Learning
While a significant part of my career has been focused on informal learning, primarily at cultural institutions, my education career started in supporting formal learning, primarily Prek-12. I have had a particular interest in science and math integration, and how teachers can be empowered through interactive and distance learning, in-service and preservice learning about STEM integration in and out of the clinic, and how to integrate the best of informal and experiential learning and technology into teaching practice. ​​​​​
​Math and Science Teacher Education Residency (MASTER)
Was an NSF-supported teacher residency program (award number 1238157) in collaboration Hunter College of the City University of New York, New Visions for Public Schools, the New York City Department of Education, and Internationals Network for Public Schools The goal of MASTER was to integrate pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) into a pre-service learning program for graduate high school science and math education practice. MASTER provided a useful test bed for bringing together the very different lenses on learning provided by high needs public schools, a public graduate school of education, a school support organization and a cultural institution. Results of this program indicate that the practices developed through MASTER have the potential to be replicable, extensible, useful and transformative. It indicates the power of residency models for changing the way educators are prepared for practice. The complexity and demanding nature of PCK in practice requires strong collaboration among experts, instructors, curriculum specialists, and intensive mentoring and coaching, as well as ambitious and thoughtful practitioners. The success of PCK integration depends heavily on the capacity for these entities to collaborate well, receive adequate support and training, and tightly integrate PCK practices into the complex and dynamic clinical environment. MASTER prepared three cohorts of effective science and mathematics educators who facilitated strong student learning outcomes in high-need schools. Students taught by MASTER-trained teachers performed as well as or better than peers taught by other early career teachers. Principals who have hired MASTER residents reported that they were better prepared than most novice teachers and that "All teachers should have to do a residency in this way". My role as Co-PI was to supervise the research and mentorship that took place in the Informal learning environment of the science center and lead a project to assemble an edited volume on PCK in STEM learning, which was published by Springer Nature in 2018. Papers relating to the work in MASTER as well as other PCK integration efforts can be found there. (Also in publications)​​
​Teachers Tryscience
Launched in 2011, Teachers TryScience was a collaborative, professional development and resource website for teaching professionals developed in partnership with IBM. It included the capacity for participating teachers to share resources and lesson/unit plans mapping of lessons and resources to standards by state. I led a team at the New York Hall of Science to work with IBM to design the site and build content.
Tryscience
In 1999, after a decade of work in formal education (including a stint in Silicon Valley building capacity for teacher integration of technology in math and science), I moved East to transition to informal STEM learning at the New York Hall of Science. As part of a team led by Alan Friedman, we worked directly with International Business Machines (IBM) to create a new kind of highly interactive and participatory website that leveraged emerging tools and frameworks to provide access to the culturally-rich world of science centers on a global scale. TryScience was a partnership among the New York Hall of Science, IBM, the Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC), and the European Network of Science Centres and Museums (ECSITE). Over eight hundred science centers participated in this endeavor with content ranging from simple do-at-home experiments to elaborate multi-user games and in 9 languages. Each participating institution had access to its own webpage on the site and could post content, news, links and information. It launched in November 2000. My role was to specify and build the infrastructure, work with the team on design sprints and cycles, and act as a liaison to all the science center leadership to promote active engagement with the content.
In a second phase in 2004, called TryScience Around the World, we planned and developed a network of 100 interactive kiosks at collaborating science centers that provided access to science center content, particularly in regions of the world where access to the Internet was not as prevalent. It gave us the opportunity and challenge to create richer and more complex content than could be handled through a web browser.
The TryScience model was used to develop and launch a series of new websites in collaboration with Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineering (IEEE) to provide engineering career information to students and teachers. TryEngineering was launched in 2006 and subsequently websites for computing and nanotechnology (TryComputing and TryNano), which were l;ater consolidated into the TryEngineering site currently supported by IEEE. The TryScience Team also developed an experimental 3D game on energy and diversity called PowerUp. My role was minimal in these projects, focusing on initial concepts and design only.
Courses
I served as an adjunct assistant professor for the New York Institute of Technology Graduate School of Education from 2006 to 2022. It included curriculum and syllabus development, and Classroom and online instruction, Courses focus primarily on interdisciplinary learning and STEM integration in early, childhood, and adolescent education for International, national and New York City cohorts.
EDPC 664: Institute in Education, Art Integration to Deepen Interdisciplinary Learning 
(Transforming STEM to STEAM). Online (link to syllabus)
COURSE GOAL
From STEM to STEAM strives to inspire joy at the idea of discovery and to create a culture that fosters innovation. Students will learn how to successfully incorporate the arts (visual, music, dance and theater) with STEM, as well as encourage inquiry, integrity, collaboration, creativity, problem-solving, and critical reasoning.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
There is a movement emerging across the country that is challenging students and educators to explore new ways of integrating art and design into the traditional science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. Careers in the 21st century will demand the kind of creative problem solving that translates critical observation, critical thinking, and critical making into objects and experiences that provide utility and meaning. With online format, students can learn the theoretical framework, research, and theory and will also work on the hands-on creations to enhance STEM learning.
EDSC626: Math, Science and Technology in Education II. Hybrid or online (link to syllabus)
COURSE GOALS
Integrating science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) into the K-12 school experience is critical to providing students with relevant, inquiry-based learning approaches that facilitate development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills and are aligned with NYS standards. Such integrated approaches reflect the life experiences that await students and help to create lifelong learners. In this course, candidates explore the issues, resources, and methods in creating integrated STEM experiences. These include understanding how to research, plan and develop effective lessons facilitating STEM experiences that address the diversity of students and collegiality. Crucial to this will be an investigation and application of appropriate assessment strategies and applications of information technologies.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Candidates integrate mathematics, science, and technology with inquiry-based teaching and learning aligned with national and state standards. Candidates explore issues, resources, technologies and methods to create integrated MST experiences and plan effective lessons for diverse student population. Candidates will investigate appropriate assessment strategies and the application of various technologies and web resources. Field experiences are required and integrated into the course. Prerequisite: EDSC 625 (EDMA 625).