Chemical Education

My research interests in chemical education span program and course level initiatives. At the program level, I research approaches in program alignment and assessment of learning outcomes. At the course level, I investigate the impact of active learning practices on student experience, skill awareness, learning, and retention.

While not currently research active, my research generally focusses around pedagogy. I am interested in examining the effectiveness of different learning styles, methods, and technologies in technical sciences like chemistry, which have been previously proven useful in less technical fields. Effectiveness can be defined in terms of both short-term learning gains as well as long term retention and application. Some of the methods that I examine most closely are the use of blended learning and the flipped classroom models of instruction.

I am interested in students’ studying habits, especially their online behaviour.  We have studied the relationship between their use of online tools and their course grades, used web-based analytics to observe their degree of procrastination, and compared the success of students who watch only live lectures and tutorials with those that watch only the recorded versions.

Using analytical and bioanalytical chemistry, the Lai Group focuses on the instrumental analysis of biochemical and environmental samples for public health using capillary electrophoresis, dynamic light scattering, fluorescence spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography, liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry and 3D microfluidics. New photochemical, electrochemical and optical phenomena are developed into analytical methods for enhanced sensitivity and selectivity: (a) molecularly imprinted polymers for the selective determination of therapeutic drugs in serum, ochratoxin A in red wine, and estrogenic compounds in wastewater treatment by solid-phase extraction with differential pulsed elution; (b) self-assembled monolayers and electropolymerized thin films for adsorption of toxic metals (Hg²⁺) and mycotoxins; (c) functionalization of colloidal nanoparticles for removal of endocrine disrupting compounds in environmental water and radioactive nuclides (Pu-238, Sr-90, Y-90,) in urine; (d) detection of nanoparticles in environmental water and air samples; (e) DNA binding with inorganic oxide nanomaterial surfaces; (f) interaction of nanoparticles with graphene quantum dots and simulated lung fluid; (g) surface chemistry/biochemistry of nanoparticles as related to electrochemical analysis by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.