Creating a Chemical Escape Room at the University\nLevel: Innovative Resources for Future Primary School Teachers

Teaching natural sciences can be\nchallenging, especially with unmotivated\nor disinterested students. The challenge increases when the term “Didactics”\nappears in the subjects under study, for example, with Didactics of\nNatural Sciences. The present work details the design and execution\nprocess of an escape room experience used as a methodology for teaching\nand reviewing chemistry at the university level. The manuscript describes\nthe puzzles and experiments carried out in the laboratory, as well\nas the results obtained from its implementation and the assessment\nmethods used. The experience took place during the academic years\n2021–2022 and 2022–2023, with students enrolled in the\nsecond year of the Primary Education Teacher degree. In each period,\nfour nonhomogeneous groups with different numbers of students verified\nthe game. Within an hour, participants had to face four main puzzles\nto gather the necessary information to solve a crime that occurred\nin the lab. Upon completing the escape room, the students filled out\na questionnaire to express their opinions and evaluate the activity.\nThe results obtained from the questionnaire survey showed a high level\nof satisfaction with the methodology employed.