Open Elements

The global demand for higher education is greater than what can be met by conventional education routes at campus-based institutions. The unique requirements around laboratory and practical educational components in science education pose a particular problem for meeting this demand. Evolving beyond the walls of the traditional brick-and-mortar institution and long-established modes of teaching and learning will be essential for training the next generation of scientists and technical professionals and ensuring scientific literacy in modern society.

This new volume from the editors of Accessible Elements: Teaching Science Online and at a Distance, presents innovations for open, online, and distance-delivered programs that can help meet the global demands for higher education in science and technology. Contributors reassess what science teaching labs can and should be and explore innovations such as citizen science, virtual field experiences, and the use of smartphone technology to replace lab instrumentation. Other areas of focus include pedagogical and course design innovations, such as the use of open educational resources and the use of learning analytics and AI to drive adaptive learning. Programmatic innovations, such as work-integrated learning and micro-credentials that can help make higher education more accessible to lifelong learners, are another area of emphasis. This book is for science educators, higher education administrators, and anyone who is interested in the future of online and distance delivered higher education in science.

Dietmar Kennepohl is a professor of Chemistry and former associate vice president at Athabasca University. He has held academic appointments at major institutions internationally and has served in senior administrative and advisory roles with a wide range of national and provincial disciplinary associations, accreditation bodies, and government organizations. His research in chemistry education focuses on expanding online access through innovative distance delivery models, including approaches for undergraduate laboratory instruction.

Lawton Shaw is an associate professor of Chemistry at Athabasca University. He is a general chemistry teaching specialist with extensive experience in the design and delivery of online and distance delivered science courses. He is the co-author of a widely used Canadian general chemistry textbook. His research interests include the application of mobile devices as instruments in chemistry home labs. He is active in high school science outreach in the community of Athabasca.