Many high schools, two-year colleges, and universities offer a conceptual physics course for non-science students who have to take a basic science course. The students often enter the course unmotivated and may eventually withdraw. So, how do we make the course interesting enough for these students to gain the knowledge we desire and, more…

The physical science curriculum design at Georgia Gwinnett College requires a theme-based course (lecture and group work, and laboratory) for nonscience majors. Increased student engagement is anticipated when science topics are taught in the context of a topic of which students can select during course registration. This paper presents the course…

Most American colleges and universities offer gateway biology courses to meet the needs of three undergraduate audiences: biology and related science majors, many of whom will become biomedical researchers; premedical students meeting medical school requirements and preparing for the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT); and students completing…

A liberal education curriculum requires discipline-specific courses that develop intellectual and practical skills. With this promise of development, it is crucial that instruction focuses on content knowledge as well as the thinking patterns associated with the content. In chemistry, scientific reasoning is one such skill that students should…

A first year non-majors biology course, with an enrollment of around 440 students, has been redesigned from a course of traditional content and teaching style to one that emphasizes biological concepts in current global issues and incorporates active learning strategies. We were informed by the education literature incorporating many aspects of…

The importance of educating people to live in our increasingly science- and technology-rich world is well established. Many institutions require students to take one or more courses in science. Some nonscience majors are intrigued by this opportunity, while others are less inclined to take science classes. This project used a mixed-methods…

Although nonmajors were relegated to "watered-down" versions of majors' courses, recent attempts to relate science to the interests of the "antiscience" students have become more common. Such a course is described, developed as part of an integrated two-year general education program. (JN)

Describes a course, "Exercise Physiology and Biochemistry," for nonscience majors attracted to athletics. Outlines the lecture and laboratories combined with the lecture. Provides programs for daily exercise and weight training. (YP)

Provides an overview of a one-semester course in rocks and minerals for non-geology majors taught at Pittsburg State University. Includes information involving the methodology and content of the course, equipment needed, textbook selection, and general impressions of the course. (DS)

Described is a course for nonscience majors that incorporates science and technology. Presented is a curriculum model for developing technological literacy which includes applied math, personal impacts, applied science, societal impacts, and technological systems and concepts. (KR)

Described are chemistry and physics courses at several colleges as applications of the New Liberal Arts program for nonscience majors. The major themes of the program and several examples of this approach are discussed. (CW)

Discussed is the idea that scientific illiteracy among scientists lies at the heart of the problems with undergraduate science education. Included is a description of a science literacy course for nonmajors and a proposed list of the most important ideas underlying science. (KR)

Discusses a questionnaire sent to 763 Society for College Science Teaching members to identify problems of teaching nonmajors. Notes the questionnaire had a high return rate. Lists the eight major problems: post negative experiences; motivation; what to teach; abstractions; how to introduce relevance; staying power; inquiry material; and…

To solve the twin problems of a projected shortfall of science workers and general science illiteracy in the United States, many educators have proposed a massive restructuring of the curriculum and pedagogy of elementary and secondary school science. This resarch suggests that science eudcators focus on such issues as course design, teaching and…