STEM teaching in a chemistry laboratory “How to build a simple battery in the laboratory”

Abstract

Active learning, especially STEM education, has been proven to help students develop their learning skills. Most teachers are encouraged to create activities and environments that help students to learn not only about theories involved in each lesson, but also help them to develop skills required in the 21^st century. The STEM approach is used in a laboratory in a Chemistry for Engineers course at Mae Fah Luang University on the topic of electrochemistry. The battery is used as a real world application of electrochemistry. The lesson plan of a 2.5-hour laboratory session based on STEM is presented in this article. Starting with concept engagement on the subject of batteries, students use their inquiry skills to search for information about batteries. The following activities are hands-on experiences in using batteries to power light bulbs, construct galvanic cells and create a functioning battery to power a light bulb using galvanic cells. The final challenge was to create a battery from galvanic cells to produce the brightest light bulb. After class, students’ self-evaluations showed that the activities helped them to understand the scientific concepts involved in electrochemistry, as well as concepts of current, voltage and electricity. They also thought that the activities helped to improve their critical thinking and team-working skills.