ACS COMMENT
ChemCom-an exciting new approach to teaching
Gordon L. Nelson ACS president The level of scientific literacy in this country is appallingly low. Recent studies indicate that: • Only half of our 17-year-olds think science is useful. • Only 5% of adults report that they understand basic scientific concepts or science policy issues. • More than 40% of adults believe in astrology, lucky numbers, and flying saucers. • Some 35% of adults believe that society should exert a greater control over science and technology, and more than 70% think that society should curtail the activities of scientists. These data are a cause for concern. We live in a democracy; it is the right of citizens in a democracy to make decisions on a wide range of societal issues— including those that require an understanding of the scope, and limitations, of science and technology. In fact, it is difficult to identify many societal issues today that do not involve science and technology in some fashion. Acid rain, the greenhouse effect, fluoridation of water, land disposal of wastes, siting of power plants, utilization of finite mineral resources are but a few of the issues on which we, as citizens, will make decisions. The extent of scientific illiteracy in this country has put citizen participation in such decision-making at serious risk, with economic and strategic consequences to the nation. Clearly, the American public must become far better equipped than at present to contribute to the decision-making process. Science illiteracy takes root in the schools where students receive their first formal exposure to science. Only 15% of elementary school teachers, according to a National Science Foundation survey, feel personally qualified to teach physical science. Indeed, many teachers in elementary school tend to be unfamiliar with physical science concepts and to teach from the
textbook. Many avoid the hands-on activities most likely to build interest among their students. High school chemistry courses generally are designed as the first course for the very small number of students who intend to pursue careers in chemistry or science-related fields. (In 1987, only 1.3% of all high school students taking the SAT indicated plans to major in any of the physical sciences.) Existing courses, although they may be an excellent introduction to chemistry for the future chemist, do not prepare the future citizen to handle his or her decision-making responsibilities. Nor are most current courses, with their emphasis on the mathematics rather than the utility of chemistry, likely to attract students marginally interested in science. Enter ChemCom. The society's new high school curriculum. Chemistry in the Community (ChemCom), is designed to provide an attractive, open access route for all high school students to the realm of relevant and useful chemical phenomena. ChemCom offers an intellectually challenging alternative to traditional high school chemistry courses. ChemCom is a yearlong course built around eight societal issues related to chemistry. These issues include water quality and supply, use and conservation of resources, the use of petroleum as both a fuel and chemical feedstock, the chemistry of food and nutrition, nuclear chemistry, air and climate, chemistry and health, and the role of the chemical industry in our society. Chemistry is introduced as it is needed to understand and analyze these issues in the context of a community—the school community, the students' town or region, or the world community. This approach does not imply that some sort of technological or scientific fix alone will solve all problems. It does, however, point out that chemical facts and concepts clarify many aspects of these issues and often help set boundaries for possible solutions. ChemCom is not a watered-down course for the slowest of students. Although it includes less math than traditional courses, it does cover the major concepts, basic vocabulary, and laboratory skills expected in any introductory chemistry course. In addition, it presents more organic and nuclear chemistry than traditional courses, though less physical chemistry. Each unit is laboratory-oriented and contains decision-making activities to give students practice in using chemistry to solve problems. The decision-making activities may focus on the personal: What octane gasoline should I use in my car and why? Or the local: How should my community react to dead fish in the river? Or the global: What can be done about the greenhouse effect? ChemCom does not give simplistic answers to Continued on page 71
September 26, 1988 C&EN
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Meeting city Local section
Meeting site Date/time
Speaker Affiliation
Topic
Contact Telephone no.
