Scholars@Duke
Charlie T. Cox

Charlie T. Cox

Associate Professor of the Practice of Chemistry
Chemistry
1222 French Science Center, 124 Science Drive, Durham, NC 27708
124 Science Drive, 1222 French Science Center, Durham, NC 27708

Featured Works

Kinetics and Thermodynamics: Analyzing Arguments Related to Reactions with Enolate Intermediates

Journal article Journal of Chemical Education · August 12, 2025 Featured Publication This review extends on previously reported findings in which students were asked to construct Reaction Coordinate Diagrams (RCDs) de novo. Instead of asking students to construct RCDs, this study explores students’ understanding of kinetics and thermodynam ... Full text Cite

Examining the effect of categorized versus uncategorized homework on test performance of general chemistry students

Journal article Chemistry Teacher International · June 1, 2025 Featured Publication The study reports a comparison of two first-semester general chemistry cohorts who were provided with the same instruction and course materials, but the format for their online homework assignments differed. One cohort had homework assignments organized us ... Full text Cite

Understanding scientific creativity: an exploratory creativity scale for organic chemistry

Journal article Frontiers in Education · January 1, 2025 Featured Publication Creativity is pivotal for innovation across various domains, including science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The present study explores domain-specific creativity in organic chemistry by introducing the Divergent Skeletal Formula Task ( ... Full text Open Access Cite

Conjugation Amplifies Complexity: A Comparison of Problem-Solving Strategies Across the Organic Chemistry Sequence

Journal article Journal of Chemical Education · July 9, 2024 Featured Publication Resonance structures are central representations in organic chemistry that explain trends in acidity, reactivity, geometry, and stability. Despite being a central representation, prior research findings have shown that students’ productive application of r ... Full text Cite

How Much? How Fast? A Study of Kinetics and Thermodynamics through the Lens of Reaction Coordinate Diagrams in Organic Chemistry

Journal article Journal of Chemical Education · June 11, 2024 Featured Publication Correctly predicting the products and having a qualitative understanding of their ratios is a fundamental skill fostered in organic chemistry. This skill can involve the electron-pushing formalism (EPF) and reaction coordinate diagrams (RCDs). These repres ... Full text Cite

Analysis of resources applied to rationalize elimination mechanisms

Journal article Chemistry Education Research and Practice · September 1, 2023 Featured Publication This study aimed to analyze second-semester organic chemistry students’ problem-solving strategies, specifically focusing on the resources activated while solving problems on E2, E1, and E1cB elimination reactions. Using the theoretical framework by Elby a ... Full text Cite

Zooming in on polymer chemistry and designing synthesis of high sulfur-content polymers for virtual undergraduate laboratory experiment

Journal article Journal of Chemical Education · June 8, 2021 Featured Publication Polymer chemistry is essential within chemical education because of its applications in academic and industrial research, materials science, and across engineering disciplines. Teaching polymer chemistry principles early on in the undergraduate curriculum ... Full text Cite

Deconstructing the Problem-solving Process: Beneath Assigned Points and Beyond Traditional Assessment

Book section · May 31, 2021 Featured Publication The book concludes with methodological and epistemological issues in problem solving research and other perspectives in problem solving in chemistry. With a foreword by George Bodner. ... Cite

International Perspectives on Chemistry Education, Research, and Practice

Book · August 2019 Featured Publication Strategies for improving teaching and student success in secondary and post-secondary chemistry classrooms is widely researched nationally and internationally. ... Cite

Rhodium-Catalyzed C-H Amination: A Case Study of Selectivity in C-H Functionalization Reactions

Journal article Journal of Chemical Education · December 11, 2018 Featured Publication An advanced undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory experiment involving a rhodium-catalyzed intermolecular hydrocarbon C-H oxidation reaction is described. In the initial phase of this lab, students conduct a C-H amination reaction of ethylbenzene and ... Full text Cite

Using Writing Assignments as an Intervention to Strengthen Acid-Base Skills

Journal article Journal of Chemical Education · August 14, 2018 Featured Publication Problem solving and critical thinking are buzzwords used in defining general chemistry learning goals. Assessments including well-structured homework, quizzes, and exams are designed and incorporated to build these skills. Our research expanded upon the ty ... Full text Cite