Syllabus

Science Prerequisites for Health Professionals

CHEM 1011: General Chemistry II – Lab – Spring 2024

Credits - 1 (Lab)

Description

This lab course is at a level for introductory level, college general chemistry II course. An emphasis is placed on understanding the concepts of the labs and the scientific method. Since today’s healthcare professionals are expected to have a general understanding of how science and the scientific method contribute to their profession, this course is appropriate for students preparing for a program in the health sciences as well as those who need a working knowledge of general chemistry for a number of applications. The hands-on labs will be performed in the home of the student using a designated lab kit. Course pre-req: one semester of college chemistry with lab and second semester of college chemistry lecture.

Materials

Learning Objectives and Outcomes

Program Outcomes

In lecture courses, students should be able to:

• Communicate scientific concepts and information clearly.
• Illustrate fundamental laws, theories, and principles of scientific disciplines.
• Apply knowledge and critical thinking skills to scientific problems.

In lab courses, students should be able to:

• Ask a question or define a problem that can be tested.
• Hypothesize possible result(s).
• Plan and/or conduct an investigation individually and/or collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence.
• Analyze data using tools, technologies, and/or models (i.e. computational, mathematical, graphical, etc.) in order to make valid and reliable scientific claims or determine an optimal design solution.
• Communicate the results by constructing an explanation based on multiple pieces of valid and reliable evidence obtained from a variety of sources (including students’ own investigations, models, theories, simulations, peer review) and the assumption that theories and laws that describe the natural world operate today as they did in the past and will continue to do so in the future.
• Apply scientific ideas, principles, and/or evidence gained from various experiments, as well as other observations and/or research, to provide an explanation of phenomena and solve design problems, taking into account possible unanticipated effects.

Course Objectives

After completing the lab section of this course, students should be able to: 

1. Utilize basic scientific equipment safely and accurately.
2. Make, record, and report experimental observations.
3. Create and analyze Excel-based graphs of experimental data.
4. Perform calculations based upon collected data.
5. Describe many aspects of various physical and chemical equilibria, including their kinetics and energy considerations.
6. Relate properties and reactivity of some inorganic 
7. and organic compounds.
8. Effectively communicate experimental information in a scientific writing style.

SELF PACED DESIGN

On the course start date, students will have access to orientation. This must be completed to be able to gain access to the first module in the course. Students must complete the first module to gain access to the next one. We recommend that students spend about 15 hours per week to complete a course in 16 weeks. When trying to complete the course in less than 16 weeks, we typically see students do this successfully within 12-14 weeks. Instructors will be timely in grading and feedback, but it will not be instant.

Assignments

Course Details

The General Chemistry II course is divided into 16 weeks. For the lab component of this course, most weeks contain a short introductory video, followed by information on that week’s activity assignment.

Laboratory Assignments

Most of the weeks include a laboratory assignment. Introductions to a week’s laboratory assignment can be found in that week’s learning module. However, the actual lab work will be completed in the completed in the HOL/Science Interactive Cloud website. 

You will perform all laboratory assignments in a non-laboratory setting, such as your kitchen. The labs include four prerequisite labs that can be done before the lab kits arrives,  and 10 graded laboratory assignments distributed throughout the course.  Each lab in the HOL/Science Interactive Cloud website includes pre-lab questions, the experiment, and post-lab evaluation questions. There is a lab video that accompanies each lab. This will give you some details about the lab and suggestions for things that will make the lab go smoothly. It will also connect the lab to the chemistry content.  Parts of the lab are graded automatically within HOL/Science Interactive. Data and free response questions are graded by your instructor.  

Laboratory Report

One originally written lab report turned in as a Word document or .pdf file in Brightspace, is assigned for the “Titration for Acetic Acid in Vinegar” experiment, found in Week 7. Guidelines for writing a lab report can be found in the document “How to Write Lab Notes and Lab Reports” published by Hands-on Labs. This can be found in the Week #7 Lab module.

Discussion Board Posts

Discussion questions cover interesting current events or materials that contribute to a deeper understanding of key concepts and allow you to interact with your classmates and the instructor. There are a total of two required discussion questions found in weeks 6 and 12. 

To earn full credit: you will need to post a response, respond to the original posts of at least two other students, and then contribute to an ongoing discussion. For special cases where one or two students are accelerating faster through the course, the instructor will participate in the discussion so that everyone has the opportunity to interact.

Discussion Question Guidelines

1. Read the assignment carefully so that you are familiar with the materials that you need to cover and how to craft your post.
2. Respect each other’s ideas, feelings, and experience. Some of the questions involve areas of disagreement. Expect your classmates to have different opinions.
3. Use proper writing style. Correct spelling and sentence structure are expected just as if you were writing a regular paper. Use spell check and grammar check before you submit.
4. Create your post in a word document initially. That way you can save a copy and use spell check and grammar check.
5. Cite the sources that you use to write your response. Follow the AMA guidelines.
6. Avoid posting large blocks of text. Break your writing into paragraphs and use a space between paragraphs to make your posting easier to read online.
7. Subscribe to the discussion so that you get email updates when there is activity.
8. Use the “reply” button rather than the “compose” button when responding to someone else’s post.
9. When responding to a classmate, address them by name.
10. Do not use postings such as “I agree,” “I don’t know either,” or “ditto.” They do not add to the discussion, take up space on the Discussions, and lower your grade.
11. Everyone benefits from an active discussion. Check back frequently to see what others are saying.
12. Plan your time carefully. You will need to give your classmates time to respond to your postings. This is an asynchronous class where students will be in different points of the class.

Lab Final Exam

The final exam is CLOSED book, CLOSED notes, timed and proctored by ProctorU. If you use the official UNE whiteboard (see Materials Section, above), you will be required to show your proctor that your whiteboard is clear at the beginning of your testing session, and you must erase your whiteboard in front of the proctor before disconnecting from your session. If you do not do this, your exam will not be credited. You will also be required to set up a UNE-authorized webcam as described above in the “Materials” section.  

You may use:

• The provided PDF entitled “Chem 1011 Exam Information and Equations”
• The official UNE whiteboard, marker, and eraser
• A stand-alone scientific, non-programmable calculator
• Nothing else

Detailed instructions for registering for your exams with ProctorU are located in Brightspace’s Welcome and Getting started module.

The lab final consists of 40 multiple choice questions and you can have up to 120 minutes to complete it.  

Your exam scores will be available after you take the exam, but exams will not be released to students for review. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.

Grading Policy

Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:

Grade Breakdown

Assignment Category	Points Available
Lab Component
Lab Assignments	35%
Lab Discussions	10%
Lab Report	20%
Lab Final Exam	35%
Total	100%

Grade Scale

Grade	Points Grade	Point Average (GPA)
A	94 – 100%	4.00
A-	90 – 93%	3.75
B+	87 – 89%	3.50
B	84 – 86%	3.00
B-	80 – 83%	2.75
C+	77 – 79%	2.50
C	74 – 76%	2.00
C-	70 – 73%	1.75
D	64 – 69%	1.00
F	00 – 63%	0.00