Philadelphia Philadelphia
U of Pennsylvania 20/8:00 PM
Daniel F. Veber Merck Sharp & Dohme Research Labs
Receptor Mapping Using Peptide Analogue Design and Synthesis
S. Golden (215)382-1589
Reading, Pa. Lehigh Valley,
Albright C 21/5:30 PM
Richard Pauling National Park Service
Hopewell Furnace: a Microcosmos of the Early Iron Industry
P* Dougherty (215)921-2381, ext, 7746
Rouses Point, N.Y. Northern New York
WyewVAyerst Labs 12/8:00 PM
Michael Dey Wyeth-Ayerst Labs
Bioanalytical Technique Development
R. Sandwick (518)564-2703
Wilmington Delaware
Hercules Country Club 19/6:00 PM
Linda C. Sawyer Hoechst Celanese Research Division
Morphology of Liquid Crystalline Polymers
M. Sullivan (302) 995-3272
Continued from page 47
complex questions; it does help stu dents develop the skills necessary for problem-solving—skills such as the ability to identify problems; to consider and evaluate possible alter native solutions, weighing their risks and benefits; to separate fact from opinion; to verify information and evaluate the worth and objec tivity of sources; to interpret quanti tative information such as tables, charts, and graphs; and to formulate and reach decisions logically. ChemCom was developed by ACS with support from the National Sci ence Foundation, ACS Corporation Associates, and the Petroleum Re search Fund. The Steering Commit tee was chaired by Anna Harrison, a past ACS and American Association for the Advancement of Science president, and the project was di rected by W. T. Lippincott, former editor of t h e Journal of Chemical Edu
cation, and director of the Institute for Chemistry Education at the Uni versity of Wisconsin. The material was written by high school and col lege chemistry teachers and exten sively reviewed by chemistry ex perts. In the 1985-86 school year, ChemCom was field-tested in some 13 states by nearly 3000 students and 60 teachers. It was then exten sively revised and is now available as a hardcover textbook from the Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co. It will be taught to 40,000 students in more than 40 states this school year. Although the course has been ex tremely well received by students and many teachers, there are some instructors who are uncomfortable with this new approach. The course
content differs markedly from that of traditional courses and requires different classroom management. Hence, the importance of teacher training to the success of ChemCom cannot be overemphasized. Teach ers will not adapt to this new ap proach readily without training and mutual support. Recognizing this, NSF has just awarded ACS an additional grant to support teacher training for a threeyear period. Each year, 80 teachers will be trained to serve as in-service resource teachers for ChemCom in their own school districts. The Uni versity of Houston, the State Uni versity of New York, Courtland, Colorado School of Mines, and Law rence Hall of Science in California are the first institutions taking part in this project. The NSF support, though signifi cant and welcome, falls short of that which will eventually be needed to bring about widespread acceptance of the ChemCom approach to chem istry. There is a need to accelerate momentum to overcome the tea chers' "activitation barrier" associ ated with implementation of this new approach. Accordingly, as part of our ongoing fund-raising cam paign, the Campaign for Chemistry, ACS is seeking substantial addition al funds to support ChemCom teacher training. The campaign also includes funds for video support of classroom materials and in-service teacher training, as well as funds to develop a one-semester course for liberal arts students in college. It should be emphasized that ChemCom is an alternative way to teach high school chemistry and not
the only way. Chem Study-type courses work extremely well with certain kinds of students. Chem Com is viewed as another option for reaching a different group of stu dents with chemical information. It should also be emphasized that ChemCom is a serious chemistry course and not a flabby hybrid of chemistry with social science. In its broadest context, ChemCom gives the chemistry profession its first, genuine, grassroots outreach to the general public. ChemCom students react positively to learning chemis try in this fashion. They possess a strong sense of ownership of their chemistry knowledge—perhaps be cause ChemCom is as concerned with the use and application of knowledge as it is with knowledge acquisition. Finally, one absolutely vital com ponent to the success of ChemCom is support from the chemistry com munity. If you are not very familiar with ChemCom, I urge you to ob tain more information. If you are fa miliar with the course, I seek your support in reassuring educators that ChemCom contains very real and very important chemistry. I urge you to work with your high school to see to it that ChemCom is an available option for next year. And I urge you to make a significant con tribution to the Campaign for Chemistry when the membership solicitation reaches out to you in the near future. For more information write me a letter, or write to Sylvia Ware, Direc tor, Education Division, American Chemical Society, 1155—16th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036. Π September 26, 1988 C&EN
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