problem solving strategies for chemistry

Chemistry Learning Strategies

If you are having difficulty navigating your chemistry courses, or you are nervous about embarking on your own chemistry journey, the first thing you need to know is this: you are not alone! Chemistry is a subject that challenges all who face it. However, after reading this document, you will gain some key strategies that can make facing it much easier.

Reframe unhelpful thought patterns

One thing that often challenges students is a misunderstanding of what it takes to do well in chemistry. Students often look for some measurement they can use to “prove” they are ready for a test. These potentially problematic goals include:

I must do every single practice problem to do well
I need to study for at least XXX number of hours to succeed
I will do well if I can correctly answer most of the practice problems

If you recognize any of the above thoughts as having a role in your studying, we encourage you to take a step back. From here on out, we will discuss why the ideas behind these statements can be dangerous and what alternative goals can offer you a better chance of success.

More, more, more: What is it good for?

Here is an often-underappreciated truth: every single question you use as practice will NOT be on your exam. That includes all the problems from class, recitation, homework, the textbook, online, etc. If that is the case, simply memorizing the steps needed to solve the practice problems you encounter has major limitations when it comes to answering the unpredictable questions found on exams. Even doing every single practice problem available does not guarantee you will have seen the types of questions that will show up on your test. You will make much better use of these practice resources if you approach them with an analytical mindset, and this can be done using the most important letter in chemistry: (wh) Y .

An extremely powerful learning tool: Asking “why?”

Scientific research can be summarized as attempts to find solutions for questions with previously unknown answers. Science, by nature, is all about curiosity and finding explanations for things you observe. So, to learn science, it is helpful to utilize this inquisitive mindset.

A simple yet highly effective way to develop higher order thinking in chemistry is to ask questions starting with “Why?”, “What?”, “When?”, or “How?” These questions make you think more deeply and can allow you to uncover hidden connections or new ways to understand concepts. Furthermore, you will better understand how to incorporate chemistry concepts into your problem-solving strategies. This is especially important as professors will not test you on what you know; they will test you on how you apply what you know.

As an example, consider the textbook definition of mass number below: “Mass Number: The number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom” Memorizing this definition is useful and is enough to answer certain questions, such as “An atom with a mass number of 15 has 7 protons, how many neutrons does this atom have?” However, this definition alone does not answer the following related questions:

“How is the mass number of an atom related to atomic mass or average atomic mass?”

The first step to answering these questions is to recognize that these questions exist! The power of “Why?” type questions can turn even a basic definition into an opportunity to explore chemistry concepts on a significantly deeper level.

Of course, you may feel like you don’t have enough expertise to make “good questions” that can help you. After all, you only just learned the material. But that does not have to stop you from trying! Perhaps you can take a moment to think about how other concepts may or may not be related. Or try to bring a genuine curiosity when reviewing content from class slides. A student who at least attempts to incorporate these types of questions into their studying will likely have an easier time navigating the unpredictable and varied questions that come up on exams.

Get comfortable being uncomfortable

Another element that might hold you back from diving deeper into chemistry concepts and asking the “Why?” questions is that you may find things you do not understand. Not knowing can lead to feeling stressed and insecure about your own abilities. However, ignoring the confusion will not resolve the issue. Imagine every time you leave your dorm you trip over a hole in the ground. If you ignore the hole and keep going, you will just continue tripping every time you walk outside! Instead, it is probably better (and safer!) to get that hole filled.

It is helpful to approach chemistry the same way. Recognizing where there are gaps in your knowledge will give you an opportunity to focus your effort on getting them filled. In this way, you are strengthening the areas that will have the biggest impact on your understanding (and your grade). This approach can also provide a powerful reframing of your thinking: the misunderstandings that initially made you feel insecure are now opportunities to demonstrate your growth, self-improvement, and why you are so awesome!

What is doing the driving? Math or chemistry?

Chemistry involves a lot of calculations, so it is easy to look at it from a mathematical perspective. Find a formula, plug in values, and solve. But chemistry is a natural science, meaning everything you learn comes from observations that have been made in the world around you. Thus, a “formula” is a way to represent a relationship that exists in nature. In fact, every single step of a calculation is done because of some underlying chemistry principle. So, the best way to approach even the most math heavy practice problems is using a chemistry-first mindset. The following are a few example questions using this mindset.

