Women in STEM Education Research, 2006-2025: Knowledge Evolution, Global Collaboration, and SDG Alignment

Research Trends in Continuing Education and Lifelong Learning in Rural Settings: A Bibliometric Analysis, 2000–2025

Purpose: This study maps the development of research on continuing education and lifelong learning in rural settings from 2000 to 2025, focusing on publication growth, disciplinary patterns, influential institutions, geographical distribution, collaboration networks, and the intellectual structure of the field. Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative bibliometric design was applied to English-language journal articles indexed in Scopus. Records were retrieved using a structured search of titles, abstracts, and keywords and analysed through Scopus analytical tools, Microsoft Excel, and VOSviewer. Performance analysis examined publication trends, subject areas, institutions, and countries, while science-mapping techniques assessed country co-authorship, author collaboration, and keyword co-occurrence. Findings: Research output increased substantially, from 30 publications in 2000 to 122 in 2025, with especially rapid growth after 2020. Medicine and Social Sciences dominated the disciplinary landscape, followed by Nursing. The University of Toronto was the most productive institution, while the United States, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom accounted for most publications. International collaboration was extensive but uneven, with the United States, Australia, Canada, India, and several European countries acting as major hubs. The intellectual structure comprised five clusters centred on clinical continuing education, adult learning and community development, rural health workforce capacity, communication and palliative care, and maternal, newborn, and emergency-care education. Research limitations/implications: The study was limited to English-language, Scopus-indexed journal articles and may therefore underrepresent non-English and locally published rural scholarship. Originality/value: This study provides a comprehensive global mapping of rural continuing education and lifelong learning research across a 26-year period and integrates productivity, collaboration, and thematic analyses within a single framework.

Global research landscape of transformative learning in pre-service teacher education: A Scopus-based bibliometric and science-mapping analysis

Background Transformative learning explains changes in pre-service teachers’ frames of reference, yet previous mapping studies have examined the theory broadly, within higher education, or in specific domains such as sustainability. This study maps the development, contributors, intellectual and conceptual structures, and thematic evolution of transformative learning research in pre-service teacher education. Methods Data were retrieved from Scopus on 29 July 2026 without restrictions on publication year or language. The search identified 237 documents; after excluding non-article records and ineligible articles, 112 journal articles were analysed. Performance analysis used Bibliometrix/Biblioshiny, while keyword co-occurrence and author co-citation networks were constructed with VOSviewer. Author, institution, country, and keyword metadata were normalised before analysis. Results The corpus comprised 112 articles published between 2001 and 2026 across 74 sources and authored by 246 researchers. Annual growth reached 8.67%, while international collaboration accounted for 13.39% of articles. The Journal of Transformative Education was the most productive source; Katrina Liu had the highest citation impact; and Queensland University of Technology was the most productive institution. The conceptual structure centred on transformative learning, teacher education, pre-service teachers, and critical reflection. Mezirow continued to dominate the intellectual structure, while recent themes shifted towards culturally responsive pedagogy, sustainability, online learning, assessment, and pedagogical competence. Data for 2026 include only publications indexed up to 29 July. Conclusions The field has grown more consistently since 2020, although productivity and collaboration remain dispersed. Mezirow’s theoretical foundation persists, while its application in pre-service teacher education increasingly connects professional identity, field experiences, diversity, and sustainability. Longitudinal, comparative, and non-Western studies are needed to determine whether perspective changes endure in teaching practice.

