Experimental Work in Science Education from Green Chemistry Perspectives: A Systematic Literature Review Using PRISMA

Vesna Ferk Savec,Katarina Mlinarec

doi:10.3390/su132312977

Abstract

Experimental work is an important component of science subjects at all educational levels. The implication of green chemistry ideas indicated the need for optimization of traditional experimental work by implementing green chemistry principles to promote sustainable development. The aim of the study is to present findings from a systematic literature review on the use of experimental work in science education from green chemistry perspectives in the literature from 1995 to 2020. Thus, three electronic databases were reviewed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA) guidelines. The literature search identified a total of 1199 papers from Web of Science (N = 419), Scopus (N = 578), and Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) (N = 202). After applying inclusion/exclusion criteria, 263 papers were obtained and then analyzed in further detail. The findings highlighted trends in the integration of green chemistry principles into experimental work from primary to tertiary education levels and identified a literature gap, as well as the challenges and the possibilities for future development. The review outlined various opportunities for active learning within experimental work from green chemistry perspectives using a range of methods, with a particular focus on practical, hands-on, and laboratory activities.

Highlights

Never have so many students been absent from school simultaneously as during 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic [1]
The first identified paper that focused on experimental work from green chemistry perspectives was published in 2000 in the Journal of Chemical Education and addressed “an environmentally benign synthesis of adipic acid” aimed at organic instructors [67]
This finding is in agreement with Marques et al [68], who noted that almost half of the scientific papers on the wider topic of green chemistry education in the Web of Science (WoS) were published in the Journal of Chemical Education

Summary

Introduction

Never have so many students been absent from school simultaneously as during 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic [1]. The integration of sustainability and green chemistry in the education of future chemists and chemical engineers has been recognized as crucial to secure students a good position in the future job market and in their social roles [13,14,15,16,17]. This trend continued during the COVID-19 pandemic [18,19]. Green chemistry topics have rarely been covered at the primary [20,21] and secondary [22,23] education levels to date [24]

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Methods

Results

Conclusion