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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This study was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy under Grant DE-FG02-07ER15872, the National Institutes of Health under Contract HHSN263201200074I (Task Order 25), and the National Science Foundation under Grant CHE-1231459.
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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine
The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr., is president of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr., are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council.
CHEMICAL SCIENCES ROUNDTABLE
CO-CHAIRS
WILLIAM F. CARROLL, JR., Occidental Chemical Corporation, Dallas, Texas
JENNIFER S. CURTIS, University of Florida
MEMBERS
MICHAEL R. BERMAN, Air Force Office of Scientific Research
CAROLE BEWLEY, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
DONNA G. BLACKMOND, Scripps Research Institute
PAUL BRYAN, University of California, Berkeley
EMILIO BUNEL,* Argonne National Laboratory
ALLISON CAMPBELL, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
A.WELFORD CASTLEMAN, JR., Pennsylvania State University
RICHARD R. CAVANAGH, National Institute of Standards and Technology
JOAN FRYE, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
MIGUEL GARCIA-GARIBAY,* University of California, Los Angeles
JACK KAYE, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
JOHN KOZARICH, ActivX Biosciences, Inc.
LUIS E. MARTINEZ, Rollins College
KENNETH G. MOLOY, DuPont Company Experimental Station
ROBERT PEOPLES, Carpet America Recovery Effort
TANJA PIETRASS, National Science Foundation
MICHAEL E. ROGERS, National Institute of General Medical Sciences
ERIC ROHLFING, U.S. Department of Energy
JAMES M. SOLYST, ENVIRON International Corporation
KATHLEEN J. STEBE, University of Pennsylvania
PATRICIA A. THIEL,* Ames Laboratory and Iowa State University
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL STAFF
DOROTHY ZOLANDZ, Director
KATHERINE BOWMAN, Senior Program Officer
KATHRYN HUGHES, Senior Program Officer
DOUGLAS FRIEDMAN, Program Officer
KEEGAN SAWYER, Program Officer
ELIZABETH FINKELMAN, Administrative Assistant
SAYYEDA AHMED, Senior Program Assistant
JOE ALPER, Consulting Science Writer
___________________
* These members of the Chemical Sciences Roundtable served as members of the planning committee of the Workshop on Undergraduate Chemistry Education, but were not involved in the writing of this workshop summary.
BOARD ON CHEMICAL SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
CO-CHAIRS
DAVID WALT, Tufts University
TIMOTHY SWAGER, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MEMBERS DAVID BEM, The Dow Chemical Company
ROBERT BERGMAN, University of California, Berkeley
JOAN BRENNECKE, Notre Dame University
HENRY BRYNDZA, E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company
DAVID CHRISTIANSON, University of Pennsylvania
RICHARD EISENBERG, University of Rochester
MARY JANE HAGENSON, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company
LLC CAROL J. HENRY, Independent Consultant
JILL HRUBY, Sandia National Laboratories
CHARLES E. KOLB, Aerodyne Research, Inc.
SANDER G. MILLS, Merck, Sharp, & Dohme Corporation
DAVID MORSE, Corning Incorporated
ROBERT E. ROBERTS, Institute for Defense Analyses
DARLENE J. S. SOLOMON, Aligent Technologies
JEAN TOM, Bristol-Myers Squibb
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL STAFF
TERESA FRYBERGER, Director
KATHRYN HUGHES, Senior Program Officer
DOUGLAS FRIEDMAN, Program Officer
CARL GUSTAV-ANDERSON, Research Associate
ELIZABETH FINKELMAN, Administrative Assistant
NAWINA MATSHONA, Senior Program Assistant
Preface
The Chemical Sciences Roundtable (CSR) was established in 1997 by the National Research Council. It provides a science-oriented apolitical forum for leaders in the chemical sciences to discuss chemistry-related issues affecting government, industry, and universities. Organized by the National Research Council’s Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology, the CSR aims to strengthen the chemical sciences by fostering communication among the people and organizations—spanning industry, government, universities, and professional associations—involved with the chemical enterprise. One way it does this is by organizing workshops that address issues in chemical science and technology that require national or more widespread attention.
On May 22-23, 2013, the CSR held a 1.5-day workshop on undergraduate chemistry education that focused on identifying potential drivers for change, barriers to curricular modifications, and new results from large-scale innovations with special emphasis on those that are transferable, widely applicable, and/or proven successful. The workshop featured both formal presentations and panel discussions among participants from academia, industry, and funding organizations. The workshop program consisted of three themes:
• Drivers of change in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education;
• Innovations in chemistry education; and
• Challenges and opportunities in chemistry education reform.
The workshop was intended to provide participants from a spectrum of the chemistry and chemistry education communities with an introduction to some of the work being done in this area, to stimulate further discussions, and to serve as a complement to other forums conducted by organizations such as the American Chemical Society, the Biennial Conference on Chemical Education, Gordon Research Conferences, and studies on undergraduate education conducted within the National Research Council. The Statement of Task for the workshop organizing committee is provided in Appendix A.
This document summarizes the presentations and discussions that took place at the workshop. In accordance with the policies of the CSR, the workshop did not attempt to establish any conclusions or recommendations about needs and future directions, focusing instead on issues identified by the speakers and workshop participants. In addition, the organizing committee’s role was limited to planning the workshop. The workshop summary has been prepared by the workshop rapporteurs Keegan Sawyer and Joe Alper as a factual summary of what occurred at the workshop.
Acknowledgment of Reviewers
This workshop summary has been reviewed in draft form by persons chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purposes of this review are to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making the published summary as sound as possible and to ensure that the summary meets institutional standards of objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following for their participation in the review of this summary:
Diana Glick, Georgetown University
John Kozarich, ActiveX Biosciences, Inc.
David K. Lewis, Connecticut College (retired)
Marcy H. Towns, Purdue University
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse, nor did they see, the final draft of the workshop summary before its release. The review of this summary was overseen by Edwin P. Przybylowicz, Eastman Kodak Company (retired). Appointed by the National Research Council, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this summary was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this summary rests entirely with the authors and the National Research Council.
Contents
Organization of the Workshop Summary
Is American Science in Decline?
A PCAST Perspective on STEM Education in the New Millennium
Role of the ACS Guidelines for Bachelor’s Degree Programs
Chemistry and the Pre-medical Curriculum: Impact of MCAT2015
Large-Classroom Reforms: Five Best Teaching Practices
Teaching Introductory Chemistry with a Molecular and Global Perspective
Today’s Students and Tomorrow’s Leaders: Integrated Concentration in Science
Dealing with Risk, Failure, and Uncertainty
What Gets Measured Is What Gets Learned: Assessing Student Understanding
Preparing Students for the Industrial Laboratory
5 FINAL THOUGHTS AND DISCUSSION
Acronyms
AAAS | American Association for the Advancement of Science |
AAMC | Association of American Medical Colleges |
ACS | American Chemical Society |
BOSE | Board on Science Education |
CPT | ACS Committee on Professional Training |
CSR | Chemical Sciences Roundtable |
DBER | discipline-based education research |
GDP | gross domestic product |
HHMI | Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
iCons | Integrated Concentration in Science program |
MCAT | Medical College Admission Test |
MIT | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
MOOC | massive open online course |
NMR | nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy |
NRC | National Research Council |
NSF | National Science Foundation |
PCAST | President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology |
STEM | science, technology, engineering, and math |
WIDER | Widening Implementation and Demonstration of Evidence-Based Reforms |