New Perspectives in Science Education
Sharon J. Lynch
Institution: The George Washington University
Country: United States
Sharon Lynch, PhD, is a professor in the Graduate School of Education and Human Development at the George Washington University in Washington, DC. She is a science educator and researcher who studies policy-relevant science education problems and practices in secondary schools. Lynch’s research has been focused on the intersection of equity and excellence, including her book on Equity and Science Education Reform (2000). She is interested in understanding the social, cultural and economic forces shaping prospects for students underrepresented in STEM fields, and in finding educational policies and practices that improve STEM opportunity structures. She is especially interested in school-level change.
From 2008-2010, Dr. Lynch served as a Program Director for the U.S. National Science Foundation’s (NSF’s) Directorate for Education and Human Resources in the Division on Teaching and Learning. In 2010, she was elected President of the National Association for Research on Science Teaching (NARST), one of the largest science education research organizations in the world. She was responsible for organizing NARST’s Annual International Conference in Puerto Rico in 2012.
Lynch has received substantial research funding from the National Science Foundation of the United States. She is currently the Principal Investigator on a five-year study of inclusive STEM high schools entitled Opportunity Structures for Preparation and Inspiration (OSPrI) which included schools in seven U.S. states. She is currently co-Principal Investigator on a large-scale companion project, iSTEM, led by Barbara Means of SRI International that is conducting longitudinal research on the effectiveness of inclusive STEM high schools in three states. These two projects have received significant attention at the U.S. national policy level because they document a new type of high school that connects STEM education with the community and the world of work. These efforts show considerable promise for students from underrepresented groups in STEM, and address both social justice and economic imperatives. She has led large research efforts spanning both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies.
Lynch currently serves as an advisor to several STEM education research projects and national efforts, including a new project that will attempt to define STEM education and contribute to a national indicator system for K-12 STEM schools. She is on the editorial board of the journal, Science Education.
She has been a high school science teacher of biology, environmental science and chemistry.
More information on the OSPrI project can be found at http://ospri.research.gwu.edu
. Areas of expertise: Research on STEM education, science education, education policy, equity, school change, science curriculum materials, project based learning, socio-emotional factors in science learning, and teacher education.
From 2008-2010, Dr. Lynch served as a Program Director for the U.S. National Science Foundation’s (NSF’s) Directorate for Education and Human Resources in the Division on Teaching and Learning. In 2010, she was elected President of the National Association for Research on Science Teaching (NARST), one of the largest science education research organizations in the world. She was responsible for organizing NARST’s Annual International Conference in Puerto Rico in 2012.
Lynch has received substantial research funding from the National Science Foundation of the United States. She is currently the Principal Investigator on a five-year study of inclusive STEM high schools entitled Opportunity Structures for Preparation and Inspiration (OSPrI) which included schools in seven U.S. states. She is currently co-Principal Investigator on a large-scale companion project, iSTEM, led by Barbara Means of SRI International that is conducting longitudinal research on the effectiveness of inclusive STEM high schools in three states. These two projects have received significant attention at the U.S. national policy level because they document a new type of high school that connects STEM education with the community and the world of work. These efforts show considerable promise for students from underrepresented groups in STEM, and address both social justice and economic imperatives. She has led large research efforts spanning both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies.
Lynch currently serves as an advisor to several STEM education research projects and national efforts, including a new project that will attempt to define STEM education and contribute to a national indicator system for K-12 STEM schools. She is on the editorial board of the journal, Science Education.
She has been a high school science teacher of biology, environmental science and chemistry.
More information on the OSPrI project can be found at http://ospri.research.gwu.edu
. Areas of expertise: Research on STEM education, science education, education policy, equity, school change, science curriculum materials, project based learning, socio-emotional factors in science learning, and teacher education.
