I am the Salters’ Professor of Science Education and leader of the University of York Science Education Group (UYSEG). UYSEG has an international reputation for its research and research-informed curriculum development work, and is the home of national courses including Salters Advanced Chemistry and Twenty-First Century Science.

I joined the Department of Education in 1990, though my connections with the University go back further than this, as I studied Chemistry-with-Education and took my Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PCCE) at York. I then spent eight years as a secondary science teacher, mainly in London. During this period, I studied part-time for an MA and then a PhD, at King’s College in London, researching gender issues in science education.

My research interests lie in the area of attitudes to science and in exploring the impact of new approaches to science teaching on young people’s responses to science. I am currently leading the development of a new research-informed curriculum development project called Best Evidence Science Teaching (BEST), funded by the Salters' Institute.  I also lead the Practical Assessment in School Science (PASS) project, funded by the Wellcome Trust, the Royal Society and the Gatsby Foundation, and Science beyond the Boundaries, a project funded by the Templeton World Charity Foundation, which aims to introduce broader, more interdisciplinary approaches into post-16 science teaching. 

My time at York has included the following:

I was Head of the Department of Education from 2006-2014. I was leader of the Science Review Group, which was part of the Evidence Informed Policy and Practice Initiative (EPPI) funded by the Government, and set up to undertake identify and synthesise areas of research in science education. I have worked on a number of national and international curriculum development projects, in the UK, and the USA. I have served as Chair of the Research Committee of the Association for Science Education (ASE).  I am a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry.