperature of the each of the runs are provided to the students. By measuring the reaction time, students can see the effect of concentrations and temperature on the reaction rates.

Virtual Experiment: Acid-Base Titration Created by modifying an existing experiment available at ChemCollective Authoring software (free, available online) Used as a prelab activity This is an online experiment which was created by using the program available at ChemColletive. The goal of this experiment is to determine the concentration of commercial vinegar by acid-base titration. It was created by modifying a virtual experiment available at ChemCollective. The modification can be done using the authoring software. I will demonstrate this virtual experiment.

Feedbacks on Virtual Prelab--Titration Questions Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree The directions were clear and easy to follow. 10 13 3 It helped me to better prepare for the actual experiment. 7 17 2 It took less time than the actual experiment. 4 I have enjoyed doing the virtual experiment more than the actual one. 6 11 I have learned as much from doing the virtual experiment as the actual one. 12 1 According to the survey, the majority of the students agreed that it helped them to be better prepared for the lab.

Feedbacks on Virtual Prelab--Titration “It was interesting to do a lab on the computer.” “Very easy to use once you get to the right folder.” “It was easy to do and the results were easy to see.” “Learned more about the lab.” “No clean up and you can do it on your own.” “Can do it from home.” Here are some additional comments from the students on the virtual titration.

Nuclear Reactions – Virtual Experiment ChemLab Standard or Pro Relatively inexpensive ($32.99) Contains numerous lab activities Can create new labs with ChemLab Pro ChemCollective virtual experiments are limited to the reactions occurring in aqueous solutions. I found that ChemLab virtual experiments can also be used for some other type of reactions. ChemLab CD contains many different experiments and the cost is only about thirty dollars. I have used several experiments from the CD to help students gain more in depth understanding of some topics in lecture. In one of the experiment we determined the half-life of Thallium-207.

CD Virtual Experiment: Half-Life (In-class Activity) Questions Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree The directions were clear and easy to follow. 2 5 It helped me to better understand half-life. 1 6 What is the most positive thing about this experience? It was hands-on instead of just reading about it. I had to refresh my memory on how to graph using excel. If you mess something up, it’s easy to redo it. Quick and to the point. When I made a mistake during the experiment, I was allowed to start the virtual lab over. I like simulated labs rather than real-life. Observing the process in action. What is the most negative thing about this experience? Not working with someone. It took a long time to do all of the readings. Could have gone into details more. It wasn’t an actual ‘hands-on’ experiment. I tend to learn better when doing ‘hands-on’ experiment. As you can see from this survey, this experiment helped the students to better understand the concept of half-life.

Microscale Hands-On Labs While virtual labs help students learn the concepts, it deprives the students from having a real experience. For our online chemistry class, I have decided to use the microscale hands on labs. At Home Science has a number of kits for different level of courses. We have decided to use CK-101. The lab manual is provided in the labpaq as PDF file.

LabPaq (CK-101) These are pictures of the box students receive. The kit contains an electronic balance, microburner, test tubes, graduated cylinder, beakers, and other chemicals and supplies needed for the experiments.

Online Lab Experiments These are the experiments I have assigned to my online college chemistry laboratory students. Lab 8 is my own experiment and we have mailed the supplies to the students separately. The first part of lab 5 deals with the data obtained from a spectrometer and to make the experiment more realistic, we have created a virtual spectrometer.

Virtual Experiment-Colorimetry I would like to show you the demo of this virtual lab.

Video Clips of the Experiments To help students perform the experiments more effectively, we have also made video clips of the experiments. Properties of Gases Separation of a Mixture of Solid

Students’ Feedback on the Use of LabPaq What are the positive aspects of online lab using LabPaq? “LabPaq is well organized.” “Gives freedom to work at my own pace.” “Allows me to work at my own convenience.” “Forces me to read the instructions more carefully.” “Videos are very helpful.” According to the survey, the students enjoy the flexibility of doing experiments anytime, anywhere and without a time limitation by using this lab kit.

Students’ Feedback on the Use of LabPaq What are the negative aspects of online lab using LabPaq? “Not having teacher right by to ask questions.” “Not having all the supplies included in the kit.” “High price.” “Need a simpler way to submit reports.” One of the major concerns of the students is the cost of the kit and some of the supplies which the students have to provide themselves, such as toothpicks, baking soda, salt, and a number of other household items.

Interactive Tools and Activities for Online Chemistry and Astronomy Labs Online Chemistry Activities---S. Jane Myong Online Astronomy Labs—Shan Huang Sinclair Community College Dayton, Ohio October 2008 This ends our presentation on the interactive tools and activities for online chemistry and astronomy labs. Thank you for your attention.