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FEATURED: ANNE GLENN
Biochemistry Online: “Hands On” Virtual Learning
By Joseph Patterson '20
“I was supposed to be in Madrid right now,” says Professor of Chemistry Anne Glenn. She was planning to take a group of students to Spain to shadow physicians during the spring 3-week term. Instead, Anne is currently teaching a course on the principles of biochemistry, and despite the transition to online learning, has had great success in her virtual classroom.
When Guilford first made the transition, Anne had two labs left for her 12-week organic chemistry class. One was an activity that was easily done online, and the other was more hands-on. “Rob Whitnell, my husband who’s also in the Chemistry department, took a video of me doing the lab,” she says. “I posted the video and had students take notes in their lab notebook as if they were doing the experiment themselves.” This summer, however, some Chemistry classes are using lab kits — students will receive the materials they need and will do labs in their home. “It’s not our first choice, but it’s the best given the situation,” says Anne.
Without in-person labs, the College had an excess of personal protective equipment and Anne felt that it could be put to good use. “So I said, ‘maybe we can do something with all the gloves that aren’t being used,’ and everyone agreed.” Anne then organized the donation of around 7,000 gloves to local medical facilities. “It wasn’t just me, it was a College effort and I just happened to say it first.”
Collaboration is important to Anne, both among her colleagues and in her classroom. “We do a lot of collaborative learning in the Chemistry department,” she said. “In the classroom I would have students working in teams, and they’d report back. Now, we use the ‘breakout room’ feature in Zoom, in which students can work together and use various online tools.”
Although there have been a few drawbacks, Anne says a lot of what they've done in Chemistry has been synchronous. Still, she misses her students. “I’m really looking forward to not talking on screens. It doesn’t matter how many cool Zoom backgrounds I have, I’d rather see my students.”
