ChemViz is a set of scientific visualization tools and instructional materials designed to make computational chemistry accessible to high school and college students and teachers. It includes Waltz, a web based interface to a computational program that calculates electron densities and molecular orbitals, through which students can design experiments to answer questions about atoms, molecules and chemical bonding. Another web-based tool allows interfaces with databases of crystallographic structures that provide 3D models of molecules. ChemViz II improves and updates existing tools, develops additional visualization tools for chemical processes, develops, tests and disseminates instructional materials accompanying the tools, and integrates the tools and materials into a collaborative learning environment. The interactive simulations under student control bridge the gap between laboratory experiments conducted by the student and abstract concepts. The materials, developed and tested with teachers, consist of forty (40) one-hour-long activities. Teacher materials are provided. An extensive formative and summative evaluation provides guidance to the development and measures student achievement.
