Burnham, Jennifer A., Dr

Dr Jennifer A. Burnham

School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences

School Programmes and Regulations Lead

Senior University Teacher

j.burnham@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 9488

Dainton Building

Full contact details

Dr Jennifer A. Burnham
School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Dainton Building
13 Brook Hill
91ֱ��
S3 7HF

Profile

I love teaching and have been a proud education specialist at the University of 91ֱ�� since 2005. I have been involved in most aspects of teaching including pastoral support, lecturing, tutorials, workshops, laboratory teaching, and project supervision in both inorganic chemistry and chemistry education. My innovations and initiatives championing the potential of students have included introducing guided-inquiry in the lab, skills-development project work, green chemistry and sustainability practical work, and a curriculum review resulting in Programme Learning Outcomes that are now embedded in all 91ֱ�� Chemistry’s UG and PGT programmes. I retain an interest in inorganic chemistry and enthusiastically advocate for boron as the best element in the periodic table to my students and to anyone else who will listen.

My work with colleagues has included Faculty and University committee work, I am an external examiner for the University of South Wales and University of East Anglia, and the education specialist on the OxICFM CDT advisory board. I have drawn on my experience to encourage, support and mentor other education-focussed colleagues. I set up a Faculty Teaching Network in 2012 and have led the Royal Society of Chemistry HE Chemistry Teaching Network since 2015. I am an enthusiastic member of the HE chemistry education community, a regular attendee at the annual Variety in Chemistry Higher Education-Physics Higher Education Conference and the current chair of the RSC Higher Education interest Group.

I firmly believe that students, and those teaching them, are awesome!

Awards

Senate Award for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (2013)
University of 91ֱ�� Education Awards (2023) Highly Commended in the category of Leadership in Education

Qualifications

Professional Qualifications & Memberships

PFHEA (2021), SFHEA (2016)
MEd in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (2012)
MRSC
CChem

Publications

Journal articles

Cox A, Benson-Marshall M, Burnham JAJ, Care L, Herrick T & Jones M (2020) . Pedagogy, Culture and Society.
Burnham JAJ (2020) . Journal of Chemical Education, 97(2), 344-350.
Armstrong C, Burnham JA & Warminski EE (2017) . Journal of Chemical Education, 94(7), 928-931.
Burnham JAJ (2016) The Impact of a Teaching Specialist in a Research Led University. Practice and Evidence of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 11(1), 23-32.
Burnham JAJ (2013) Opportunistic use of students for solving laboratory problems: Twelve heads are better than one. New Directions, 9(1), 42-48.
Pardoe JAJ & Downs AJ (2007) . Chemical Reviews, 107(1), 2-45.
Pardoe JAJ, Cowley AR, Downs AJ & Greene TM (2005) . Acta Crystallographica Section C Crystal Structure Communications, 61(4), m200-m202.
Pardoe JAJ, Cole-Hamilton DJ & Hails JE (2005) . Journal of Crystal Growth, 273(3-4), 340-346.
Timms PL, Norman NC, Pardoe JAJ, Mackie ID, Hinchley SL, Parsons S & Rankin DWH (2005) . Dalton Transactions(3), 607-607.
Porter KA, Hails JE, Pardoe JAJ, Cole-Hamilton DJ & Blacker NJ (2004) . Journal of Crystal Growth, 272(1-4), 829-835.
Gaertner B, Himmel H-JR, Macrae VA, Pardoe JAJ, Randall PG & Downs AJ (2004) . Chemistry - A European Journal, 10(22), 5836-5847.
Pardoe JAJ, Norman NC, Timms PL, Parsons S, Mackie I, Pulham CR & Rankin DWH (2003) . Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 42(5), 571-573.
Pardoe JAJ, Norman NC & Timms PL (2002) . Polyhedron, 21(5-6), 543-548.
Mackie ID, Hinchley SL, Robertson HE, Rankin DWH, Pardoe JAJ & Timms PL (2002) . Journal of the Chemical Society, Dalton Transactions(22), 4162-4167.
Anderson KM, Kündig EP, Norman NC, Orpen AG, Pardoe JAJ, Smith DW & Timms PL (2001) . Acta Crystallographica Section E Structure Reports Online, 57(10), m419-m420.
Jeffery JC, Norman NC, Pardoe JAJ & Timms PL (2000) . Chemical Communications(23), 2367-2368.

Chapters

Burnham J (2019) Developing student expertise in scientific inquiry In Seery MK & Mc Donnell C (Ed.), Teaching Chemistry in Higher Education A Festschrift in Honour of Professor Tina Overton Creathach Press

Preprints

Cramman H, Burnham JAJ, Campbell CD, Francis NJ, Smith DP, Spagnoli D, Stewart MI & Turner IJ () .

Teaching interests: Chemistry Laboratory; Main Group Chemistry; Professionals Skills Development; Professional Learning Networks for Teaching Specialists.

Teaching activities

Dr Jenny Burnham is a teaching specialist with a research background in main group chemistry. She delivers lectures, tutorials, workshops, skills-based project work, and laboratory classes, workshops, and runs Level 3 and Level 4 projects in inorganic chemistry and chemistry education.

Undergraduate and postgraduate taught modules

Level 2 Main Group Chemistry
This lecture segment explores advanced main group chemistry including element-element multiple bonds, organometallic compounds of groups 1 and 2, and clusters in the main group.
Level 3 Semester 1 Laboratory
The Level 3 advanced chemistry laboratory covers the laboratory components of CHM3005, CHM3009, CHM3015. Students complete two two-day laboratory investigations in each module, learning the skills required to undertake air-sensitive and contaminant-sensitive synthesis and preparation, advanced chemical analysis and applying their knowledge in advanced analytical or theoretical chemistry investigations.
Level 3 Chemistry Laboratory Project

Students work in small groups to complete an extended lab project in an area of chemistry of their choice. These have included repurposing plastic waste for contaminant removal, exploring the effectiveness of different catalytic methods of carbon-carbon bond forming, performing single crystal crystal-structure analysis, and computational modelling of chemical processes.

Level 3 Skills for Success Project work (course designer)
Skills for success is based on the philosophy that students should be able to customise their degree in order to develop the particular skills they need for their future. Students apply for their choice of project, complete the project itself, and then reflect on their experiences in order to solidify their learning. Previous project work has included gaining work experience in the department, debating philosophical issues from chemistry, researching a particular molecule, writing and hosting a quiz show, and experimenting in the kitchen.
- CHM455 Academic Integrity workshop

Students work with groups of peers in a combined MSc workshop learning about and applying the principles of academic integrity, and writing a code of conduct for an MSc student.

Support Teaching:

Personal tutor: Undergraduate chemistry.
- Tutorials: Level 1 General Chemistry.
- Literature Review: Level 3, topics in main group chemistry and chemistry education

Laboratory Teaching:

Level 1 Laboratories
Level 2 Laboratories
Level 3 Laboratories