Sample Comments
Hands-On Chemistry Series

Students:

The best thing about the LAPs is...

• It's hands-on
• Good format
• The way they are explained / laid out
• They were very interesting
• It works in a step-by-step process and explains new ideas clearly
• Definitions and key terms are easy to note and understand
• Straightforward, easy to grasp
• Explains good
• It gives you lots of experiments on the subject matter and goes through them thoroughly
• It can be kept in a binder with notes
• Being involved with the other students in the experiments
• Shorter than the stuff in the textbook which is longwinded
• Condensed form of information
• Helps find weak areas to study and grasp content
• Everything you need to know is in there
• Let me figure things out myself
• Help reinforce concepts in lecture
• We learn step by step
• Provides examples in a way that they build on the previous example, until the concept is understood
• Very good to get your "feet wet" with!

Students:

The worst thing about the LAPs is...

• Nothing really
• There's nothing wrong with it
• There aren't more of them
• They weren't always 100% clear about how to do certain problems
• Seems long
• Doing those critical thinking problems
• I would rather do more hands-on--its fun, but the 'book' learning is a necessary part
• The definitions which you were supposed to answer & then look up to see if they were correct
• A little redundant at end
• It did not have related problems throughout; in other words I would have liked to have more repetitive problems to work such as formulas & conversions with explanations & answers
• Takes more time than expected
• Need more space for notes
• Some of the information is not as straightforward as it could be, and could be explained a little better
• It should have a little more sample problems
• Sometimes when we (the students) do not have packets ready for class
• Once in a while something is left out of the packet or skimmed over too lightly to answer questions adequately

Instructor Comments:

• Basic concepts are presented without overwhelming detail
• Very well organized
• Key terms reviews are great, if students use them as they are intended to be used
• I enjoyed doing this review, as it is a truly innovative approach to teaching chemistry to liberal arts students
• (The LAPs) integrate "lecture" and experiments
• I like the use of many short experiments dispersed throughout the text
• Hands-on experiences are the only way, I believe, to invite these students to participate in science as it is really done
• Simple hands-on activities teach concepts better than lectures
• I would like to try this approach in our school, and I believe I would get support from the chemistry faculty
• The author's style is excellent. It is a terse style, and although I normally like "wordy" texts, this material reads well. She has developed unique work-up of the material, and I like her approach
• Strengths (of this curriculum): (1) promotes critical thinking and writing skills in "key terms summary/review"; (2) extensive practical applications using familiar substances and processes in illustration of chemical theories and concepts; (3) students get to do demos, test new concepts, and analyze results during lessons rather than merely taking notes as during conventional lectures
• Information is accurate without being overly academic
• Relative to the objectives set in each activity, the LAP is very specific compared to my current text and lab manual, it is hard to judge which is more effective or not
• (LAP FC.10 is) more effective (than my current text) due to broad coverage of important organic concepts in one period
• (LAP presentation) level is good, choice of experiment is usually very good