Integrating Systems Thinking into Sustainability Education: An Overview with Educator-Focused Guidance

Abstract

This narrative review synthesizes conceptual frameworks, empirical evidence, and pedagogical approaches that support the integration of systems thinking into sustainability education across K–12 and higher education. Publications were purposively selected based on conceptual significance, empirical rigor, pedagogical relevance, and contextual diversity, with searches conducted across Web of Science, Scopus, ERIC, and Google Scholar. The analysis identified several recurring instructional patterns, as follows: the use of feedback-loop reasoning to connect scientific and social systems; the role of conceptual modeling and visual representations; and the value of inquiry-based, project-based, and socio-scientific issue frameworks in promoting systems-oriented understanding. Across educational levels, the review highlights consistent evidence that systems thinking can be taught effectively when learning activities scaffold students’ construction of system models, encourage interdisciplinary reasoning, and explicitly address dynamic processes such as accumulation, time delays, and unintended consequences. Case examples from K–12 and teacher education illustrate how visual modeling, simulations, and carefully designed task structures foster deeper understanding of socio-ecological interactions. The review also identifies key implications for curriculum design, teacher professional development, and assessment, emphasizing the need for sustained integration rather than one-time activities. Overall, this synthesis demonstrates that systems thinking is a foundational competency for sustainability education and provides educators with practical frameworks, strategies, and examples for meaningful classroom implementation. The findings underscore the importance of aligning pedagogical design, curricular structures, and assessment practices to cultivate students’ ability to reason about complex systems.