GENERAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY I
CHEM 1111.012 (57430)
FALL 2011
PALO ALTO COLLEGE
COURSE SYLLABUS
Class Meeting
Times:
Fridays 1100 AM – 2:20 PM in San Jacinto Hall, Room 209
Credits:
This is a 1-credit-hour course. This course is separate from General
Chemistry Lecture, which is a 3-credit-hour course. If you are also
enrolled in General Chemistry Lecture, you will receive two (2) letter
grades (determined independently) and a total of 4 credit-hours in
chemistry.
Instructor:
Mr. Dale Robinson
Phone:
(210) 486-3375
Email:
drobinson@alamo.edu
Catalog
Description:
Rationale:
Course
Objectives:
This laboratory course is designed to accompany CHEM 1311, General
Chemistry I. This course provides a quantitative study of the properties of
chemical compounds and chemical reactions. The course is designed for
science majors.
Chemistry is an experimental science. This course is a supplement to the
lecture since students observe in practice the principles they learn about in
class. For those planning to pursue careers involving laboratory work -particularly in chemistry -- this course will provide a foundation of
necessary laboratory skills. For all students, this course will provide a
greater understanding of how scientists conduct their work and report their
results.
To learn the safe use of chemicals.
To become familiar with the operation of chemical equipment and
instruments.
To learn to interpret results.
To learn to evaluate data.
To learn to communicate the results of scientific experiments.
Text:
Beran, Jo A., Chemistry in the Laboratory, A Study of Chemical and
Physical Changes, Second Ed., John Wiley & Sons, 1996.
Grading:
Laboratory Reports
40%
Laboratory Quizzes
40%
Formal Report
20%
___________________________________________
Total
100%
Your semester score (SS) will be computed using the following formula,
which incorporates the percentages given in the above table. Denoting
your lab report average as LRA, your lab quiz average LQA, and the grade
on your formal report as FR, your semester score (SS) is calculated as
follows:.
SS = 0.40 * LRA + 0.40 * LQA + 0.20 * FR
All grades in this course will be on a 0 - 100 scale. The letter grade which
you will be assigned for this course is determined by the value of SS as
follows.
If SS is 90 or higher, your grade is A
If SS is 80 or higher, but less than 90, your grade is B
If SS is 70 or higher, but less than 80, your grade is C
If SS is 60 or higher, but less than 70, your grade is D
If SS is less than 60, your grade is F
Attendance Policy:
Student
Withdrawal Policy:
Prompt and regular attendance is required. Students missing two (2) labs
(not necessarily consecutive) may be dropped from lab by the instructor.
Students are responsible for all work missed due to any absences. In
particular, note that a student is not exempt from a lab quiz that covers an
experiment conducted in his or her absence. The student bears the
responsibility of finding out what he or she missed while absent, and
becoming familiar with the theory behind the missed lab.
Students wishing to withdraw from the course should file the proper
paperwork with the Admissions and Records Office. If a student stops
attending but does not formally withdraw, a grade of F will be assigned if
the student is still “enrolled” at the end of the semester. This is true even
if the student could have been dropped by the instructor under the
attendance policy above. Note that since CHEM 1311 and CHEM 1111
are separate courses, withdrawing from CHEM 1311 does NOT
automatically withdraw a student from CHEM 1111.
Notes on
Lab Reports:
Notes on
Lab Quizzes:
For each week that lab meets (except the first meeting) a laboratory
experiment will be conducted. For each experiment conducted, there is a
Lab Report that must be completed. Lab Reports usually have three (3)
parts. First, there is a Lab Preview which should be completed before
beginning the experiment. Secondly, there is a Data Sheet on which the
measurements and observations made during the experiment are recorded.
