Marthe Arntzen

• Arntzen, Marthe (2026). Interdisciplinary approaches to sustainable development in lower secondary schools: comparison of science teachers’ and students’ perspectives. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research. ISSN 0031-3831. doi: 10.1080/00313831.2026.2685709. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Interdisciplinary approaches in education are increasingly recognized as essential for addressing complex challenges, like sustainable development (SD). Policy documents emphasize integrating SD into curricula and recommend interdisciplinary pedagogies to foster comprehensive understanding. In response, authorities in several counties have promoted interdisciplinary approaches within national curricula. This study explores how interdisciplinary work is experienced by science teachers and students, using SD as educational context. A central aim was to compare teachers’ and students’ perspectives to gain nuanced understanding of its practical application. Data were collected through interviews with three science teachers and seven focus groups with their students. Template analysis revealed that teachers interpret interdisciplinary topics differently, and students’ perceptions sometimes diverge from those of their science teacher regarding interdisciplinary work with SD. Findings highlight the critical role of collaborative planning and incorporating students’ voices in creating coherent and engaging learning experiences, emphasizing the need for strategies that strengthen interdisciplinary teaching.

• Arntzen, Marthe; Scheie, Eldri & Haug, Berit (2025). Interdisciplinary ESE: barriers to implementation and practical ways to overcome them. Environmental Education Research. ISSN 1350-4622. p. 1–23. doi: 10.1080/13504622.2025.2594637. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Environmental and sustainability education (ESE) and science education are both essential for addressing global sustainability challenges, and a convergence between them is widely encouraged. Yet the interdisciplinary approaches that ESE promotes often conflict with existing school structures, curricula, and pedagogical practices of traditional schooling, revealing a gap between ESE’s ideals and conventional education. This study responds to calls for investigation into pedagogical and strategic difficulties related to ESE by exploring barriers science teachers face in implementing interdisciplinary approaches and examining implications. Through individual interviews with ten Norwegian lower secondary science teachers and employing reflexive thematic analysis, we identified four themes related to their experiences with ESE: weak consistency in ESE practices, insufficiently transformative ESE, challenges with coworker collaboration, and adverse framework factors. Reflecting on Stevenson’s contradictions from 1987, we observe that responses from participants reveal persistent gaps between the intentions of ESE and traditional schooling, which continue to challenge teachers in their efforts to implement ESE. However, we propose potential solutions aimed at addressing barriers associated with the four themes identified in this study. By exploring the challenges of ESE implementation, this study contributes to a broader understanding of ESE and supports its practical application.

• Arntzen, Marthe; Scheie, Eldri & Haug, Berit S (2025). Unveiling perceptions: how science teachers perceive sustainable development and their expectations of students' learning outcomes through environmental and sustainability education. International Journal of Science Education. ISSN 0950-0693. p. 1–20. doi: 10.1080/09500693.2025.2499215. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Sustainable development is promoted as an interdisciplinary topic in the Norwegian curriculum, reflecting similar priorities in global policy documents and educational frameworks. However, its implementation in schools partly relies on how teachers interpret the concept of sustainable development and what they consider students should learn through environmental and sustainability education. This study explores how science teachers perceive sustainable development in a school context and what they expect students’ learning outcomes to be. Ten Norwegian science teachers from lower secondary schools were interviewed individually, and the data were analysed using an inductive phenomenological approach. The results show that even though the ecological dimension of sustainable development is highly recognised by the science teachers, they perceive sustainable development first and foremost as the interconnectedness between its different dimensions. Regarding students’ learning outcomes, three themes were identified from the science teachers´ statements: knowledge, abilities, and mindset. These learning outcomes are discussed in comparison to sustainability competencies and connected to the environmental science competencies within the PISA 2025 framework, as well as the three visions of scientific literacy.

• Scheie, Eldri; Arntzen, Marthe & Haug, Berit S (2025). Teachers’ implementation of self-designed Interdisciplinary Curriculum Units in Education for Sustainable Development. Research in Science Education. ISSN 0157-244X. 55, p. 793–815. doi: 10.1007/s11165-025-10279-5. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Curricula worldwide aim to prepare students for the society they will engage with in the future. The climate crisis and the ecological challenges facing the global community necessitate addressing these issues within the school context. Given the interdisciplinary nature of these crises, topics are often complex and do not neatly align with specific subjects. Consequently, teachers and schools need to teach across subjects to address these complex sustainability challenges. This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge on teachers’ approaches to sustainability education, particularly when teaching across various subjects. We place special emphasis on curriculum units designed by teachers, aiming to understand how teachers combine subject-specific and interdisciplinary teaching and learning, and how their curriculum units encompass a holistic approach to sustainability issues, in light of the Anthropocene. We analysed 20 curriculum units designed and implemented by teachers from lower secondary schools in Norway, guided by environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainability, in addition to a framework that facilitates pedagogical approaches to education for sustainable development. This framework highlights interdisciplinary and subject-specific aspects of teaching and learning complex sustainability issues, including time, space and emotional aspects. Findings suggest that the teachers designed and implemented interdisciplinary curriculum units integrating all three dimensions of sustainability. Several teachers reported that they facilitated for students’ emotional engagement with sustainability issues, however, affective aspects received least attention. A key implication from this study is that involving teacher-teams in curriculum design might enable them to implement interdisciplinary and holistic approaches to sustainable development, rather than adhering to pre-designed programs.

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• Arntzen, Marthe; Bækkedal, Kjersti Svenskerud; Fossestøl, Knut Olav & Fægri, Karoline (2022). Element 10 - Naturfag. Gyldendal Norsk Forlag A/S. ISBN 9788205538276. 256 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe; Bækkedal, Kjersti Svenskerud; Fossestøl, Knut Olav & Fægri, Karoline (2021). Element 9 - Naturfag. Gyldendal Norsk Forlag A/S. ISBN 9788205524002. 256 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe; Bækkedal, Kjersti Svenskerud; Fossestøl, Knut Olav & Fægri, Karoline (2020). Element 8 - Naturfag. Gyldendal Norsk Forlag A/S. ISBN 9788205516151. 248 p. Full text in Research Archive

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• Arntzen, Marthe & Scheie, Eldri (2025). Elevers kritiske tenkning i møte med komplekse bærekraftsproblem. Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe; Scheie, Eldri & Haug, Berit S (2025). Recognizing and Addressing Challenges in Implementing Environmental and Sustainability Education in Lower Secondary Schools. Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe (2025). What do science teachers think environmental and sustainability education is about? Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe; Scheie, Eldri & Haug, Berit S (2025). Science Teachers' Self-Perceived Barriers to Implementing Environmental and Sustainability Education in Lower Secondary Schools. Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe & Scheie, Eldri (2024). Tverrfaglig bærekraftundervisning fra naturfaglæreres perspektiv: Samarbeid og implementering. Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe; Scheie, Eldri & Haug, Berit (2024). Norske naturfaglæreres beskrivelse av bærekraftundervisning. Full text in Research Archive
• Arntzen, Marthe; Scheie, Eldri & Haug, Berit S (2024). Unveiling Science Teachers’ Conception of Sustainable Development - Its Implications for Sustainability Education. Full text in Research Archive

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