This study investigates the impact of structural gamification, using the digital platform FantasyClass, on the attitudes and motivation of preservice primary education teachers towards physics and chemistry. Employing a mixed-methods approach, the research combined quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis involving 65 second-year university students over a 14-week course. The quantitative component was framed within a quasi-experimental pre-post design, allowing for the comparison of students’ attitudes and motivations before and after the gamified intervention. The qualitative component was designed to complement the quantitative findings. Quantitative analysis revealed significant improvements in students’ perceptions and motivation, with notable increases in positive attitudes towards these sciences. Qualitative data further highlighted enhanced interest and enjoyment, with students reporting greater engagement and a shift in their perception of physics and chemistry as accessible and enjoyable. The study also noted an increase in self-confidence among future teachers and improved teaching self-efficacy. The findings suggest that integrating gamification in initial primary science teacher education can effectively foster more favorable attitudes, enhance motivation towards science, and improve teaching confidence. Future research should explore long-term impacts, as well as personalized gamification approaches to cater to different types of learners and maximize educational effectiveness.

Traditional consumer education (CE), aimed at providing information and guidance to young people, has become insufficient to take on the challenges posed by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically SDG 12. Knowledge of youth’s habits as consumers today and citizens of the future becomes essential for defining the most suitable methodological contents and strategies for effective and sustainable CE. This premise was the inception for our research project on the consumption of young people, focusing on the acquisition, purchase, and use of new technologies. Data were obtained from a sample of 994 young people who participated in activities at the Consumption School of Catalonia and completed a questionnaire. The main results revealed that young people did not include sustainability criteria in their use or purchase of technological devices, especially mobile phones: the replacement rate for mobiles was very high (1, 2, or 3 years) and the most important purchase criteria were price, technical features, and brand. These results highlight the need to propose a new kind of CE that challenges the young to think about and adopt consumption methods adopting a contextual, constructive, and complex perspective.

La naturaleza abierta de las temáticas socioambientales requiere de una mirada compleja en el contexto educativo. El objetivo de este trabajo es analizar sus dimensiones e identificar aquellos parámetros que guían las acciones educativas de los grupos GRCòmplex, IRES y GrECC. Para el análisis de datos, se considerará el análisis de contenido. A partir de los resultados, se identifican aspectos de la complejidad compartida por los grupos, así como sus singularidades. En relación con los compartidos se considera: una formación en la que la persona debe actuar en el mundo y proyectar su futuro considerando las incertidumbres que le trae, así como buscar los estudios de los fenómenos del mundo y la realidad, considerando las controversias, ideas previas y cosmovisiones. Y, en relación con el enfoque epistemológico, incluidos los conceptos científicos escolares, se apuntan los problemas sociales y ambientales.

Integrating technology-enhanced gamification into teacher education can significantly foster motivation and reshape perceptions toward science learning. This mixed-methods case study explores how a 14-week course for preservice early childhood teachers, supported by the digital gamification platform FantasyClass and enriched with a cohesive narrative structure, impacted students’ motivation and attitudes towards science. The course featured structural gamification elements—such as experience points, digital collectibles, and team-based challenges—combined with immersive storytelling that contextualized scientific tasks within a fantasy adventure. Quantitative data from pre- and post-intervention surveys revealed statistically significant improvements in attitudes toward science and perceived teaching competence. Thematic analysis of qualitative feedback highlighted enhanced engagement, enjoyment, and relevance of science learning. These findings suggest that intelligent integration of gamified technologies and narrative design in science teacher initial training can address motivational barriers and foster positive emotional engagement. While context-specific, this study offers insights into how digital gamified learning environments can support the development of positive attitudes towards science among future early childhood educators.

Social and environmental problems are increasing, as is the urgency that they be addressed in educational institutions to form critical, responsible and active citizens. In this training process, the dialogue between science education and education for sustainability is crucial if we want to understand socio-environmental problems in complex and uncertain contexts, which is why we define Critical Science Education for Sustainability (CSES). In addition to reflecting on which contents and methodologies are most appropriate in CSES, it is also necessary to reflect on the development of assessment instruments that allow diagnosing and evaluating the practice, materials and educational activities from such a perspective. Only with an appropriate instrument and suitable diagnosis can we make decisions to transform education and move towards CSES. This article presents an investigation based on the Delphi method with the participation of 37 international researchers, which resulted in a rubric, the Science, Technology and Society Assessment Tool. A rubric is a kind of evaluation tool that can assess education programs using qualitative or quantitative descriptors. This rubric is meant to analyze and guide critical science education in the context of teaching, policies and educational programs that favor sustainability.

Climate change education (CCE) is increasingly recognized as a key lever for responding to the climate crisis, yet its implementation in schools often remains fragmented and weakly transformative. This review synthesizes international research on CCE in secondary education, focusing on four interconnected domains: students’ social representations of climate change (SRCC), curricular frameworks, teaching practices and teacher professional development, and emerging pathways towards transformative, justice-oriented CCE. A narrative review of empirical and theoretical studies reveals that students’ SRCC are generally superficial, fragmented and marked by persistent misconceptions, psychological distance and low perceived agency. Curricular frameworks tend to locate climate change mainly within natural sciences, reproduce deficit-based and behaviorist models and leave social, political and ethical dimensions underdeveloped. Teaching practices remain predominantly transmissive and science-centered, while teachers report limited training, time and institutional support, especially for addressing the affective domain and working transdisciplinarily. At the same time, the literature highlights promising directions: calls for an “emergency curriculum” and deeper curricular environmentalization, the potential of socio-scientific issues and complexity-based approaches, narrative and arts-based strategies, school gardens and community projects, and growing attention to emotions, hope and climate justice. Drawing on a narrative and integrative review of empirical and theoretical studies, the article identifies recurrent patterns and gaps in current CCE research and outlines priorities for future inquiry. The review argues that bridging the knowledge–action gap in schools requires aligning curriculum, pedagogy and teacher learning around four key principles—climate justice, collective agency, affective engagement and global perspectives—and outlines implications for policy, practice and research to support more transformative and socially just CCE.