Leveraging student feedback as an early adopter
Leveraging student feedback as an early adopter
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The challenge and opportunity:
The challenge and opportunity:
“My students seem confused and unsure when we try systems thinking. Maybe this approach isn’t working.”
“My students seem confused and unsure when we try systems thinking. Maybe this approach isn’t working.”
When introducing systems thinking, educators may observe that students initially struggle to articulate their understanding, make connections, or engage confidently with unfamiliar ways of thinking. This can be interpreted as a sign that the approach is not effective, particularly when compared to more familiar teaching methods where student responses are clearer or more immediate.
Early student responses to systems thinking often reflect productive struggle rather than failure. While students may initially find it challenging to express systems-level understanding, studies show that they frequently demonstrate increased curiosity, engagement, and interest, particularly when chemistry is connected to real-world issues such as sustainability, health, and the environment. Over time, many students come to value these opportunities to explore chemistry’s role in addressing complex, future-facing challenges.
practical Strategies for Instructors
practical Strategies for Instructors
1. Make student outcomes and satisfactions more visible
By making student outcomes and satisfactions more visible - such as increased engagement, improved critical thinking, student interest in systems thinking projects, efficacy of teaching from student evaluations - early adopters can help build a compelling case for systems thinking. These outcomes can be used to demonstrate to departments and administrations that systems thinking enhances cognitive and affective learning outcomes when added as a lens to core disciplinary goals.
2. Use systems thinking as a lens, not a replacement
Reframing systems thinking as a complementary lens rather than a replacement for existing pedagogies can help reduce perceived risk and get more buy-in from departments. When positioned this way, it aligns with current teaching practices while enriching them with broader context, integration, and relevance. See the Educator Attitude’s section: Understanding how Systems Thinking relates to other approaches.
3. Start small
Integrate systems thinking gradually—begin with one example, a unit, a case study, or an assignment. Also, feel free to adapt examples, case studies, or curricular resources already developed by others. This reduces preparation time and builds confidence through tested approaches.
4. Seek or build communities of practice
Connect with colleagues across institutions and through professional societies to help reduce the feeling of isolation. Engage with networks like the ACS Green Chemistry Institute and Beyond Benign’s GCTLC to access shared materials and collaborative learning opportunities.
What Research says
What Research says
Assaraf and Orion (2005) & Szozda et al (2022)
These studies in systems thinking in chemistry education indicate that students require time and scaffolding to develop the ability to identify relationships and reason across scales, meaning early difficulty is a normal part of the learning process.
Assaraf, O. B.-Z.; Orion, N. Development of System Thinking Skills in the Context of Earth System Education. J. Res. Sci. Teach. 2005, 42 (5), 518–560. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.20061.
Szozda, A. R.; Bruyere, K.; Lee, H.; Mahaffy, P. G.; Flynn, A. B. Investigating Educators’ Perspectives toward Systems Thinking in Chemistry Education from International Contexts. J. Chem. Educ. 2022, 99 (7), 2474–2483. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.2c00138.
Henderson et al (2011) & Preminger et al (2024)
This research on instructional change shows that educators are more likely to adopt new teaching approaches when they see clear, local evidence of positive student responses, such as increased engagement, interest, and participation.
When these student outcomes are made visible and shared with colleagues, they can become a powerful form of evidence that supports broader uptake and sustained change.
Henderson, C.; Beach, A.; Finkelstein, N. Facilitating Change in Undergraduate STEM Instructional Practices: An Analytic Review of the Literature. J. Res. Sci. Teach. 2011, 48 (8), 952–984. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.20439.
Preminger, L.; Hayes, K. N.; Bae, C. L.; O’Connor, D. Why Do Teachers Vary in Their Instructional Change during Science PD? The Role of Noticing Students in an Iterative Change Process. Sci. Educ. 2024, 108 (3), 701–733. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21853.
Freeman et al (2014)
This research on active learning shows that students often experience initial discomfort when engaging with unfamiliar approaches, but these experiences are associated with improved conceptual understanding and learning outcomes over time.
Freeman, S.; Eddy, S. L.; McDonough, M.; Smith, M. K.; Okoroafor, N.; Jordt, H.; Wenderoth, M. P. Active Learning Increases Student Performance in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 2014, 111 (23), 8410–8415. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1319030111.
Mahaffy et al (2019)
This study shows that when chemistry is connected to real-world and sustainability contexts, students report higher interest and perceived relevance, even when tasks are more cognitively demanding.
Mahaffy, P. G.; Matlin, S. A.; Holme, T. A.; MacKellar, J. Systems Thinking for Education about the Molecular Basis of Sustainability. Nat. Sustain. 2019, 2 (5), 362–370. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-019-0285-3.
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