Ryan Sweeder

Professor of Chemistry and Science Education Michigan State University

  • East Lansing MI

Ryan Sweeder specializes in chemistry education research.

Contact

Michigan State University

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Biography

Ryan Sweeder is a chemist in Lyman Briggs College at Michigan State University specializing in chemistry education research. He studies methods for increasing the learning in undergraduate general chemistry classes using out-of-class activities. He also runs the SPRING Scholars program, a program that helps students explore science career options and develop a professional network. Within his general chemistry classes, he brings his research to bear by providing students with lots of opportunities to engage with course content, apply it to real world scenarios, and gain frequent feedback on their level of understanding. Through these processes he shares his passion about understanding how molecular level interactions can be used to explain our everyday observations of materials, their properties, and how they interact.

Industry Expertise

Education/Learning

Areas of Expertise

Chemistry Education Research

Accomplishments

Leadership Fellow, Academic Advancement Network

2020-2021

MSU STEM Gateway Fellow – AAU Funded Teaching Fellowship

2016-2018

Faculty Fellow to the Dean, Lyman Briggs College

2016-2018

Education

University of Michigan

Ph.D.

Chemistry

2003

Albion College

B.A.

Chemistry and Math

1996

Journal Articles

Chemistry Education Research at a Crossroads: Where Do We Need to Go Now?

Journal of Chemical Education

2023

At the Biennial Conference of Chemical Education in August 2022, a symposium was held entitled Chemistry Education Research at a Crossroads: Where Do We Need to Go Now? The impetus for this symposium was to reflect on how our field has changed and grown substantially in the last 60 years and to challenge the chemistry education research (CER) community to think about how we could most productively continue to progress. As Cooper and Stowe highlight in their 2018 review of the development of research in chemistry education, the field has moved from personal empiricism, where ideas about teaching and learning of chemistry were guided by practitioner wisdom, to a field grounded in theories of learning that seeks evidence to improve teaching and learning.

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ChemSims: using simulations and screencasts to help students develop particle-level understanding of equilibrium in an online environment before and during COVID

Chemistry Education Research and Practice

2022

Equilibrium is a challenging concept for many, largely because developing a deep conceptual understanding of equilibrium requires someone to be able to connect the motions and interactions of particles that cannot be physically observed with macroscopic observations. Particle level chemistry animations and simulations can support student connections of particle motion with macroscopic observations, but for topics such as equilibrium additional visuals such as graphs are typically present which add additional complexity. Helping students make sense of such visuals requires careful scaffolding to draw their attention to important features and help them make connections between representations (e.g., particle motion and graphical representations).

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Improving conceptual understanding of gas behavior through the use of screencasts and simulations

International Journal of STEM Education

2021

Engagement with particle-level simulations can help students visualize the motion and interactions of gas particles, thus helping them develop a more scientifically accurate mental model. Such engagement outside of class prior to formal instruction can help meet the needs of students from diverse backgrounds and provide instructors with a common experience upon which to build with further instruction. Yet, even with well-designed scaffolds, students may not attend to the most salient aspects of the simulation. In this case, a screencast where an instructor provides narrated use of the simulation and points students towards the important observations may provide additional benefits.

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