4 Reasons I Don't Teach the Atom's First Approach to Chemistry

I like to say that I teach demographic-based chemistry. When I begin teaching a new set of students I look at the area I live in and assess the demographics of those students.  When I first started teaching I was teaching in a RURAL area, where government subsidies where high and the value of education was low.

Because of that experience, I decided I didn’t like the atoms first approach. (If you don’t know what atoms first means, just click here for the atom’s first summary blog post.)
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Here’s why I don’t teach atoms first.

#1 It Terrifies Students Who Were Already Scared

Students go into chemistry hearing horror stories about how hard it is. Nothing confirms those nightmares faster than starting them off within the first 2 months by teaching quantum chemistry.

The deep secrets of the atom are fascinating for those of us in chemistry and physics. But remember, we are trying to 1) provide a general education to help that student be a productive member of society and 2) spark an interest in science.

If we start them off with deep intricacies of completely intangible chemical topics, you lose half of your chemistry class without even trying.
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Think about it. Electron configuration, spdf, and orbitals have no practical application for students. They see an epic waste of time unless you are going to college or going to be a physical chemist. 

#2 It Doesn’t Put the Most Practical Chemistry First

In my opinion, students need to learn the most practical chemistry first. Topics that will be 1) familiar and 2) things they can use. So, teaching them to name compounds is very practical.

I want my students to be able to go home and read the back of the shampoo bottle and say to themselves, “It looked scary before chemistry, but now I know that sodium chloride is just table salt.”
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This prevents them from becoming ranting and raving lunatics on the internet about chemicals that really might not be all that bad.

#3 It Hasn’t Been Widely Tested in Non-University Classrooms

The papers I was able to read about why the atom’s first theory became popular was based on implementation at the university level in California.
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That was a completely different academic level and demographic than you and I are teaching.

#4 Teach a Demographic First Chemistry

Take a second to think about your students. Think about their background. Are they financially stable? On government subsidies? Did their parents attend college? Does the community value education?
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When I started teaching I developed a lot of my resources for students who grew up in low-income areas, who’s parents probably didn’t have a college education, and who’s community didn’t see the value in education.

When you take that type of background into account, it is easy to see why many students give up.  They hear about these orbital things that are inside an atom somewhere that you have to put electrons in. Or maybe it was a shell? Subshell? Oh well….The next topic might be easier, they think.

Teach for YOUR Students

Above all, teach to your students. If you are a mainly a physics teacher who got stuck teaching chemistry this year, then yeah, I get why you might teach the atoms first approach with all it’s physics concepts that come first. Just remember, this is chemistry, and though they overlap, students should leave your classrooms at the end of the year knowing chemistry is practical, useful, and not scary.
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Play around with the order of what you teach when. Imagine your students understanding chemistry more than ever. Of course, I believe that comes from teaching more traditionally, but I’ll leave the final word up to you.

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