Requirements to pass this unit:

To pass this unit you must:

• Achieve a total unit mark equal to or greater than 50%, and...
• Achieve an In-Session Test mark equal to or greater than 40%, and...
• Participate to an acceptable level in the hurdle activities, as described below.

 

Workshop Contribution (0%, Hurdle):

• You must attend (via Zoom) and participate in the online Workshop classes, which will be run using the online platform Learning Catalytics.
• The Learning Catalytics Question Set marks are not included the overall unit mark but attendance and participation in the workshops is a requirement of this unit, that is, it is a HURDLE task.
• Participation will be assessed by attendance at the class, engagement with the Problem Sets, and achieving competency in the topic. Workshop attendance will be recorded. Completion of the Learning Catalytics Question Set will count towards meeting the hurdle requirement. Engagement with the Learning Catalytics Question Set will be evidenced by a score of at least 50%. This score will be be a weighted contribution from attempting the question, and correctness. You must achieve a satisfactory score in at least 80% of the workshops to pass the hurdle threshold.
• If you miss a Workshop class, you are NOT automatically entitled to rescheduling or a make-up class. Such an opportunity may be offered, if possible, provided sufficient warning is provided. Justification for rescheduling (Special Consideration requests) must be lodged via ask.mq.edu.au. If a special consideration request is accepted, completion of an alternative Workshop Problem Set and the Weekly Quiz will be considered equivalent to meeting the participation requirement.
• Attendance of a workshop for which you are not registered will not, without justification, be counted towards the hurdle requirement.

 

Weekly Quizzes (20%):

• Weekly Quizzes will contribute 20% to your overall mark. Your ten (10) highest individual quiz marks will be used to calculate your average mark for the Quizzes (i.e. your two lowest quiz marks will be dropped).
• Weekly Quizzes will be completed through the Mastering Chemistry system, accessed via iLearn, but external to it.
• The Weekly Quizzes will be released on Saturday at midnight and will be due before 11:55 PM the following Friday - i.e., you will have one week to complete each Weekly Quiz.
• Note: There will NOT be a Weekly Quiz during the week of the In-Session Test (Week 7).

 

Practical Classes Participation (0%, Hurdle):

• You must attend and participate in the Practical classes to pass CHEX1001. This is a 0%-weighted, hurdle requirement. Your participation will be assessed on aspects, such as but not limited to:
  • Preparation – completion of prelaboratory exercises, bringing personal protective equipment (lab coat, safety glasses, enclosing shoes, etc), bringing laboratory notes
  • Behaving safely
  • Behaving ethically
  • Engaging with the activities
• You must obtain a minimum of 80% in the assessment of your participation and behaviour (note that this “mark” is not included in your unit mark, but must be obtained to pass the hurdle requirement – failure to obtain this will result in a maximum unit mark of 49).
• Note: If you miss a Practical class class you are NOT automatically entitled to rescheduling or a make-up class. Such an opportunity may be offered, if possible, provided sufficient warning is provided. Justification for rescheduling (Special Consideration requests) must be lodged via ask.mq.edu.au.

 

Practical Class Exercises (20%):

• You must complete exercises for four practicals, each worth 5%.
• The Practical Class Exercises are composed of:
  • prelab exercises (10%),
  • the “prac report” (80%),
  • and postlab exercises (10%).
• The prelabs will be completed online via iLearn Quizzes and will be due the day before your lab class.
• The prac report will be completed during the lab class hand submitted to your demonstrator before you leave that class.
• The postlab exercises will be due one week after your lab class.

 

In-Session Test (20%):

• The In-Session Test is a hurdle assessment. You will need to achieve at least 40% in this assessment to meet the hurdle. In the event that you make a serious attempt at the In-Session Test but fail to make the hurdle, you will be provided with an opportunity to re-sit the test. A serious attempt is defined as a mark of 10% below the hurdle, which in this instance is a mark between 30% and 40%. You will NOT be given a second attempt to pass the In-Session Test if you get obtain a mark lower than 30% for your first attempt.
• The In-Session test will be held in Week 7, as this gives time for students who fail to meet the hurdle to withdraw without academic penalty.

