In my mind, enolate chemistry is one of the highlights of the second-semester organic chemistry course. Granted, the list of named enolate-based reactions (Aldol, Claisen, Michael, Robinson, etc.) can be daunting to students. Nevertheless, the importance of enolate chemistry in biochemical processes (glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, fatty acid biosynthesis), as well as in the synthesis of compounds … Continue reading Demystifying Enolate Chemistry
Making Backward Mechanism Arrows An Endangered Species
I’ve just finished grading the first exam for my Organic II course and I’ve experienced something I never have before. Of the more than 50 students that took my Organic I course last semester, none of them drew a single mechanism arrow in the wrong direction [1]. Yes, some of these students did get parts … Continue reading Making Backward Mechanism Arrows An Endangered Species
Three Lessons from Student Exams
The advantages of Joel’s approach surfaced in the second semester of the first year I taught a mechanistically organized course while using Joel’s manuscript instead of a traditional textbook. Student experience on exams demonstrated to me three points: I had unwittingly expected students to memorize organic chemistry instead of think mechanistically; the focus on mechanisms … Continue reading Three Lessons from Student Exams
The Benefits of a Mechanistically Organized Book When Teaching a 2-cycle Approach
Two-cycle organic chemistry is a pedagogical approach that has gained in popularity over the last couple decades. It’s a rather simple idea: The first semester course is treated as something of a survey, dealing primarily with the fundamentals, whereas the second semester revisits many of the same topics from the first semester, but treating them … Continue reading The Benefits of a Mechanistically Organized Book When Teaching a 2-cycle Approach