Knowledge Mapping of Digital Ethics in Education: A Bibliometric and Science Mapping Analysis

Although digital ethics has become increasingly important in education, systematic evidence on its global research structure and thematic development remains limited. This study aims to map global research on digital ethics in education from 2015 to 2025 using bibliometric analysis and science mapping techniques. Data were retrieved from Scopus, yielding 782 documents published in 466 sources and involving 3,993 authors. The analysis was conducted using Bibliometrix and VOSviewer to examine publication trends, citation impact, collaboration networks, keyword co-occurrence, co-citation patterns, thematic mapping, and thematic evolution. The findings reveal rapid growth in publication output and interdisciplinary collaboration, indicating the expanding scholarly relevance of digital ethics in educational research. Core keywords, including ethics, education, higher education, and female, form the intellectual backbone of the field. Network, overlay, and density visualizations show a thematic shift from methodological and COVID-19-related topics toward emerging issues such as digital literacy, AI literacy, generative AI, academic integrity, equity, and curricula. High research density remains concentrated around ethics and education, whereas AI-related themes are still comparatively underexplored. These findings highlight opportunities for future research on ethical AI literacy, AI governance, and responsible AI integration in educational curricula. This study contributes a comprehensive knowledge map by identifying leading actors, thematic domains, and research gaps, offering practical guidance for scholars, policymakers, and practitioners seeking to promote ethical, equitable, and accountable digital transformation in education.

Two decades of STEM education research (2006-2026): A comprehensive bibliometric mapping of the field

One of the fastest growing areas within international education research is science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. This review uses a bibliometric mapping approach on 7,569 indexed documents (comprising research articles, conference papers, review articles, and other document types) available in Scopus between 2006-April 2026. Keyword co-occurrence network mapping (VOSviewer) and descriptive bibliometric analysis (bibliometrix) were used to characterize the field’s intellectual structure, thematic clusters, key researchers, journals, and national contributions. Coverage was cross-validated against Web of Science. Analysis demonstrates exponential publication growth – regression-based compound annual growth rate (CAGR) (2006-2025) of approximately 11.4% and endpoint-to-endpoint CAGR (2006-2025) of approximately 17.2%, significantly higher than estimated 3-5% normal growth rate in publications – and citation impact. USA, China, and Turkey have emerged as the dominant publishers, while the International Journal of STEM Education rapidly gained central role in the field, after its launching in 2014. The six thematic clusters that emerge from keyword co-occurrence analysis include, the concept of an integrated curriculum/pedagogy, themes focused on equity and access, teacher preparation and professional development, specific disciplinary foci within STEM, focus on technology in the classroom and a core conceptual cluster. The research traces four temporal phases (2006-2009, 2010-2014, 2015-2018, and 2019-2026) of STEM education, highlighting shifts from tightly focused discipline-centered discussions to holistic approaches that focus on integrated and design-based pedagogies and equity in the classroom and a rise in topics centered on generative AI and computational thinking starting in 2023. The results inform curriculum designers, policymakers, researchers and teacher educators. Limitations of the research agenda include limited coverage from the Global South and fragmented disciplinary research synthesis which warrant a research agenda that can support a broader geographically and intellectually integrated discussion of STEM education.

Mapping scopus-indexed research on professional development in education: a bibliometric analysis (1994–2026)

Research on Education for Sustainable Development: A Bibliometric Analysis in the Scopus Database from 2000 to 2024

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is increasingly recognized as a fundamental driver for achieving global sustainability, yet a comprehensive, long-term mapping of its intellectual structure is needed to guide future policies. This study aims to delineate the evolutionary trajectory of ESD research from 2000 to 2024, identify the most significant contributors (countries, institutions, journals, and authors), and uncover the prevalent thematic clusters within this domain. A quantitative bibliometric approach was employed. The sample consisted of 2,774 English-language peer-reviewed documents extracted from the Scopus Core Collection, spanning from 2000 to 2024. Performance analysis and science mapping were conducted utilizing RStudio (Biblioshiny) and VOSviewer to evaluate co-authorship networks and thematic co-occurrences. The findings confirmed a continuous, exponential growth in ESD publications post-2015. Germany emerged as the most productive country (12.5% of total publications), though the Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia was identified as the leading institution. Thematic analysis revealed 15 distinct clusters, heavily focusing on higher education, curricula, and teacher training, while also highlighting a significant geographical imbalance wherein developed nations overshadow developing countries in overall research engagement.