Shorter University Professor Takes Science Beyond the Classroom
Elm Street Elementary fifth graders got an extra dose of science recently thanks to some Shorter University students. Ten honors students in Dr. Chris Jones’ General Chemistry class created projects to engage the fifth grade students and then took those lessons to share with students at the school.
Jones, professor of chemistry at Shorter University, gave the assignment to his college class and let them take charge. “I let students figure out what they’re going to do on which topic, and I helped get some of the materials for them,” said Jones.
Each student designed and constructed an interactive project and an accompanying poster related to a variety of topics such as density, surface tension and acid-base chemistry.
This is just one of the several times Jones has given Shorter students the opportunity to serve local schools. He encourages students to take the science they know and use it in a meaningful way. “I think it’s important to give back. Jesus said it’s better to give than to receive,” Jones said. “I want them to take some of the knowledge they have in science and actually give that back to the community.”
Jones said empowering students with this type of teaching opportunity helps the students grow in knowledge and confidence. “If you give students an opportunity to succeed, I believe they’re going to do that,” he said. “If you give them a little bit of freedom, they’ll amaze you with their projects and the things that they create.”
Jones remains engaged in scientific inquiry through his own participation in scientific conferences and meetings. The American Chemical Society (ACS) invited him to attend an all-expense-paid workshop on active learning in analytical chemistry at Indiana University May 23-25, 2016. Shorter will be one of the 29 institutions attending the convention.
For the third consecutive year, Jones attended the Christianity in the Academy Conference held at the Germantown campus of Union University. He gave an original presentation “Robert Boyle: Chemistry, Faith, and Calling” to professors from diverse academic fields. “This is a fun conference with lots of diverse presentations particularly focusing on the Christian aspect of our academic disciplines,” he said.
To Jones, taking science beyond the classroom means encouraging/enabling students to discover God’s purpose for their lives. “I want them to understand that God has put a calling on their life,” Jones said. “They can talk to us professors and get some guidance on that because God has called everybody to do something for him. It’s not necessarily to be a missionary or a pastor, but it may be to be a scientist in the lab who is going to share their faith with someone that no missionary may have the opportunity to reach.”
Jones is thankful for the two years that he worked with Shorter and its students. “Shorter is a Christian college whose mission is to integrate faith and learning in the classroom,” he said. “Shorter is committed to the Christian principles that I hold to as well. It’s very important to be at a school where your personal mission lines up with the mission of the institution.”
Founded in 1873, Shorter University is a Christ-centered, four-year liberal arts university committed to excellence in education. The Princeton Review annually includes Shorter on its list of best Southeastern Colleges. Shorter is a member of the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU). The university offers traditional bachelor’s degrees in 40 areas of study, online courses and degree programs, undergraduate programs for working adults, and four master’s programs. Learn more about Shorter at www.shorter.edu.
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