SUGGESTIONS   FOR   STUDENT   USE   OF   TAMU   ORGANIC   OWL   (Online   Web ‐ based   Learning)
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ADVANTAGES   OF   OWL   HOMEWORK   OVER   TEXTBOOK   PROBLEMS   o With   textbook   problems   and   a   solutions   manual,   students   tend   to   attempt   a   problem   and   look   at   the   answer   in   the   solutions   manual.
If   your   initial   answer   is   wrong,   the   tendency   is   to   look   at   the   correct   answer   and   think   that   you   now   know   how   to   work   the   problem   when   what   you   really
‘know’   is   the   answer   to   one   example   of   a   problem.
o The   textbook   has   a   very   limited   number   of   examples   for   a   particular   type   of   problem.
Once   you   have   seen   the   answer   to   a   problem,   it   is   difficult   to   know   if   you   can   work   a   variant   using   the   same   concepts.
OWL   has   multiple   variants   (5   –   30)   of   every   problem!
If   you   miss   a   problem   in   OWL,   you   need   to   repeat   the   question.
OWL   will   then   give   you   a   variant   of   the   first   question;   you   can   then   determine   if   you   understand   the   procedure   necessary   to   generate   a   correct   answer   for   this   type   of   problem.
o If   your   answer   (e.g.
a   drawn   structure)   to   a   problem   doesn’t   look   exactly   like   the   one   in   the
Solutions   Manual,   you   have   to   decide   if   your   answer   is   wrong   or   if   it   is   a   ‘synonym’   of   the   structure   shown   in   the   Solutions   manual;   students   often   err   in   deciding   this.
Organic   OWL   will   grade   a   structure   correctly   even   if   it   is   not   drawn   like   the   ‘answer’.
o The   multiple   variants   of   every   question   make   OWL   problems   a   useful   review   mechanism   before   exams.
Repeat   the   same   question   several   times   to   make   sure   you   can   work   a   variety   of   examples.
o The   grading   mechanisms   in   OWL   allow   your   instructor   to   give   you   credit   for   some   of   the   time   and   effort   you   put   into   studying   organic   chemistry.
The   points   you   receive   serve   as   an   incentive   to   use   this   learning   tool.
Take   advantage   of   it.
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BASIC   NAVIGATION   IN   OWL   o OWL keeps track of where you are in the system. If you use the "Back" button on your browser, you can mess up OWL’s tracking. You should use the supplied menu bar buttons and links to move about the system.
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IMPORTANT   MENU   BOX   ITEMS   o There   are   three   menu   boxes   on   the   left   of   the   page   when   you   get   into   OWL.
The   most   important   item   is   the   Assignment   List   link   in   the   Assignments   box   to   get   to   your   assigned   OWL   homework.
Below   the   three   boxes   are   links   to   useful   references   including   the   e ‐ book   (to   access   any   part   of   the   entire   McMurry   text)   and   Solutions   Manual   (includes   Study   Guide   information   and   answers   to   problems   in   text).
Remember   that   OWL   problems   are   most   often   closely   related   to   in ‐ chapter   and   selected   end ‐ of ‐ chapter   questions   in   the   textbook.
Make   use   of   the   Study   Guide   and   Solutions
Manual   –   it   is   very   helpful.
There   is   also   a   link   to   Chemistry   Tables ;   some   problems   send   you   to   these   tables   rather   than   similar   tables   in   the   text.
The   link   to   Org   Chem   Flashware   is   to   a   optional
(additional   cost)   set   of   animations   of   reaction   mechanisms.
o Other   useful   links   include   My   Account   under   Communication   (you   can   change   your   password   or   update   your   e ‐ mail   address   here),   Send   Message   (Use   this   to   send   a   message   to   your   instructor   while   you   are   working   on   the   assignment   about   which   you   have   a   question;   this   allows   your   instructor   to   know   how   to   respond.),   and   View   Messages   (to   see   responses   from   your   instructor;   these   will   also   be   e ‐ mailed   to   you   and   appear   on   the   first   page   when   you   log ‐ in).
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ASSIGNMENTS   PAGE   o Please   note   that   you   can   select   (Links   above   Course   Name   and   Section)   between   Current
Assignments ‐ Start   date   reached   but   Due   date   not   reached;   and   Past   Due   Assignments ‐ Due   date   to   complete   assignment   and   obtain   credit   has   passed.
You   need   to   complete   assignments   before   the   due   date   to   receive   credit   for   them!

o There   is   also   a   link   to   Assignment   Folders .
You   will   need   to   use   this   only   if   your   instructor   groups   assignments   differently   than   simply   by   chapter.
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TYPES   OF   ASSIGNMENTS   o There   are   two   different   types   of   assignments   for   every   chapter   in   TAMU   Organic   OWL.
o   Assignments   that   relate   to   specific   sections   of   a   chapter   are   labeled   as   Homework,   Tutor,   or
Exercise.
