Resonance is a fundamental chemistry concept first introduced to students in General Chemistry I, reintroduced in Organic Chemistry I, and then utilized throughout other higher-level chemistry courses. A molecule or ion can be said to exhibit resonance when it can be represented by two or more chemical structures (i.e., Lewis structures) that…

Introductory chemistry textbooks often present valence bond (VB) theory as useful, but incorrect and inferior to molecular orbital (MO) theory, citing the electronic structure of O[subscript 2] and electron delocalization as evidence. Even texts that initially present the two theories on equal footing use language that biases students toward the…

Electromagnetic radiation can be classified into two major types depending on its ability to detach electrons from atoms: ionising and non-ionising. The aforementioned categorization is significant due to the effects of ionising radiation on human tissue (e.g. carcinogenesis). However, many students around the globe cannot distinguish these two…

The theory of evolution is the central combing theory that brings together all the tenets of biology that bring about a solid understanding of life. It is also one of the most controversial scientific theories of all time and is widely rejected by about 40% of the general public in the United States. One of the biggest reasons for low evolution…

The VSEPR model has well-established limitations in its ability to represent accurate molecular and electronic geometries of simple molecules, which can create a significant need for students to relearn structure and bonding concepts in organic chemistry. We present an alternate method for describing molecular geometries and electronic structures…

The concept of hybridisation is one of the most difficult concepts for chemistry students to grasp at all levels of learning. Research showed the students conceptual difficulty ranged from their lack of the prerequisite knowledge for grasping the topic hybridisation to chemical bond formation and orientations of atomic orbitals. This study…

Metabolism involves numerous reactions and organic compounds that the student must master to understand adequately the processes involved. Part of biochemical learning should include some knowledge of the structure of biomolecules, although the acquisition of such knowledge can be time-consuming and may require significant effort from the student.…

Despite the number of university students who take courses in multiple science disciplines, little is known about how they connect concepts between disciplines. Energy is a concept that underlies all scientific phenomena and, as such, provides an appropriate context in which to investigate student connections and misconnections across disciplines.…

Misconceptions are the "the old, the bad, and the ugly" prior knowledge, ideas or conceptions that the learners have that hinder their further learning in science. Several types of misconceptions that undergraduate students hold about reaction coordinate diagrams (from here on we use the term "reaction coordinate diagrams" and…

The four representative models that define oxidation-reduction reactions are often used differently in different situations or contexts in chemistry textbooks. Although integrated models have been suggested to overcome the confusion caused by this, they have not been successful. We therefore aim to interpret the causes for difficulties in the…

Background: Recently, there is a growing interest in independent learning approaches globally. This is, at least in part, due to an increased demand for so-called "21st century skills" and the potential of independent learning to improve student skills to better prepare them for the future. Purpose: This paper reports a study that…

Chemical demonstration shows are a popular form of informal science education (ISE), employed by schools, museums, and other institutions in order to improve the public's understanding of science. Just as teachers employ formative and summative assessments in the science classroom to evaluate the impacts of their efforts, it is important to assess…

In this reply to Elon Langbeheim's response to an article recently published in this journal, authors Smith and Villarreal identify several types of general chemistry students' misconceptions concerning the concept of particle position during physical change. They focus their response on one of the misconceptions identified as such: Given a solid…

Identifying students' misconceptions and learning difficulties and finding effective ways of addressing them has been one of the major concerns in chemistry education. However, the chemistry education community has paid little attention to determining discipline-specific aspects of chemistry that can lead to learning difficulties and…

Although some creationist objections to evolutionary biology are simplistic and thus are easily refuted, when more technical arguments become widespread it is important for science educators to explain the relevant science in a straightforward manner. An interesting case study is provided by misguided allegations about how cytochrome c data…