Center for Curriculum Materials in Science

AAAS Project 2061, Michigan State University, Northwestern University, University of Michigan


CCMS Faculty

CCMS Director

Jo Ellen Roseman, director of Project 2061, has been involved in the design, testing, and dissemination of Project 2061's science literacy reform tools since 1989. She participated in the development of Benchmarks for Science Literacy, which describes specific K-12 learning goals, and led Project 2061's evaluative studies of science and mathematics textbooks. She holds a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Johns Hopkins University.

CCMS Associate Director

George E. DeBoer, deputy director of Project 2061, joined the staff from the Division of Elementary, Secondary, and Informal Science Education of the National Science Foundation. He has also been a professor of education at Colgate University since 1991. Dr. DeBoer's primary research interests lie in clarifying the goals of the science curriculum, analyzing the history of science education, and analyzing the many meanings of scientific literacy. He has written extensively on these topics and holds a Ph.D. in science education from Northwestern University.

MSU Core Faculty: Michigan State University

James J. Gallagher, professor of science education, has an interest in the education of prospective and practicing teachers of science at the middle school and high school levels. He co-directs an Eisenhower Higher Education project on classroom-based assessment in middle school science and mathematics and coordinates a U.S. Department of Education study of beginning secondary science teachers. He also co-chairs a national dialogue on revitalizing undergraduate education in science and mathematics. He received his Ed.D. from Harvard University.

Edward L. Smith, associate professor of teacher education, specializes in the teaching and learning of science in elementary schools. He is active in state and national reform of science education, providing leadership in the development of the assessment program in science for the State of Michigan. Dr. Smith is working on Project 2061's Interagency Education Research Initiative study of teachers' use of middle school mathematics curriculum materials and directs the Michigan Science Curriculum Resources Network project, an Internet-based collaborative system. He received his Ph.D. from Cornell University.

Christina Schwarz, assistant professor of science education, studies elementary science education and how scientific modeling can be used to aid students and teachers to learn about science content and the nature of science. She has extensive experience in curriculum design and also holds a cross appointment with the College of Natural Science. She received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.

David Fortus, assistant professor of secondary science education, studies the development of transfer-fostering curriculum and the manner in which students apply their scientific knowledge in the solution of real-world problems. Dr. Fortus received his Ph.D. in science education from the University of Michigan.

NU Core Faculty: Northwestern University

Daniel C. Edelson, associate professor of education and social policy, and associate professor of computer science, investigates the design of computer-based tools to support learners' investigations of authentic scientific questions. He has developed inquiry-based tools and also designed inquiry curricula for Earth and environmental sciences from middle school through college. Edelson has directed the Learning Sciences Ph.D. Program at NU since 2001, and teaches courses in curriculum/software design. He received his Ph.D. in computer sciences from Northwestern University.

Louis M. Gomez, associate professor of education and social policy and professor of computer science, directs the Center for Learning Technologies in Urban Schools, and has been a leader in creating and studying design partnerships with school districts. Gomez's research concerns systemic school reform in collaborative partnerships, and design of science curricula that connect students and teachers with communities of practice beyond school. Gomez teaches courses in macrocognition, design, and organizational change. He received his Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from the University of California, Berkeley.

Brian J. Reiser, professor of education and social policy, focuses on the design and study of investigation environments that support reflective inquiry, and on the teaching practices that support inquiry. Reiser heads the BGuILE project, developing inquiry support tools for students investigating biological phenomena, including topics in ecosystems and selection, behavior ecology, and cell structure and function. Reiser, who previously served as chair of the Learning Sciences Ph.D. program, holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Yale University.

Bruce L. Sherin, associate professor of education and social policy, investigates the conceptual change that occurs in students' science knowledge systems with project-based science curricular instruction. His research has been successfully applied to the systematic evaluation and principled redesign of project-based science curricula. Sherin teaches graduate courses in conceptual change and cognitive models of learning. He holds a Ph.D. in science and mathematics education from the University of California, Berkeley.

