Climate change has the potential to push humans across the limits at which we can exist. Chemistry is essential in understanding the complexities of climate change, as many of the processes involve chemical relationships. Textbooks influence the development of course curricula and support instructors’ decision making, which can impact student understanding. This study examined the extent, type, and location of climate change content present in 24 undergraduate general chemistry textbooks (for STEM majors and nonmajors). Visualizing the Chemistry of Climate Change (VC3) served as the theoretical framework and basis for the codebook. Textbook items were considered to be codable instances if they linked to the core chemistry concepts outlined by VC3. Of the core chemistry concepts reviewed, gases were the most prevalent topic connected to climate change. Topics regarding organic chemistry and equilibrium concepts were the least frequent codable instances. The distribution of climate change content was also uneven among the sampled textbooks. Only three textbooks contained more than 100 codable instances, and three other books did not contain any climate change material. Most instances connecting climate change to chemistry appeared in peripheral regions of the books and not in the main text. Without available materials to connect core chemistry concepts with real-world issues such as climate change, instructors become burdened with developing their own content. Supplemental materials, such as VC3, can provide a bridge to climate change content deficits, but there is a need for textbook materials to be more effective at presenting the chemistry of climate change.

中文翻译：

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普通化学教材中的气候变化分析

气候变化有可能推动人类突破生存极限。化学对于理解气候变化的复杂性至关重要，因为许多过程都涉及化学关系。教科书影响课程的开发并支持教师的决策，从而影响学生的理解。本研究调查了 24 本本科普通化学教科书（针对 STEM 专业和非专业）中气候变化内容的范围、类型和位置。可视化气候变化化学（VC3）作为密码本的理论框架和基础。如果教科书项目与 VC3 概述的核心化学概念相关联，则它们被认为是可编码实例。在所审查的核心化学概念中，气体是与气候变化相关的最普遍的主题。有关有机化学和平衡概念的主题是最不常见的可编码实例。样本教科书中气候变化内容的分布也不均匀。只有三本教科书包含超过 100 个可编码实例，另外三本书不包含任何气候变化材料。大多数将气候变化与化学联系起来的例子都出现在书籍的外围区域，而不是正文中。如果没有可用的材料将核心化学概念与气候变化等现实世界问题联系起来，教师就不得不承担开发自己的内容的负担。 VC3 等补充材料可以弥补气候变化内容的不足，但教科书材料需要更有效地介绍气候变化的化学原理。