The nature of a liberal arts curriculum places an emphasis on interrelationships, integration and nonmaterial goals. For science majors this helps to maintain a proper sense of perspective and humility . . .

Albert E. Finholt St. Olaf College

Northfield, Minnesota 55057

General chemistry in a liberal arts college is not radically different from general chemistry in a university or a two-year college. We all face most of the issues described by David Brooks ( I ) in his recent excellent review articles. Each edu- cational setting, however, has its own advantages and disad- vantages and an accompanying set of problems and solutions. We share many programs and similarities hut it may he of benefit also to look at our differences. We often gain hy bor- rowing ideas from the very points a t which we differ.

The two most im~ortant educational factors in a liberal arts

General Chemistry in Liberal Arts Colleges

we seem to change together. One has only to examine a dozen freshman texts to see how evolution follows the same path. In recent years we have seen an expansion of the topical chem- istry pages and a cutting hack of physical chemistry. This change has often been referred to as a reawakening to the importance of descriptive chemistry as against an over- weighting of the effort spent on theory. Liheral art.s colleges have been slow to move in this direction, hut we have shared in the pros and cons of the debate.

P e r h a ~ s it is well to resister a word of caution on the use of college are the breadth of the intellectual goals and the nature the words "descriptive ccemistry" or "theory" as we give vent of the student-faculty relationship. Science majors and non- to our personal prejudices on curricular topics. "Descriptive science majors are made aware that science and technology chemistry" may mean learning a set of prnperties and equa- are onlv one Dart of mankind's needs and facultv and students tions, and "theow" mav mean auantum mechanics or absolute on a c~llegecampus constantly encounter other needs and reaction rate theory but either phrase may mean almost other disci~lines. The nature of a liberal arts curriculum daces anything between the most factual information and the most. an emphasis on interrelationships, integration, and no" ma- mathekatical language. How do we classify the qualitative terial goals. For science maiors this helps to maintain a proper atomic and molecular models bv which we describe a reaction sense bf perspective and humility to the point where general chemistry instructors sometimes must work to see that chemistry receives a proper measure of academic recogni- tinn.

Part of the philosophy of educarion ofthe fcwr year insti- tution rests on the principle that a one-to-me studenr-faculty relaticmshin is essential. The sturlent shw~ld see rhe same face in the classroom, the laboratory, and the help session. If the instructor is a eood teacher and a eood scientist this is the best

mechanism? Labels may provide unnecessary controversy. Leonard Nash cautioned us to emphasize "the phenomenal, the qualitative, the empirical" (3). He explicitly warned against "descriptive chemistry" which bores students and teachers, but he also urged us to observe and think more with a little less zeal for counting and calculating. Our chemistry teaching must center around a pictorial language which is different than abstract reasoning or data hut is supported by both.

possible kindbf education. At every stage of the learning The general chemistry course designed for the science major Drocess there is direct contact with the instructor who ~ l a n s ~robablv is closest to the hearts of most chemistrv teachers and organizes course material and who is aware of all of the nuances in understanding a difficult concent. Usuallv the instructor has chosen to w&k where teaching i's a prim& part of hislher job. The price paid in professorial time, and sub- sequently in tuition, is great but the results can be striking. In this kind of a setting one can expect to find the kind of imaginative teaching proposed by Jay Young many years ago in his open-ended laboratorv (2).

As we enter an era of lower college enrollments, the liberal arts colleges face a financial crunch which has already brought severe problems. The ideal state of dedicated teaching in an atmosphere of inquiry and curiosity fades as staffs and bud- gets are cut. General chemistry classes and laboratories have been increased in size a t some schools until the advantages mentioned above have been lost. At some point many liberal arts colleges will have to explore teaching procedures and methods which are foreien to them. We will need to draw on - the accumulated wisdom of universities and community col- leees. External Dressure mav force aeater homoeeneitv in ow national educakonal system thanany of us w&ld choose to have.

