Through our studies with IR&DS, a comparison of students

who have completed at least 1 companion course over the

past 4 years (F2010-F2014) with students who were invited

to participate but declined – i.e. the ‘control group’ – was

possible. We have confirmed:

1) Success in Targeting At-Risk students:

• large portion of

URM

• 73% women

• 34% first gen

• Low Math SAT

• 98% never had

access to AP chem

2) Student grades trend upwards with progression

through the companion sequence

3) Student’s in companion course are more likely to

persist in science courses

• Companion course student are twice as likely to take

advanced biology or chemistry

• Most popular majors were HumBio, Bio and

Computer Science.

4) Student feedback is overwhelmingly positive

• “Having us work in groups helps us to see things in

different perspectives, I really enjoyed it.”

• “I liked that we got to make up our own questions. I

think it helped us think outside the box.”

• “The assignments were all really helpful to practice.

Even the parallel problems, which could be burdensome

but always ended up in me understanding the material

much better because we had to think a lot about how the

processes worked.”

• “This is an AMAZING class. Really made me appreciate

chemistry.”

Acknowledgements

Create your own Parallel Problem!

Pick a question (or topic) that you found challenging in this last unit and

compose a detailed step-by-step explanation of the solution

Pick a different parameter in the question that you could solve for, instead of

what was originally asked.

What information do you need in order to solve this? Alter at least some or

all of the other numbers that will be given or change the reaction.

Write a step by step solution for your problem. Did you need to make any

assumptions or use any other data that had not been given?

Leveling the Playing Field in Large Lecture CoursesDr. Jennifer Schwartz Poehlmann

Senior Lecturer and Introductory Course Coordinator in Chemistry

• The Companion Course Series is supported through

the School of H & S, VPUE, and the Department of

Chemistry at Stanford

• Data compilation and analysis was done in

collaboration with Heeju Jang from Stanford’s

Institutional Research and Decision Support.

• Academic Skills inventory was constructed together

with Adina Glickman in VPTL.

• Many thanks as well to all of our advanced Chem30-

series TA’s who have assisted in the teaching of the

companion courses!

The Challenge in Large Introductory Courses

Exam and Study Strategy Reflection

Student written Parallel Problems

Structured Group Work

Transferrable Teaching Practices Program Assessment

Post-Exam Reflection ExerciseWhat steps did I take to study for this last exam? Were any steps different

from the first exam?

In what areas of the exam did I feel most confident? What study strategies helped to prepare me for these areas?

In what areas of the exam did I most struggle? (was it not understanding a certain topic? not interpreting the question correctly? stuck on starting a question? time?)

How did I address that area in my studying before the exam? How could I change the way I approached or studied for that area?

What new strategy will I incorporate into my study plan for the next exam? How will I make time to incorporate this new strategy?

As broader and more inclusive groups of students are being admitted

to Stanford, a growing number, often from underrepresented

minorities or first generation, have found that they are at a significant

disadvantage when taking large introductory courses here at the

University. While they possess the same strong potential, these

students have not had access to the same opportunities that set other

students ahead of the curve. Without support, these students are at

high risk of leaving the sciences.

A Companion Course in Chemistry

Chemistry is a gateway course to many disciplines, thus it is critical to

ensure that it does not become a barrier to further exploration in the

sciences. To help level the playing field, we began offering a

companion series to accompany each course in the year-long

introductory sequence (Chem31A, Chem31B, Chem33) for under-

resourced students with an interest in STEM during Fall 2010.

Key features of the course include:

1 unit, course for credit/NC based on attendance

Taught Tues/Thurs between MWF course lectures to ensure

daily practice with chemistry

Close coupling with parent course content

Enrollment contingent upon instructor permission to reserve

space for students most in need of the additional support

Size limited to 45 students with instructor + experienced TA

The Companion Courses focus on helping students build better study skills, practice problem solving strategies, and

better utilize study groups both in and out of the classroom. Ultimately, our goal is for students to ‘learn how to learn’

and gain confidence in their ability to problem solve so that they are able to persevere in the face of any new

challenges that may lie ahead.

QUEST:

Questions Exploring Scientific Thinking

Student Invite and Application Process

Student Resources in Chem31A, 31B, & 33

Chem31A Chem33Chem31B

Students take an online survey in fall to self assess:

- Study skills - Resilience - Motivation

- Chemistry knowledge / confidence

Highest risk students are invited to apply for Chem31A-C

In later quarters, personal invitations are based on student

performance in previous course and advisor recommendations.

Comparison of parent course grade averages (blue) with that

of the companion course students (red) versus the control

group (black) in Chem31A, Chem31B and 33 over AY10-14.

37

100

74

110

5059

124

101

62

26

agree somewhat agree neutral somewhatdisagree

disagree

Perceptions from High School Chem

High School Chemistry was challenging for me

Chemistry at my school relied heavily on memorization

75

150

96

47

4

53

137

106

66

9

agree somewhat agree neutral somewhatdisagree

disagree

Self reported lecture study strategiesI make a point of preparing for lecture by reviewing notes,thinking of questions, etc.I always review my notes after lecture and make sure to findanswers to any points that don't make sense.

Student Example: Harry Potter, in an attempt to pass hisPotions O.W.L has to make a 1.0 L elixir of Alvin. Hethrows in an unmeasured amount of acidic newt tails(NT) into some mermaid tears (H2O). He discovers thathis solution has a pH of 5.7. What is the concentration ofnewt tails that Harry added?

NT + H2O H30+ + A- Ka = 1.89 * 10-4

Students often need guidance in learning

to use study groups effectively. Build

concrete opportunities into your class to

help facilitate student discussion.

Find a learning

space conducive

to group work

Think-Pair-Share

• Create short ‘sets’ of multiple choice

or short answer questions

• Have students first work the full set

by themselves

• Once finished, each student takes a

turn explaining one problem

Give students a common space

within which to work – a chalk

board space, huddle board, giant

post-it, etc.

If a person consumes

2000kcal/day, how much power

does it take to run a human?

If commercial jet fuel contains 3.5*107J/L of

energy, and it requires 1.8*106 watts to

power the jet, what mass of fuel is required

for a 6.0 hour flight across the country?

Take-away skills, definitions, or relationships:• Power is measured in watts, 1 watt = 1 J /sec

• Energy/time = power Or Power*time = energy (in joules)

The QuEST for Fuel Efficiency

Imagine you are a policy maker at the US Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA). According to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

recommendations, in order to have the best chance to avoid catastrophic

warming exceeding 2°C above preindustrial levels, the US (and other

countries) would need to cut CO2 emissions back to 1990 levels by 2020

and to 80% of 1990 levels by 2050.

What minimum fuel efficiency in vehicles (in mpg) would you recommend

setting a target for, in order for the US to reach this 2020 goal?

Briefly discuss how realistic your answer is. Is it feasible to meet this goal

simply by improving vehicle efficiency?

Students apply key course concepts to

real world challenges and applications

Lead student reflection and group discussion after

each exam to reinforce growth mindset in both

content knowledge and study skills.

After assignment is completed, students

discuss results within groups to:

• Compare and defend sources and statistics that were used

in their calculations

• Justify approximations or estimations made to complete

their calculation

• Defend their conclusion based on their accumulated data

Effective time management and prioritizing

practice with material are top concerns

103

136

93

30

10

agree somewhat agree neutral somewhat disagree disagree

I study best when I'm alone

Generate group concept maps and

present their work to the class

Documented Problem Solving

Design ‘Parallel Problem’; groups

can then exchange problems