Return to: Departments and Programs

Charles Henderson, Director

William Cobern, Biological Sciences
Todd Ellis, Geography
Marcia Fetters, Teaching, Learning, and Educational Studies
Megan Grunert Kowalske, Chemistry
Heather Petcovic, Geological and Environmental Sciences
Brandy Pleasants, The Mallinson Institute for Science Education
David W. Rudge, Biological Sciences
David Schuster, Physics
Joseph Stoltman, Geography

The Mallinson Institute for Science Education is devoted to the study and improvement of how people learn science at the K-12, undergraduate, and graduate levels. The Mallinson Institute has four components:

1. Graduate programs leading to a Master of Arts and a Doctor of Philosophy in Science Education. See the graduate catalog for more information.
2. Coordination of undergraduate programs as part of the elementary education science and mathematics teaching minor. See the College of Education and Human Development section of this catalog for more information.
3. Professional development courses and related opportunities for K-12 science teachers and school districts coordinated and offered by The Mallinson Institute for Science Education. In addition, The Mallinson Institute provides curriculum development expertise and services for science curriculum projects from the national to the school district level.
4. Science and Mathematics Program Improvement (SAMPI) which provides technical assistance, conducts research and evaluation services, program development projects to K-12 schools, higher education, and other educational institutions.

As an academic discipline, science education lies at the intersection of the sciences, educational pedagogy, cognitive psychology, and the history, philosophy, and sociology of science. It ranges from concerns about practical teaching strategies to fundamental questions about the nature of science and how people learn, and the systems that support teaching and learning. The courses taken by pre-and post-service teachers are designed to prepare them to think critically about why people should become scientifically literate, what science is most important to know, and how students learn. This includes attention to the content of science, the process of science, and the cognition of learning. In particular, the Institute encourages participants in its programs to become self-reflective about their own learning, in the hope it will empower them to become more independent, intentional, and life-long learners. 

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