Chem Lab Blues

[bluebird07]

Hey everyone,

I am a DIY post bacc student and I'm taking Gen Chem 1 plus lab this summer session. I'm currently doing well in the lecture with a 98 average after two tests. Chem lab, however, totally sucks my soul away two times a week and I have about an 85-87. I'm uncomfortable in the chem lab in general even though I read and reread the procedure before lab. Once I get into lab, everything that I've learned in lecture seems to fly away from my brain and I run around like a chicken trying to complete the experiment in time. It doesn't help that my TA is very anal about any number of things, including inaccurate results (ok this is understandable to grade down on), grammar, having too many descriptive sentences in the objective, etc. Grading is also inconsistent. Our class lab reports are essentially data sheets that we have to turn in before the end of class each day. Does anyone have any tips about how to improve? I have five more lab reports to go and another titration lab on Thursday :-/ Do chem labs get better?

Thanks
Bluebird

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[amberlynnp13]

What type labs? I'm in chem no too.. I can email you my lab reports if they are the same labs. I get 100% on all my lab reports but I know exactly what my teacher wants and it might be different the what your teacher wants.. Just pm me if you want me to email them to you

 

[wholeheartedly]

Sorry, chem labs are highly variable. Are you on your own or do you work in groups? Is there someone in the class who is doing well that could go over the reports you've already done so you compare and see what you're doing differently?

 

[SN12357]

Hey everyone,

I am a DIY post bacc student and I'm taking Gen Chem 1 plus lab this summer session. I'm currently doing well in the lecture with a 98 average after two tests. Chem lab, however, totally sucks my soul away two times a week and I have about an 85-87. I'm uncomfortable in the chem lab in general even though I read and reread the procedure before lab. Once I get into lab, everything that I've learned in lecture seems to fly away from my brain and I run around like a chicken trying to complete the experiment in time. It doesn't help that my TA is very anal about any number of things, including inaccurate results (ok this is understandable to grade down on), grammar, having too many descriptive sentences in the objective, etc. Grading is also inconsistent. Our class lab reports are essentially data sheets that we have to turn in before the end of class each day. Does anyone have any tips about how to improve? I have five more lab reports to go and another titration lab on Thursday :-/ Do chem labs get better?

Thanks
Bluebird

Chem lab lives or dies by the quality of the TA and it sounds like you pulled a bad one possibly nitpicking the wrong things. Try to find someone who had the same TA in a previous year and did well. If they don't exist, there may be nothing you can do but suck it up. A B in Gen Chem lab won't kill you.

 

[econ2med]

I had a similar issue.

I had never taken chemistry before and had never experienced a lab. The truth is, you just have to be 'in with' the TA and ASK questions if you're unsure about anything. It's okay to not know something. It's not ok to follow through with something you're unsure of.

Just keep asking questions from your lab partner, TA and other classmates. So what if you look stupid. Just make the grade.

 

[bluebird07]

Thank you everyone for the great suggestions. Most of our lab work is done individually but on some experiments we work in groups. I have spoken to other students in the class, some are doing worse than I am in the lab. One guy is doing really well on the lab reports but is barely passing lecture :-/. Anyway, I'm trying to integrate the type of style that the more successful lab students are using for writing observations for future reports. As far as lost points for percent yield/error, I'm not sure how I can prevent too much damage there, other than doing the rest of the experiments textbook perfectly. Needless to say, I'm still concerned about how much I can reasonably improve in the next two weeks (or at least maintain my B) given my TA's tendency to hack off points.

On a brighter note, I talked to my professor before the lab and he was super helpful--he even drew out diagrams and showed how the formulas related to one another--so I actually felt more confident in lab later that day. Do you all think that I should show my professor my lab reports to get his opinion on them? I've gone to my TA's office hours and it was like talking to a brick wall. He basically blew off my concerns :-/ I have a 4.0 right now, since I started completing my pre-reqs, but ehh I really don't see myself getting higher than a B in this lab. There's also no curve in this class. I know it's not the end of the world, but ... I just didn't anticipate this for the first chem lab.

Thanks again everyone.

 

[wholeheartedly]

. Do you all think that I should show my professor my lab reports to get his opinion on them?

I think that's reasonable. Just be careful how you approach it. Don't criticize the TA or anything. Don't ask for his opinion on how the TA is grading you. Just frame it as "hey, I'd like to do better on these lab reports and I've talked to several people including the TA and I'm still struggling. I was wondering if you could go over a report with me and maybe give me some pointers." Or something along those lines.

 

[beingandfluffyness]

Are y'all allowed to bring in schemes?
A scheme is like flowchart... In my case I used them in Chem 2 lab to test for unknowns (as there were many tests..Not a lot of time). Maybe you could do the same for your chem 1 lab. Make it mechanical (since you grasp the concepts well). Don't feel badly about it..lab is another beast. Thankfully it can be tamed by taking the brainwork out of it (this can't be said for lecture).
-B&F

 

[bluebird07]

Thanks everyone for the responses. I just took my final exam in lab today and got a 102. It's only worth 10% of our grade though, so I'll probably end up with a B+. The lab is only 1 credit hour so it shouldn't impact my GPA too much. I'm just glad it's over.

@B&F For this lab course we were not allowed to bring in any additional materials, but for chem lab II it may be different. I will definitely check with the instructor about whether or not we can use schemes (that would help me out a bunch).

Hope everyone has a rocking summer (at least what's left of it).
Bluebird

 

[Aelius]

Thanks everyone for the responses. I just took my final exam in lab today and got a 102. It's only worth 10% of our grade though, so I'll probably end up with a B+. The lab is only 1 credit hour so it shouldn't impact my GPA too much. I'm just glad it's over.

@B&F For this lab course we were not allowed to bring in any additional materials, but for chem lab II it may be different. I will definitely check with the instructor about whether or not we can use schemes (that would help me out a bunch).

Hope everyone has a rocking summer (at least what's left of it).
Bluebird

Maybe you'll be pleasantly surprised if your TA decides to give you a bump for scoring over 100% on the final. You never know.