 

Final Examination (40%):

• The Final Examination will be two (2) hours, with 10 minutes reading time, consisting of multiple choice and long answer questions. The Final Examination will cover all sections of the unit (lectures, lab practicals, workshops and assignments) and is designed to address specific understanding of all the concepts presented within the course.

 

Supplementary exams:

• If you receive a special consideration for the final exam, a supplementary exam will be scheduled in the interval between the regular exam period and the start of the next session. By requesting a special consideration for the final exam you are declaring yourself available for a re-sit during the supplementary examination period and will not be eligible for a second special consideration approval based on pre-existing commitments. Please ensure that you are familiar with the policy prior to submitting an application.

 

Gradebook:

• Your marks will be displayed on iLearn through Gradebook.
• It is your responsibility to regularly verify that the records displayed at iLearn are correct.

 

Special Consideration

• The Special Consideration Policy aims to support students who have been impacted by short-term circumstances or events that are serious, unavoidable and significantly disruptive, and which may affect their performance in assessment.
• Hurdle Assessments: If you experience circumstances or events that affect your ability to attend and participate in a hurdle assessment task (Workshop, Practical or In-Session Test), please inform the Unit Convenor as soon as possible (preferably in advance) as there may be alternatives available to make up a missed task. In the circumstances that you do miss a hurdle assessment task, please inform the Unit Convenor as soon as possible and submit a Special Consideration request through ask.mq.edu.au. See the Special Consideration web page for instructions on how to do this. If eligible, your application for Special Consideration must be made no later that five (5) working days after the assessment task due date using the Special Consideration application form in AskMQ.
• Weekly Quizzes: If you miss a Weekly Quiz due to a serious, unavoidable and significant disruption, you should submit a Special Consideration request through ask.mq.edu.au.

 

Late Assessment Submission

• Late assessments are not accepted in this unit unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved.
• Online quizzes, scheduled tests and examinations must be undertaken at the time indicated in iLearn. Should these activities be missed due to illness or misadventure, you may apply for Special Consideration.
• Assessments not submitted by the due time will receive a mark of zero unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved.

Communication

During the semester, the CHEX1001 iLearn site will be used to communicate important information to you. In addition, emails will be sent to your student email account. Please check your messages frequently.

We cannot overstate the importance of regularly checking your emails and the CHEX1001 iLearn site.

Please feel free to communicate directly with your unit convenor using the contact details provided on the iLearn. Questions about the unit content and administration that may be of general interest will be best posted the Student Q&A on the iLearn site so that everybody can see the answer.

Classes

• Lectures: The Semester 2 offering of CHEX1001 runs in "Infrequent attendance" mode. As such, there are no face-to-face lectures. Instead, lecture recordings from Semester 1 are available via Echo360, which is accessible through the iLearn site. Lecture notes are also available to download on the iLearn site.

• Workshops: Workshops will be run online via Zoom. During the Workshops, you will work through problems using an online system (Learning Catalytics). A desktop or laptop computer works best. Mobile phones can be used as a last resort, but you may experience some difficulty in manipulating some of the items in the questions. The Learning Catalytics Question Set marks are not included the overall unit mark but attendance and participation in the workshops is a requirement of this unit, that is, it is a HURDLE task. Participation will be assessed by attendance at the class, engagement with the Learning Catalytics Question Set, and achieving competency in the topic.

• Practicals: In the practicals you will do actual chemistry in the laboratory. You will be able to put into practice the theory you have seen in the lectures and workshops.

