This blog post is a book review of an open text book from OpenStax by Simona Marincean, assistant professor of Chemistry at UM-Dearborn. Open Educational Resources (OER) are publicly accessible materials created purposely to be shared free of charge and can be used for teaching, learning, and research. There are several types of OER licenses that allow users to own and in some cases modify those resources. Here on the Hub Blog we support the publishing of OER review posts as part of our support of OER in the Hub for Teaching and Learning Resources and in support of our campus’ OER grants program.
Organic Chemistry (10th Edition)
Author: John E. McMurry (professor Emeritus Cornell University)
Source: OpenStax
URL: https://openstax.org/details/books/organic-chemistry/
The Organic Chemistry, 10th edition by J. E. McMurry is geared for students with interests in chemistry, biology, biochemistry, and health related careers that are required to take one year of organic chemistry. This is an OpenStax edition of the textbook that follows the previous printed ones. In terms of content the coverage of the material aligns well with the required standards with concise and comprehensive explanations of the topics. The figures are clear and enhance students’ learning. There are few topics that would benefit from more in-depth material like Molecular Orbital Theory for instance. The amount problems available at the end of the chapter is appropriate and diverse in complexity and difficulty range while following closely the chapter content. Additionally, the book offers real-life examples for the key concepts introduced in the chapters. The material sequence is structured based on classes of chemical compounds rather than chemical reactions, which at times may not be as intuitive as I would like. The chapters can be downloaded as word files and modified for content at which point no updates would be received from OpenStax.
One of the strengths of the book is its modular structure that allows for a very easy integration in Canvas. Essentially, modules dedicated to each chapter are created automatically. Each module includes the textbook chapter as well as a power point file that contains all figures from that chapter that can be used by instructors in their lectures or as resources for their original lecture presentations. This structure allows the instructors to change the order or remove a chapter that they choose not to cover.
The textbook comes with a problem test bank that can be included in Canvas, a student solution manual, a student time management guide, and a diversity and inclusion package for the first ten chapters (a novel approach that links concepts and text) that are all free and contribute to student enhanced learning. The book can be linked to a homework system, such as Aktiv Learning, that can be purchased as an institutional license.
In my opinion this textbook can be an excellent source in an organic chemistry course with an audience composed primarily of pre-health undergraduates. Students majoring in chemistry will require additional resources or a book with more in-depth material.
Simona Marincean
Associate Professor of Chemistry and Chair of the Chemistry Discipline at the University of Michigan Dearborn.
Image by Gerd Altman from Pixabay