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The Knowledge Graph refers to a structured semantic knowledge base, a concept proposed in 2012, which is an important branch of artificial intelligence technology. In the knowledge graph, “nodes” represent knowledge units, knowledge points, etc., connected by “relationships” to form a graph network. The course knowledge graph belongs to the specialized field knowledge graph, constructed through a professional knowledge system, forming a hierarchical nesting and networked knowledge organization structure of knowledge domains, knowledge units, and knowledge points, which can provide comprehensive support for talent training and teaching activities. It is an important means to further promote the digitalization of education.
The virtual teaching and research office for organic chemistry courses consists of universities such as Dalian University of Technology, Tianjin University, East China University of Science and Technology, South China University of Technology, Central South University, Ocean University of China, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, China University of Petroleum (East China), Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Xinjiang University, Yunnan University, Inner Mongolia University, Northwest University, and others (the member units are not ranked in order). It basically covers various regions in the central, eastern, and western parts of China and was approved as one of the first pilot virtual teaching and research offices by the Ministry of Education in early 2022. Currently, there are more than 100 frontline organic chemistry teachers from 33 universities as members. The main tasks of the pilot construction include innovating teaching and research forms, strengthening teaching research, co-building high-quality resources, and conducting teacher training. The construction of the knowledge graph is one of the important tasks of the virtual teaching and research office, relying on the DingTalk platform, where members collaborate to explore the construction of the organic chemistry course knowledge graph.
1. “Nodes” – Knowledge Units and Knowledge Points
Organic chemistry is a natural science course that studies the structure, properties, preparation, and applications of organic compounds, clarifying the relationship between the functional group structure and properties of organic compounds. As an important branch of chemistry, organic chemistry has always occupied a central position in basic disciplines and is one of the core foundational courses in higher education institutions for majors such as applied chemistry, pharmaceutical engineering, chemical engineering and technology, and environmental engineering. Based on the knowledge system of the national-level planning textbook “Organic Chemistry (Third Edition)” edited by Gao Zhanxian from Dalian University of Technology, the hierarchical construction of knowledge units and knowledge points is carried out. The chapters, sections, and subsections in the textbook correspond to the relationship between the whole and parts from knowledge units to knowledge points. For example, in Chapter 9 “Alcohols, Phenols, Ethers”, each type of compound can be introduced according to categories, structures, physical properties, and chemical properties. The “physical properties” as a knowledge unit contains knowledge points such as boiling point, density, spectrum, etc. Larger or more important knowledge units can contain secondary knowledge units. For example, “Chemical Properties of Alcohols” includes several categories of reactions such as substitution reactions and dehydration reactions, while “Dehydration Reactions” can be further divided into three important knowledge points: “Intermolecular Dehydration of Alcohols”, “Intramolecular Dehydration of Alcohols”, and “Dehydration and Rearrangement of Furan Alcohols” (Figure 1). Knowledge points are the core nodes in the knowledge graph, and subsequent “relationship” construction and resource binding are centered around them. The construction of “nodes” in the knowledge graph helps to clarify the knowledge hierarchy, providing a clear understanding of the content of each part, which can serve as a training segment for young teachers in the teaching and research office.
Figure 1 The Hierarchical Structure of the Organic Chemistry Knowledge Graph
The organic chemistry course at Dalian University of Technology is one of the first national quality courses, first national bilingual demonstration courses, first national quality resource-sharing courses, and one of the first national-level online first-class courses, boasting rich course resources. The organic chemistry courses in both Chinese and English have been launched on platforms such as China University MOOC and Xuexi Qiangguo, with nearly 170,000 course selections. Other member units of the virtual teaching and research office, including Beijing University of Chemical Technology and China University of Petroleum (East China), have their own characteristics and advantages in their first-class organic chemistry courses. In the construction of the knowledge graph, we link the relevant content of online courses (including teaching videos, mechanism animations, example analyses, chapter exercises, etc.) with descriptions to the “nodes” such as knowledge units and knowledge points, which helps teachers prepare lessons and assists students in further understanding knowledge content during the learning process. For example, the teaching video link from the China University MOOC platform “Organic Chemistry (Part II)” is embedded in the description of “Chemical Properties of Alcohols” – “Substitution Reactions of Hydroxyl Groups”, allowing direct access for online learning. In the future, we will continue to enrich and improve the knowledge graph by combining high-quality online resources from other member universities, selecting the best of the best.
