Around the world in electrochemistry: a review of the electrochemistry curriculum in high schools

Abstract

Electrochemistry education of future researchers and citizens is crucial if we are to decarbonise economies and reach targets for net zero. In this paper, we take an overview of electrochemistry within school education. We used curriculum documents obtained from national and state education department websites and from local teachers, examples of assessments and insights from the chemistry education literature to evaluate the extent of electrochemistry education around the world. We found that there is a great deal of electrochemistry included in the intended curriculum for high schools although there is variability depending on how early students are able to specialise in a smaller number of subjects. A range of contexts are used to illustrate the key ideas including galvanic and electrolytic cells, electrolysis and analysis. There is generally constructive alignment between assessment items and the intended curriculum although in some cases assessment was more simplistic than the intended curriculum would suggest. The effectiveness of the taught curriculum is undermined by low teacher confidence in teaching electrochemistry especially more advanced concepts. Additionally, there are a number of misconceptions generated when students learn electrochemistry with some of these potentially arising from published resources such as textbooks. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10008-023-05548-0.

Does the Future Need for Batteries Present New Demands for Electrochemistry Content in General Chemistry?

“…2 Chemists and chemistry educators have long incorporated oxidation−reduction and electrochemistry in the curriculum of several courses. 3 For example, using batteries as an important application of this science has been a routine component of courses like General Chemistry. It has been argued, however, that such coverage falls short of helping students understand the practical importance of electrochemistry in its many uses in society.…”

“…Chemists and chemistry educators have long incorporated oxidation–reduction and electrochemistry in the curriculum of several courses . For example, using batteries as an important application of this science has been a routine component of courses like General Chemistry.…”