Service Learning Track in General Chemistry: Giving Students a Choice

Experiential learning is a foundation in chemistry courses from the introductory-level course to upper-level courses through laboratory experiences. Service learning is another type of experiential learning that is slowly gaining momentum in the sciences. There have been several reports in this Journal on this pedagogy with respect to student engagement and success. However, widespread adoption of this teaching tool will not be achieved until suitable, scalable models for implementation of service learning in chemistry are available. Reported here is an example of a service learning aspect of a traditional second-semester general chemistry course where a separate grading scheme is created within the course called the Service Track. The logistics of running a course within a course, how the instructor uses Service Track teaching assistants, descriptions of the service projects, and how they are incorporated into the classroom, and the assessment of these projects, is described.