Instructor’s Manual

General Notes

These assignments are designed to be capstone activities at the end of units on figures of merit (such as sensitivity and LOD), acid-base equilibria, separations, spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and electrochemistry. Each assignment consists of an out-of-class reading assignment accompanied by objective questions and an in-class discussion of more open-ended questions. Each reading assignment is drawn from the peer-reviewed literature. The assignments are designed to require just one class period, and I commonly use them just before an exam as an opportunity for students to review important concepts, examine them from new angles, and apply them to new situations.

The reading and out-of-class questions should be completed before the in-class discussion and are designed to encourage close reading, article comprehension, and application of concepts from class. For example, the out-of-class questions for the fast-scan cyclic voltammetry article ask students to identify the oxidation and reduction half-waves of a representative cyclic voltammogram in the manuscript and to calculate the signal-to-noise for one of the dopamine release peaks. These out-of-class questions can be answered by students individually or in groups, depending on the arrangement that is most effective and feasible at your institution. All of the out-of-class questions are designed to elicit specific objective answers based on the article or material from class or the textbook. A few questions require some additional thought or extra care, and notes on these questions are included in this instructor manual.

The second part of the assignment consists of several open-ended, more conceptually challenging questions designed for in-class discussion. At the start of class, I find it helpful to solicit questions from the students and clarify any confusing points in the paper. In particular, it is useful to make sure that the students understand the objective out-of-class questions before they begin their discussions. Students should then break into small groups of 3-5 students to discuss the in-class questions. (For a discussion of effective methods for creating small groups, see the Instructor’s Guide for the In-Class Module on Separations.) During the discussions, I circulate to answer questions, highlight important points, or keep groups on-task as needed. Discussions for a question typically last from 5-15 minutes. When most of the groups have had time to develop their ideas, it is helpful to have each group report out to the class. If you are unable to check in with each group during their discussion, this is a useful opportunity to check for misconceptions or incomplete responses. Additionally, if you would like a written record of the students’ discussion to be turned in for evaluation or assessment, you may find it helpful to have one student to take notes for each group.

Note: If you do not provide the students with a color copy of the article, be sure to remind them to print the article in color or access it in color online while answering the questions because several of the articles include figures that are uninterpretable in grayscale.