The practical classes for CHEX1001 are run in 14SCO 308. It is very important that you understand that you will not be allowed to attend the laboratory if you do not have a laboratory coat (“lab coat”), safety glasses and enclosed, sturdy footwear (i.e. sandals, jandals, thongs, flip-flops, crocs and ugg boots are not acceptable). For hygiene reasons, you must provide your own lab coat, safety glasses and enclosed footwear. Disposable gloves are supplied. It is also important that you understand that the doors to the laboratory will be closed 15 minutes after the official start of the class. Entry to the class will not be permitted after this time.

You are required to undertake prelaboratory exercises (prelabs) before coming to the session, to help you prepare for the lab. During the lab you will be assessed on preparedness, general behaviour, ethical behaviour, and competence, as well as the quality of your results. You are to submit a report (“lab report”) that summarises the outcomes of your investigation. There are post-laboratory exercises to be completed within a week of the lab session (“post-labs”).

Attendance and participation in the practicals is a requirement of this unit, that is, it is a HURDLE task.

Teaching and Learning Strategy

CHEX1001 is a 10 credit-point, half-year unit and will require, on average, 10 hours study per week (contact hours plus self-study time).

CHEX1001 is designed to introduce you to the principles of the molecular sciences, including developing an understanding of the practical skills required to undertake simple chemistry experiments in an efficient and safe manner. The lecture materials, workshops and practical classes complement each other, and along with quizzes, have been developed to increase your understanding of the topics so that you can achieve the learning outcomes.

The unit expectation is that you will:

• Watch all lecture recordings.
• Actively engage in the Workshop classes and attempt the exercises.
• Demonstrate competence in all practical exercises.
• Spend an average of no less than 3 hours per week of private study in addition to class contact.

If you prepare, study and attend all components of the unit and work consistently and continuously throughout the session, you will be able to develop a strong understanding of the general, inorganic and organic chemistry presented, and perform well in this unit. Students who fail to do this and try to cram just before the exam will not do well in this unit.

• Lectures: You are expected to watch the lecture recordings on Echo360 and make your own notes on the lecture notes provided on the iLearn site. Based on observations of student behaviour and performance, we emphasise that keeping up to date with watching the lecture recordings is essential to prevent falling behind and performing poorly. Learning is an active process, and as such, you must engage with the material. Reviewing lecture notes and relevant sections of the textbook (and beyond) before and after lectures is strongly recommended.

• Workshop classes are run to assist your understanding of the course material. Experience has demonstrated that there is a strong correlation between engagement with all activities, including the Workshop classes, and success in this unit. During the interactive Zoom Workshops, we will use an online question system called Learning Catalytics. You are encouraged to ask questions. This is YOUR opportunity to seek help on areas you are having difficulty with. A minimum standard must be achieved to be seen to have reached competency in the topic covered by the class. If this is not achieved, further questions may be assigned using the adaptive learning system in Mastering Chemistry.

• Practical classes are designed to develop basic laboratory skills, safety practices, and critical and analytical reasoning skills. Pre-practical (“prelabs”) questions are designed to ensure that you are ready for the practical work and have grasped the relevant theory and necessary safety practices. In-lab work is designed to teach you to appropriately record your experimental observations and to present your calculations in a detailed manner. Postlab exercises are designed to assess your understanding of the theory behind the experiments conducted.

Textbook: 

• Chemistry: The Central Science in SI Units, Expanded Edition, Global Edition, 15th edition, by Theodore L. Brown, H. Eugene LeMay, Bruce E. Bursten, Catherine Murphy, Patrick Woodward, Steven Langford, Dalius Sagatys, Adrian George
• N.B. Mastering Chemistry is strongly aligned to this textbook. Macquarie University has paid for your license for Mastering Chemistry, which includes the textbook itself. You may wish to purchase a hardcopy or e-text for yourself, if you find it easier to use and if you wish to keep the text beyond this unit. If you do so, do not buy the Mastering Chemistry license as you already have this.

