From: DAVID <dakatz45**At_Symbol_Here**MSN.COM>
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Teaching Chemistry with a Historical Perspective
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 2015 08:00:04 -0700
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: BLU174-DS11FAA17989CC8A5EDAA766C57D0**At_Symbol_Here**phx.gbl
In-Reply-To
Demystify:
Hi Ralph,
I was fortunate to have a great History and Philosophy of Science Course as
an undergraduate in the 1960's. That course was taught by a young teacher
who was enthusiastic about the subject and focused on development of ideas with
a historical perspective, and some original readings, without resorting to
a list of names and dates. Unfortunately, such courses and
instructors were not valued by the college and that course (and the instructor)
did not last and was later dropped from the science major curriculum.
I have always taught with a historical perspective and have given a number
of papers on using history in teaching dating back to 1975. I believe that
it is important to understand how our modern concepts and theories
developed. Readings in the history of chemistry must, in my opinion, go
beyond sources that discuss and compare these ideas and to reading some of the
original papers by major scientists along with an understanding of the
social and political climates of their times. You may recall the excellent
books and TV series The Ascent of Man by Jacob Bronowski, and
Connections by James Burke. As I'm not aware of any compilation
of the environmental and safety aspects of much of the historical work, it
is up to the instructor to add that perspective.
You can access some historical information on my History of Chemistry web
page http://www.chymist.com/history.html with
additional sources compiled by Carmen Giunta at Le Moyne College. Carmen's
Classic Chemistry web page, which also lists a number of Internet
resources, is at https://web.lemoyne.edu/giunta/
David A.
Katz
Chemist, Educator, Expert Demonstrator, Science Communicator,
and Consultant Programs and workshops for teachers, schools,
museums, and the public 133 N. Desert Stream Dr. * Tucson, AZ
85745-2277 * USA voice/fax: (520) 624-2207 * email: dakatz45**At_Symbol_Here**msn..com
Visit my web site: http://www.chymist.com _________________________________________________________________________
I saw previews of the Marie Curie episode a few years ago and there
are a lot of opportunities to discuss the connection between the demonstrated
lab practices and the health impacts on her and her co-workers of the
chemistry she conducted.
- Ralph
Ralph Stuart, CIH,
CCHO Chemical Hygiene Officer Keene State College
The content of this page reflects the personal opinion(s) of the author(s) only, not the American Chemical Society, ILPI, Safety Emporium, or any other party. Use of any information on this page is at the reader's own risk. Unauthorized reproduction of these materials is prohibited. Send questions/comments about the archive to secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org. The maintenance and hosting of the DCHAS-L archive is provided through the generous support of Safety Emporium.