NEW TRENDS in CHEMISTRY COURSESfor TEACHERS' COLLEGES MALCOLM HAROLD FILSON Central State Teachers College, Mount Pleasant, Michigan
T
EACHERS colleges in general as well as many courses of study offered by them have received considerable criticism in recent years, by other colleges and universities, as being "soft," offering improperly taught subjects with antiquated ideas, and weak with regard to the training of students desiring to enter professions other than teaching. With the majority of teachers' colleges today offering courses of study for pre-professional students, regular A.B. and B.S. degrees, two-year work for those desiring to iinish in larger institutions, along with the regular teacher training curriculum, considerable attention is now given to correcting any weaknesses. No longer is the teachers' college graduate looked upon as the "weaker" brother. Their graduates are taking responsible positions in research, industry, and business. This is due chiefly to newer trends that are rapidly being adopted in many schools of this type. The author made a recent investigation into present courses of study offered by several leading teachers' colleges in the field of progressive education, and finds courses of study in chemistry comparable to those given in any larger institution of learning. One of the newer courses found to be taught is that of semimicro qualitative analysis, which replaces the old orthodox tedious "qual" of yesteryear. It has been found that for colleges having a limited budget, especially with the perennial increase in student ranks, the semimicro technic is ideal. ft is in line with modern trends of analytical procedure, and requires a minimum in reagents, space, expense, and most of all, time to the student. The old laborious routine is supplanted by a rapid technic of separation which the student completes in record time, some of the more capable students being able to run a "complete analysis" in one laboratory period, with a greater percentage of efficiency. Many organic reagents are employed, and all the modern theories of solubility are clearly illustrated. Spot testing lends to the fascination of the course to capture and hold the students' interest. The prospective teacher is thereby trained better to guide his high-school charges in their choice of a vocation. Other courses, now being offered, give training in
physical chemistry, colloidal chemistry, and organic synthesis with ultimate analysis. In the latter course, which is now being taught regularly to students desiring to major in chemistry, seeking a study in the application of basic principles, organic synthesis and analysis offer an excellent panacea. In this course the latest theoretical principles, both in qualitative and quantitative organic analysis, are studied along with advanced technic in synthesis. A complete laboratory outline is designed to cover the entire field of organic combustions. Library and reference work also makes up an interesting phase of the course. The equipment is rather expensive, but this is offset by the valuable training offered. Synthesis, decomposition, oxidation, reduction, solvation, molecular weights, absorption, dehydration, catalysts, along with careful technic in weighing and manipulation, in one course, offers the student training comparable to any which he might secure in a regular arts and science college or university. For all those who plan to-teach science in the elementary or. secondary s~hools, courses in physical science are required. It is noted that here the teachers' colleges lead the way. The importance of this type of course is emphasized by the fact that the American Association for the Advancement of Science appointed a committee, known as the Cornpittee for the Improvement of Science in General Education, with Furvas, Gordon, Johnson, and Smith as committee members for the chemistry division. Grants-in-aid have been established to stimulate work in this rapidly growing field of science. These courses correlate physics, chemistry, and biology with the home and home life. This equips the prospecti
