The impact of integrating student research into undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory instruction is being investigated at Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM). A six-week, research-based investigation module is being developed for application in the second semester of organic chemistry laboratory with an enrollment of 60-70 students per year. The responsibility for experimental design, the planning and execution of experiments, and the analysis of spectroscopic and chromatographic data is largely transferred to the student. The fundamental goals of this project are to: 1) enhance the ability of students to conduct relatively independent experiments, 2) engage students in critical thinking and analysis, and 3) enhance the integration of research instrumentation into the undergraduate chemistry curriculum. The new organic chemistry research module involves a multistep synthesis of a library of chemicals, many of which have not been previously reported. Students are involved in target selection; in experimental analysis, planning, and execution; in outcome analysis; in kinetic, spectroscopic, and chromatographic analysis; and in analysis of structure/activity relationships within the library of compounds. Students gain experience in conducting some of the most important fundamental organic reactions in modern chemical synthesis. The integrated module also involves extensive use of modern chemical instrumentation including a new Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) unit and an automated preparative flash chromatography unit. The targeted outcomes for this project include students focusing more on the process of learning, inquiry, and discovery than on achieving the "right answer," students becoming better learners, and students gaining the confidence to better understand the scientific process. Through the proposed changes in the learning process, students are expected to have an increased interest and ownership in science. In addition, students are enhancing their learning about many important chemical reactions and about important modern chemical techniques. The learning materials and teaching strategies being developed are expected to be transferable for implementation or adaptation by other science educators. A variety of assessment tools are being used to evaluate the educational success of the project. These address student attitudes and confidence toward science and scientific research, student learning and competence in technical areas, and the development of skills in critical thinking and experimental design. The GC-MS unit and the automated preparative flash chromatography unit also are being used in other portions of the organic chemistry laboratories and in laboratories in general chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and analytical chemistry, and in undergraduate student research projects. MSUM, located in western Minnesota, has about 7,500 students, about 65% of whom are women, and serves an area with a substantial Native American population and a substantial and growing minority population (about 24%). The findings of the project and the teaching materials and strategies that are developed will be shared within the MSUM educational community, and with other educators at the state and national level.
