There are certain moments in a student’s scientific education that become more memorable than ordinary classroom lessons. The first time a student enters a laboratory as an AS Chemistry student, puts on their safety goggles, collects their apparatus, reads a method carefully and begins to generate their own experimental data is one such moment.
For our Year 12 AS Chemistry students, the determination of the molar volume of a gas provided exactly this opportunity. As the first Core Practical of the academic year, the experiment was much more than an exercise in measuring the volume of a gas. It represented an important transition from studying Chemistry as a theoretical subject to experiencing Chemistry as an experimental science.
The enthusiasm, preparation and dedication demonstrated by the students throughout the practical were particularly encouraging. Students arrived prepared to work, engaged enthusiastically with the apparatus and demonstrated a genuine curiosity about how closely their experimental value would agree with the accepted molar volume of a gas.
The laboratory quickly became a place of investigation, discussion and discovery. Practical Chemistry naturally encourages a growth mindset.
Students will encounter challenging topics, difficult calculations and experiments that do not always work exactly as expected. The ability to learn from mistakes will therefore be one of the most important characteristics they develop during the course. This is a stepping stone in their journey towards becoming capable chemists of the future.
Mr Mahesh Warrier
Head of Chemistry