Uri Wilensky, associate professor of education and social policy, and associate professor of computer science, designs multi-agent simulation tools and curricula that enable users to simulate, explore and make sense of complex systems in a wide range of content areas including chemical, physical, and biological phenomena, and Participatory Simulation Toolkits that enable students to act out and investigate the elements in a dynamic system. Wilensky teaches courses in design and technological supports for learning, and holds a Ph.D. in media arts and sciences from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

UM Core Faculty: University of Michigan

Joseph Krajcik, professor of science education, focuses his research on re-engineering science classrooms so that students engage in finding solution to complex problems through inquiry and the use of technologies. He is an author of numerous papers on project-based science, inquiry learning, and the use of technology in science classrooms. Dr. Krajcik received his Ph.D. in science education from the University of Iowa.

Elizabeth Davis, assistant professor of science education, studies elementary science education and how educational technologies can promote more effective teaching practices. Her research integrates aspects of science education, teacher education, and the learning sciences. Dr. Davis earned her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.

MSU Affiliated Faculty

Charles W. Anderson, professor of science education, conducts research on the classroom teaching and learning of science. He studies how students' prior knowledge, language, and social relationships affect their engagement in science learning and the development of scientific literacy. He is currently the coordinator of the Teacher Education Component of the Michigan Statewide Systemic Initiative. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas in Austin. See research.

NU Affiliated Faculty

James P. Spillane, associate professor of education and social policy and faculty fellow at the Institute for Policy Research, investigates the practice of school leadership in urban elementary schools working to improve their science instruction and how local policy-makers, both administrators and lead teachers, construct understandings about reforms in science instruction from state and national reforms, and how these interpretations affect implementation. Spillane teaches courses on educational policy and implementation. He received his Ph.D. in curriculum, teaching, and education policy from Michigan State University.

David E. Kanter, research assistant professor of education and social policy, and research scientist (biomedical engineering), designs and studies the enactment of technology-supported, project-based human biology curricula on topics including organ systems physiology and cellular respiration. His research focuses on design principles for project-based science curricula and student learning of biological concepts in these contexts. He received his Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

UM Affiliated Faculty

Brian Coppola, associate professor of chemistry, continues an active research program in chemistry and is also a leading educator. His works focuses both on changing the college chemistry curriculum as well as future faculty development. He has published a number of publications in chemical education and holds a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin.

Barry Fishman, assistant professor of educational technology, focuses on the design of technology-based learning environments. He is one of the leading young researchers in the United States and earned his Ph.D. in education and social policy from Northwestern University.

Jay Lemke

Elizabeth Moje, associate professor of literacy, is a former high school biology teacher whose main research interest involves exploring literacy practices of marginalized students in urban settings and the implications for literacy pedagogy. She is a leading expert in reading and literacy, and earned her Ph.D. in literacy and language from Purdue University.

Chris Quintana

Nancy Songer, associate professor of science education, has expertise in explorations of the educational potential and realities of innovative technologies for reform-based science education in urban settings, elementary and middle school science, and the development of learning environments which are sensitive to diversity and gender issues. She directs the One Sky, Many Voices project and holds a Ph.D. in science education from the University of California, Berkeley.

LeeAnn Sutherland , assistant research scientist, focuses her work on adolescent literacy in middle and high school classroom contexts. She is particularly interested in materials and strategies that aid struggling readers in learning course content, and in the literacy and identity construction of marginalized adolescents. She received her Ph.D. in literacy, language, and culture from the University of Michigan.

Affiliated NU R&D Staff

Meredith Bruozas, curriculum development specialist, is the curriculum designer for the biology strand of the Investigating and Questioning our World Through Science and Technology (IQWST) project and was the lead designer and professional development facilitator for the Investigations in Environmental Science High School curriculum in the LeTUS project. Currently she is leading and coaching a teacher professional development program in the Chicago Public Schools. She previously worked as a high school earth science, biology, and physical science teacher, and designed and supported K-Adult programming in conservation and marine science at the John J. Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. Her research interests include supporting teachers in enacting classroom discussions around science and supporting data analysis in the classroom using GIS technologies.

Lou-Ellen Finn, teacher development specialist, is the professional development coordinator for the Center for Learning Technologies in Urban Schools (LeTUS), a curriculum writer in the earth science and biology strands of the Investigating and Questioning our World Through Science and Technology (IQWST) project, and an instructor in the Alternative Certification Program (NU-Teach)-all at Northwestern University. She taught middle school science for 35 years in the Chicago Public Schools and holds an M.Ed. in education and supervision from DePaul University.

Text: AAAS Project 2061, Michigan State University, Northwestern University, University of Michigan
Text: Center for Curriculum Materials in Science