#CASLearnsAsOne Webinar 6: Teaching Science courses with Laboratory Classes for Remote Learning

Post date: 19-Jul-2020 03:38:39

---

UPDATE 2: Due to the increasing number of interested participants (on the waiting list), upon coordination with our speaker, we have decided to make the webinar available via FB Live. The first 300 participants will receive the Zoom details via their registered email address. Those on the waiting list will receive a link to the FB page where we will broadcast the webinar . If you haven't registered yet, kindly do so on the link provided below.

UPDATE 1: As of 12 PM today, Tuesday, July 21, 2020 we have reached the 300-participant limit of our platform. We regret that we have to close the registration. However, should you wish to be considered on the waiting list, kindly sign up using the same link below. At the same time, we strongly appeal to those who registered but will not be able to make it this Friday to please write to us at slsuartsandsciences@gmail.com by Thursday, July 23, 2020 so that we can accommodate those who are on the waiting list. Thank you!

NOTE: This webinar is FREE and OPEN TO ALL. However, slots are limited. As we expect a larger number of participants in this webinar, we highly encourage that only those who will SURELY be able to participate to register. Registration closes on Thursday, July 23, 2020 at 6 PM. The Zoom Link, password, and a few reminders (please kindly read these!) will be sent to your registered email address on Thursday, July 23, 2020 by 7PM. Please DOUBLE CHECK that your email address is correct before hitting submit because we will not be able to reach you if this is incorrect. To register, please click HERE.

Teaching Science Courses With Laboratory Classes for Remote Learning

Elmer-Rico E. Mojica, PhD

Associate Professor

Department of Chemistry and Physical Sciences

Pace University, New York, NY 100238

Abstract of the talk:

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every aspect of life around the world. Colleges and universities around the world were forced to close, and some shifted to remote/distant/online learning. This means faculty members need to plan and prepare their classes to be delivered online or other alternative modes of teaching. Faculty members in the sciences face additional challenges as laboratory classes have to be also delivered online. The laboratory is an exciting place where students investigate, analyze, and reflect. The transition to online blended learning means preparing new laboratory experiments, and it is the goal of this webinar to cater to those needs by looking at the alternatives available to recreate laboratory activities virtually. Among these alternatives are home-based experiments, simulations, and other activities that can mimic the laboratory experience. This webinar also covers how to design home-based activities using everyday materials that can help students have a learning experience similar to the laboratory experience. Issues like feasibility, affordability and safetiness of these activities will also be taken into consideration during the webinar. In addition, free online resources and social media sites that can aid the learning process will also be discussed and how these materials can have a positive impact on improving students' interest in learning.

About the speaker:

The eldest son of the late Esmeraldo Mojica of Indang, Cavite, and Lydia C. Esteban of Zamboanga City, Elmer-Rico E. Mojica is a product of the public school system. He finished his primary and secondary education (as class valedictorian in both instances) at San Roque Elementary School and Western Mindanao State University High School in Zamboanga City. Dr. Mojica obtained both his BS and MS in Agricultural Chemistry at the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB). He taught for a year at Cavite State University and then continued teaching at his alma mater while pursuing his MS degree. During his stay at UPLB, his research group not only mentor students in college but is also open for any students (college and high school). Among these achievements are his students winning the DOST-TAPI National Invention Contest Sibol Award (Outstanding Student Creative Research) College Level for two consecutive years (2003-2004) and a group of students from Manila Science High School garnering 3rd place in the 2004 INTEL International Science and Engineering Fair held in Portland Oregon.

He left the Philippines in 2005 to pursue his Ph.D. in Chemistry at University at Buffalo (UB) and acquired it in 2010. He moved to New York City to work as a postdoc at CUNY York College. He also worked as an adjunct faculty at one time and another in different colleges (Mercy College, Saint Francis College, Bronx Community College, Borough of Manhattan Community College, and York College). In Fall 2011, he started working at Pace University as a Lecturer is presently an Associate Professor at the Department of Chemistry and Physical Sciences.

As a researcher, Dr. Mojica specialized in Analytical Chemistry, having worked on various instrumental techniques (Chromatography, Spectroscopy, and Electrochemistry), analyzing samples of interest to biochemistry, nutrition, food science, and environmental science. He had written over 70 publications (articles and book chapters) in peer-reviewed journals and books and obtained grants from various organizations, including the National Scientific Foundation (NSF). He continues to mentor students doing undergraduate research. He was successful in incorporating a practice of using popular media dubbed as CHEMTERTAINMENT, adding excitement in his teaching. He is also helping in uplifting science in the Philippines through his Project CHEMUNITY (Chemistry in the Community) initiative giving free webinars and lectures/seminars/ workshops in different institutions while working as a Visiting Professor in UPLB in the summer of 2018, collaborating with researchers and giving technical advice to graduate students who asked for his expertise.

In total, Dr. Mojica has mentored 87 mostly undergraduate and some graduate students from various institutions. He had also been the recipient of several awards, such as the UPLB College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Junior Faculty in 2003 and Outstanding Teaching Assistant from the Department of Chemistry (2007) and Graduate School (2010) while at UB. In 2013, he was the first recipient of the Excellence in Research and Scholarship during Pace University Research Day. He was also a recipient of the Ulirang Guro award (College level) in 2019 sponsored by the Association of Fil-Am Teachers of American (AFTA) and the 2020 Charles and Homer Pace Teaching Award.

He is married to Maricel Palomares from Sta Cruz, Marinduque, and they are now based in New York City together with their 16-year-old son Geoffrey Matthew and 4-year old daughter Meghan Rose. He spend his free time with his family watching movies that he uses as instructional resources and listening to rock music and playing video games with his son.