Strategies for Engaging Students in Chemistry

​Teaching chemistry poses challenges, especially when making complex concepts relatable to students. When textbooks fall short, teachers must figure out how to explain chemistry concepts to students, such as Avogadro’s number, Brownian motion, equilibrium, and Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle. Teachers can use microsteps and logic.

Using micro steps establishes how much information students get at every point during a class session or year. Breaking down topics into micro steps allows teachers to meet clear, manageable objectives, making it easy to revise when students need more help on certain parts.

Next, teachers should teach chemistry logically. Approaching chemistry from a perspective that makes sense to the teacher will help them. It does not require radical deviations from other curriculums. For example, start with topics that the teacher has mastered and enjoys. Their passion, enthusiasm, and knowledge become more practical, which tends to work better with students.

Lastly, like many other subjects, chemistry needs lots of examples. Every example becomes a template for students. Many examples with multiple variations of the same problem help students, showing students how to apply concepts in various scenarios.

Toni Brand PHD

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