edited by DUANESELL Palatine, illinois 60067
Beyond the Cheer
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Otto T. Salzer 19 Connecticut St.. Cranford, NJ 07016 In the wake of the successful missions of the Voyager spaceprobes and the breathtaking flight of the space shuttle, lwonder whether the excitement of the moon-landing years will ever have a chance to reemerge once again. Most people I know cheer the bold technology that allowed us to learn so much about the physics, chemistry, and the topology of the planets Jupiter and Saturn. Yet, beyond the cheer, it is difficult not to hear the dissenting voices of those people who feel that man's curiosity is misplaced when it focuses on space exploration before understanding the relationships that exist among human beings " on earth and the comolex interactions between man and his fragile environment. Pessimistic notions that science and technology ignore the basic ills of mankind, and indeed that they add to our unsolved nroblems. are often voiced bv those who dream of returninato a simpler and more bucolic existence, unmarred hy pollution. urhan coneestion. and undisturbed bv an ever-increasinp rate' of technoyogicaland social change: Such people view science with incomprehension. and technolow -.with suspicion and hostility. Such is the context in which science teachers operate, fully aware of our responsibilities as some of the more important shapers of the opinions and attitudes of our students. Years after the course content has been superceded by new notions and theories, or simply long forgotten by our students, the
attitudes they have gathered during the early days ()f their education persist. In this role. the science te;~ c h emue r ,tbe an interprete; between the two cultures, the scientific and the humanistic, and must help the emergence of a new generation composed of both a scientifically literate citizenry and a humanistically educated group of technologists. This challenge is felt perhaps the sharpest by the chemistry instructor, since the impact of chemistry on our daily lives is more ohvious, although with genetic engineering on the horizon our biology colleagues will have their hands full with the new responsibility of its interpretation. The difficulty which is faced by the chemistry instructor is not lessened a t all bv manv of his students' exoectations that beyond demonstrations of flame, color, and roaring sound, chemical education is supposed to be dull and filled with cold, esoteric jargon that is completely unrelated to their lives. Yet, at the same time.. thev com~letelv " take chemical end ~rodncts . " for granted, be they clothing, nutrition, or medical assistance for their well being. is much too sophisticated The readership of THIS JOURNAL High school chemistry teachers from around the country open their classroom, through this feature, for all to see. Teachers are invited to share their tedhniques, methods, new experiences, and ideologies. Contributions should be sent to the feature editor.
Olto Salzer receivedhis Bachelor'sdegreein chemisby from Brwklyn College in 1958 and his Master's degree in biology in 1964. He has taken B d d i o ~graduate l courses at Rutgers, Montciair State College, Canell, and Kean College. In addition, he has attended NSF Summer Institutes at Bmwn University. Juniata College, Adlephia University, and Yeshiva Universltv. S nce 1958. MI Salzer has oeen leacn ng chem stry at. nden ri gh Schoo -"den. New Jersey, w n m has a student poplation of approximately 1300 studem. He has been very studentdriented, serving as sponsors of the junior and senior chemistry teams which participated in the New Jersey Chemistry League Competitions, the 1970-71 "lys Academic'' teams which appeared both years on NBCTV, and the State ~
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Sc e w e Da) Cnemisuy learns n aadt on. Ono nas served an Cna rman and V ce.Chatrman of the Cnemislry Secl on of ine h.STA. Mast appropriately Mr. Salzer has received various awards for his excellence in teaching-Distinguished Chemistry Teacher Citation (1972) presented by the Chemical Industry Council of New Jersey: Ourstending Chemistry Teacher Award (1974) presented by the Rutgers Engineering Society: Edward J. Meniil award f a outstanding high schml chemisbv teachino - .11979)..oresented bv fie New Jersev Section of ACS: and me MBO I PO ian Regiona Awaro m high school chemslry leaching 119801presented oy m e Melrocnem of m e ACS
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38
Journal of Chemical Education
not to he aware of the multitude of problems related to students' attitudes, and have no doubt confronted these prohlems with success. When I describe my own limited contribution, i t is only in reinforcement of efforts which have worked for them, and in no way do I pretend that in the pages that follow will new and hold avenues he opened. Neither do I claim that technique alone will reach the heart of that new generation which, although intelligent, appears to he equally carefree, sometimes apathetic, intellectually guarded, and independent. Positive Atmosphere
