Teaching chemical reactions to upper secondary school students: A laboratory approach

This study investigates the performance of upper secondary school students in the unit of chemical reactions following the implementation of a laboratory course in the context of the new Greek Chemistry Curriculum. The teaching intervention was run as a pilot program amongst 21 students and after the evaluation of the preliminary results, to another 76 students who were the final sample. Our findings show that most students who followed this laboratory course, were actively involved in the study of chemical reactions irrespectively of their performance in the school chemistry course. Students? overall school performance only played a role in the process of completing the chemical equations. Most of the students developed a solution strategy in the open inquiry stage. All students were enthusiastic with the teaching strategy employed in this teaching intervention and had a positive response when asked if they have a better understanding of chemical reactions.