Tutors   and   Exercises   lead   you   through   a   topic   with   information   pages   and   questions   that   you   must   work   through   step ‐ by ‐ step.
You   get   credit   (points!)   when   you   get   to   the   end   of   the   assignment.
The   Homework   Questions   are   related   to   the   in ‐ chapter   questions   in   the   textbook   for   that   section.
For   these   Questions,   you   can   attempt   them   as   many   times   as   necessary   until   you   get   a   correct   answer!
After   every   incorrect   answer,   you   will   be   shown   the   correct   answer   and   given   feedback   on   working   this   question,   including   links   to   the   specific   section   of   the   online   text.
When   you   repeat   the   question,   you   will   get   a   variant   of   your   original   question   (same   concept,   different   structures/reagents   used).
Most   questions   have   5   –   30   variants.
Remember   that   the   objective   is   to   learn   how   to   work   this   type   of   problem,   not   memorize   specific   answers.
o The   other   Assignment   type   is   labeled   End   of   Chapter   Questions.
Questions   in   these   assignments   are   related   to   specific   end   of   chapter   questions   in   the   textbook   (noted   on   the   Question   page   and   marked   in   the   text   with   a   blue   square   by   the   question   #).
These   assignments   are   set   up   more   like   a
Quiz.
To   get   credit   for   a   Question,   you   must   answer   correctly   within   the   first   three   attempts.
You   will   NOT   be   given   feedback   or   the   correct   answer   when   you   answer   incorrectly.
It   will   be   useful   for   you   to   work   the   example   in   the   textbook   (remember   that   answers   are   in   the   Solutions   Manual   online)   before   you   attempt   the   OWL   variants.
o You   can   use   the   Past   Due   Assignments   link   to   go   back   and   rework   completed   assignments   as   practice   for   exams.
Please   note   that   after   the   Past   Due   date,   an   incorrect   answer   for   an   End ‐ of ‐
Chapter   problem   WILL   result   in   feedback   including   the   correct   answer   for   every   variant!
This   makes   these   problems   more   useful   when   reviewing   before   an   exam.
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WORKING   PROBLEMS   IN   ORGANIC   OWL   o Make   sure   you   go   through   the   four   Intro   to   OWL   assignments   before   you   tackle   any   of   the   Chapter
Problems.
Go   through   the   Intro   to   OWL   3:   Browser   Tests   exercise   the   first   time   you   use   any   off ‐ campus   computer   that   has   not   been   tested   with   OWL.
o Remember   that   a   computer   will   grade   only   the   answer   that   you   input;   it   will   not   ‘overlook’   minor   errors!
Watch   for   typos   and   draw   structures   in   MarvinSketch   carefully.
o Although   there   may   be   a   very   few   cases   of   an   error   in   the   grading   of   a   problem,   it   is   more   likely   that   the   error   is   in   your   answer.
If   you   are   convinced   that   there   is   an   error   occurring   with   one   of   the
OWL   problems,   send   a   message   while   in   that   assignment   (Send   Message   link   on   left   side   of   screen).
The   more   information   that   you   give   about   the   problem   will   make   it   easier   for   us   to   find   the   issue   and   resolve   your   question.
We   can   look   at   every   answer   you   submitted   on   a   problem   to   see   if,   in   fact,   it   was   graded   incorrectly.
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GENERAL   SUGGESTIONS   o Don’t   wait   until   just   before   a   Due   Date   to   start   working   problems.
Some   assignments   are   much   longer   or   more   difficult   than   others.
o If   you   are   willing   to   spend   the   time   (learning   time!),   there   is   no   excuse   for   less   than   perfect   scores   on   Homework   and   Tutor   assignments!!
You   won’t   be   able   to   claim   you   worked   as   hard   as   possible   on   this   course   if   you   don’t   get   very   high   scores   on   these   assignments.
If   you   miss   an   EOC   (end ‐ of ‐ chapter)   problem   on   your   first   attempt,   make   sure   you   understand   the   example   with   an   answer   in

the   Solutions   Manual   before   attempting   the   OWL   problem   again   unless   you   are   certain   it   was   a   simple   entry   error   on   your   part.
o Don’t   try   writing   down   answers   while   someone   else   does   their   OWL   assignment;   you   are   going   to   get   different   variants   of   the   problem.
Learn   how   to   solve   problems   –   NOT   answers   to   specific   examples   of   problems.
o Do   additional   examples   of   problems   after   you   have   credit   for   a   correct   answer;   there   is   no   penalty   for   missing   examples   after   you   have   received   credit   for   a   problem.
This   will   reinforce   your   learning   as   you   go   rather   than   putting   it   off   until   the   night   before   exams.
o Your   instructor   can   go   into   OWL   and   see   your   responses   to   every   question   and   see   how   much   time   you   have   spent   working   each   OWL   assignment!
Kenn   Harding
August   2009