Chemistry Curricula in Liberal Arts Colleges In the United States the undergraduate curriculum of

chemistry departments is remarkably uniform. We change but

616 1 Jourml of Chemical Education

becausAe want it to embody the best possible introduction and background for individuals who will use chemistry pro- fessionally. Changes in the course have not been dramatic but in the ~ a s t 25 vears there has been a steadv increase in the amount of time devoted to models, concepts, bonding, and mechanisms in contrast to an earlier memorization of equa- tions, properties, and details of industrial processes. When did we shed the last tear as we stopped demanding equations and diagrams of the lead chamber or contact processes? In a con- stant volume of course-time something had to he squeezed out. The trend toward early teaching of concepts and models probably will continue to be the long term movement in all sciences desvite oeriodic concentration on an~lications im- . . . . portant in a particular era. Environment and energy are world issues in which chemistry will be important for many decades to come. We can attract student interest by pointing out where chemistrv has created problems and where it has solved problems. Most liberal a& colleges, however, continue to keep the major courses concentrating on principles with a minor amount of time spent on the role of chemistry in the headline stories of the day.

It might he instructive to list thr topics cowred in a first- year sequenceat Oberlin, which has been a leader for decade$ in chemistry teaching and in the production of professional chemists.

In the minds of many chemists, the correlation between structure and reaction in organic chemistry and the understandingit makes possible lies at the heart of our science, and should be the philosophical target around which the first year o f teaching should be planned.

Oberlin College General Chemistry

semester I I. Stom of Moltor and Stoichiome-

try states, phases, solutionn, separa- tions Atom.. moleeuln, moles Stoiehiomotry and gar laws solutions

11. Periodicity and Electronic Strue- I,',< Pcriodicityand *tomr madad11 Light, mechanics and electrostatics Rohr Theory, quantum mochsnia

lntermd~cular attraetinnr Iroto~er, ma.. 8~eetr~Beopy and nuclear Peactionr VSEPR theory

N. Sfrucfurs-Proparty Cormlolionsfw Inorganic Subsfonees Acid-base resction-aaueoua equi- libria Precioitation reactions-solubility pmduet Redox reaction-Eas Complex resetion-Lewis s e i d ~ base Cmrdination chemistry

v. structure-Pmperty corre1otinns of Organic Subslonres ~ ~ ~ ~ t i ~ ~ a l groups and atrudures Merhanisms Predictinns and synth-8

semester 11 I. Chsmieol Eouiiihrium

Phaaeequilibris 1.e Chate1ie~'sP~inciple Complex oqueaus equilibria

11. Thermodynamics and Colvonic cds First, second and third laws Micraseopie view of entropy Gihbr free enorgy and equilibrium Nernst equation. electrolysis

111. Krn~LicaondM~chanisms ~~~

Rater and rate ism Activetionenew Collision theory Trsnrifio" state thwry csta1ysis M~chanisma

IV. Ch~micol Bondinn P~tential energy curve8 LCAO~MO approximations MO diagrams Huckel Rule Delwdized n orbital8 Aromaticity

V. spaeioi topics

This is the mainstream course which serves students who intend to major in the physical and biological sciences as well as some who intend to major outside the sciences. There is also a one-semester course for the better oreoared student. and a . . ~'Molerlllcs and Mankind" course for nonscienre majors and for notential srirnrc maiors who need a flundatinn hefore enrolling in the mainstream course. The latter course does not require calculus in the first semester nor in the thermody- namics portion of the second semester. I t is unusual in the treatment of spectroscopv and organic chemistry in the first semester. he-course has been taught successf"lly for eight years and, as one might guess, it was designed originally by an organic chemist. The content, aside from the emphasis on organic chemistry, is typical for a number of liberal arts col- leges. I t is unlikely that many schools will match the depth of treatment that the highly selective Oherlin student body can . . handle.

