Over-reliance on technology puts chemistry students at risk of missing out on developing the “practical skill sets” that underpin the discipline, an expert has warned.
Tony Edge, president of the Chromatography Society, said students studying the field – which involves the separation of a mixture into its components – are too often taught to simply load a vial into a machine and press start, observing the process through a screen rather than engaging with its mechanics.
“If we’re not careful, we’re going to get rid of some very good science that underpins a lot of UK manufacturing,” Edge told Times Higher Education.
But other academics have disputed his claims, with University of Edinburgh lecturer in physical chemistry education, Ben Arenas, stressing that “the UK is still world class in its university chemistry provision”.
Edge, who has worked as a scientist at companies including AstraZeneca, is most concerned about the practice of chromatography – but believes the problem could be more widespread.
