31 October 2011
Professor Sibel Erduran presenting her Waterbury lecture
On 24 October 2011, Professor Sibel Erduran, Professor of Science Education at the Graduate School of Education, University of Bristol, presented research on the inclusion and use of epistemic practices in science teachers’ learning as part of the prestigious Waterbury Lecture Series. The Waterbury Lecture, hosted by Penn State’s College of Education is held twice a semester and features prominent speakers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.
Image by Penn State’s College of Education
Sibel’s influence on science education and science education research is based on her pioneering efforts in two domains: philosophy of chemistry and chemistry education and argumentation discourse practices for the design of student-centered classrooms.
The lecture, entitled “Modelling epistemic practice in science teachers’ learning: The case of argumentation”, focused on scientific argumentation and how argumentation can inform and guide teachers’ learning of epistemic aspects of science. In her talk, she gave recommendations for the design, implementation and evaluation of teacher professional development programs that promote and enhance teachers’ learning of epistemic practices including argumentation.
“Sibel’s influence on science education and science education research is based on her pioneering efforts in two domains: philosophy of chemistry and chemistry education and argumentation discourse practices for the design of student-centered classrooms,” said Richard Duschl, Waterbury Chaired Professor in Secondary Education. “She and her collaborators and students are making important contributions to our understandings about teaching the nature of science and about designing student-centered learning environments. Her work has made significant contributions to ongoing teacher professional development that builds pedagogical practices to give students a voice and, thus, an avenue to assess reasoning about using evidence to build and refine models, explanations and claims. We are, indeed, fortunate to have Professor Erduran visit us here at Penn State.”
Professor Erduran also made an invited presentation co-funded by the Delaware School of Education and the Science, Ethics and Public Policy Program at the University of Delaware on 27 October 2011. The title of her presentation was “Seeing Science: The Role of Visualisation in Scientific Practices and Implications for Science Education.
Erduran serves on the editorial board of Review of Educational Research, among other journals. She is currently the elected International Coordinator for NARST: A Worldwide Organisation for Research in Science Teaching and Learning. She is also the recipient of the NARST best paper award as well as a range of grants, including those from the Economic and Social Research Council, the Training and Development Agency for Schools, the European Union, and the Gatsby Foundation. She has authored nearly 130 publications and made over 110 international/national presentations, including plenary speeches at conferences in Taiwan, South Africa, Korea, Turkey, and Lebanon.
Read more about Professor Sibel Erduran