Why was organicchemistry put into the Oberlin first year when time is so nrecious and students eo on to take a seoarate one year organic course? The answer lies in the current state of correlation and understandine that has been develooed between structure and rcartion in nrranic chemistry. In the minds of man\~chemists that relati~mshin lies at the heart of our science and should be the philosophical target around which the first vear of teaching should be olanned. The tra- ditional tupics ;f thc first year'point toward that end and we select and prune what we teach with this in mind. For exnm- ple, we constantly reassess the amount of physics that should be taught in first-sear chemistry. We know the two sciences are closely interlaced, but when one must pick and choose, shall we continue to derive gas laws from the kinetic molecular theory or discuss the details of particle physics and nuclear reactors? These topics are disappearing from the first year of chemistry despite the pain that the loss gives some of us. There just is not room in one year for everything. Similarly,

in freshman thermodynamics we see a de-emphasis on gas exoansions, the Joule-Thompson effect, and the Carnot cycle a s k e try to he more explicit in using entropy, free energy, and equilibrium to understand chemical reactions.

In the Oherlin plan we find subtopics from modern chem- istry such as ligand field theory, nuclear magnetic resonance, mass spectroscopy, LCAO-MO, and Hiickel theory. Now that orhital symmetry has found its way into undergraduate or- eanic and inoreanic courses. an introduction to eroun theorv n - - . and symmetry is coming as early as the first year in a few lih- eral arts colleees. It is not a t all clear that the trend in general chemistry at these institutions will be to move moderntheory to an aonendix of our text books so that we mayhave room to . . discuss the atmosphere, water, and energy. Applications of chemistry to current issues will be made hut not at the expense of basic principles. Since a large portion of the student clien- tele is interested in health sciences, our continuing extensive treatment of aqueous equilibria may he justified on the basis of its applications in biology hut this is not a consensus opin- ion.

I t is perhaps surprising that there has not heen more effort to develop a portion of general chemistry devoted to inorganic chemistry apart from transition metal chemistry. As long as we restrict other inorganic chemistry to a few periodic prop- erties and equations to memorize, i t will not he attractive to students or faculty. There have been textbook efforts (4) to relate inorganic structure and reactions hut nothing is avail- able thatapproaches what has been done with organic chemistry. As the ACS Committee on Professional Training nonders t h e nrohlem of where and how much inoreanic chemtstry should he taught in the undergraduate major cur- riculum it should be recoenized that much more could be done - in general chemistry if inorganic chemistry could he made more intellectually attractive and relevant to the primary curricular goals.

Fifteen to twentv vears aeo a number of colleaes offered a ". single course in chemistry on the premise that it was an insult to students to offer anything that might be considered to he a "chemistry without chemistry" approach. Today, the greater heterogeneity of student interests and abilities makes it a rare institution that does not have a t least two sequences, one for maiors and one for other students. The courses which are not "m&stream" are not significantly different a t liberal arts colleges than a t other institutions but they are particularly welchw where they attempt to i n t e g r a t e c h e m i ~ ~ withothrr di.;riplincs. Thus at Manchester (:dlt:gc, there is a rourse called "Biomolecules" which teaches structure. enerev. and -. organic chemistry and applies these topics to molecular biology, reproduction, and nutrition. A course on energy a t Carleton College has combined the resources of the chemistry and economics deoartments. A few institutions have been verv ambitious. in^'; College, for example, presents four courses for nonmaiors: Basic Conceots in Chemistrv. Chemistrv and Man, chemistry and ~ndusiry, and Forensic chemistry (5) .

Teaching Methods In the past decade most colleges have shared in some aspect

of the pedagogical movement toward individualization. The liberal arts colleee alwavs has tried to have extensive stu- ~~ ~

dent-tmrlier interaction in small classes and latx)raturirs but thr shape of some of the teaching has t,llowed thr national trends of recent years. PSI and other formsnf individualized teaching are finnnrially feasihle in a college where lecture

Volume. 55. Number 10, Ocfober 1978 1 '617

A driving force behind the recent teaching innovations in many liberal arts colleges has been the considerable influx of students who have good potential but lack background, training or motiva tion for highly disciplined study.

classes are not large. We are now more realistic about what can be done than we were six or seven years ago. The glowing promise has faded that all students can work a t an A or B level if we give them enough time.

