Physical Science and Everyday Thinking

Dr. Stephen Robinson is a Professor in the Physics Department at Tennessee Technological University (TTU), where he teaches undergraduate physics and astronomy courses as well as pedagogy and research courses in a STEM Education PhD program. With NSF support he was a co-developer of the original guided-inquiry Physics and Everyday Thinking (PET) curriculum and other physics and physical science curricula based on the same pedagogical structure. He is a regular consultant for Horizon Research Inc.and has extensive experience conducting professional development workshops for both K-12 teachers and university faculty. He serves on the Advisory Council of the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network and was instrumental in the establishment of the Millard Oakley STEM Center at TTU. Before developing his interest in STEM education he conducted research in nuclear physics and has over fifty peer-reviewed publications to his name.

Rebecca Kruse, PhD is the Evaluation Director for the Army Educational Outreach Program Cooperative Agreement, led by Virginia Tech. Rebecca's previous positions include Science Educator at Biological Sciences Curriculum Study, Internal Evaluator and Research Associate for University of Pennsylvania's Penn Science Teacher Institute, and Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Coordinator of Education Initiatives at Southeastern Louisiana University. Rebecca holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and completed her post-doctoral appointment in science and mathematics education at San Diego State University. Rebecca’s work has spanned high school and college teaching, curriculum development, K-16 faculty development, and research and evaluation. Rebecca has both contributed to and led work that have been funded by the Department of Defense, the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Department of Education. Rebecca's work in STEM education has focused on the premise that all students can productively engage in STEM learning with the support of high quality instructional materials, adaptive teaching, and accountable classroom community. Rebecca has extensive experience working with district and school leadership, teacher educators and coaches, K-12 teachers, and students in rural and urban settings, as well as with ESL/ELL and Native American populations, toward achieving a vision of high quality STEM education for all. Rebecca has published research in the Journal of Chemical Education, School Science and Mathematics, Journal for Research in Science Teaching, and Evolution: Education and Outreach. Rebecca has co-authored Physical Science and Everyday Thinking, Learning Physical Science, and Toward High School Biology: Understanding Growth in Living Things.

Valerie Otero is an associate professor in Science Education at the University of Colorado Boulder. Her mission is to influence and empower agents of change among stakeholders in STEM education. The change she seeks is equitable science education for K-12 students, especially those from groups traditionally underrepresented in science. Her research involves creating and studying learning environments that provide opportunities for individuals to generate personal meaning through the development of principles that have meaning to a broader discipline (such as physics and education). The learning environments she has co-developed and scaled throughout the nation include the: (i) the Colorado Learning Assistant (LA) model (undergraduate students and university faculty participate in a professional teaching community through course transformation), (ii) Streamline to Mastery and Noyce Teacher Team models (prospective and practicing teachers participate in a professional research community to critically analyze teaching and learning practice and create publishable research), and (iii) Physics and Everyday Thinking (college and high school students participate in a scientific community through experimentation and consensus to establish principles about the natural world). Otero’s models have spread throughout the nation and throughout the world. The Colorado Learning Assistant model has spread to over 50 universities throughout the U.S. as well as to universities in Japan, Singapore, and Ireland. She is the founder of the International Learning Assistant Alliance and has raised over $15 million dollars in grants and gifts to support these programs and to support students. Otero has published broadly with research scientists as well as with K-12 teachers. She has received awards for her research and has been recognized nationally by the American Physical Society for her contributions to the physics community. She has served on national committees with the National Academy of Sciences, the National Aeronautics Space Administration, and the National Task Force for Teacher Education in Physics. As a first generation college student, she has served as a role model for other Chicanas who seek to use the spirit and joy of science as a means for empowering youth by learning to let evidence “have your back.”

Nephi Thompson is an Associate Professor of Biology and Chemistry at Colorado Mountain College. Nephi has designed professional development workshops and programs for university and K-12 faculty using PET, PSET, Living by Chemistry, and Physics by Inquiry. Nephi's research interests include understanding how embodied cognition and the history and philosophy of science can inform effective science instruction. A native of western Colorado he enjoys camping, hiking, rock climbing, skiing, serving in his church and spending time with family.