Where does this equation come from and what does it describe?
Why are the variables involved relevant to this equation?
Why do I need to make this conversion to get the correct answer?

These types of questions will prepare you for solving exam questions much more effectively than focusing primarily on what mathematical operations are involved.

Aim for quality, not quantity

If you are familiar with the ideas of active vs passive learning, it is easy to think of practice problems as being inherently active. After all, you cannot solve them without working and thinking hard! However, an important element in making learning active is to be intentional about your studying. Let’s imagine there are two students preparing for an exam:

The first student is studying by trying to answer 20 practice problems on a topic and keeps grinding until they get all the answers right.
The second student is spending the same amount of time working through 5 problems but is also reflecting on what problem-solving strategies worked best and how confidently they could grasp the concepts involved.

While both students are doing practice problems, the second is using a more active approach for their problem-solving. It is clearer to see what the second student was hoping to accomplish and how this practice would benefit them later. In addition, by understanding their thought process better (using metacognition ), the second student is likely to feel more confident when answering questions on an exam.

In summary, when learning chemistry, more is not necessarily better. Someone who spends 10-20 hours doing every practice problem they find can still walk away with some foundational knowledge gaps. Instead, it is to your advantage that you dedicate more time to analyzing and reflecting on practice problems. In fact, if you feel confident in your understanding of why and how you are solving something in a certain way, you may not get much benefit from further practice. After all, what is the purpose of using something to study if it does not contribute to your learning?

Remember that you are your best resource

When the exam comes, there is only one person you can rely on: you. When in the middle of a test, your knowledge and problem-solving are the only resources you have. Of course, the learning process itself is not a solo endeavor! You will have many opportunities to receive help from peers and teachers who want to see you succeed. However, it is important to be mindful that you are responsible for taking that help and using it to become self-sufficient. Looking at answer keys or listening to explanations can make you feel like you understand, a phenomenon often referred to as the “fluency illusion.” Remember that it is still important to find ways to prove to yourself that you understand.

One strategy to help with self-sufficiency is to learn by teaching. Teach a friend, a relative, or even a wall! Gauge how comfortable you are describing chemistry concepts and explaining problem-solving strategies. The most effective way to do this is to say it out loud, even if you are alone. This will allow you to identify areas you are unsure about and possibly generate further questions that can help you understand better. Making audio recordings of your explanations can also be an effective way of doing this.

Another strategy is to create your own problems. This does not necessarily mean writing an entire exam for yourself, but rather that you think about how problems you have done could be presented differently. How comfortable would you be if the scenario of the question was altered? You have done a problem going from A to B; how comfortable would you be going from B to A? What other things could you be asked to find that might require additional steps (going from A to C)? This practice also develops flexible thinking that can allow you to adapt when faced with an unfamiliar test question. Take the following example question:

“How many moles of oxygen atoms are in 20.0 g of oxygen gas?”

Using this as a base, you might brainstorm questions like…

“How many oxygen gas molecules are in 20.0 g of oxygen gas?”
“How many grams is a sample of 2.0 x 10 23 oxygen gas molecules?”
“How many oxygen atoms are in 20.0 g of carbon dioxide?”

Getting a numerical answer to these new questions is not your primary goal. Instead, your goal is to explore how chemistry concepts can be manipulated and rearranged into multiple possible problems or scenarios. This way, you are actively engaging with the material and learning to adapt rather than limiting yourself to a handful of problem types.

The power is in your hands: Take ownership of your learning

Always remember that you are an independent and unique learner, so be flexible in how you approach things until you find the right mix of strategies. Nobody is born knowing chemistry, and there is no such thing as a “chemistry master.” Take advantage of opportunities to reflect on your learning strategies. One of the best moments to do this is after getting a midterm exam back. It can be uncomfortable looking at where you lost points, but remind yourself that your goal is self-improvement. This is no time for self-judgement! Doing a test analysis is a powerful learning tool that can provide valuable information on how you might study differently or if you should take a different approach to test-taking (click here for our test analyzer ).

Everyone has the potential to succeed in chemistry! You just need to keep trying and continue reflecting on what approach to learning chemistry works best for you.