Our experience a t St. Olaf College may illustrate what has happened in a number of chemistry departments. Six years ago we introduced a PSI semester of general chemistry with 23 units, no hour examinations, and no final. (At the first no finals was received with scorn by true believers who con- sidered unit tests to be an ample assessment of "mastery.") Our course went reasonablv well the first vear but we were haunted by a feeling that siudents were not pulling the frag- ments together. As a result of student suggestions we added hour examinations and a final to the unit'tests to stimulate oraanization of lareer sections of material. We now use a study guidr, student tutors, cassette tapes, and CAI prwams as pan of the 1'31 package. We have stopped trying to make any 01)- jective comparison between the 1W students in a lecture section and the 1UO students in PSI sections because the PSI course aids are also used by some lecture students, and some PSI students attend lerturcs. We du not consider the one method of teachine better than the other. Thp overall per- formance in either Lode is comparable, as judged by common finals and nerformance in later courses. Grades are similar. The PSI courses are popular and registration must be con- trolled to keep section sizes reasonable. Tutor appointments are prized by upperclassmen, particularly by premeds who face MCAT trials. The attractiveness of the PSI method lies partly in the student perception of greater personal attention and partly in the student control of course pacing. Setting up a self-paced course takes considerable effort but prohablfn& more than in the preparation of individualizing adjuncts for . ~ - ~

a lecture course. A driving force in many liberal arts colleges behind the re-

cent teaching innovations has been the considerahle influx of students who have good potential but lack background, training, or motivation for highly disciplined study. The problem of bringing these students into the curriculum for science majors is perceived by many educators as the most difficult teaching task of our time. The use of self-pacing, audiovisual techniques, CAI, and greatly expanded tutorial services has helped hut not solved the teaching problem of "deficient" students. The curricular answer of most liberal arts colleges for these students has been to give a special re- medial course which teaches elementmv mathematical skills. chemical terminology, stoichiometry, A d a more deliberate introduction to other problem-solving parts of general chemistry. With a great deal of tender, loving care, these courses have carried manv persons through the first year. Unfortunately, few of thi students go o n t o advanced se- quences in chemistry and perform up to their aspirations.

The limited success of teaching innovations with the strwaina student has blunted ow reception of still other new appzacges. The Piagetian concept, however, appears t o he a more fundamental attack on learning disabilities. We await specific descriptions of successful applications of Piaget's ideas. Four year colleges with high selectivity traditionally have attempted to develop formal thought by the ancient procedure of presenting algorithm patterns for standard ~roh lem solvine with a eradual weanine awav to more imaai- .~ - " " - - native problems. This procedure does work but perhaps only for the hieh ahilitv student who has alreadv bemn the transfer

Technological Aids to Teaching

I t is impossible for a college to match the funds and energy that go into the use of media and computers as teaching aids at a university. Still, surprisingly good CAI programs, tapes, movies, and other media have been develoved at colleges. The simulation computer programs a t ~ r ~ n h l a w r , ~ber l in , or Lawrence Colleges (6) are imvressive examples of how the computrr can be used to enco&age experimintal design and interpretation of data beyond the usual limitations of time and technique in agenerd chemistry course. For personal student help, it remains fair to say that colleges rely mainly on the close contact between the instructor and the student and less on technological aids.

One change which has been universally adopted is the re- quirement that the general chemistry students own and be able to operate a hand calculator of reasonable sonhistication. ~ollegesnow have special classes in the use of the calculator, reminiscent of the slide rule sessions of the past. Calculators not only eliminate drudgery but some schools have gone be- yond simple arithmetic and statistics to more complicated applications such as least squares fit of data. There are hazards that students may lose all feeling for functionality but one wonders whether students knew that a logarithm is an expo- nent when thev used tahles any more than thev do now when they punch the log x key.

