Chemical Education for Underprepared Students The past thirty years have seen drastic changes in the fraotion of the population which seeks education a t t h e college level, and in the sttitudeq of these students. They tend to be suspicious of science, they fear science courses, and they are contemptuous of the deferred gratification which has been the operational basis for s~ecessfulpursuit of demanding undergraduate eurriculn. The educational mnmmunity has been relatively inflexible in its response to the problems which have resulted. Furthermore, it has very little experience upon which to base decisions about felt to require attention. Among how to deal elrcctively with other educational problem which are now these are the education of students from minority groups. A conference on chemical education for students who do not meet the normal criteria (ususlly indicated by test scores or high school grades) for admission to college was held on the campus of the University of Illinois a t Chicago Circle on 10-12 September, 1970. The twenty-odd w n ferees represented institutions which offer special supportive programs for the education of underprepared students in chemistry and related fields. Ivlost of these institutions serve large numhbers of students from an identifiable minority group. The deliberations of the conference have been compiled as s, recently-issued report which is summarized briefly below. The conference explicitly wnsidered special problems in education of the black, Mexican-American, white ethnic, and Appalachian minorities. No one was present wiLh significant experience in teaching Puerto Ricans or Indians, and there was essentially no discussion of them. There is a tendency for each minority group to view its own problems as unique. The striking fact which emerged from conference discussions of deficiencies in these groups was the number of problems common to all uf them, independent of racial or ethnic origin. The most important and widespread of these are deficiencies in verbal and writ,ten English, in mathematics, in general science, and in stimulating intellectual bxckground which might contribute to learning in any area. Apnrt from these basic academic problem?, these students are so seriously lacking in self-confidence that they avoid science courses and many of them expect to fail in college. The results of this unfavorable self-image are displayed in various ways: unwillingness to try difficult tasks, inw willingness to seek help, or in a tendency to give up too easily on difficult work. I n these nonacademic respects, there may be some characteristic differences between students from diflerent racial or elhnic backgrnunds. Faculty members who hope to cope successfully with these problems will need ta examine themselves, their programs, and their institutions much more searchingly than has heen euutomnry in the past. They will ala, need to be exceptionally open to new ideas. The ohstncles h, higher education fur these students may be magnified by some largely unexamined charscteristics of the c:onventionnl educational environment: its selection pnxednres, the competitive pressures under which .tnrlon+zr,,nrli m r ".*"..."J l f o r , , l i l . + "" a ~ r h i n r r a i ."J.-" i l o z on.4 . ~ + i i i . l a o +nmarrl e .tnrlontr Thastrnrlarrl ~ r a m i n a"t , i n n . n a e ai.-F.--.-nnrdirt, u..%"" student performance display no demonstrated racial bias, but there are serious questions about their value in predicting the performance of underprepared students in more suitable academic environments which prouide special SUPPOTlive services for these students. The preparation and use of behavioral objectives was described, together with their advantages in defining a course, in writing reasonable examinations, in simplifying the logistics of multi-section courses, and in imprnving student performance. The conferees heard detailed descriptions of supportive programs in remedial English and remedial mathematics, and of broader programs designed to embark disadvantaged students on a liberal education. There followed descriptions of a. variety of innovations in chemistry instruction for underprepared student,^ in some ten institutions which range from liberal arts colleges to large urban universities; these are ~ummarisedbriefly in the report. The ~"nferoncedid not attempt to produce s. comprehensive or infallible scheme for dealing with these problems. I t did identify some sources uf poor performance by underprepared students who attempt to study chemistry, and i t produced s consensus on same desirable characteristics for programs designed to deal effectively with the educational problems of these students. Copies of the full conference report can be ordered from the address below. A remittanceof 83.00per copy should accompany the order. Stipes Publishing Company, 10 Chester Street, Chzmpaign, Illinois 61820.
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Journal o f Chemical Edumfior
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