Instructors sometimes express concern about students who transfer from one institution to another in the middle of the two-semester organic sequence. Could starting (or ending) the sequence in a mechanistically organized course while ending (or starting) the sequence with a course organized by functional group cause students difficulty? Since I teach at a two-year public … Continue reading What About Transfer Students?
Why Mechanisms? [Video]
Why did Elon professor Joel Karty decide to author a textbook organized by mechanisms? Prof. Karty talks about how his frustration with teaching from a traditional, functional-group organized textbook spurred him to reorganize his course and to write his book. What does it mean to be mechanistically organized book? What advantages does a mechanistic organization … Continue reading Why Mechanisms? [Video]
On Nomenclature
In my first few years as a professor, I taught nomenclature in the way it was organized in the textbook I was using at the time—i.e., according to functional group. Each time my class began a new functional group chapter, I would teach aspects of nomenclature associated with that functional group. Indeed, I found this … Continue reading On Nomenclature
Nomenclature As An Independent Topic
When I first saw nomenclature presented as four independent chapters, instead of as small sections within functional group chapters, I reacted negatively. Who wants to teach multiple topics in nomenclature in one class period? Shouldn’t students be exposed to the material over time, developing their skills incrementally, similar to what occurs in a language class? … Continue reading Nomenclature As An Independent Topic
A Story Worth Telling
I have been teaching organic chemistry at Jefferson Community & Technical College (JCTC) in Louisville (KT) since 1994. Although we are an open-enrollment institution, with a class size of thirty students or less, the chemistry classes at JCTC resemble those at a small liberal-arts college. I met Joel Karty in 2005 at a conference. We … Continue reading A Story Worth Telling
Functional Groups, Mechanisms, and Memorization
I began teaching organic chemistry some 11 years ago at Elon University, a moderately sized liberal arts school in central North Carolina. Like many professors just starting out, I was eager and committed to my students’ success. I knew that mechanisms were the key to this success because focusing on mechanisms worked for me as … Continue reading Functional Groups, Mechanisms, and Memorization