Is Chemistry Required in High School in Delaware?
According to the Delaware High School Graduation Requirements, chemistry is not a mandatory course. Students are required to complete a total of three (3) science credits, however, the state only mandates that one of those credits be in biology, which is usually taught in 10th grade. Delaware’s high school science standards do briefly touch on chemistry-related topics when covering physical science under the NGSS format, such as:
HS-PS1-1: Use the periodic table as a model to predict the relative properties of elements based on the patterns of electrons in the outermost energy level of atoms.
HS-PS1-2: Construct and revise an explanation for the outcome of a simple chemical reaction based on the outermost electron states of atoms, trends in the periodic table, and knowledge of the patterns of chemical properties. (1Ai, ii, iii)*
HS-PS1-5: Apply scientific principles and evidence to provide an explanation about the effects of changing the temperature or concentration of the reacting particles on the rate at which a reaction occurs. (1a)
HS-PS1-7: Use mathematical representations to support the claim that atoms, and therefore mass, are conserved during a chemical reaction. (1Aiii, iv-conceptual)
HS-LS1-6: Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for how carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from sugar molecules may combine with other elements to form amino acids and/or other large carbon-based molecules.
HS-LS1-5: Use a model to illustrate how photosynthesis transforms light energy into stored chemical energy.
HS-LS1-7: Use a model to illustrate that cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen molecules are broken and the bonds in the new compounds are formed resulting in a net transfer of energy.