Jessie Byers, Southern Utah University
Demonstrations have become widely used and respected instructional tools in chemistry. This poster reports on the results of a study that evaluates the effectiveness of lab demonstrations versus self-directed student labs in an introductory chemistry course. Final exam scores across twelve semesters for each method of teaching were compared statistically, and the scores on the demonstration portion of the exam were found to be significantly higher on average than the scores on the experiment portion of the exam. This suggests that demonstrations are a more effective method of helping students retain information than self-directed experiments.