Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
Fundamental manual skills and handling of equipment:
In science classes of
primary education initial experiments on air and combustion or on water and
solutions are to run; mostly without glassware from the chemical lab, but rather
with everyday objects from the kitchen. Therefore, the appropriate handling of
equipment and chemicals as well as safety precautions have to be practiced. Step-
by-step skills for problem-oriented and independent experimentation will be
gained. Attention should be paid: boys like to push themselves to the fore, run the
experiments and give the girls the part of observation and recording. Teachers
should try to compensate this or to work in single-sex groups.
Adaptation of exact observations:
Random observation has to be changed to
directed observation, so observations have to be planned before starting the experi-
ment. For quantitative measuring, measurement parameters as well as their units
have to be made clear, the equipment has to be presented and thoroughly
demonstrated, before being deployed for independent experiments by the students.
Recording steps of thinking
: Experimental skills will be optimized, if students
create experimental protocols during class or as homework. Not only the chronol-
ogy of individual steps of thinking and experimentation should be discussed, but
also measured values displayed in tables or graphs. This last skill is especially
difficult for beginners and should be practiced on easily evaluated measurements.
5.4 Human Element: Environmental, Everyday Life,
and Historical Aspects
Students are familiar with substances and their reactions from their everyday life and
know, for example through questions regarding waste sorting - about environmental
hazards of problematic substances. Regarding the human element, the following
topics can be discussed in class and reflected upon with the help of experiments.
Experiments on environmental protection:
As soon as a topic (e.g. air, water,
soil, ecology) touches the problem “environmental protection,” additional experi-
ments concerning this matter should be demonstrated and discussed. Regarding a
real environmental education, ways for planning and performing experiments
without producing harmful substances or with an unproblematic waste disposal
can be considered together with the students (see Chap. 8).
Experiments on everyday life and industry:
If it is possible to draw a connection to
everyday life and to show related experiments, it should be done. This connection
can also be used for intrinsic motivation (see Chap. 2). In case of industrial
production of certain substances (e.g. sugar, fertilizer, coal, metals) or chemical
industry close to the area of the school, experiments should relate to these industrial
processes (see Chap. 8). If possible excursions and visits of industrial plants can give
insight into problems of mutual influence of laboratory experiments and large-scale
technical realization (e.g. wine distillation in class and visit of industrial brandy
production, or galvanic cells in class and visit of industrial battery production).
Historical experimental development:
Students should learn about the impact of
production processes of many substances on social life (e.g. in the Stone, Bronze
