Barbara A. Reisner

The Evolution of Library Instruction Delivery in the Chemistry Curriculum Informed by Mixed Assessment Methods.

As information continues to evolve over time, the information literacy expectations for chemistry students also change. This article examines transformations to an undergraduate chemistry course that focuses on chemical literature and information literacy and is co-taught by a chemistry professor and a chemistry librarian. This article also describes results from assessment of both content knowledge and student perception, and discusses how the assessment was used to inform changes to the course. This type of student assessment and evaluation has not previously been examined in the delivery of required undergraduate chemistry information courses. Since this course has used in person, online, and blended delivery methods, the article describes what students can learn from online modules, and where they need more intensive classroom instruction. Introduction Over the last twenty years, there has been a dramatic change in how students acquire the chemical information skills for research or to acquire a job. In the past, searching was the most critical skill. Searching remains important, but now students also need strong filtering skills as the world has moved from information scarcity to information overload. While students feel comfortable with technology, they still need to learn how to differentiate scholarly from popular articles and how to critically evaluate the research claims presented in scholarly articles. While many other chemistry courses offer chemistry information seeking skills, few have Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship | Summer 2014 | DOI:10.5062/F46H4FDD partnered a librarian with a chemistry faculty member to team teach a course, develop an assessment tool to measure learning gains, and understand student perception of the acquired skills. This paper outlines the evolution of such a course at James Madison University. James Madison University (JMU) is a comprehensive public institution with over 18,000 undergraduates in Harrisonburg, VA. The Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, housed within the College of Science and Mathematics, awards B.S. degrees in Chemistry and Biophysical Chemistry and has a strong undergraduate research culture. No graduate degrees are offered in chemistry. The Department is an American Chemical Society (ACS) Certified Program and has graduated approximately thirty to forty majors each year for the past five years. The Literature and Seminar sequence, required for all students earning a B.S. in Chemistry, consists of two one credit courses (CHEM 481 and CHEM 482). There are no prerequisites for the courses, but students typically take CHEM 481 after completing the a year of General Chemistry (CHEM 131 and CHEM 132), a year of Organic Chemistry (CHEM 241 and 242), a semester of Inorganic Chemistry (CHEM 270), the Special General Chemistry Laboratory I and II (CHEM 135L and CHEM 136L) and sophomore-level Integrated Inorganic/Organic Laboratory I and II (CHEM 287L and 288L.) Most students complete the Literature and Seminar courses during their junior year, but 10-20% of the students wait until the senior year. Table 1 shows the progression of courses leading up to the Literature and Seminar Sequence. Table 1: Chemistry major sequence of courses First Year Sophomore Year Junior (or Senior) Year Fall Spring Fall Spring Fall Spring Course CHEM 131 & 135L CHEM 132 & 136L CHEM 241 & 287L CHEM 242, 270 & 288L CHEM 481 CHEM 482 As an ACS Certified Program, the JMU chemistry department is committed to meeting the information literacy standards identified by the society. Chemical information literacy is a well-established domain within the ACS Division of Chemical Information (CINF) and the standards detail the specific skills that chemistry majors are Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship | Summer 2014 | DOI:10.5062/F46H4FDD expected to have (Chemical Information Skills, 2012.) To that end, in 2007 CINF and the Special Libraries Association Chemistry Division first issued “Information Competencies for Chemistry Undergraduates,” a document enumerating skills expected of chemistry undergraduates related to finding, using, and communicating chemical and scientific literature (Craig and Maddox, eds, 2007.) These were updated again in 2011, moved to a wikibook format in 2012 and last revised in 2013. As the expectations of chemistry information literate students evolved, the Literature and Seminar sequence also changed to respond to these competencies. This article presents the evolution of the instructors and instructional delivery methods of the first semester of the Literature and Seminar course (CHEM 481.) These changes in chemical information literacy also address how assessment can be used to identify student strengths and skills to focus course instruction. It highlights the critical role of teamwork and communication between a librarian and chemistry faculty, the development of an assessment tool, and evolution of assignments to address student needs.

Photoelectrochemical performance of W-doped BiVO4 thin films deposited by spray pyrolysis

Abstract. The effects of tungsten doping and hydrogen annealing on the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) photoanodes for solar water splitting were studied. Thin films of BiVO4 were deposited on indium tin oxide-coated glass slides by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis of an aqueous solution containing bismuth nitrate and vanadium oxysulfate. Tungsten doping was achieved by adding either silicotungstic acid (STA) or ammonium metatungstate (AMT) to the precursor. The 1.7- to 2.2-μm-thick films exhibited a highly porous microstructure. Undoped films that were reduced at 375°C in 3% H2 exhibited the largest photocurrent densities under 0.1  W cm−2 AM1.5 illumination, where photocurrent densities of up to 1.3  mA cm−2 at 0.5 V with respect to Ag/AgCl were achieved. Films doped with 1% or 5% (atomic percent) tungsten from either STA or AMT exhibited reduced PEC performance and greater sample-to-sample performance variations. Powder x-ray diffraction data indicated that the films continue to crystallize in the monoclinic polymorph at low doping levels but crystallize in the tetragonal scheelite structure at higher doping. It is surmised that the phase and morphology differences promoted by the addition of W during the deposition process reduced the PEC performance as measured by photovoltammetry.

Inorganic chemistry and IONiC: an online community bringing cutting-edge research into the classroom.

This Viewpoint highlights creative ways that members of the Interactive Online Network of Inorganic Chemists (IONiC) are using journal articles from Inorganic Chemistry to engage undergraduate students in the classroom. We provide information about specific educational materials and networking features available free of charge to the inorganic community on IONiCs web home, the Virtual Inorganic Pedagogical Electronic Resource (VIPEr, www.ionicviper.org ) and describe the benefits of joining this community.

Photoelectrochemical performance of W-doped BiVO4 thin-films deposited by spray pyrolysis

The effect of tungsten doping and hydrogen annealing treatments on the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) photoanodes for solar water splitting was studied. Thin films of BiVO4 were deposited on ITO-coated glass slides by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis of an aqueous solution containing bismuth nitrate and vanadium oxysulfate. Tungsten doping was achieved by adding either silicotungstic acid (STA) or ammonium metatungstate (AMT) in the aqueous precursor. The 1.7 μm – 2.2 μm thick films exhibited a highly porous microstructure. Undoped films that were reduced at 375 ºC in 3% H2 exhibited the largest photocurrent densities under 0.1 W cm-2 AM1.5 illumination. This performance enhancement was believed to be due to the formation of oxygen vacancies, which are shallow electron donors, in the films. Films doped with 1% or 5% tungsten from either STA or AMT exhibited reduced photoelectrochemical performance and greater sample-to-sample performance variations. Powder X-ray diffraction data of the undoped films indicated that they were comprised primarily of the monoclinic scheelite phase while unidentified phases were also present. Scanning electron microscopy showed slightly different morphology characteristics for the Wdoped films. It is surmised that the addition of W in the deposition process promoted the morphology differences and the formation of different phases, thus reducing the PEC performance of the photoanode samples. Significant PEC performance variability was also observed among films deposited using the described process.