Teaching and Learning Chemistry via Zoom

Teaching and Learning Chemistry via Zoom Over the past 16 months, people around the world experienced an unprecedented shift in education, with schools at all levels (pre-K, K-12, college/university, professional) either closing or moving classes to online settings. At UC San Diego and in our Department specifically, emergence of COVID-19 as a global pandemic demanded that we rather abruptly reimagine the teaching and learning of all aspects of chemistry, from the theoretical to the practical, hands-on elements. Zoom became the primary means by which classroom communities were forged, bringing together students on campus and from across the continents for small seminars, large lectures and instructional labs. Instructional teams of chemistry faculty, graduate TAs and staff scrambled to set up makeshift offices as they navigated crash courses in video editing and a new online course management system. Freed of physical spaces and time limitations (owing to asynchronous modes), instructors could experiment with new teaching strategies and assessment models. Among other innovations, chemistry demonstrations were conducted live from faculty’s home kitchens, guest speakers joined from distant industry locations as part of Scientist Spotlight series, students watched experiments remotely and worked through individualized data sets, and lower stakes surveys, frequent (even oral!) quizzes with flexible deadlines and creative projects replaced traditional tests. Through it all, we remained committed to excellence in teaching and mentoring. As expressed by Prof. Joshua Figueroa, who taught both undergraduate and graduate courses during this period: “Despite the challenges of a new medium, it was fun to find ways to inspire the students like you would in an in-person class.” From March 2020 to June 2021, the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry offered 196 remote or hybrid undergraduate courses serving 32,820 students. This is truly an incredible feat. In striving to create equitable and inclusive learning environments that would support our students, we discovered new ways to connect through online ‘office hours’, Discord channels, and suites of other technologies. As we re-enter classrooms at UC San Diego this next academic year, we hope to maintain and build upon those practices that have increased accessibility and removed barriers to participation in the chemical sciences. We will also bring with us the mutual empathy and understanding that we’ve developed as students, faculty, and staff’s lived experiences came more clearly into focus during this period of great challenges and ingenuity.