A number of recent policies have tried to improve science learning by increasing the number of science courses required for high school graduation or admission to higher education institutions. But it is highly unlikely that these mandates alone will materially affect the amount and quality of science education for students. Any effort to improve…

A two-semester second-year introductory organic chemistry sequence featuring one semester of accelerated organic chemistry followed by one semester of bioorganic chemistry is described. Assessment data collected over a six-year period reveal that such a course sequence can facilitate student mastery of fundamental organic chemistry in the first…