A Constructively Aligned First-Year Laboratory Course

The first-year undergraduate laboratory course in chemistry at the University of Bristol has been changed in an attempt to have students focus on learning practical skills, rather than on their experimental results. Analysis revealed a misalignment between the stated aims of the course—developing basic practical skills and developing laboratory awareness—and its assessment, which awarded marks for online quizzes and experimental outcomes. Redesigning the course to allow a great deal of formative assessment, dialogic feedback, and the assessment of actual practical skills has produced good levels of learning, engagement, and student satisfaction.