Today I received two independent inquiries from people who wanted to become biochemistry lecturers. Both had decided that they were more interested in teaching than in research. One was looking for a doctoral program in biochemistry education, and the other had a Ph.D. and wanted a teaching postdoc wherein he could gain experience and be mentored in educational theory and practice. Both wanted my advice. I suspect that they both found my response discouraging.
As far as I know, there are no Ph.D. programs in biochemistry education. There are a handful of universities that offer doctoral degrees in chemistry education. The culture of academic science virtually requires that to teach postsecondary science, one has to demonstrate competence in the discipline with an advanced degree based on laboratory research. Furthermore, continued employment as a teacher at universities and many colleges often depend on continuing success as a researcher.
Although laboratory training is certainly a desirable prerequisite for teaching advanced-level science courses, the presumption that it is sufficient to become an effective classroom teacher is clearly false. Our culture does not hold instructional performance to the same high standard as it does research performance. Many university faculty members have limited prior teaching experience and little or no formal pedagogical preparation. Yet they can be promoted and become famous while paying little attention to teaching excellence. Careful studies show that it is a myth that research and good teaching are inextricably linked [1]. Some professors are great teachers and others are not. There is little correlation. There is no doubt that research can enhance teaching, but there is little evidence that it happens much in practice.
Another myth is that every college or university teacher can do well at both teaching and research [2]. A few can, but more excel at one or the other. I ask, ''why don't we formally recognize this and create competitive career tracts for good teachers?'' To some extent, this is done by hiring part-time instructors or nontenure track faculty. However, these positions are considered second class,