Molecular dynamics simulation of organometallic reaction dynamics, and, Enhancing achievement in chemistry for African American students through innovations in pedagogy aligned with supporting assessment and curriculum and integrated under an alternative

Part I. Molecular dynamics simulation of organometallic reaction dynamics. To study the interplay of solute and solvent dynamics, large-scale molecular dynamics simulations were employed. Lennard-Jones and electrostatic models of potential energies from solvent-only studies were combined with solute potentials generated from ab-initio calculations.;Radial distribution functions and other measures revealed the polar solvent's response to solute dynamics following CO dissociation. In future studies, the time-scale for solvent coordination will be confirmed with ultrafast spectroscopy data.;Part II. Enhancing achievement in chemistry for African American students through innovations in pedagogy aligned with supporting assessment and curriculum and integrated under an alternative research paradigm. Much progress has been made in the area of research in education that focuses on teaching and learning in science. Much effort has also centered on documenting and exploring the disparity in academic achievement between underrepresented minority students and students comprising a majority in academic circles. However, few research projects have probed educational inequities in the context of mainstream science education. In order to enrich this research area and to better reach underserved learning communities, the educational experience of African American students in an ethnically and academically diverse high school science class has been examined throughout one, largely successful, academic year. The bulk of data gathered during the study was obtained through several qualitative research methods and was interpreted using research literature that offered fresh theoretical perspectives on equity that may better support effective action.