Moodle-based chemistry lab grading system

Project Description

We are seeking an online chemistry laboratory submission and grading system for use in chemistry labs. The initial focus would be to create a lab system for CHEM 221, but should support other CHEM classes, including 231 and 202. This product would be similar to that used in the CHEM 201 laboratory submission and grading system, but would give greater control to the faculty setting up each lab.

Project Goals

• A product that can be used to create and manage new labs by chemistry faculty
• Works within Moodle, including gradebook support
• Has grading options (sig figs, uncertainty propagation including “Rule of 19”, accuracy/precision, multiple attempts, checking of formulas,…)
• Security

Impact

The chemistry department current utilizes a system is administered by the IT department and only used for CHEM 201. This makes improving labs or introducing new labs prohibitively difficult at times due to the time constraints for going through other departments. A new system would allow our faculty to improve or implement new labs and allow the system to be used in other classes such as CHEM 202, 221, 231 etc. that rely on numeric laboratory results. This would allow immediate feedback and multiple attempts on lab work (where appropriate) and allow faculty to spend less time grading numeric results and more time grading written work.

Additionally, there is possibility of publishing results in the Journal of Chemical Education if successful.

 

Constraints

• Moodle compatibility. It must be able to be executed from a Moodle page, and also access the gradebook for student enrollment info, and storing grades for labs
• Should be accessible only by students and faculty that are assigned to the class
• Faculty should be able to create new labs

Resources

• Access to the current CHEM 201 system which has a few of the features that we are requesting. Existing labs for CHEM 201 will be available as a model for the team.

Licensing

None required. 

Point of Contact

Prof. Dabrina Dutcher
Dept. of Chemistry
Dept. of Chemical Engineering