EDITORIAL
Keeping Quantitative Analysis in Chemistry The December 1986 REPORT, "Consider Teaching: It's Been Good to Us," by Peter T. Kissinger, R. Graham Cooks, and William R. Heineman brought a positive response from a number of our readers regarding various aspects of the teaching of analytical chemistry. This response led to my March 1987 editorial emphasizing the importance of the role of faculty at undergraduate institutions. In this issue we are following up with two REP O R T S that explore this important topic. Royce C. Engstrom makes a strong case for the advantages of a career in teaching in "Teaching Analytical Chemistry—Another View." In a related area, David C. Locke and William E. L. Grossman provide important new data in "The Curriculum in Quantitative Analysis: Results of a Survey." Both articles come at a particularly important time in view of the recent activities of the ACS Committee on Professional Training (CPT) chaired by Alice J. Cunningham of Agnes Scott College, Decatur, Ga. At the Denver ACS meeting in April the committee presented a new three-year core curriculum for eventual recommendation to the ACS. Chemistry in recent years has begun to overlap more effectively with other disciplines as fundamental understanding of new materials and more complex processes has improved, and the field continues to expand from its traditional beginnings to new and exciting areas. In view of this changing situation, CPT believes that new guidelines should allow for degrees that center on chemistry but emphasize specialized areas. The minimum content of the recommended three-year core curriculum includes the following courses (and their
semester credit hours): Fundamentals of Chemistry (4 or 8), Introduction to Organic and Biochemistry (8), Intermediate Inorganic Chemistry (4), Physical Chemistry (7), and Analytical Chemistry (4). The associated laboratory contact hours are 42 or 84, 84, 42, 42, and 84, respectively. The analytical course would be an upper-class course emphasizing instrumental analysis. The traditional sophomore quantitative analysis course has been eliminated. Although not explicitly stated, it has been suggested by some members of the committee that some of the material previously covered in quantitative analysis could be included in the laboratory portion of the Intermediate Inorganic Chemistry course during the second semester of the sophomore year. At this point, many inorganic chemists do not welcome this compromise in the content of their courses. Thus there is a real possibility that mastery of quantitative concepts and methods could be eliminated in the education of a chemist. The various ACS divisions are being consulted about the proposed new curriculum. In view of its impact on the way we currently teach quantitative analysis, we strongly urge that our constituency respond to the proposed recommendations before the New Orleans ACS meeting in late August, when the CPT will present their revised guidelines. Please contact Alice Cunningham, Department of Chemistry, Agnes Scott College, Decatur, Ga. 30030.
G.H.
Morrison
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY, VOL. 59, NO. 13, JULY 1, 1987 · 815 A