My first goal in teaching is to remove the insidious presence of threat from the atmosphere of the classroom. Without a warm and accepting atmosphere, in which no one is neglected or reiected. few can erow to reach or even recoenize his or her potential. I t is very important for a teacher to help all of his students to develop an adequate self-image so that they will look at their task with confidence and determination, instead of sailing on the path of least resistance ready to give up at their first confrontation with challenge-mathematic or linguistic. Without hecoming unduly permissive, this atmosphere fosters a free and frank flow of ideas in which misconceptions are easily recognized, and since no statement is deemed foolish, it is just as easily corrected. In my classes, students are frequently sent to the chalkboard to demonstrate their understanding of one concept or another. At first, my students do not mind and then grow to like working out prohlems, drawing diagrams, or explaining ideas extemporaneously in front of their classmates. I t is very important t o all of us that we know what is expected from us, and students are no different in this respect. To this end, I have developed a set of study guides which not only list the objectives for a given unit, hut also lead the student-studying at home-through the concepts in the same sequence as treated in class. The added advantage of the study guides is that at the end of each unit the student has an ample opportunity to fill in the gaps caused by absence or to correct inconsistencies that may have emerged. Specific course ohjectives call for specific examination questions. Exams are never eiven as a s u r ~ r i s eand , their obiectives are no secret. The firmat varies k&topic to top&. The questions are mostlv ohiective and there are also ~rohlemsto solve. Students are often expected to he ahle to write essays of varying lengths to explain a given experiment or concept. Banish Boredom
Chemistry, or school for that matter, does not have to he boring. There are so many opportunities for truly exciting and pedagogically stimulating demonstrations that go along with our trade that, with a little histrionics on the teacher's part, one can elicit more than a "eee-whiz" out of our students. Dr. R. W. Ramette at Carleton b l l e g e in Northfield, Minnesota, calls these "exocharmic reactions." Dr. Ramette believes that chemical reactions not only involve energy hut that they evolve a ereat deal of charm as well: and all of us who have seen Dr. ~ u h Alyea k of Princeton in'action know exactly what he means. Students are fascinated by the rapid crystallization of sodium thiosulfate, by the reaction between zinc and sulfur, by the dancing of sodium on the surface of water, hv the sound of an ignitedbxygen-hydrogen mixture, and by the sight of their teacher trying to reach hydrogen filled soap bubbles with a flaming wooden splint. They love the color changes of the iodine clock reaction and cheer for the yellow and black of the Old Nassau reaction of Professor Alyea (especially if their school colors happen to he the same). Demonstrations like these help keep the romance of chemistry in one's course even
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Ramette, Dr. R. W., "Exocharmic Reactions," J. OF CHEM. EDUC., 57 (I),[1980]. 2 Battino, Dr. Rubin, "Participatory Lecture Demonstration," J. of CHEMEDUC.,56 (11,[1979].
for those students who are turned off at the first sight of theory or math. They might not enios the complexity of atomic structure or the intricacies of &chiometri hut they are able to write formulas of compounds, predict products of simple reactions, and tell what happens when a soluble chloride is added to a solution of silver nitrate. Yet. within the confines of the verv same course. I feel I must show that theory does not have he boring either, and that there is pleasure in contemplating the cosmic order and in the relationship between molecular structure and property. Furthermore, I must convey that there is fun in diagramming the electron-dot structures of radicals or in balancing redox reactions. Boredom dissipates when students realize that chemistryis not an isolated subject hut that it is deeply rooted in physics, that a proper understanding of biology, physiology, or medicine is indeed impossible without a working mastery of the principles of chemistry
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Personal Involvement
subject matter not much learkng is taking place. I find that using students to act out actions of atoms and molecules alwayigets the proper involvement. As they move about on an improvised stage carrying symbolic electrons, forming honds by holding hands, they quickly understand the nature of allotropic forms of elements, mechanisms of simple reactions, proton exchanges, the constancy of the equilibrium constants and other concepts. At first, I felt guilty that perhaps I am creating an unreal mental image by this simulation, hut then I was glad to learn that it was done by others. Dr. Ruhin Battino at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, uses a similar, and even more developed, m e t h ~ dHe . ~ states that the distortion is a small price to pay. "Transition from the concrete to the formal operational thinking will come through many concrete experiences which will provide an opportunity to generalize." Treating atoms anthropomorphically has always been done hy teachers of elementary courses, and this further extension of it cannot he harmful if it creates so much interest in students (as long as they do not learn that metals are boys and non-metals are girls and that nun-metallic ions become "pregnant" when they receive electrons from metals). Zopal Checks
Creative thinking has to he rewarded immediately to be effective in fostering its repetition. One day, one of my students solved the old standby "Martian Problem" with an elegant use of dimensional analysis. I picked up this problem at Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, at an NSF Summer Institute. I t goes like this: The density of liquid mercury is 13.5 glml and costs $430 per 76 pound keg. A visiting Martian wishing to buy some mercury offered 5 Zopals in payment. In the Martian system of measurements the following relationships hold: 1Zopal = $3.25 = 2 75 lb 4.635 warfs 1.13 X lo4 queets = 1 litre
