Many students retain substantial inaccuracies and misconceptions about the nature of atoms, even after completing multiple years of chemistry education. Some of the most resilient misconceptions relating to atomic structure involve electron particles moving on a set path – like planets in an orbit or in orbiting shells. Most of these misconceptions arise from classical analogies and misleading metaphors used in instruction and textbooks, including teaching the Bohr model first and foremost. Instead of the traditional (historical) approach to teaching atomic structure, we follow an alternative approach to teaching introductory students about light-matter interactions at the atomic level that avoids introducing deprecated and inaccurate models, meets all of the traditional learning outcomes (and more), yet does not rely on an overly mathematical approach.

Presenter: Binyomin Abrams, Department of Chemistry and Department of Teaching and Learning, Boston University, Boston, MA

Date: Wednesday, October 13, 2021, 7:00 pm ET