Teachers’ corner: Language and meaning in chemistry TC0101
The jargon we use
Have you ever experienced what the students in this pre-lab lecture must have been experiencing .........
Prof Bob says .....
People in every profession use their own particular jargon. Can any discipline have more of its own characteristic jargon than chemistry does? Surely not. .........
We have seemingly trillions of words and terms - some of which are only used in chemistry, and some of which are used in everyday situations (but not necessarily with the same meaning). We have symbols for elements, formulas for compounds, and equations for chemical reactions.
We have names for chemistry concepts, such as anion, atomic weight, hydrogen bond, electronegativity, neutralisation, and resonance. And we have symbols with conceptual meaning - for example, like those used to represent chemical reaction, equilibrium, standard enthalpy change, resonance, and electron configuration.
We have portrayals of the structures of molecules, and the packing of ions in crystals. And the structure of a molecule can be represented in a whole variety of ways, depending upon who we are talking with, and what aspect of the structure we want to focus on.
We have complicated units of measurement. And more ......
People in every profession use their own particular jargon. Can any discipline have more of its own characteristic jargon than chemistry does? Surely not. .........
We have seemingly trillions of words and terms - some of which are only used in chemistry, and some of which are used in everyday situations (but not necessarily with the same meaning). We have symbols for elements, formulas for compounds, and equations for chemical reactions.
We have names for chemistry concepts, such as anion, atomic weight, hydrogen bond, electronegativity, neutralisation, and resonance. And we have symbols with conceptual meaning - for example, like those used to represent chemical reaction, equilibrium, standard enthalpy change, resonance, and electron configuration.
We have portrayals of the structures of molecules, and the packing of ions in crystals. And the structure of a molecule can be represented in a whole variety of ways, depending upon who we are talking with, and what aspect of the structure we want to focus on.
We have complicated units of measurement. And more ......
So what?
Effective communication depends on all parties understanding the jargon used. This is particularly relevant in the teaching/learning situation, where there might be an enormous knowledge and vocabulary gap between teacher and students.
Of course, one of the aims of education in a discipline is to bring the students to a level of jargon vocabulary that enables conversation with experts in the field. But that takes time, just as it does to accommodate to the vocabulary of any sub-culture such as football, classical music, painting, or yachting.
One of the biggest sins of the teacher is to presume (or not even consider) the disciplinary vocabulary of the students.
An obvious problem with an unrealistic presumption is simply that the students won't know what the teacher is talking about. Just imagine if a teacher is trying to rationalise why the electronegativity of oxygen is higher than that of carbon, and the students don't even understand what is meant by the term electronegativity! [Even if they can repeat some of the teacher's statements for examination purposes!]
A more latent issue arises when so much jargon is used, and perhaps the students "kinda" know the meanings, so that their mind is grasping for the meanings of terms, while at the same time trying to make sense of what the teacher is saying about the concepts.
This is one of the occasions when it is highly likely that the students will experience what the late Professor Alex Johnstone refers to as "overload" of the short-term memory, or working space - see Module 2703: An information-processing model of learning [Not yet available]
In fact, the video presented above is a re-conceptualised version of a short movie designed and produced by Professor Johnstone about 40 years ago. The video has the same intended message as his movie, and I hope that it is clear what this message is.
Professor Johnstone passed away in late 2017. I dedicate this video, and this module, to his incredible contribution to our awareness of the challenges of the teaching/learning process.
Effective communication depends on all parties understanding the jargon used. This is particularly relevant in the teaching/learning situation, where there might be an enormous knowledge and vocabulary gap between teacher and students.
Of course, one of the aims of education in a discipline is to bring the students to a level of jargon vocabulary that enables conversation with experts in the field. But that takes time, just as it does to accommodate to the vocabulary of any sub-culture such as football, classical music, painting, or yachting.
One of the biggest sins of the teacher is to presume (or not even consider) the disciplinary vocabulary of the students.
An obvious problem with an unrealistic presumption is simply that the students won't know what the teacher is talking about. Just imagine if a teacher is trying to rationalise why the electronegativity of oxygen is higher than that of carbon, and the students don't even understand what is meant by the term electronegativity! [Even if they can repeat some of the teacher's statements for examination purposes!]
A more latent issue arises when so much jargon is used, and perhaps the students "kinda" know the meanings, so that their mind is grasping for the meanings of terms, while at the same time trying to make sense of what the teacher is saying about the concepts.
This is one of the occasions when it is highly likely that the students will experience what the late Professor Alex Johnstone refers to as "overload" of the short-term memory, or working space - see Module 2703: An information-processing model of learning [Not yet available]
In fact, the video presented above is a re-conceptualised version of a short movie designed and produced by Professor Johnstone about 40 years ago. The video has the same intended message as his movie, and I hope that it is clear what this message is.
Professor Johnstone passed away in late 2017. I dedicate this video, and this module, to his incredible contribution to our awareness of the challenges of the teaching/learning process.
I cannot recall the article in the Journal of Chemical Education from which I long ago scanned the extraordinarily appropriate cartoon that is the header of this module. When I have found it, I will acknowledge its source (and make a better reproduction).
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