A decade of first year sustainable chemistry: Student success through a lens of sector-wide change
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56433/dy0qj196Keywords:
Education for Sustainable Development, Co-creation, information literacy, Student successAbstract
Our Sustainable Chemistry module was established in 2013 and has evolved significantly, adapting to the changing perceptions of what sustainability means to and requires of education, and the shifting educational paradigms that have characterized teaching in Higher Education in the UK including transnational degrees, distance learning, decolonize the curriculum and co-creation, the rise of active learning approaches, the surging skills agenda, and generative AI.
In this vignette we reflect on our approach to seeing change as an opportunity to enhance our students’ transition into higher education while maintaining core values that focus on student success. We will also briefly share our insights into where next for a module like this and consider the new challenges before us.
References
Chesworth, S. (2019). Escape [to] the library: Reframing the library induction. Journal of Academic Development and Education, 11. https://doi.org/10.21252/aw5m-sp38
de Freitas Netto, S. V., Sobral, M. F. F., Ribeiro, A. R. B., & Soares, G. R. D. L. (2020). Concepts and forms of greenwashing: a systematic review. Environmental Sciences Europe, 32(1)10.1186/s12302-020-0300-3
Galloway, K. W. (2017). Undergraduate perceptions of value: degree skills and career skills. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 18(3), 435–44. https://doi.org/10.1039/c7rp00011a
Goddard, J. (2023). Hallucinations in ChatGPT: A Cautionary Tale for Biomedical Researchers. The American Journal of Medicine, 136(11), 1059–1060. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2023.06.012
Haxton, K. J. (2021). A digital escape room highlighting campus sustainability Initiatives. https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/digital-escape-room-highlighting-campus-sustainability-initiatives
Hubbard, K. E., Dunbar, S. D., Peasland, E. L., Poon, J., & Solly, J. E. (2022). How do readers at different career stages approach reading a scientific research paper? A case study in the biological sciences. International Journal of Science Education, Part B. 12(4) 328-344 https://doi.org/10.1080/21548455.2022.2078010
McGarvey, D., Beaumont, K., Capel, N., Hancock, L., Haxton, K., Hollamby, M., Jones, R., & Plana, D. (2020). Developing the Scientific Reporting Skills of Chemistry Students through Dialogic Assessment-feedback Cycles and Use of Journal Articles as Paradigms of Professional Practice. On Your Marks: Learner-Focused Feedback Practices and Feedback Literacy, 47-60. https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/your-marks-learner-focused-feedback-practices-and-feedback-literacy
Microsoft. (2025). Copilot (GPT-4) [Large Language Model]. https://copilot.microsoft.com/
Norrgran Engdahl, J., Bignert, A., Jones, B., Athanassiadis, I., Bergman, Å, & Weiss, J. M. (2017). Cats’ Internal Exposure to Selected Brominated Flame Retardants and Organochlorines Correlated to House Dust and Cat Food. Environmental Science & Technology, 51(5), 3012–3020. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.6b05025
OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (March 2024 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat
Overton, T. L., & Randles, C. A. (2015). Beyond problem-based learning: using dynamic PBL in chemistry. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 16(2), 251–259. https://doi.org/10.1039/c4rp00248b
Rhead, A. (2019). The trouble with academic reading: exposing hidden threshold concepts through academic reading retreats. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (15) https://journal.aldinhe.ac.uk/index.php/jldhe/article/view/502
Rhead, A., & Little, C. (2020). Editorial 17.2: Becoming well read: Charting the complexities of academic reading and navigating the reading journeys of undergraduate and postgraduate students. Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 17(2) https://doi.org/10.53761/1.17.2.1
Rieckmann, M. (2017). Education for sustainable development goals: Learning objectives. UNESCO publishing. https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/education-sustainable-development-goals-learning-objectives
Waller, R. I, Miller, G. & Schultz, D. M. (2019). Information literacy: benefits, challenges and practical strategies. Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Geography (pp. 151–166). Edward Elgar Publishing.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Katherine J. Haxton, Richard J. Darton
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Journal of Perspectives in Applied Academic Practice has made best effort to ensure accuracy of the contents of this journal, however makes no claims to the authenticity and completeness of the articles published. Authors are responsible for ensuring copyright clearance for any images, tables etc which are supplied from an outside source.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