2. “Relationships” – Connections Between Nodes
The teaching of course content follows a sequence, and the “nodes” such as knowledge units and knowledge points not only have hierarchical relationships but also connections between different knowledge units and knowledge points under different knowledge units. Through the “associations” or “subsequent” relationships in the knowledge graph, a network structure is formed between the “nodes”, tightly linking the course content together.
Chemical reactions are the most important part of organic chemistry. Through chemical reactions, transformations between different functional group compounds can be accomplished, thus chemical reactions become the link connecting the preceding and subsequent knowledge units and points in organic chemistry learning, represented in the knowledge graph as the “relationships” between “nodes” (Figure 2). For example, in the section on “Alcohols, Phenols, Ethers”, the intermolecular dehydration reaction of alcohols generates ethers, while the cleavage of ether bonds yields alcohols; the intramolecular dehydration reaction of alcohols generates alkenes, while the addition reaction of alkenes with water is relatively difficult. These connections and distinctions are the key points and difficulties in organic chemistry, which can be clearly presented in the knowledge graph, making it easy to understand. The knowledge graph can help students familiarize themselves with these “relationships” in organic chemistry learning, making “nodes” not isolated but visualized, leading to a more coherent and comprehensive understanding of the knowledge. During lesson preparation, teachers can also fully grasp the connections between knowledge points and prepare the teaching content based on course requirements and teaching objects.
Figure 2 The Network Structure of the Organic Chemistry Knowledge Graph
The physical properties of compounds and spectral characteristics are indispensable in the teaching process. Regardless of whether these contents are introduced in detail in each chapter or summarized together, the effectiveness will be lacking. Linking the relevant knowledge points of different functional group compounds in the knowledge graph helps students compare and strengthen their understanding during the learning process.
3. Binding Teaching Resources of the Virtual Teaching and Research Office
Co-building and sharing high-quality resources is an important task in the construction of the organic chemistry course virtual teaching and research office. The core members, 25 in total, are divided into three groups to carry out teaching and research work, including: the organic chemistry content and teaching methods research group; the case construction and application research group for ideological and political education in courses; and the first-class course resource construction group for teaching outlines, teaching design cases, etc. After more than a year of joint efforts, the resource library of the teaching and research office has over 200 teaching resources, including teaching slides, teaching designs, good problem sharing, demonstration animations, course ideological and political education cases, and materials (Figure 3). After the framework construction of the knowledge graph is completed, these high-quality resources will be bound to the knowledge “nodes” one by one and continuously supplemented and updated, allowing the knowledge graph to provide comprehensive support for the teaching activities of the organic chemistry course.
Figure 3 Teaching Resources of the Organic Chemistry Course Virtual Teaching and Research Office
Conclusion
The construction of the knowledge graph is an important component of the pilot construction of the virtual teaching and research office. Compared to previous hierarchical structures such as knowledge trees, the knowledge graph is more three-dimensional and comprehensive. The process of constructing the knowledge graph based on the virtual teaching and research office platform can integrate various resources, promote comprehensive discussions and research among members regarding teaching content and methods, and enhance teachers’ teaching abilities. Integrating the completed knowledge graph into course teaching and transplanting it into the use of other intelligent teaching software can provide rich materials for teachers’ lesson preparation and ample resources for students’ learning. Utilizing the knowledge graph allows for more precise academic situation analysis, achieving personalized teaching and self-learning goals, supporting talent cultivation and teaching activities, and assisting in professional and curriculum development.
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