Teaching
“Chemistry makes the most sense when you can see why things happen. I want my students to leave not with a list of rules, but with the intuition to work out the answers for themselves.”— Renana Gershoni-Poranne
Courses at the Technion
Principles of Chemistry A
The foundations of chemistry for first-year students: from atoms, light and quantum theory, through the periodic table and chemical bonding (from Lewis structures to molecular orbitals), to reactions, equilibrium, and acids and bases.
Lecturer since 2022Molecular Orbitals in Organic Chemistry
A bridge between the quantum world and organic chemistry: qualitative MO theory, frontier orbitals, the Woodward–Hoffmann rules in ground and excited states, hyperconjugation and the anomeric effect. Students gain the intuition and tools to analyze – and predict – organic reactivity.
Lecturer since 2022Structure and Activity in Organic Chemistry
The physical organic chemistry behind reaction mechanisms: potential energy surfaces, the Curtin–Hammett principle and the Hammond postulate, linear free-energy relationships, kinetics and isotope effects, and the reactive intermediates of organic chemistry – carbocations, carbanions and carbenes.
Lecturer since 2026Applied Computational Chemistry
A hands-on lab for students with little or no prior experience: running electronic-structure calculations with freely available software (ORCA, xTB), analyzing molecular properties and exploring reaction mechanisms, and finishing with an independent project written up as a research communication.
Lecturer since 2024Before the Technion, Renana taught Organic Chemistry IV: Physical Organic Chemistry at ETH Zürich (2018–2021), and for seven years was a teaching assistant and senior teaching assistant at the Technion for general, organic and physical-methods courses (2008–2015).
Beyond the classroom
Mentoring new faculty
Mentor to new faculty members in the Technion Leadership Program (2026–2027).
Teaching the teachers
A scientific lecture for high-school chemistry teachers (2026).
Technion on the Bar
Popular science for a general audience (2025).
Poster-design workshop
A workshop for graduate students and postdocs on designing effective scientific posters (2025).
Young chemists
A lecture for Chemistry Olympiad students and judging a high-school Chemistry Tournament (2024).
Teaching awards
Eleven awards for teaching, from the Technion and ETH Zürich. Hover over or tap an award for the details.