Students are asked to calculate the kiloqueets of mercury the Martian bought for his Z o ~ a l and s the density of mercury in warfs per quiet. After the elegant solution of this problem by an involved earthling, it occurred to me to ask if the solution was worth 5 Zopals. The student agreed and accepted an I.O.U. for this amount. Later I asked an artistically inclined, former student to design a Zopal checkbook and since then Zopal checks have become a standard reward for creative contributions in my classes. The Zopal checks may he turned in at the end of the marking period for grade points, hut their value varies according to the number of Zopals in circulation. Books and pamphlets are also given out as gifts for industrious students. Volume 59
Number 1 January 1982
39
Emphasis on Laboratory Two special courses for future science majors with a higher emphasis on the laboratory are offered at Linden High School, because we feel that the most important part of chemistry education occurs in the laboratory. One of these courses is designed for a selected group of sophomores who are identified by the science supervisor as the most likely to benefit from such a conrse. We call the course Honors Chemistry, and it is a ten-period-a-week course, two periods a day, back to back. The first period is a formal lectnre-demonstration-recitation type, and the latter is geared to laboratory exercises and other special activities. Some of these activities are: puzzles for the gifted, t:le motion picture program "Searching for Solutions"; the videotape presentation of the "Cosmos" series; a follow-up on stock market prices of some chemical companies; a periodical look at the prices of copper, mercury, and other metals; and discussion of current events related to science and the impact of science on society. Students are encouraged to read science fiction, as well as scientific dystopias, such as Hnxley's "Brave New World" and others. We do not neglect vocational guidance. At the beginning of the school year we administer the Strong-Campbell Vocational Interest Inventory to our Honors Chemistry class; and, in approximately one month's time, each student receives a Strong-Campbell Interest Profile. The students are helped with the interpretation of their individual profile by the guidance department of our school. During the ensuing months, our students are provided with further information about occupations related to their interests. For this purpose we are using the computerized Guidance Information System (G.I.S.). T o reinforce the informal vocational guidance of the classroom teacher, we also invite representatives of local colleges and industry to come in to the classroom to discuss their job, their educational preparation, and the personal satisfaction they fmd in their careers. Among these guest lecturers, we always invite some women, especially women engineers, since the composition of the Honors Chemistry class is usually 50-60 women who lean to careers in science and engineering. Our second laboratory-oriented chemistry class is given as a thii-year conrse, selected by students who have successfully completed a mostly theoretical and mathematical-oriented second-year conrse. Presently, we have six students enrolled in this third-year, independent-stndy-orientedcourse. Al-
40
Journal of Chemical Education
though these students work under my supervision, they are welcome to use the resources of the whole chemistry department. These students develop special relationships with the various teachers in the department, and the teachers in turn gladly cooperate with them. Principally, they work on Qualitative Analysis; hut, after they have finished with the material in their textbooks, they pursue other analytical projects which we have developed with the help of Dr. George Luther, the Chairman of the Chemistry and Physics Department a t Kean College, Union, New Jersey. At Kean College, for the first time this vear, our third-vear students will have the onoortnnitv .. to obtain some hands-on experience with some sophisticatei instruments durine evenine or weekend hours. Our third-vear g&de scientifictopics and are taken on-field trips. Some of them, this year, visited the American Chemical Society's "Roadshow," held at New Rochelle College, New Rochelle, New York, by invitation of Dr. Richard Cassetta, Chairman of the Chemical Education Committee ACS New York Section. Frlendly but Rigid Competition Competition is a fact of life; and, in spite of the relaxed atmosphere in our classes, we do foster friendly and supportive competition. The Linden Board of Education provides the necessary funds to enter two teams of chemistrv students (as
to promote excellence in scienceeducationin the State of New Jersey, directed by Dr. Malcolm Sturchio of Fairleigh Dickinson Universitv. The Leaeue meets five times a vear at various centers throughout the state where students take a very res~ectahleset of examinations. We also enter a chemistrv team (as well as a biology team) in the State Science Day competition, sponsored and underwriten by Merck & Co., Inc. and held at Fairleigh Dickinson University campuses across the state. Confidence, fun, problem solving, development of safe laboratory skills. a humanistic outlook. interest in one's own vocationai direction, and a friendly but rigorous competition are perhaps the memories that I would like students to recall whin looking back and reflecting on their experiences in Linden High School.
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