Federation of Asian Chemical Societies (FACS)

  Last updated on 28 Oct., 2004      

BRINGING CHEMISTRY TO THE COMMUNITY -
The Australian Experience

C.L. Fogliani, AM Associate Professor, Head, School of Public Health Charles Sturt University Bathurst NSW 2795 AUSTRALIA Email: cfogliani@csu.edu.au

ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
Special Features in ‘Science with a Twist. The Helix’
Aims and Objectives of Australian National Chemistry Quiz
History of Australian National Chemistry Quiz
Philosophy of Australian National Chemistry Quiz
Momentos
Comments in Questionnaire on the 1999 Australian National Chemistry Quiz
The “Australian Chemistry Resource Book”
Australian National Chemical Analysis Competition
Chemists in Schools Programs
The Australian National Chemistry Week Short Story Competition
Performance of Males and Females in the Australian National Chemistry Quiz
Gender and Correct Answers
Mathematical Skills and Interpretation of Graphs
Class and Teacher Gender
Single Gender Classes
Mixed Gender Classes
Conclusion
References 

ABSTRACT

The Royal Australian Chemical Institute has taken a bold and positive initiative to bring chemistry to the community by organising the Australian National Chemistry Week. The status of chemistry in the community has deteriorated and the aim is to reverse this trend. The attitude that chemistry is responsible for the ills of the world has become widely accepted. Chemistry and chemists in particular are often seen as enemies of the environment without any appreciation of the enormous benefits which have come to the human race through chemistry. The principal aim of Australian National Chemistry Week is to bring chemistry to the community. The objectives are to reach as many members of the community as possible – from primary school children to secondary school children to tertiary students, the general public and the scientific world.

The major activities of Australian National Chemistry Week include an International Chemistry Quiz; special features in ‘Science with a Twist. The Helix’; pages in the CSIRO publication ‘Scientriffic’, a chemistry resource book; chemical analysis competition; feature article competition; short story competition; displays in shopping malls; visits by chemists to primary schools; youth lectures; national radio interviews, television interviews; newspaper feature articles; public lectures and debates; functions to welcome new graduates; crystal growing competition; and chemistry week dinners. Some of these activities will be described in detail.

The performance of boys and girls in the Australian National Chemistry Quiz has been analysed by a group of people. Although some questions were solved equally well by boys and girls, on many questions boys outperformed girls. Analysis of the 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994 Quiz papers has shown that male entrants consistently achieved a higher mean score in all year groups. The Quiz questions from 1982 to 1991 have been categorised according to Bloom’s Taxonomy and two books containing the questions have been published. These books will be displayed at the conference.

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INTRODUCTION

The Royal Australian Chemical Institute has taken a bold and positive initiative to bring chemistry to the community by organising the Australian National Chemistry Week. The status of chemistry in the community has deteriorated and the aim is to reverse this trend. The attitude that chemistry is responsible for the ills of the world has become widely accepted. Unfortunately chemists are often perceived as being responsible for environmental problems. Chemistry and chemists in particular are often seen as enemies of the environment without any appreciation of the enormous benefits which have come to the human race through chemistry. There is insufficient realisation by the community that improvement in our physical and social environment requires the application of chemical knowledge.

The results of this poor public image of chemistry have included lower enrolments in chemistry at all levels of our education system. Chemistry as a discipline is increasingly rejected by young people as a choice of career. It is important to challenge these common misconceptions and to introduce and nurture ideas of chemistry as a science that can and does contribute to the better health and living standards for humanity.

The Royal Australian Chemical Institute has been aware of and concerned about this situation for many years and has implemented measures to counteract it. One such measure is the Australian National Chemistry Week. The principal aim of Australian National Chemistry Week is to bring chemistry to the community. Aspects which are given particular emphasis are:

• the importance of chemistry to the community;
• chemistry as a profession;
• the role of the RACI as the professional society for chemistry; and
• chemistry and careers.

The objectives of Australian National Chemistry Week are to reach as many members of the community as possible – from primary school children to secondary school children to tertiary students and the general public, and the scientific world. The activities of the Australian National Chemistry Week provide a means of communication between the Royal Australian Chemical Institute and the community.

The major activities of Australian National Chemistry Week include: an International Chemistry Quiz; a Chemistry Resource Book; special features in ‘Science with a Twist. The Helix’; pages in the CSIRO publication ‘Scientriffic’; Chemical Analysis Competition; feature article competition; short story competition; bookshop and library display; displays in shopping malls; visits by chemists to primary schools; youth lectures; national radio interviews; television interviews; newspaper feature articles; public lectures and debates; functions to welcome new graduates; crystal growing competition; and chemistry week dinners.

