构建本科化学类专业特色培养方案改革与实践

构建科学且具有自我特色的专业培养方案是保障本科生培养质量的先决条件。本文结合四川大学化学学院2018级本科人才培养方案的改革与修订,从明确人才培养目标、确立专业特色和优势、改革人才培养模式及建设特色教学课程体系等方面着手,总结和提出了如何建设具有专业特色和优势人才培养方案的基本思路,对相关专业培养方案设计具有一定的借鉴意义。     

Investigating students’ perceptions of graduate learning outcomes in mathematics

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to explore the perceptions mathematics students have of the knowledge and skills they develop throughout their programme of study. It addresses current concerns about the employability of mathematics graduates by contributing much needed insight into how degree programmes are developing broader learning outcomes for students majoring in mathematics. Specifically, the study asked students who were close to completing a mathematics major (n = 144) to indicate the extent to which opportunities to develop mathematical knowledge along with more transferable skills (communication to experts and non-experts, writing, working in teams and thinking ethically) were included and assessed in their major. Their perceptions were compared to the importance they assign to each of these outcomes, their own assessment of improvement during the programme and their confidence in applying these outcomes. Overall, the findings reveal a pattern of high levels of students’ agreement that these outcomes are important, but evidence a startling gap when compared to students’ perceptions of the extent to which many of these – communication, writing, teamwork and ethical thinking – are actually included and assessed in the curriculum, and their confidence in using such learning.     

基于“两制四化”人才培养模式的本科生生产实习的改革实践

结合浙江工业大学本科生生产实习的现状,首先论述了目前本科生生产实习存在的问题,并以浙江工业大学材料科学与工程学院为试点,提出了以"两制四化"人才培养模式为多元化内容的生产实习实践形式。改革与实践的具体内容涉及:在以书院制为构建框架、以"导师制"为举措,建立与专业特色相契合的生产实习基地的基础上,以小班化的单位、根据个性化的生产实习要求,结合复合化与国际化的改革思路,建立的新型生产实习模式以及学生管理模式和评分模式的改革。经过3年的探索和实践表明,本科生生产实习改革的实施,取得了很好的效果。     

全新设计的现代高分子化学实验课程建设

理科院系高分子化学实验教学发展缓慢,急需紧跟学科发展的前沿、注入新鲜而实用的内容。全新设计建设的现代高分子化学实验覆盖众多传统实验课鲜有涉及、但在科研中极为重要的前沿理念与技术,旨在提高学生科研素养和对学科前沿的把握能力,其成功开发为理科院系针对创新型人才培养的高分子化学实验提出了全新思路。     

地方应用型高校材料化学专业人才培养体系的构建

论述了应用型地方高校材料化学专业构建稳定的人才培养体系的必要性和紧迫性。结合教学实践重点阐述了在课程体系设置、课堂教学、实验教学、校外实践等教学环节的改革,以及师资素质培养和转型、专业差异化发展、与地方经济融合等方面的有益探索。通过数据展现了在新的培养体系中取得的积极效果。最终通过政策引导,以产教融合为主线,构建稳定的适合地方应用型高校办学实际的专业人才培养体系。     

Greening the organic chemistry laboratory: a comparison of microwave-assisted and classical nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions

ABSTRACT

An experiment is described for the undergraduate organic chemistry lab which compares microwave-induced organic reaction enhancement (MORE) to that of more traditional synthetic procedures. MORE and traditional reflux procedures for substituting thiocyanate, ethylamine and diethylamine nucleophiles for bromide in nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions on 1-bromo-2,4-dinitrobenzene are given. Recrystallization affords products of sufficient purity for characterization by ¹³C NMR, mass spectrometry and melting point. As students compare the two synthetic methods, MORE procedures are consistently observed to be quicker, easier, greener and result in higher yields. Student instructions, instructor notes and example NMR and mass spectra obtained by students are provided in Supplemental material.     

A characterization of dynamic reasoning: Reasoning with time as parameter

Students incorporate and use the implicit and explicit parameter time to support their mathematical reasoning and deepen their understandings as they participate in a differential equations class during instruction on solutions to systems of differential equations. Therefore, dynamic reasoning is defined as developing and using conceptualizations about time as a parameter that implicitly or explicitly coordinates with other quantities to understand and solve problems. Students participate in the following types of mathematical activity related to dynamic reasoning: making time an explicit quantity, using the metaphor of time as “unidimensional space”, using time to reason both quantitatively and qualitatively, using three-dimensional visualization of time related functions, fusing context and representation of time related functions, and using the fictive motion metaphor for function. The purpose of this article is to present a characterization of dynamic reasoning and promote more explicit attention to this type of reasoning by teachers in K-16 mathematics in order to improve student understanding in time related areas of mathematics.     

Conceptual blending: Student reasoning when proving “conditional implies conditional” statements

Conceptual blending describes how humans condense information, combining it in novel ways. The blending process may create global insight or new detailed connections, but it may also result in a loss of information, causing confusion. In this paper, we describe the proof writing process of a group of four students in a university geometry course proving a statement of the form conditional implies conditional, i.e., (p → q) ⇒ (r → s). We use blending theory to provide insight into three diverse questions relevant for proof writing: (1) Where do key ideas for proofs come from?, (2) How do students structure their proofs and combine those structures with their more intuitive ideas?, and (3) How are students reasoning when they fail to keep track of the implication structure of the statements that they are using? We also use blending theory to describe the evolution of the students’ proof writing process through four episodes each described by a primary blend.     

“He was poking holes …” A case study on figuring out metadiscursive rules through primary sources

An important aspect of participation in a new academic discourse pertains to the metadiscursive rules which govern that discourse. Researchers have documented the viability of using primary sources in undergraduate mathematics education for scaffolding students’ recognition of those rules. Our research explores the related question of whether the use of primary sources can support students’ learning of metadiscursive rules in a way that goes beyond mere recognition. We present a case study of one student’s “figuring out” of metadiscursive rules in a university Analysis course as a result of her experience with a Primary Source Project, illustrate evidence for three dimensions of “figuring out” (adoption, acceptance, awareness) that emerged from that case study, and discuss the implications of our findings for classroom instruction and future research.     

Understanding the integral: Students’ symbolic forms

Researchers are currently investigating how calculus students understand the basic concepts of first-year calculus, including the integral. However, much is still unknown regarding the cognitive resources (i.e., stable cognitive units that can be accessed by an individual) that students hold and draw on when thinking about the integral. This paper presents cognitive resources of the integral that a sample of experienced calculus students drew on while working on pure mathematics and applied physics problems. This research provides evidence that students hold a variety of productive cognitive resources that can be employed in problem solving, though some of the resources prove more productive than others, depending on the context. In particular, conceptualizations of the integral as an addition over many pieces seem especially useful in multivariate and physics contexts.