JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATIOX
entering (and leaving!) secondary-school science teaching a* frightening. I t is becoming more apparent each year that greater effort must be made to draw good science teachers to the secondary level if we are to inspire more young people to take up the science professions. Even though the problem of salary might be solved so as to offer competitive appeal with industry and universities, the problem still remains with regard to securing desirable teachers. The American Chemical Society may claim to have set up certain standards for rating and approving those To the Editor: colleges and universities qualified to offer majors in the I read the editorial of March, 1955, with considerable various branches of chemistry and related fields. Do interest and enthusiasm, but I must also say that some they realize, however, that students attending such feeling of doubt was left in my mind after reading and colleges are not inclined to enter the secondary fields of science teaching? Any graduate of these colleges who thinking of the many problems involved. As you so aptly stated in the latter part of the edito- may finally go into high-school teaching will be ronrial, "It may well be that if we are losing ground it is be- sidered to be a failure in the eyes of the great majority cause we are not getting ourselves to the right places a t of his instructors and his fellow students. Where, then, are the high-school teachers to be found? the right time." How serious is the situation? How urgently do we The answer is that the great number of them will come need more scientists? Are we trying to create a greater from the state colleges of education, and from those supply than demand? If a problem really exists, have other colleges which have not been considered by the we reached the point where the various scientific A. C. S. as worthy of accreditation by this organization. This means that the high schools will be receiving a groups are ready to step in and assist in working out a group of graduates who have been trained in the field of solution to the problem? Most readers of the scientific news are familiar with general education with little emphasis on any major the statistics which suggest a sharp contrast between field. They will have been indoctrinated in all the the extent of scientific training in the U.S.S.R. and the many generalities associated with general education, U. S. A. Furthermore, data on numbers of persons and will be completely unprepared to teach any special-
NOVEMBER, 1955
ized field. How can such a teacher be expected to inspire young people when he himself has no understanding of his subject? Is it any wonder that many teachers in colleges and universities are beginning to express the opinion that t,hey would rather have the student enter college chemistry with no previous training from high school? At least in this way there are no false concepts to undo before starting on the regular work of teaching fundamental principles. With each passing year the schools of education and the "edurationists" are making more and more demands for greater generalization at the expense of good sound study in one or more concentrated fields of endeavor. Some liberalized study is highly important, but where does this reach a maximum? The trend is toward more of this generalization and unless some organized effort is made to control it we will see the "educationist" continue to dictate the policies for training and certifying all teachers. The time has come for more than talk. The situation demands a sincere and objective study on the part of many groups including the A. C. S. Unless immediate action is taken to improve the training, prestige, and salaries, to make demands relative to teacher training policy, and to lend encouragement to potential candidates, the situation can only grow worse. If we, as interested people in the field of chemistry, allow this to go unchallenged, then it must be because we are not willing to face the situation and to be a t the right place a t the right time. As one who has spent a good many years in teaching in high school, junior college, and college, I mould wish we could rise to the occasion and see this problem solved. It will take the combined efforts of industry, the technical societies, and all those dedicated to the pursuit of the great principles of science.
599
If high-school chemistry were directed to those who do not plan to go to college, how would our demand for chemists be affected? I seriously doubt if i t would help the present shortage. Teachers lacking thorough technical training could hardly he expected to attract others into the field they are teaching. As teachers of science, do you feel qualified to lead others into such foreign fields as law, athletics, etc.? The unqualified teacher without a sincere love for his suhject cannot give an intimate explanation of the suhject. Such a course would touch mainly on the applications of chemistry. I n an editorial (THIS JOURNAL, 32, 1 (1955)) an excellent description is given of IT-hat is wrong with our present high-school teachmg methods. Does Sanderson believe that his suggested courses taught by nonchemists will put emphasis upon science in t,he true sense of the word, or will they continue and perhaps further the emphasis upon the results of science? I have tried t o put into words the disadvantages of one of Sanderson's proposals in the eyes of a prospective fundamental chemist. When I referred t o present high-school teaching methods my specific references were to my own high school, from which I have just graduated, and the many articles and letters in THIS JOURNAL concerning proposed solutions to highschool science teaching. This letter has been my attempt to a different approach, that of a student, to this problem.
To the Editor: In a recent article (THISJOURNAL, 32, 354 (1955)) a list of mles is given for the location of the decimal point in slide-rule calculations. I have been teaching THOMAS C. VAX OSDALL the ex~onentialsvstem of findine the decimal noiut as desiribed by F. Daniels ( " ~ $ h e ~ a t i c a ~l r e p a r a tion for Physical Chemistry," McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc., New York, 1928, Chapter I) for several years to freshman students with gratifying results. I t would seem preferable to use a method which entails To the Xdztor: the use of a general principle rather than one which In a recent letter (THISJOURNAL, 32, 338 (1955)) depends on memorization of mles which are soon R. T. Sanderson gives two comments on a previous forgotten. article (THISJOURNAL, 32, 141 (1955)). I should like to discuss his second comment from a high-school student's point of view.
