Organic Chemistry is the most interesting and easy to learn subject of all the sciences. However a lot of students find it daunting. The fear of Organic chemistry pervades from a lack of understanding of the subject which itself stems from a incorrect approach to learning the subject.
There are two basic steps in learning organic chemistry – Reasoning and Practice. In my experience of twenty years teaching chemistry, I have come across a lot of students and they have done very well for themselves by just following the above steps. Some of the basic considerations that go into learning chemistry are as follows:
1.   Organic Chemistry s Not Tough. Organic chemistry is not tough at all. It is one of the most systematic sciences. This subject needs more practice and if you are comfortable in writing and identification of compounds from different structural notations, I am sure that it will provide you with a good start. Remember that 40 percent of organic chemistry is done if you are good at identification of structural formulae or writing the structures.
2.   Don’t Just Read It – Practice It. – You can clear your concepts only by doing questions. You need to do minimum 10-20 different questions from every concept in order to master it. For example, Carbocations concept governs the preferred product formation in many a reactions. Every book has a detailed explanation of the meaning and stability of the carbocations. Understanding the concept of order of stability is very simple and straightforward, However the problem occurs when you start to apply the concepts to the problem. Identification of different types of carbocations becomes easy only after you have practiced different questions based on it.
3.   Breakup Your Chapter Into Small Topics. For example, Writing Lewis Structures, Resonance, Tautomerism etc. You need not cram the language given in the book, Read the topics thoroughly to understand them. For example in the resonance topics, there are many do:s and don’t:s. Do not cram them because you will not achieve anything by doing so. What is important is to practice the rules by doing questions based on the notes. You can rest assured that no professor would ask you to list out the rules during the exam – but applications of the rules forms the favorite questions of many a professors. They may also appear in the True / False statements but they can be attempted very well if the topic has been understood well by you.
4.   Understanding The Organic Reactions To Master Them. Organic reactions can only be mastered by understanding them. Every atom behaves  in a reaction with a strong reason. It is therefore important to understand the reason behind every reaction. For example, in the case of Markovnikov’s rule , you may try to memorize it – you may also succeed in learning it by heart. However you will find it very difficult to retain it in the long run. However if you have learnt along with it with the reasoning for the stability of the carbocation, believe me you will hold it in your memory for a long long time.
5.   Master The Reactions By Practicing With Different Examples. My advice is to practice at least ten examples from each reaction in order to master it. For example consider the reaction for reduction of alkene by using a metal catalyst. If you practice 10 different examples of the reaction, the reaction will get engraved in your memory as a cis addition of Hydrogen on the double bond. Any time later when you come across this reaction, believe me, the reaction will snap back to you right away.
6.   Exceptions Or Awkward Behaviors In organic chemistry, like in every part of life, there are a few exceptions or awkward behaviors of some of the molecules.- Thank God there are only a handful of them. You will find every book provides a detailed explanation for their exceptional behavior. Just understand the reasoning behind it and the exception will no longer appear a exception to you.
In the end, I can sum up all my teaching experience in Organic Chemistry in a single sentence:
LEARN ORGANIC CHEMISTRY WITH PRACTICE AND REASONING AND YOU WILL FIND IT TO BE THE EASIEST SUBJECT OF ALL.
Undoubtedly, Chemistry is the most interesting of all science subjects. However a lot of students go in to a tizzy after one look at the chemical formulae - probably due to a fear of the unknown. Learning Chemistry has to be done in a organized manner to derive maximum benefit from it and a random approach to learning is often the root cause of fear of Chemistry. The subject follows scientific manner and after learning the parts, one finds the pieces falling into place, fitting well into each other.
Understanding chemistry has become even more simpler, fun and faster with the use of online learning. A number of times, understanding the three dimensional aspects of atoms used to be difficult earlier. However now the power of computer based techniques can be harnessed to create interactive tutorials which make understanding Chemistry much simpler. Learning Chemistry Online is now easier, more fun, enjoyable and very interesting.
The Chemistry Tutors however still play a major part in the learning of Chemistry. It is a fact that if one could study with the books and the other materials, there would be no need for tutors. However a good tutor remains invaluable to get a insight into the subject. It is a tutor who can plug the gaps in knowledge to make a complete understanding of the subject. With the advent of online tutoring, the online tutors are much more affordable and flexible compared to the face-to-face tutors and as effective. In fact, the Online tutors complimented with online learning aids make the best combination for success in Chemistry.
The Basics of Chemistry. The first step in learning chemistry must start with learning about the building block of the substances ie the atom itself. Before proceeding ahead, the student must completely understand the structure of atom, the way the electrons, protons and neutrons are arranged and how they affect the properties of substances. Learning about the atoms can be ideally achieved by going over the animated tutorials, which are available easily on the internet.
The next logical step is moving on to Periodic Table which gives distribution of the elements and a complete insight into their Chemical and Physical behavior. I will give a example here – the Sodium (Na) atom has 11 electrons. If one looks at its electronic configuration which is 2-8-1, following the Octet rule, Sodium can lose one electron – this makes it a metal. The same analogy is applicable to the other elements of the periodic table which can lose electrons. Thus one simple concept is applicable to a number of elements of the Periodic Table and can be used to predict their metallic and non metallic nature. From the periodic table itself, one can learn how to write chemical formulae. Once that is done, its easy to write Chemical equations and balance them.
It has been my experience that a majority of the students are not able to understand the Periodic Table completely by themselves which affects their further learning of Chemistry. This is where the services of a tutor prove invaluable. Hence it is imperative that the gaps in knowledge be filled in by interacting with a tutor.
Learning Advanced Chemistry. While I will not attempt to give the topics and various aspects to be studied in advanced Chemistry here, it is obviously clear that Advanced Chemistry delves further into depths of Chemistry. Hence sustained efforts to learn Chemistry and understand it well become more and more important. For advanced chemistry, the learning by Tutorials and reinforced by interaction with tutors must be supplemented with attempting quizzes on the subject.
The three basic steps in learning advanced chemistry is as follows -
- Understand the topic fully by the tutorials.
- identify the gaps in knowledge and interact with a Chemistry Tutor to assimilate the topic.
- Attempt maximum quizzes on the subject to test yourself on the understanding of the topic. These quizzes in chemistry are available aplenty on the internet.
In my experience, this attempting of the quizzes is the most important and often neglected aspect of learning. Solving the questions brings forth the mastery for each aspect of chemistry. While attempting the questions, the gaps in knowledge are identified which can then be bridged with reasoning – Once a chain of reasoning has been developed, similar reasoning would be applicable at a number of places. Ideally this should be done with the aid of a Chemistry Tutor who can help in clearing questions and bridging the gaps in knowledge. The objective questions also help to prepare for the various exams which are based on similar pattern.
Happy learning – May you all succeed in your endeavors.
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