Principles of Chemical Science (2014)

The Drennan Lab originally developed this training on stereotype threat and unconscious bias for 5.111 Principles of Chemical Science and other Chemistry Department teaching assistants (TAs).

Prof. Drennan introduction on the TA Training program.

In this video, Catherine Drennan discusses the central role of Teaching Assistants in the course, and how she developed an application and training program to foster enthusiasm among incoming graduate students for teaching introductory chemistry.

In this video, Catherine Drennan explains how Pizza Forums create opportunities in this large lecture course to get to know students on a personal level and to learn what's working and what's not working well in the course.

In this video, Catherine Drennan explains how she uses humor to engage students and to help them remember curricular content.

In this video, Catherine Drennan explains how she uses clicker questions and demonstrations to promote active participation during lectures.

In this video, Catherine Drennan describes how introducing clicker competitions increased student effort and engagement in the course; it also seemed to foster a sense of community among students in this large lecture class.

In this video, Catherine Drennan shares how she prepares for lectures. She reviews note-taking handouts, plans the sequence of activities, develops demonstrations, and coordinates her t-shirts with lecture content to infuse the course with a sense of fun.

In this video, Catherine Drennan discusses how she spotlights contemporary chemists in the course as a way to communicate to students that chemistry is a modern subject that can be used to make the world a better place.

In this video, Catherine Drennan notes that 5.111 Principles of Chemical Science is a class in which students can discover their passion for chemistry, or plant the seeds for later understanding chemistry's central role in many fields.

Topics: Review of Course Material

Topics: Introduction to Catalysis; Types of Catalysts; Catalysts of Life and Enzyme Catalysis

Topics: Effect of Temperature on Reaction Rates; The Reaction Coordinate and the Activation Complex

Topics: Investigating Reaction Mechanisms

Topics: Nuclear Chemistry: Radioactive Decay; Chemical Kinetics: Second Order Integrated Rate Laws, Relationship Between k and K, Elementary Steps and Molecularity

Topics: Introduction to Kinetics: Rates of Chemical Reactions, Rate Expressions and Rate Laws

Topics: Spectrochemical Series: Geometry Makes a Difference; Crystal Field Theory: Tetrahedral Case; Crystal Field Theory: Square Planar Case; Other Geometries and Applications

Topics: Introduction to Crystal Field Theory; Crystal Field Theory: Octahedral Case; Spectrochemical Series: the Ligand to the Metal Matters

Topics: d-Block Metals or Transition Metals; Coordination Complexes (Chelate Effect, Shapes, Isomers); d-Orbital Counting and d-Orbitals

Topics: Relationship between Cell Potential and Gibbs Free Energy; Meaning of Standard Reduction Potentials; Nernst Equation

Topics: Acid-Base Titrations: Titration of Weak Acid with Strong Base (cont.)

Topics: Introduction to Oxidation-Reduction (Redox) Reactions; Balancing Redox Reactions; Electrochemical Cells

Topics: Acid-Base Titrations: Titration of Strong Acids and Strong Bases, Titration of Weak Acids / Strong Bases & Strong Acids / Weak Bases

A buffer helps to maintain a constantTopics: pH of Salt Solutions; Buffers!

Topics: Definitions and Relationships between pKw, pH, and pOH; Strengths of Acids and Bases, Equilibrium Acid-Base Problems (Weak Acids and Weak Bases)

Topics: Solutions and Solubility; Classification of Acids and Bases

Topics: Chemical Equilibrium: External Effects on K (Le Châtlier’s Principle), Temperature Dependence of K, Applications of Le Châtlier’s Principle; Significant Figure Rules for Logs

Topics: Chemical Equilibrium: Nature of Chemical Equilibrium, Meaning of the Chemical Equilibrium Constant K, External Effects on K (Le Châtlier's Principle)

Topics: Thermodynamics: Effect of Temperature on Spontaneity, Thermodynamics in Biological Systems (Hydrogen-bonding and ATP-coupled Reactions)

Topics: Thermodynamics: Spontaneous Change and Free Energy, Entropy, Free Energy of Formation

Topics: Thermodynamics: Bond Energy / Bond Enthalpy, Enthalpies of Reaction, Methods to Calculate Enthalpies of Reaction

Topics: Valence Bond Theory and Hybridization: Sigma and pi Bonds, Hybridization of Atomic Orbitals (sp3 Hybridization, sp2 Hybridization, sp Hybridization)

Topics: Molecular Orbital Theory: Homonuclear Molecules with MOs Originating from s Orbitals, Homonuclear Molecules with MOs Originating from s and p Orbitals, Heteronuclear Diatomic Molecules

Topics: The Shapes of Molecules: VSEPR Theory (Molecules without Lone Pairs and Molecules with Lone Pairs)

Topics: Breakdown of the Octet Rule: Odd Number of Valence Electrons, Octet Deficient Molecules, Valence Shell Expansion

Topics: Lewis Structures; Formal Charge; Resonance Structures

Topics: Periodic Table: Electronegativity, Atomic and Ionic Radii and Isoelectronic Atoms; Bonding: Ionic Bonds, Covalent Bonding, Polar Covalent Bonds

Topics: Ionization Energy and Photoelectron Spectroscopy; Electron Affinity

Topics: Wavefunctions and Binding Energies for Multi-electron Atoms; Electron Configurations

Topics: Wavefunctions (Orbitals) for the Hydrogen Atom; Shape and Size of S and P Orbitals; Electron Spin and the Pauli Exclusion Principle

Topics: Binding Energies of the Electron to the Nucleus for a Hydrogen Atom; Verification of Hydrogen-Atom Energy Levels (Photon Emission and Photon Absorption)

Topics: Light as a Particle (cont.); Matter as a Wave; The Schrödinger Equation

Topics: Light as a Wave, Characteristics of Waves; Light as a Wave, Characteristics of Waves

Topics: Discovery of the Electron and the Nucleus; The Need for Quantum Mechanics

Topics: General Course Information and Policies; Course Material Overview; Introduction to the 5.111 Teaching Team

In this video, Cathy Drennan discusses her interest in education and shares her unique path toward teaching 5.111 Principles of Chemical Science at MIT.