Recent research into the learning process has begun to show how students learn and what environments are best to facilitate learning. There are many barriers that have prevented widespread adoption of these new teaching paradigms, including: the investment of time needed to make a change; lack of tested models and materials; and support systems to enable and encourage faculty to continue an innovation. To address these needs, collaborators at Franklin and Marshall College, SUNY Stony Brook, and Washington College have developed innovative and effective teaching methods and materials for General, Organic, and Physical Chemistry instruction. Constructivist and learning cycle principles are combined with an emphasis on essential learning processes and student-student interactions to create a new educational model called Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL). The practices and materials we have developed are applicable to large or small classrooms, recitation sections with or without technology, and laboratories. The approach and the new materials have all been nationally tested and are readily available. The project goals include faculty development, dissemination of new practices, and adoption of innovation through workshops, consultancies and on-site visits. An Innovation-Adoption Model is being used to assess the various components of dissemination that lead to innovation. A major objective of the project is to create an interconnected network of experts and adopters in order to increase the rate of adoption. A research team at The Catholic University of America is evaluating the effectiveness of this project.