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Special Features in ‘Science with a Twist. The Helix’

In an effort to reach many primary school children and their parents special features in the CSIRO publication ‘Science with a Twist. The Helix’ were produced. The first one ‘Our Chemical Bonds’ was published in the June/July 1997 edition with an emphasis on chemistry and careers. The aim was to get across the message that by studying chemistry you are opening opportunities that will allow you to enter fields such as agriculture, drug design and development, food processing, cosmetics, journalism, environmental protection, mining, health care, art restoration, defence, polymer science, metallurgy, atomic energy, forensic science, medical research, patent law and waste management.

The second special feature ‘Chemistry in its Elements’, published in the June/July 1998 edition, emphasised chemistry in the garden, chemistry in the home, chemistry in the factory and chemistry in the kitchen. The focus was on chemicals being all around us and how they influence and improve our way of life. Three activities taken from the CSIRO’s ‘Double Helix Club’ were included. The third special feature ‘The Real World of Chemistry’ appeared in the June/July 1999 edition. Its focus was on how chemicals are used in many practical situations in the real world. Practising chemists test for drugs in sport, develop bionic body parts, come up with new inventions and help the environment by developing ways to reuse water. It also profiled an outstanding chemist, Alan Walsh, who invented the atomic absorption spectrometer.

Material was published in ‘Scientriffic’, a bimonthly magazine produced by CSIRO Education. For example, the March/April 2000 edition contains information on the element mercury, and the use of mercury in thermometers and barometers. The July/August 2000 edition contains information on the element sulfur and sulfur compounds. The material is written in a form suitable for the 7 and 8 age group. Each edition has a Teachers Guide which outlines activities that students can safely complete at home. For example, the Teachers Guide associated with the July/August 2000 edition contains activities to explore the effects of acid rain on home-grown seedlings.

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Aims and Objectives of Australian National Chemistry Quiz

The Australian National Chemistry Quiz is a unique chemical education activity in the world. It provides a major focus for secondary school students on the relevance of chemistry in an exciting and stimulating way. It has made a significant contribution to the development of a grass-root appreciation of the role of chemistry in our society. Many of the questions are aimed at emphasising the connection between the academic image of chemistry and its day-to-day applications, and its importance in the home, the environment and industry. Thus the questions where possible have been free of specific syllabus content.

The aims of the Quiz are to promote and encourage an awareness of the nature and relevance of chemistry amongst secondary school students. These are clearly related to ‘Science for Everybody’ which is a national aim for Science Education in Australia. This was one of the reasons for introducing a Junior Year 7 and 8 Quiz for the first time in 1989. It was well received and successful.

It is hoped that the Quiz will interest students in the further study of chemistry and will indicate to students the important role chemistry has to play in our society. Questions are based on the fundamental aspects of chemistry as well as questions involving its application in modern society. The questions are graded in terms of difficulty and it is expected that most students are able to answer many of the questions. The Quiz is held at two Junior levels (Years 7 and 8, and Years 9 and 10) and at two Senior levels (Years 11 and 12). By participating in the Quiz the students have the opportunity to improve their knowledge of chemistry.

Quiz results of Year 10 and Year 11 students are used to help select students to compete in the Chemistry Olympiad which is supported by the Minister for Employment, Education and Training, and the Australian Academy of Science. To quote Professor Curtis, President of the Australian Academy of Science, ‘supporting this challenging competition for school students is a far-sighted initiative. It will improve the performance of the higher achiever while raising the interest of students generally in science education.’

I am aware of the lack of chemistry, as a subject, being taught in many junior science syllabi being currently utilised at Levels 7 and 8. However, it is hoped that participation in this activity may stimulate these younger students to a realisation of the important role that chemistry plays in many of the fundamental processes which they encounter in their science course modules and in many aspects of everyday life. On completion of the Quiz, teachers may use it as a teaching tool, particularly if they spend time going through the answers to the questions.

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History of Australian National Chemistry Quiz

The Quiz is run in every state in Australia and 15 neighbouring countries. The Quiz was organised for the first time in 1982. It was introduced into Papua New Guinea in 1985, Fiji in 1988, New Zealand in 1992, into Malaysia, Western Samoa and Indonesia in 1993, into Vietnam and Singapore in 1994, into the Philippines in 1995, into Sri Lanka in 1997, into Thailand in 1998, into Brunei, United Kingdom, Switzerland and India in 1999, and into Vanuatu in 2001. The Quiz papers are translated into Vietnamese, Indonesian, Tamil, Sinhale, Thai and French.

The Quiz requires a time slot of 70-80 minutes. The actual duration of each division of the Quiz will be approximately one hour and will consist of 30 multiple choice questions. Answers to the quiz are recorded on a computer mark sense sheet. The marked sheets are returned to the Australian National Chemistry Quiz Chairman at Charles Sturt University for scanning.

The Quiz entrants since inception are shown in Table 1. The breakdown of Quiz entrants in 2002 is shown in Table 2.

TABLE 1: Quiz Entrants Since Inception

In 2002 there were 98,316 entries in the Quiz from 1,300 schools. A breakdown of the entries is shown in Table 2.

TABLE 2: Quiz Entries for 2002