Documentary content analysis of Grade 12 instructional resources on chemical equilibrium: Opportunities for curriculum enhancement

This study examines the extent to which Grade 12 instructional resources on chemical equilibrium integrate mathematical and graphing skills within explanations and learning activities, with the aim of identifying opportunities for curriculum enhancement. A qualitative documentary content analysis was conducted on a purposive sample of South African Grade 12 instructional resources and curriculum guidelines. A conceptual framework drawing on representational competence and graph interpretation literature guided the analysis. The results reveal that most resources predominantly emphasise declarative knowledge of equilibrium terminology. However, they offer limited scaffolding for mathematical reasoning, particularly with rate–time graphs. Critical gaps were identified in tasks that require learners to interpret graphs, differentiate between rate-based and concentration-based representations, and apply mathematical skills essential for deep conceptual understanding of chemical equilibrium. These findings suggest that current instructional materials inadequately support learners’ representational competence in chemical equilibrium. The study recommends that curriculum designers and teachers integrate richer graphing tasks, explicit mathematical reasoning prompts, and opportunities for learners to engage with multiple representational forms to bridge the identified gaps. This study contributes to scholarship by empirically mapping specific deficiencies in instructional resources at the interface of chemistry and mathematics education, and by offering an analytical framework for evaluating representational competence demands within curriculum materials.