Turn headlines into chemistry lessons

Students can find school chemistry abstract and disconnected from their experiences, especially when teachers stick rigidly to curriculum content. Linking chemistry to current events can make it feel more relevant.

Turning to turbulent news in your teaching could your learners’ improve understanding of the economic and environmental effects of chemistry and the importance of sustainability. It benefits both students and science teachers, particularly those early on in their career. It makes abstract concepts tangible and helps build confidence in their subject matter.

Use global instability as the hook

Recent global instability provides interesting links to many areas of the chemistry curriculums. Sanctions on Russian oil due to war in Ukraine, and blockages to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, highlight the important of crude oil to the global economy. About a fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait, so even small disruptions can have huge effects, highlighting the vulnerability of global chemical supply chains.

Conflict around the Persian Gulf has affected chemical plants using crude oil or natural gas as raw materials, while stoppages at those making ammonia and urea have hit the supply and prices of fertilisers. Hydrogen production has also been affected. Also, 30% of the world’s helium is produced in this region. A supply shortage could cause impact industries like semiconductor production. However, this turmoil provides a springboard for looking at sustainability and reducing reliance on crude oil.

Where to use current events

These fit naturally into schemes of work when teaching crude oil and petrochemicals. Industrial processes such as Haber-Bosch depend on energy, so production could be affected by supply changes.

Fertilisers are central in chemistry equilibrium topics across secondary and post-16 chemistry courses, with the Haber process for producing ammonia the go-to example. But there’s an environmental cost. The process uses about one percent of the world’s total energy supply and is responsible for a similar share of global carbon dioxide emissions. Greener sources of hydrogen, such as water electrolysis, could reduce this.

Use the Haber process to pose questions that link recent disruption of ammonia production to key curriculum content:

• Why might a Haber process plant be situated near to where natural gas is extracted or a coast?
  Answer: Direct access to seaborne raw materials.

• Why might these chemical plants be a target for a drone attack?
  Answer: Economic disruption – crippling facilities like these can drive up the cost of crop production and food.

• Could the Haber process be made more sustainable?
  Answer: Yes! By shifting to green ammonia production and away from fossil fuels.

As teachers, you can link daily news to reaction conditions by framing textbook concepts around global sustainability and industrial economics. For example, global fertiliser shortages. Ask students why industrial ammonia production relies on compromised reaction conditions. Or start a debate as to why lower temperatures might increase yield.

We are not just teaching curriculum content, but how chemistry relates to the world

Apply current events to work schemes

This fits naturally when teaching crude oil and petrochemicals. The industrial conditions and economics of the Haber process and fertiliser production depend hugely on energy prices. There are also links to more general parts of secondary chemistry specifications, such as using resources, finite resources and life cycle assessments. How would the latter be affected by turmoil, increased cost and disruption to resources? The attacks on desalination plants show the importance of making water potable. Start with a news hook, move into questioning, then link to curriculum content.

Adapt the above to suit your topic or class. If using open questions, encourage students to give detailed answers linking different ideas together. It is useful to add these questions and other suitable activities to your schemes of work.

What outcomes to expect

You may see greater student engagement when pupils realise that what they’re learning is linked to everyday life. They will be more appreciative of the importance of crude oil and related chemicals, such as plastics and fertilisers, and gain a better understanding of the cost and importance of energy to modern life. Students benefit from developing the ability to connect scientific knowledge to real-world contexts. It helps them give better answers to evaluate extended-response questions.

We are not just teaching curriculum content, but how chemistry relates to the world. This can be positive or negative. Conflict and turmoil can help students understand the importance of raw materials like crude oil and help them realise the importance of finding alternative, more sustainable solutions. Using current news doesn’t require rewriting schemes of work. Small changes – such as starting with a news story or adding a short discussion – can help learners realise how chemistry shapes the world around them and why it matters.

Embracing these changes could make chemistry more meaningful for students without impacting your teaching style. It’s a win:win.