Other Recommended Texts:

• Pushing Electrons: a Guide for Students of Organic Chemistry by Daniel P. Weeks, Fourth Edition, 2014, Brooks/Cole,Cengage Learning. (https://au.cengage.com/c/isbn/9781133951889/) (QD476.W38 2014). This book is strongly recommended if you plan to study chemistry beyond 1000-level.
• Openstax Chemistry 2e (free) Download or view at no cost at https://openstax.org/details/books/chemistry-2e
• Introductory Chemistry by David W. Ball (free) Download or view at no cost at https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/22
• CLUE: Chemistry, Life, the Universe and Everything by Melanie M. Cooper and Michael W. Klymkowsky (free) Download or view at no cost at https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/clue-chemistry-life-the-universe-and-everything
• Organic Chemistry (free) by John McMurry. 10th ed., 2023, Download or view at no cost at https://openstax.org/details/books/organic-chemistry/
• Introductory Chemistry by Nivaldo J. Tro, Fifth Edition (Pearson New International Edition), 2015, Pearson Education (QD33.2 .T76 2015)

Other general and organic chemistry textbooks may also be useful.

High school textbooks may be useful for those students who have not studied Chemistry prior to this unit:

• Chemistry in Focus - Year 12 by Debra Smith, Anne Disney, Anna Davis (ISBN: 9780170408998)
• Excel Year 11 - Chemistry Study Guide by Geoffrey Thickett (ISBN: 9781741256758)
• Excel Year 12 Chemistry Study Guide by: Geoffrey Thickett (ISBN: 9781741256765)
• Chemistry Essentials for Dummies by John T. Moore (ISBN: 9781119591146)

 

COVID-19

For the latest information on the University’s response to COVID-19, please refer to the Coronavirus infection page on the Macquarie website: https://www.mq.edu.au/about/coronavirus-faqs. Remember to check this page regularly in case the information and requirements change during semester. If there are any changes to this unit in relation to COVID, these will be communicated via iLearn.

 

The following schedule is indicative only and may change.

CHEX1001 S2 2024 Schedule

Week 1

1. Introductions, Administration (Practical Classes, etc), Tools (Textbook, Mastering Chemistry)
2. Introduction to Chemistry – definitions: matter, states, reactions

Week 2

1. The Periodic Table - Structure of Atoms, emphasis on Electron Number, electron arrangement (shells), Trends Periods and Groups in the Periodic Table – atomic radius, ionic radius, electronegativity, ionisation energy, reactivity
2. Matter and Change – definitions of Chemistry, molecules/compounds, representations of Chemistry: chemical equations, balancing equations, Naming binary and simple polyatomic inorganic compounds.

Week 3

1. Quantification – significant figures, scientific notation. The mole and molar mass; conversions between amount (molecular) and amount (molar) and between amount and mass.
2. Quantification – concentration and dilutions

Week 4

1. Equilibria – K_eq. K_sp, K_a, K_b as examples of K_eq under specific contexts.
2. Acids and Bases – examples of equilibria. K_a, K_b, K_w; pH etc.

Week 5

1. Buffers – concepts, quantification, Henderson-Hasselbalch Equation
2. Molecular Shape – Lewis Diagrams
3. Electronegativity and polarisation

Week 6

1. Organic Chemistry: Functional Groups and Drawing Structures
2. Organic Compound Naming

Week 7

1. Conformations, Isomerism and Stereochemistry
2. Predicting Reactivity and Electron Pushing

Week 8

1. Alkanes, Alkenes and Alkynes - Reactivities
2. Aromatic Compounds - Properties and Reactivities

Week 9

1. Alkyl halides - Reactivities Part 1
2. Alkyl halides - Reactivities Part 2

Week 10

1. Alcohols - Reactivities
2. Aldehydes and Ketones - Reactivities

Week 11

1. Carboxylic Acids and Derivatives - Properties and Reactivities
2. Biomolecules Part 1 - Carbohydrates

Week 12

1. Biomolecules Part 2 - Amines, Amino Acids, Peptides and Proteins
2. Biomolecules Part 3 - Nucleic acids

Week 13

1. Revision
2. Revision

There have been no significant changes since the previous offering.