The Recipe for STEM Success: Combining Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry
890
first-year students taught every academic year
70%
decrease in failure rates on exam one after using Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry
66%
increase in ‘A’ exam scores after using Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry
The Challenge
Closing the preparedness gap in Introductory Chemistry
“Science classes tend to have DFW rates around 20–30 percent. Sometimes it’s about not being prepared, sometimes it’s due to outside factors including juggling work commitments,” says Kim Arnold, a Lecturer in Chemistry at Indiana University, Bloomington. Arnold teaches Introduction to Chemical Principles to 650 students every fall and another 240 students in the spring. Nearly 80 percent of students arrive to her course immediately from high school. Her job is to impart foundational knowledge before students move onto their General Chemistry sequence. Just as important, she’s put it on herself to tackle growing DFW rates.
Like many faculty in STEM, Arnold noticed a general lack of preparedness among her students. Many learners weren’t confident in presenting or manipulating chemical concepts such as dimensional analysis. The result? Poor exam scores which, in turn, led to high course failure rates. When reviewing her exam data from spring 2022, Arnold noted that 50 percent of the students who received a ‘C’ on exam one would end up failing the final cumulative exam. She was determined to transform these results.
Arnold knew that Top Hat’s in-class engagement features, paired with Aktiv Chemistry’s intuitive, mobile-friendly platform would boost student motivation and performance. In fall 2023, she started using both platforms within her introductory-level course—and she isn’t looking back.
School background
Established in 1820, Indiana University Bloomington is celebrated for its rich history, boasting an enrollment of over 40,000 students and an impressive array of more than 200 undergraduate major options spanning across 80 languages. Nestled amidst limestone buildings and verdant landscapes, the university is renowned for its commitment to academic excellence, fostering a vibrant and inclusive campus culture. With a diverse student body and a myriad of extracurricular opportunities, IU Bloomington offers a dynamic environment where students can thrive intellectually, socially, and culturally.
About the professor
Kim Arnold has been teaching in the Chemistry Department at Indiana University as an adjunct instructor and lecturer for the past 16 years. She holds a Master of Arts in Chemistry Teaching degree which gives her a solid foundation in evidence-based pedagogical methods. Arnold teaches various large-enrollment introductory and general chemistry courses and has developed a highly successful Internship in Chemical Instruction program to train undergraduate students to serve as peer instructors in courses in the chemistry department. In addition, she serves as the liaison to teachers in the Advanced College Project, a dual-credit partnership between IU and various high schools.
Kimberly Arnold Lecturer of Chemistry at Indiana University Bloomington
The Solution
Using Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry to offer guided feedback and cultivate community
The combined capabilities of Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry, paired with Arnold’s enthusiasm and energy, gave students the motivation they needed to attend class, absorb concepts and apply their knowledge with great success. Here’s how Arnold uses both platforms in her course.
Lectures are a prime community-building opportunity. That’s where Top Hat’s interactive polls and click-on-target questions kick in. “I ask several Top Hat questions every lecture, for example, to identify misconceptions. I’ll show a periodic table and ask students to click on a halogen from period three. Students will then chat with a neighbor—it’s really a time to build relationships,” she says.
Recitations are held biweekly with 50 students per section. Here, students use Aktiv’s interactive platform to complete problem sets and can receive guided support from graduate assistants. Aktiv also allows students to see where their own learning gaps are immediately without having to wait days for feedback. “Students once complained that recitations weren’t an effective use of their time. Now with Aktiv, they can complete worksheets and receive targeted hints regarding their errors.”
Arnold’s homework assignments are designed to keep students engaged on their own time. Even better, questions are scaffolded in Aktiv, reducing the stress that comes with completing large problem sets. “Aktiv builds scaffolding for me. Students are led step by step when identifying a polyatomic ion, or when setting up dimensional analysis. They actually have to show their entire thought process which allows for constant practice,” Arnold says. Plus, Aktiv’s functionality helps students prepare for exams by allowing them to complete problems multiple times to build up their confidence. In turn, Arnold’s team of graduate assistants use the real-time data generated by Aktiv to support struggling students.
After a full semester using Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry in tandem, Arnold could see a clear difference in student performance and persistence. She conducted a longitudinal analysis to quantify the impact of both platforms—and wasn’t disappointed with what she saw.
The Results
Dramatically improving exam scores and supporting confidence and personal growth
Arnold’s lively personality, in addition to both Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry, turned underprepared students into confident chemists. Fewer complained they aren’t a ‘math person.’ Fewer dropped her course. Fewer scraped by on her final exam.
Arnold analyzed exam data from spring 2022, fall 2022 and fall 2023. She saw that of the students who received an ‘A’ grade on their first exam, 30 percent went on to receive an ‘A’ grade on the cumulative final exam in spring 2022. In fall 2023—which was when she introduced Top Hat and Aktiv Chemistry in her course—the percentage of students who earned an ‘A’ on the final was 60 percent. There was a time where 50 percent of the students who received a ‘C’ on exam one would end up failing the final cumulative exam, but in the fall 2023 semester, this drastically dropped to 24 percent. Even better, she noticed a direct correlation between exam scores and retention data. “Students who were previously receiving Cs, Ds or Fs were moving forward in my class and were successfully transitioning into the next course in our Gen Chem sequence. Redesigning recitations using Aktiv has made the experience more equitable for all students,” she says.
Arnold isn’t the only one excited about the built-in engagement both platforms boast. Her students are equally thrilled to receive guided, instant feedback upon completing assignments. “I loved that Aktiv always gave an in-depth explanation after every question, which gave me further insight into the concept behind lessons. I was able to see the problems worked out in a way that was easy to understand,” shared one student in fall 2023.
Students who were previously receiving Cs, Ds or Fs were moving forward in my class and were successfully transitioning into the next course in our Gen Chem sequence. Redesigning recitations using Aktiv has made the experience more equitable for all students.
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