The 1957 Soviet launch of Sputnik launched the United States on “catch-up” science and mathematics curriculum reform pathways at all educational levels. The two major chemistry secondary level projects, the Chemical Education Materials Study (ChemStudy) and the Chemical Bond Approach (CBA) both involved teams of secondary and tertiary faculty and were intended to expose high school students to a modern understanding of chemistry. At the tertiary level, the launch coincided with the appearance of Sienko and Plane’s textbook, perhaps the most influential general chemistry text ever published. It ushered in an era of theory-first presentation (“baby p-chem”) that became the norm for most other general chemistry texts and courses for at least two decades. An overriding principle of all these developments was to get the science right and rigorous, so students would get a good foundation and not have to “unlearn/relearn” later. This presentation will focus on the consequences: a staggering amount of material and effort in the form of texts, secondary texts to explain primary texts (study guides), topical monographs, audiovisual aids, more quantitative laboratory work, computer-assisted instruction, redesigned courses, and more, almost all aimed at getting students started on a pathway into the chemical sciences.

Getting it right: A paradigm for the education of chemists

249th National Meeting (2015)

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