Alkenes, Brought to You in Familiar Faces

Organic chemistry has been stigmatized as an unduly challenging subject throughout history. However, some undergraduate students excel in the subject when they attempt to understand the content rather than routine memorization. It is evident that rote memorization, a primary result of a student failing to understand the relevance of the material, has to be relegated to ensure student success in organic chemistry. By connecting familiar experiences/ideas to the course content, an instructor can improve the relevance of the content, thereby achieving higher goals for student engagement and performance. In this study, alkenes and their reactions, often the first functional group covered in the introductory organic chemistry sequence, were introduced to the students through familiar examples such as nutritional values of vibrantly colored food, the science behind marvelous fall colors, alkene chain reactions leading to day-to-day used material, and various fun and informative laboratory activities. This unique introduction occurred during a span of 2 weeks before students started learning about alkenes and alkene reactivity in the lecture. Based on student surveys and feedback, this innovative and creative approach to introducing alkenes and their reactions through familiar examples complemented more meaningful student perspectives of learning about alkenes and other functional groups in organic chemistry.