| Teaching chemistry concepts to at-risk students in an alternative high school program provides challenges that have to be met. The students need hands-on activities and lab involvement that is pertinent to their lives. They also need a means to understand abstract concepts. By developing and teaching a course on the "Chemistry of Color", I planned to document the students' learning by assessing their performance as they studied various techniques used in the field of chemistry. Specific topics included: mineral composition, chromatography, color saturation, pressure, preparation of pigments and inks, solubility, pH, measurements, spectroscopy, acid/base reactions, bonding and the manufacturing of ink. The effectiveness of these topics were evaluated through pretest and posttests, lab performances and class participation in order to measure the students' understanding of concepts. |
