An understanding of acid–base reactions is necessary for success in chemistry courses and relevant to careers outside of chemistry, yet research has demonstrated that students often struggle with learning acid–base reaction mechanisms in organic chemistry. One response to this challenge is the development of educational applications to support instruction and learning. The development of these supports also creates an opportunity to probe students’ thinking about organic chemistry reaction mechanisms using multiple modalities—i.e., using an app interface or the traditional paper–pencil. This study used think-aloud interviews conducted with undergraduate students in their first semester of organic chemistry to understand how they worked through two acid–base reactions using either paper–pencil or an app. Analysis of the interviews indicates that students from both groups recognize the steps of acid–base reactions, but do not always apply the underlying concepts, such as assessment of pK_a values or resonance, when determining how a reaction will proceed. The modality seemed to somewhat influence students’ thinking, as the app prevented students from making chemically unreasonable mistakes. However, some students relied on the cues it provided, which could potentially be problematic when they are required to respond to assessments that do not provide these cues. Our results suggest that instructors should emphasize the conceptual grounding for the steps that govern acid–base reactions to promote chemical thinking about the relationships between the reaction components and how those influence reaction outcomes, as well as support students to think critically about the chemical information contained within the modalities they are using.

中文翻译：

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通过基于应用程序和纸笔的问题解决方法，激发学生对酸碱反应的思考

对酸碱反应的理解是化学课程成功的必要条件，并且与化学以外的职业有关，但研究表明，学生经常在学习有机化学中的酸碱反应机理时遇到困难。应对这一挑战的一种方法是开发支持教学和学习的教育应用程序。这些支持的发展也提供了一个机会，以多种方式探究学生对有机化学反应机理的思考，即，使用应用程序界面或传统的纸笔。这项研究使用了在本科生有机化学第一学期与大学生进行的思想访谈，以了解他们如何使用纸笔或应用程序通过两个酸碱反应进行工作。对访谈的分析表明，两组学生都认识到酸碱反应的步骤，但并不总是应用基本概念，例如p K _a的评估。确定反应如何进行时的值或共振。这种方式似乎在一定程度上影响了学生的思维，因为该应用程序阻止了学生犯下化学上不合理的错误。但是，有些学生依赖它提供的提示，当要求他们对不提供这些提示的评估做出回应时，这可能会造成问题。我们的结果表明，教师应强调控制酸碱反应的步骤的概念基础，以促进化学思考反应成分之间的关​​系以及它们如何影响反应结果，并支持学生对所含化学信息进行批判性思考。在他们正在使用的方式中。