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OBJECTIVE: Delocalization (resonance) is a concept in organic chemistry that influences the chemical reactivity, activity, structure, and physical properties of molecules. However, the concept has proven challenging for students. The goal of the present study was to investigate to what extent ten essential delocalization learning outcomes (LOs) were achieved by students, how students use and reason about delocalization as well as the connections between the LOs. The goal is to discover where and how students may be struggling when answering delocalization-related exam questions and uncover potential barriers to learning delocalization. METHODS: We analyzed students’ responses (N = 3787) on twelve exam questions related to seven of the ten LOs for the degree of achievement, common errors, and scientific reasoning. RESULTS: The achievement on the LOs was variable. We report types of errors and strategies used, the errors are primarily related to drawing resonance structures or the resonance. Six key findings emerged from the analysis: (1) the majority of answers had few ( |
