Interest within the chemistry education
community in incorporating
sustainability into chemistry education has converged on a systems
thinking approach, and efforts to implement this are ongoing. One
challenge to implementation is the different amenability to systems
thinking approaches of topics that are important in chemistry at the
secondary–tertiary interface. To identify low-hanging fruit,
we developed a repertory grid consisting of five poles mapped to elements
of systems thinking. Secondary and tertiary educators completed the
grid during workshops, to measure the amenability of 12 chemistry
topics that are important in both secondary and tertiary chemistry
education to teaching through systems thinking approaches. Three of
the 12 topics analyzed were considered highly amenable to systems
thinking approaches by both secondary and tertiary participants. The
level of teaching experience was found to be most significant in determining
a participant’s perception of amenability of topics. The relationship
of these topics to the curriculum structure at the secondary and tertiary
level is discussed.