Finally, there is a set of post lab Questions which test your understanding
of the principles behind the experiment. In general, students will work as
a group (not to exceed 4 students unless the instructor approves otherwise)
on completing the lab report, but the instructor has the option of requiring
that part or all of any lab report be an individual effort. Unless you are
told otherwise, however, you may work together on completing your lab
report for an experiment, and only one report will be turned in for each
group of students working on an experiment. The grade earned on the lab
report is assigned to all students working in the group. However, the
instructor may make adjustments to an individual student’s grade where
necessary, to account for significant differences in participation or
adherence to laboratory rules. Members of a group who are absent for a
particular experiment are not eligible to receive a grade for the experiment
which the other group members completed in their absence. After the
physical work of the experiment has been completed, each group is
expected to clean up their work area and spend the remainder of the lab
period finishing the Group Lab Report. If the remaining time is not
sufficient to finish the Group Lab Report, a one-time extension will be
granted at the end of the lab period, making it possible for the group to
turn in the Group Lab Report at the beginning of the next lab meeting
without a late penalty. If a group leaves the lab before the end of the
period without submitting a Group Lab Report, the report is considered
late. Late lab reports are penalized 10% for each lab meeting that elapses
from the day it is due until it is received. Late lab reports are not accepted
if the graded reports for that experiment have already been returned to the
students.
Lab Quizzes covering the experiments students have conducted will be
given from time to time. The quiz dates and the number of quizzes to be
given have not been determined in advance. Lab quizzes will be
announced in lab the week before they are to be given. Your lowest lab
quiz grade is dropped before computing your lab quiz average. In
consideration of this privilege, and the time required to prepare and grade
make-up assignments, students are not allowed to make up just one missed
lab quiz. If more than one quiz is missed, and all were missed for valid
reasons, see the instructor. Such situations are handled on a case-by-case
basis.
Notes on the
Formal Report:
Laboratory Safety:
The formal report is a typewritten (or computer printed) paper that
discusses one of the experiments conducted during the semester. The
report must contain the following seven (7) sections: Abstract,
Introduction, Procedure, Results, Discussion, Conclusion, and References.
More details on the paper – including when it will be due – will be
provided at a later date.
Students are required to practice safe laboratory techniques at all times.
This includes (but is not limited to) wearing safety glasses whenever
experiments are in progress. Even when an individual student is just
doing paperwork, that student must be wearing safety glasses if
experimental procedures are in progress elsewhere in the lab. A grade
penalty may be imposed for failure to adhere to required safety rules.
A student who arrives for lab without safety glasses and for whom safety
glasses can not be found will not be allowed to conduct that day’s
experiment and will be considered absent for the day.
Make-up Work:
A student missing a lab during the semester must conduct Experiment 15
(“Molecular Geometry”) on December 2, 2011 to avoid a zero grade being
used in the lab report average calculation. Those who have not missed any
labs need not do this experiment, but may do so if they choose. The make
up lab will replace the lowest of the student’s other lab report grades, and
will have no effect if the make up lab itself is the lowest grade.
GENERAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY I
CHEM 1111.012 (57430)
FALL 2011
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
August
26
Introduction. No experiment will be conducted today.
September
2
Experiment 1: “Safety and SI”
September
9
Experiment 2: “Techniques and Measurements”
September 16
Experiment 5: “Nomenclature: Elements and Compounds”
September 23
Experiment 7: “Formula of a Hydrate”
September 30
Experiment 8: “Formula of a Compound”
October
7
Experiment 9: “Limiting Reactant”
October
14
Experiment 6: “Reaction Types and Analysis” (Parts A - D)
October
21
Experiment 6: “Reaction Types and Analysis” (Part E)
October
28
Experiment 17: “Molar Mass of a Volatile Compound”
November
4
Experiment 10: “Calorimetry”
November 11
Experiment 12: “Spectroscopy”
November 18
Experiment 13: “Chemical Periodicity”
November 25
Thanksgiving Holiday
December
2
Experiment 15: “Molecular Geometry” (Make-up lab)
December
9
No Lab Meeting. Course has ended.