The Laboratory Most instructors would like the general chemistry labora-

tory to simulate the pleasurable experience of handling, changing, or measuring matter and energy as we carry out these operations in chemical research. We do not plan for students to use the laboratory to uncover the major theories in chemistry but we hope they may discover forthemselves some applications of those theories. The factual information thev gain is less im~or tan t than the nrocess of eettine it and thebkcess is less idrportant than an kderstandyng of the role of observation and exveriment in science.

Our personal prefeiences in the laboratory differ widely. Some of us are attracted to the sight, feel, taste, and smell of chemicals and apparatus. Others are intrigued by precise data and the handling of numerical results. Still others enjoy the application of physics to chemical instrumentation. Most of us are intrigued by an unexplained signal or a strange product which our current theories cannot readily explain. In light of our own spectrum of reactions to the lahoratory it is not sur- prising that students respond in quite different ways to what we place before them in a first-gear course. What is unforgi- vable is that such a high percentage of students leave our classes astonished that anyone can enjoy lahoratory work.

The liberal arts colleges have been most successful in two kinds of laboratory programs. One approach strives for ouantitative results. At Pomona Colle~e two-thirds of the - experiments are quantitative and one-third physicochemical. There is an emphasis on the techniones and instruments en- countered in chemical and biological science. Equipment in- cludes the usual DH meters and calorimeters but also gas - chromatographs, recorders, polarimetrrs, good calorimeters, a Faradav halance, and similnr advanced instruments which students-use under careful personal instruction. Students learn techniques and handling of data but, more imvortant, they assimilate an atmosphere of careful exprrimentat~on thnt is integrated with the theuries of the lecture. - -

from concrete toformal thought processes.

618 1 Jwrml of Chemical Education

Q& different is the Jay Young approach mentioned earlier

where one attempts to go beyond technique to experiments that are open-ended and student-designed. This kind of lah- oratory work requires skilled instruction from a faculty that is flexible and able to extemporize. This method of teaching is the most demanding and the most rewarding, hut it does not lend itself to mass instruction or to great student hetero- geneity. I t has been used with nonscience majors as well as in

mainstream course (7). My own experience with the open- ended ammonium dichromate "volcano" experiment (8) in- dicated that half of the students were delichted and auicklv pushed the instructor to use every possihle resource to solve their nrohlem. The other half of the class climbed the walls in frukration a t the lack of a recipe book to show them what to do. It is unfair to the latter students to he thrust suddenlv into a situation demanding creativity or imagination. The thought of two tracks within a laboratory section may seem horrendous but some colleges do manage a multi-track labo- ratorv option. Students mav choose experiments which varv in degree of difficulty and creativity. This does not solve the problem of teaching creativitv hut it allows for the possihilitv bf creeping up on it.

The Future In the nast the success of eeneral chemistrv teachine in the

liberal a& college has depended on a close;elation&ip be- tween the instructor and a student. I t is unlikely that this el-

ementary formula will change unless fmancial pressures of the next ten years force the colleges to change their strategy. Colleges probably are most productive in teaching students of good academic potential although not necessarily of good background. As at other institutions, the instruction is changing to match student bodies that are more heterogene- ous as a result of less selective admissions. The change in ad- missions standards has often been voluntarv in a conscious sftort to help in the rducation of disadwntaged srurlrnt.i. Tlw nvw oroblems for tht.orlleees will not uuieklv disannrnr hut . . one may hope that the answers to them will not change tra- ditional ideas on how teachine should he done in these insti- tutions.

Literature Cited

( I ) Brooka, D. W.. J. CHEM. EDUC.. 54,654 (1977): 54,786 (1977): 55.18 (1978): 55.90

~hemicai~dueation: American Chamieal Soeiety. 1976. (7) Sesife. C. W. J.. Paper 39,"Pragrsmsand Summeriesof Presentationp. Fourth Biennial

Conference an Chemical Education." American Chemical Society, 1976. I81 Finholt, J. E., J. CHEM. EDUC., 47.538 (1970).

Volume 55. Number 10, October 1978 1 619