Burchett, S., Hayes, J., Pfaff, A., Satterfield, E. T., Skyles, A., & Woelk, K. (2016). Piloting Blended Strategies to Resolve Laboratory Capacity Issues in a First-Semester General Chemistry Course. Journal of Chemical Education, 93(7), 1217鈥�1222.
Blended strategies enable learners to engage in structured activities outside the traditional learning environment, in this case the traditional laboratory. This example demonstrates collaboration among 6 Chemistry professors from the Missouri University of Science and Technology and State Fair Community College in Missouri, USA. Concepts were identified from a first-semester general chemistry laboratory course that would best align with the lecture and then activities developed that allowed students to rotate between In-the-Lab and In-the-Commons work areas (with indirect supervision in the latter, i.e., more independent learning). The 鈥� pilot鈥� included a face-to-face section (n=23) and a blended section (n=24) with the same teaching assistants employed to reduce variables and bias. Average pre/post test scores showed no significant difference between the two delivery modes. The only disparity was between drop rates: from 11% for traditional delivery to 5% for blended. These results validate adoption of blended strategies for doubling course capacity without compromising the hands-on nature of traditional laboratory activities. Both the intervention and the research are sufficiently detailed to facilitate transfer.