BA in Teaching of Chemistry

The major in Teaching of Chemistry is a joint program with the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development designed to prepare students to become chemistry teachers in public and private high schools. The curriculum encompasses all the basic fields of chemistry and provides the necessary coursework in secondary education as well as the student teaching experience for certification in teaching. Students pursuing this major may need to complete as many as 144 total credits for graduation with the BA. The current recommendation of both the Chemistry Department and the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development is that students interested in public and private high school teaching careers complete the Chemistry major, then pursue a master’s degree from Wheelock.

All students should refer to the Departmental Regulations section of the Chemistry Department page for important stipulations. NOTE: Students may not switch tracks in general or organic chemistry after the initial course in the sequence.

Learning Outcomes

Students will:

  • Demonstrate mastery of the foundational material of general chemistry in order to advance further into the traditional chemistry sub-disciplines of the curriculum (inorganic, organic, biochemistry, physical chemistry).
  • Learn to use and apply appropriate concepts and quantitative methods in all sub-disciplines of chemistry, both intellectually and experimentally.
  • Learn to integrate and apply a relevant body of knowledge to the evaluation of existing scientific studies, and to design studies to test specific hypotheses to address unsolved problems in the chemical and life sciences that benefit from expertise in chemistry.
  • Learn to use computers in data acquisition and processing, and to utilize appropriate software as a tool in data analyses.
  • Learn to employ modern literature search tools to locate and retrieve appropriate scientific information, and effectively communicate both orally and in writing about the processes of the chemical sciences as the result of scientific inquiry.
  • Follow the ethical practice of research, experimental interpretation, presentation, and application of research in both the instructional and research labs.
  • Learn to impart the above outcomes to their students in a secondary educational setting.
  • Be qualified to teach chemistry at the high school level.

Requirements

All BU undergraduate students, including both entering first-year and transfer students, will pursue coursework in the BU Hub, the University’s general education program that is integrated into the entire undergraduate experience. BU Hub requirements can be satisfied in a number of ways, including coursework in and beyond the major as well as through cocurricular activities. Students majoring in Teaching of Chemistry will ordinarily, through coursework in the major, satisfy BU Hub requirements in Quantitative Reasoning, Scientific and Social Inquiry, and most of the requirements in Communication and the Intellectual Toolkit. Remaining BU Hub requirements will be satisfied by selecting from a wide range of available courses outside the major or, in some cases, cocurricular experiences.

Unless noted otherwise, all required CAS courses are 4 credit hours; Wheelock courses are either 2 or 4 credits as noted. All required chemistry courses must be completed with a grade of C or higher.

Required Chemistry Courses

Majors complete coursework in general chemistry with quantitative analysis, organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, physical chemistry, biochemistry, and two courses in advanced laboratory, as follows:

  • CAS CH 111, 112 (or CH 109, 110, or CH 101, 102, 201, or CH 101, 116, 201)
  • CAS CH 211, 212 (or CH 203, 214, or CH 203, 204, 220, or CH 218, 214)
  • CAS CH 232
  • CAS CH 351
  • CAS CH 352
  • CAS CH 421
  • Two of four advanced laboratory courses: CAS CH 301, 303, 354, and 524

Note: CAS CH 201 and CH 220 are 2 credits. CAS CH 116 is 5 credits.

Required Related CAS Courses in Calculus and Physics

  • CAS CH 225 (or CAS MA 225 or MA 230)
  • CAS MA 123, 124 (MA 127 or MA 129 fulfills MA 123, 124 requirement)
  • CAS PY 211, 212 (or 241, 242, or 251, 252)

Required Wheelock College of Education & Human Development Courses

  • SED CT 534 A Practical Approach to Classroom Management (2 cr)
  • SED DS 502 Adolescent Development (2 cr)
  • SED ED 110/111 Introduction to Education/Education Lab (taken concurrently, 5 cr total)
  • SED ED 410, 412 Social Context of Education/Civic Context of Education (2 cr each)
  • SED ME 530 Equitable Pedagogies in STEM Education (2 cr)
  • SED SC 509 or 510 Student-Teaching Practicum: Science: 5–8 or SED SC 510 Student-Teaching Practicum: Science: 8–12 (8 cr each)
  • SED SC 570 Science Teaching Methods I (4 cr)
  • SED SC 572 Science Methods II: Teaching in the Science Disciplines (4 cr)
  • SED SD 576 Science Teaching Pre-Practicum (taken concurrently with SC 570, 2 cr)
  • SED SE 251 Special Education and Adolescents (2 cr)
  • SED TL 525 Teaching English Language Learners in Middle/High Schools (4 cr)

Honors in the Major

Requirements

  • CAS CH 401, CAS CH 402 Honors Research in Chemistry

Minimum 16 hours per week of experimental or theoretical research within a chemistry department, or approved research group outside the chemistry department undertaking research in the chemical sciences. An Honors thesis will be submitted at the end of the spring semester and defended before a committee of three faculty members. A grade of B or higher is required in CH 401 and CH 402 in order to graduate with Honors in Chemistry. An oral presentation at the Undergraduate Research Symposium at the end of the spring semester is also required.

Prereq: 3.0 overall GPA, 3.2 GPA in required major courses, and approval of Honors application by Undergraduate Programs Committee.