Submitted by Janet / Kennesaw State University on Mon, 09/20/2021 - 12:56
My Notes
Description

Students are asked to provide correct, distinct, and relevant statements about a prompt which includes a coordination complex formula and a Tanabe Sugano diagram. If assigned as an in-class activity, 10 statements meeting the above criteria receive full credit. The activity can be successfully completed in under 25 minutes and may be completed with a partner or in a small group. These types of assessments allow for some subjectivity when grading, and the prompt is designed to encourage creativity in student statements, therefore consistent grading is essential.

Attachment Size
Creative Exercise Prompt 12.57 KB
Learning Goals

Students should be able to predict whether a complex will be high-spin or low-spin (using ligand spectrochemical series) and relate this to a particular position on the T-S diagram (x-axis).

Students should be able to predict the spin allowed transitions for a transition metal complex using the T-S diagram.

Students should be able to determine the low energy term symbol from the T-S diagram and via calculation.

Students should be able to draw the d-orbital splitting diagram and determine dia/paramagnetism.

Students should be able to assign geometry and point group for a coordination complex.

Students should be able to describe the coordination complex using hard-soft-acid-base (HSAB) principle. 

Equipment needs

No equipment is necessary.

Implementation Notes

Creative Exercises can be assigned as homework, in-class activities and on examinations. They may be completed individually, with a partner, or in small groups. Number of statements required for full credit and/or bonus can be adjusted accordingly. Students indicate that several attempts at completing Creative Exercises are useful before examinations to get comfortable with expectations and the grading scheme.

Time Required
25 minutes; adjustable to number of required student statements

Evaluation

Evaluation Methods

Creative Exercises are student-centered, open-ended assessments that encourage meaningful learning by promoting connectivity between new information and existing knowledge. These types of assessments allow for some subjectivity when grading, and the prompt is designed to encourage creativity in student statements, therefore consistent grading is essential.

The provided instructions for Creative Exercises ask students to list correct, distinct, and relevant statements related to a given prompt. Number of statements for credit and/or bonus can be adjusted according to time allotted and type of assessment (i.e. homework, in-class activity or examination).

Distinct skills would be those that are independent of other statements listed. For example, one acceptable statement could be the systematic naming of the coordination complex, but the student should not get credit for both naming the complex and also naming the ligand and/or the transition metal. In addition, contradictory statements should not receive credit.

Relevant statements would be those that are directly related to the prompt. For example, since the ligand is S-bound in the prompt, statements concerning N-bound ligand would not be considered relevant to this prompt and should not receive credit.

Evaluation Results

Students performance on Creative Exercises varies and typically improves throughout the semester with practice. Any additional student statements that meet the grading criteria, but that are not part of the instructor's original answer key, are added to the key and given credit. Although not given credit, any student misconceptions provided as incorrect statements do not count against the overall score. In this way, inaccuracies in student knowledge can be remediated via additional instruction. 

Creative Commons License
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