Introduction to Systems Thinking for the Chemistry Education Community

• Published in: Journal of chemical education Vol. 96; no. 12; pp. 2720 - 2729
• Main Authors: Orgill, MaryKay, York, Sarah, MacKellar, Jennifer
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Easton American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc 10.12.2019; Division of Chemical Education, Inc; American Chemical Society
• Subjects: Chemistry; Chemists; Climate change; Cognition; Decision Making; Education; Global Approach; Holistic Approach; Organic chemistry; Poverty; Public Policy; Reductionism; Science education; Science Instruction; Scientific Research; Sustainability; Systems Approach; Teaching Methods; History/Philosophy; Problem Solving/Decision Making; Learning Theories; Systems Thinking; General Public
• ISSN: 0021-9584; 1938-1328
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.9b00169

Within recent history, both science research and science education have been largely reductionist in perspective. While the reductionist approach has resulted in a significant increase in our knowledge of the natural world and in great technological advances, it is not sufficient for addressing global world challenges, such as sustainability, pollution, climate change, and poverty. We, as members of the Systems Thinking in Chemistry Education (STICE) project, argue that for science in general, and chemistry in specific, to continue to advance and for citizens to be prepared to participate knowledgeably and democratically in science-related policy decisions, the reductionist approaches that are commonly used in chemistry research and chemistry education must be complemented with a more holistic approach. Systems thinking is such an approach. This article discusses the historical development, describes the key characteristics, and presents some skills and competencies associated with systems thinking. Our intention is to provide chemical educators with enough basic information about systems thinking that they can consider why and how such an approach might be applied in the education of both future chemists and future global citizens.