Success in Vice-Chancellor’s Awards for the Chemistry Teaching Laboratory
The Department of Chemistry’s first-year practical course was recognised last week at the Vice-Chancellor’s Awards.
The team behind the course were highly commended in the Innovative Teaching and Assessment award category. Their project showed the ways they empower first-year chemistry students to make their own experimental design choices from the first term of their studies in Oxford.
Traditional teaching lab courses often adopt a ‘cookbook’ style approach, where students follow fixed instructions to perform an experiment with no option for differing pathways or choices. While this approach can build competence at using apparatus, it can lead to reduced understanding of the underlying processes involved in the experiment, and can limit the development of vital skills in experimental design and decision-making, which are needed for future research projects and careers.
The Chemistry Teaching Laboratory’s course breaks away from this model: from their first week in the lab, students are supported to make increasingly complex experimental design decisions. Early on, this may involve making small choices or decisions, such as selecting appropriate glassware, or selecting reagents used to influence the sustainability of a reaction. Later in the course, students consider aspects such as appropriate solvents and analytical techniques for their reactions. Within a few months, students are able to design and conduct their own experiments, bringing together techniques taught on the course to enhance students’ research and problem-solving skills. Feedback from students confirms that the course leads to enhanced student confidence in the lab and increases preparedness for working in the modern research environment.
‘I liked having to try to justify each decision we were making and also try to reason when the data didn't turn out the way we expected.’
‘[Experimental design] pushed us practically, made us more involved rather than just following instructions’
‘Designing the experiment was a challenge, but I was more engaged, [it] helped me understand the data I collected’
Dr Malcolm Stewart, Director of Teaching Laboratories said:
Our approach to practical teaching is recognised in the chemical education community as being at the cutting edge of curriculum design. These awards meant we were able to introduce our strategy to the rest of the university, allowing us to share this best practice with other educators and we were delighted to be the Highly Commended entry.
To learn more about the course, see this poster which was displayed at the awards’ showcase in the Weston Library. At the showcase, the Vice-Chancellor, and members of the public, were invited to construct their own experiment to measure the amount of carbon dioxide produced by bicarbonate of soda and vinegar (the classic ‘baking soda volcano’ experiment) to experience the course’s innovative student-centred teaching methodology.
The Vice-Chancellor and members of the Teaching Lab team discuss the student-focussed approach to teaching at the Vice-Chancellor's Award Showcase. Photographs © Cyrus Mower.
Senior Teaching Laboratory Technician, Louise Hewson, observed that:
The growth in confidence and understanding of our students through this approach is remarkable. We see students developing an increased understanding, not only of how to perform scientific investigations, but also of key issues such as safety and sustainability.
The Vice-Chancellor's Awards recognise the achievements and celebrate success across the University – from academics and researchers to professional, technical and support staff, whether they are in colleges, divisions, departments, central services, libraries, museums or elsewhere. There were 160 award entries across the 11 categories this year, with 1,300 individuals included in the nominations.
The Vice-Chancellor Professor Irene Tracey, CBE FRS FMedSci presented the awards at a special ceremony at the Sheldonian Theatre on 15 May 2025.
Find out more on the awards webpage.
