Faculty
Science Education Faculty
William Carlsen
wcarlsen@psu.edu
(A.B., Ph.D.) Professor
Bill Carlsen is a former science teacher with training in biology and computer science. He has served as principal investigator on many professional development and instructional materials development projects funded by NSF and other agencies, and is a coauthor of four books in the Cornell Scientific Inquiry Series. Bill’s research interests include teacher knowledge, environmental science education, and scientist-school collaborations. He served as the first director of the Center for Science and the Schools (CSATS), recently concluded an unusual environmental journey, and currently serves as the College of Education Ombudsperson. Bill's doctoral studies were at Stanford University.
Richard Duschl
rad19@psu.edu
(Ph.D.) Professor
Waterbury Chair in Secondary Education
One aspect of Rick Duschl's research examines how the history and philosophy of science can be applied to science education. The research agenda is to better understand the social and cognitive dynamics for making science classrooms inquiry and epistemic communities. Scientific inquiry, then, is seen as fundamentally focusing on the evidence and the argumentation discourse processes that lead to scientific decisions. A second focus of research of his research is the design of instructional sequences that promote assessment for learning. With NSF support from several grants, this research has led to many new ideas about how formative assessment strategies can help learners and teachers make scientific thinking visible. Rick also has expertise in informal science education and in earth science education. He has served as the editor of Science Education and was a member of the committee that wrote the Inquiry Addendum for the National Science Education Standards. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland at College Park.
Gregory J. Kelly
gjk13@psu.edu
(B.S., Ph.D.) Professor
Associate Dean for Research, Outreach, and Technology
Greg Kelly is currently an associate dean in the College of Education. He was a physics and mathematics teacher and served for four years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Togo. His research explores issues of knowledge and discourse in science education settings. Recent studies have examined student small group discourse, uses of argumentation analysis for assessing evidence, and consideration of epistemic practices in science learning. He serves as Editor for the journal Science Education. Greg teaches courses on teaching and learning science in secondary schools and uses of history, philosophy, sociology of science in science education. Greg earned his Ph.D. at Cornell University.
Scott McDonald
- SCIED Program Coordinator
sum16@psu.edu
(B.S., M.A., M.S., Ph.D.) Associate Professor
Dr. McDonald is founder of the Invisible College for Inquiry Science Study (ICISS), a researcher-practitioner group of science educators focused broadly on the development of a theory of teaching for inquiry science pedagogy. His current work, funded by the Knowles Science Teaching Foundation Research Fellowship, examines professional pedagogical vision in prospective and practicing science teachers. He makes extensive use of Studiocode, innovative video analysis software, for examing classroom practice both in his research and in his undergraduate and graduate courses. Dr. McDonald is also interested in how disruptive technologies can be integrated into both high school and higher education learning environments. Dr. McDonald's Ph.D. is from the University of Michigan.
Julia Plummer
jdp17@psu.edu
(Ph.D.) Associate Professor
Julia Plummer joined us after beginning her college teaching career at Arcadia University. She spent more than a decade teaching children and adults in planetariums and has extensive experience teaching college-level astronomy. Julia’s research interests focus on how children and adults engage in scientific practices in the domain of astronomy. This includes investigating both formal and informal learning environments, as well as the role of curriculum and professional development in educators’ beliefs. Her research has led to the development of an initial framework for a K-8 observational astronomy learning progression. Julia co-authored a middle school astronomy curriculum published through It’s About Time. She serves on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Research in Science Teaching. Julia received a combined Ph.D. in Astronomy & Education from the University of Michigan.
Kathleen Sillman
kas132@psu.edu
(Ph.D.) Assistant Professor
Kate Sillman supervises preservice teachers in their last year of teacher education in linked pre-student and student teaching field experiences in two local school districts, Bellefonte and Bald Eagle. She also offers continuing education courses onsite in the districts for practicing teachers. Kate earned her doctoral degree at Penn State!
Deborah C. Smith
dcs27@psu.edu
(BS, MAT, Ph.D.) Assistant Professor
Deborah Smith is a former preschool and elementary school teacher, with a background in biology. As part of her research on professional development, she has also co-taught with elementary teachers in Delaware, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. She was the author and co-PI on a five-year National Science Foundation grant to Lansing (MI) School District and Michigan State University, in which grade level groups of K-8 teachers studied scientific content, standards-based and reform-minded curriculum design, research-based teaching practices, and their students' learning. She also served on the National Research Council's Teacher Advisory Committee, and was a consultant for their publication, Ready, Set, Science! Her research focuses on how teachers and young children build communities of scientific discourses and practices in the early years of schooling. Dr. Smith teaches elementary science methods, and doctoral courses in curriculum, the history and philosophy of science, and science teacher knowledge. She did her doctoral work at the University of Delaware.
Annmarie Ward
arw192@psu.edu
(B.S., M.A., Ph.D.) Assistant Professor
Director, Center for Science and the Schools (CSATS)
Annmarie Ward is a former biology researcher who changed careers to become a middle school/high school science teacher and K-12 school district science curriculum coordinator. During that time, Annmarie achieved National Board Certification in Adolescence and Young Adult Science. Her research interests lie in understanding best practices for teaching science content to preservice and inservice elementary and middle school teachers that will enhance their ability to teach science content to students via inquiry-based methods emphasizing evidence and explanation. Annmarie collaborates with other Penn State science education and STEM faculty to develop specialized content courses for preservice elementary teachers (K-8) and professional development for elementary and middle school teachers that blend content learning and inquiry-based teaching. She also works with school districts and STEM faculty to develop professional development and outreach opportunities for teachers and students that draw on scientists’ expertise to address districts’ STEM education needs. Annmarie received her Ph.D. from Penn State.
Carla Zembal-Saul
cxz12@psu.edu
(B.S., M.S., Ph.D.) Professor
Dept. Head, Curriculum and Instruction
Carla Zembal-Saul holds the Kahn Professorship in STEM Education. Her research investigates the development of teaching practices that support K-6 children's participation in scientific discourse and practices. Carla has been involved in school-university partnership work for more than ten years, and most of her research takes place in this context. The purposeful integration of technology tools also has played a central role in her teaching and research. Carla has published more than 35 articles in peer reviewed journals. In addition, she has experience serving on the editorial boards of the Journal of Research in Science Teaching (2001-2004) and the International Journal of Science Education (1998-present). She is an elected member of the Executive Board for the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) and chairs the organization's Publications Advisory Board.
