How a Keralam teacher’s ‘portable chemistry lab’ is sparking students’ interest in experiments

Imagine a science teacher holding two pieces of chalk in his hands to explain a chemical reaction in a high school class. As the chalk in one hand is slowly and slightly tilted while the other is held tight, he says, “Suppose these are two test tubes and we are pouring chemicals from one of them into another…”

Not many students would understand the “chemistry” behind it even after such a classroom experience, believes Abhilash Thiruvoth, a Chemistry teacher in the vocational higher secondary wing of the Government Vocational Higher Secondary School for Girls, Nadakkavu, Kozhikode, Keralam.

“In a 40-minute period, high school teachers may not get enough time to demonstrate a chemical experiment. Taking all the students to the lab at one time is not practical either. Many students may end up being disinterested in Chemistry as a result,” he says.

Mr. Thiruvoth has now come up with a ‘portable chemistry lab’, titled ‘Rasappetti’, to make Chemistry learning more interesting and enjoyable for high school students. The box can be used to demonstrate simple experiments that will help students imbibe the essence of the subject, he feels.

Portable Chemistry lab designed by Keralam teacher

Portable Chemistry lab designed by Keralam teacher
| Video Credit:
The Hindu

Basic equipment and chemicals required in a chemistry lab have been stocked in this wooden box, designed by Mr. Thiruvoth and made by his friend Jinesh. It contains goggles, beakers, test tubes, conical flasks, a spirit lamp, and diluted acids such as acetic acid, nitric acid, sulphuric acid and hydrochloric acid. Bases such as sodium hydroxide, sodium carbonate, lead acetate and ammonium chloride, coloured chemical salts such as potassium permanganate, copper sulphate and potassium chromate, and chemical indicators such as phenolphthalein, methyl orange, potassium iodide and glycerine are also stored in it. A chemical solution of silver nitrate is also included.

Contents customisable

Mr. Thiruvoth says that science teachers handling Classes 6 to 10 can make use of the box. “The teachers can customise the contents based on their syllabus requirements,” he points out. The contents of the box can last up to two months. Around ₹10,000 was spent on making it, he says.

The idea of designing this ‘portable lab’ emerged around three years ago when Mr. Thiruvoth, also an artist, worked as a resource person for a refresher course for high school teachers. “Many of them were not even familiar with the experiments explained in the Chemistry textbooks. They did not have the practical knowledge or facilities either. If the teachers themselves are not well equipped, how can we expect the students to be interested in the subject?” he wonders.

According to a section of teachers, students’ interest in Chemistry has been declining in recent years. Their average marks in the subject in the Class 10 State syllabus examinations are reportedly falling, the teachers say.

“The whole talk of building scientific temper among students will remain on paper if there are no efforts to give them practical knowledge, and ‘Rasappetti’ could act as a catalyst in the process,” Mr. Thiruvoth sums up.