The Use of “Contexts” as a Challenge for the Chemistry Curriculum: Its successes and the need for further development and understanding

Abstract

In this paper we reflect on the experiences and results of the development and implementation of context‐based chemistry education. This development is discussed with respect to five challenges defined for chemistry curricula (Gilbert, 2006 Gilbert, J. K. 2006. On the Nature of “Context” in Chemical Education. International Journal of Science Education, 28(9): 957–976. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar] ). Five context‐based approaches were selected that will provide the data for this study (Bennett & Lubben, 2006 Bennett, J. and Lubben, F. 2006. Context‐based Chemistry: the Salters approach. International Journal of Science Education, 28(9): 999–1015. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar] ; Bulte, Westbroek, De Jong, & Pilot, 2006 Bulte, A. M. W. , Westbroek, H. B. , de Jong, O. and Pilot, A. 2006. A Research Approach to Designing Chemistry Education using Authentic Practices as Contexts. International Journal of Science Education, 28(9): 1063–1086. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar] ; Hofstein & Kesner, 2006 Hofstein, A. and Kesner, M. 2006. Industrial Chemistry and School Chemistry: Making chemistry studies more relevant. International Journal of Science Education, 28(9): 1017–1039. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar] ; Parchmann, Gräsel, Baer, Nentwig, Demuth, Ralle, & the ChiK Project Team, 2006 Parchmann, I. , Gräsel, C. , Baer, A., Nentwig, P. , Demuth, R. , Ralle, B. and the Chik Project Group . 2006. “Chemie im Kontext”: A symbiotic implementation of a context‐based teaching and learning approach. International Journal of Science Education, 28(9): 1041–1062. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar] ; Schwartz, 2006 Schwartz, A. T. 2006. Contextualised Chemistry Education: The American experience. International Journal of Science Education, 28(9): 977–998. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar] ). These approaches have been presented using a model to represent the spiral development of an ideal curriculum until the experienced and attained curriculum (Goodlad, 1979 Goodlad, J. 1979. Curriculum Inquiry: The study of Curriculum Practice, New York, , USA: McGraw‐Hill. [Google Scholar] ; Van den Akker, 1998 Van den Akker, J. 1998. “The Science Curriculum: Between ideals and outcomes”. In International Handbook of Science Education, Edited by: Fraser, B. and Tobin, K. 421–447. Dordrecht, , The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Press. [Crossref] [Google Scholar] ). For each of the five approaches we analysed their contribution to the five curricular challenges, the essential characteristics of the outcomes and products, the conditions that were fostering and hindering the development, the design principles, the tools and the procedures used. The outcomes of the analysis are related to Gilbert’s criteria for the ‘use of contexts’ in chemistry education. This leads the identification of priorities as new hypotheses and challenges that set the future agenda for systematic curriculum development of context‐based chemistry education.