New Perspectives in Science Education
Peter Childs
Institution: University of Limerick
Address: 6 Golf Links Road
Postal Code: V94K7HT
Country: Ireland
Emeritus Senior Lecturer and Director of the Chemistry Education Research Group (CERG), is a chemist who has been involved in chemical education for 40 years, both in teaching chemistry at third level and in helping to train chemistry teachers and working with chemistry teachers in schools. He is a past President of the Irish Science Teachers’ Association and also of the Institute of Chemistry of Ireland, and past Chair of the EuCheMS Division of Chemical Education.
He started Chemistry in Action! magazine for Irish chemistry teachers in 1980, the ChemEd-Ireland conferences in 1982 and the Schools Information Centre on the Irish Chemical Industry in 1989.
Recent research in the group includes the teaching of the particulate nature of matter, science in the Irish Transition Year, teaching organic chemistry, trainee chemistry teacher’s chemical misconceptions , language in science education, and developing context-based and inquiry-based teaching materials for the Irish Transition Year (TY Science).
He was a partner in the EU Tempus project SALiS (2010-12), which focuses on the training of pre- and in-service science teachers in methods of low-cost active learning and inquiry based science education. He is the lead investigator at the University of Limerick for the FP7 TEMI project (2013-2016), which looked at the engagement phase of IBSE using mysteries and discrepant events to engage student’s interest in science. He is currently part of the UL team on the Erasmus+ project ARTIST (2016-2019), dealing with developing action research skills for science teachers.
He started Chemistry in Action! magazine for Irish chemistry teachers in 1980, the ChemEd-Ireland conferences in 1982 and the Schools Information Centre on the Irish Chemical Industry in 1989.
Recent research in the group includes the teaching of the particulate nature of matter, science in the Irish Transition Year, teaching organic chemistry, trainee chemistry teacher’s chemical misconceptions , language in science education, and developing context-based and inquiry-based teaching materials for the Irish Transition Year (TY Science).
He was a partner in the EU Tempus project SALiS (2010-12), which focuses on the training of pre- and in-service science teachers in methods of low-cost active learning and inquiry based science education. He is the lead investigator at the University of Limerick for the FP7 TEMI project (2013-2016), which looked at the engagement phase of IBSE using mysteries and discrepant events to engage student’s interest in science. He is currently part of the UL team on the Erasmus+ project ARTIST (2016-2019), dealing with developing action research skills for science teachers.
