edited bv FRANK CAR DULL^ Niles Township High School 9800 Lawler Skokie, iL60077
view from my classroom
Chemistry Teaching with New Technologies and Strategies The Synergism of the 90's Steven Haderlie Springville High School, 1205 East 900 South, Springville, UT 84663 [
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A good argument can be made that chemical education in the 1990's has two major goals. First, it works to prepare the next generation of chemists trained to advance scientific discovery; and, second, it tries to equip each student with a sufficient undentanding of chemical principles and their applications to allow him or her to make informed personal and societal decisions. Several new strategies are emerging that can accelerate the accomplishment of these goals. Each taken singly may have minimal impact, but together they can provide significant impetus for achieving the aforementioned goals and inspiring students to greatness. Despite having spent 18 years teaching chemistry in the same classroom a t Springville High School, each day brings new excitement about the possibilities of what may be encountered. This is not to say that teaching and learning are always fun. To learn is hard work. I t requires discipline. There is much drudgery. When I hear someone say that learning is fun, I wonder if that person has never learned or if he has just never had fun. There are moments of excitement in learning: these seem usually to come after long periods of hard work-but not after all long periods of hard work ( I ) . Providing opportunities for students to work hard is what results in the moments of excitement that come as rewards to be appreciated and enjoyed. As chemistry instructors we are in the position to be of great assistance to students. By studying chemistry our students may find answers to many compelling questions.
To keep the sharp edge of enthusiasm that so easily infects students, one must continually seek opportunities for discovery and wonderment. Education should not have ended when we obtained our last degree. Each vear should find us trying to add something new to our backgrounds and the curriculum we teach, even if we face seemingly insurmountable teaching obstacles. Springville High School is neither well-equipped nor wealthy. Our district studenkteacher ratio is the highest in the state. and Utah has the hichest ratio in the nation. The . per-pupliexpendirure inour district is the lowest in thestate, which aaain h a the lowest otrr-ouoil cxotmditure in the ns. tion. Nevertheless, there are many students anxious to share a iournev of discoverv with me each vear, and it is a constant cgallenie to meet their needs. ~ a " df n the ~ activities described here have been made oossible usine monies available to all public school teachers and students in the form of grants and grant-aided programs. Other activities require no funding source. Instead, they rely on the organizational skills and creativity of the instructor. A
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Peer Tutoring
Quite probably the most successful strategy used in the Springville High School chemistry program is peer tutoring. On the first day of school, and quite regularly after that, students are encouraged to form study groups. These are informal groups that can meet a few times each week and work on homework assignments together, either face-
Rbout the author... Steven Haderlie has been teaching chemistry and AP Chemistry for 18 years, all at Sorinaville Hiah School. Sorinaville. UT. He araduated from Briaham Youna Universitv in 1977ktna
