Flaherty, A., O’Dwyer, A., Mannix-McNamara, P., & Leahy, J. J. (2017). Evaluating the Impact of the “Teaching as a Chemistry Laboratory Graduate Teaching Assistant” Program on Cognitive and Psychomotor Verbal Interactions in the Laboratory. Journal of Chemical Education, 94(12), 1831–1843.
This article includes a summary of 4 laboratory instructional models and the methods by which they have been evaluated (Science Writing Heuristic, SE Learning Cycle, Predict-Observe-Explain, and Peer-led Teaching and Learning Techniques). The authors are professors at the National Centre for STEM Education, University of Limerick, Ireland. A new model, Meaningful Learning in the Laboratory (MLL), is proposed that guides GTA’s conceptions about how students learn, and how to use these conceptions to inform instruction. The MLL focuses on the three domains of learning (what students know, the skills they experience, and how they feel about the laboratory experience). Impact was evaluated in terms of verbal interactions between GTAs and students. Data comprised transcriptions of audio recordings for participants (n=7) at three different stages as well as member checking with stakeholder groups. By the end of the program, interaction between GTAs and students in the laboratory increased and the extent of conceptual discussion between GTAs and students also increased.