Title
A creative scientific inquiry experience in organic chemistry and quantitative analysis: pharmaceuticals in the river raisin
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
2011
Department/School
Chemistry
Abstract
The Creative Scientific Inquiry Experience program at Eastern Michigan University supports connecting courses in science, technology, and math through a common theme to improve student persistence and success. Quantitative Analysis and Organic Chemistry I were offered as a cluster with an environmental theme, focusing on analysis of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in water. The lab experience emphasized lecture concepts of acid-base chemistry, pKa, derivatization reactions, and mass spectrometry. The results led to a research project on the correlation between population and NSAID concentration in the nearby River Raisin. Assessments of student learning were used to determine if and how students were making connections between the material taught in the two lectures and the experiences in the laboratory. We report here on the outcomes from bringing together these two disparate courses into a themed experience where students learned about what was in the water.
Link to Published Version
Recommended Citation
Armitage, R. A., Bates, J., Johnson, A. F., & Lindsay, H. (2011). A creative scientific inquiry experience in organic chemistry and quantitative analysis: pharmaceuticals in the river raisin. In It’s all in the water: Studies of materials and conditions in fresh and salt water bodies (Vol. 1086, pp. 51–60). Washington, D. C.: American Chemical Society. doi:10.1021/bk-2011-1086.ch004