Phosphorus – a “political” element for transdisciplinary chemistry education

The paper describes a curriculum innovation project for integrating the sustainability-oriented socio-scientific issue of phosphate recovery into undergraduate chemistry education. Justification for the topic is derived from the importance of responsible use of phosphates as fertilizers for achievin...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Zowada Christian, Gulacar Ozcan, Siol Antje, Eilks Ingo
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: De Gruyter 2019-07-01
Series:Chemistry Teacher International
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1515/cti-2018-0020
Description
Summary:The paper describes a curriculum innovation project for integrating the sustainability-oriented socio-scientific issue of phosphate recovery into undergraduate chemistry education. Justification for the topic is derived from the importance of responsible use of phosphates as fertilizers for achieving some of the sustainable development goals issued by the United Nations in 2015, but also by the consideration of the phosphorus biochemical flow into the environment in the concept of the world’s planetary boundaries. Integration of the topic into undergraduate general chemistry was operated by a digital learning environment providing the base for a transdisciplinary approach towards the topic. Findings are reported from an implementation case in a research university in the USA.
ISSN:2569-3263