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Professor Roy Pea joins the SUSE faculty this fall from SRI International, where he has been director of the Center for Technology in Learning for the past five years. Previously he was dean of the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University and John Evans Professor of Education and the Learning Sciences. At Stanford he will direct a new interdisciplinary Stanford Institute for Learning Sciences and Technologies (SILST) and will also help SUSE develop a doctoral program in Learning Sciences and Technology Design. The Institute will conduct original research aimed at making fundamental contributions from interdisciplinary approaches to advancing theory, methods, design practices, research, technology innovations and communities in learning sciences and technology—particularly in K-12 and teacher education. It will also explore innovative models of research and knowledge transfer. According to Pea, the time is ripe to build such a program at Stanford: “Effective use of new computing, media, and communications technologies for supporting learning and teaching has become a central issue in K–12 educational policy, and is also a key force in the global marketplace of education and training at all levels. Advances in the scientific understanding of learning and educational systems are increasingly brought to bear in the design, implementation, and evaluation of new learning technologies. With its history of technical innovation and educational excellence, Stanford is uniquely poised in Silicon Valley to forge a leadership position to meet these needs and advance the vibrant culture of scholarship that is emerging across these disciplines.” Professor Pea plans to work with faculty at SUSE and across the Stanford campus to develop a world-class doctoral program in the sciences and technologies of learning. That program will be enlivened by ongoing research projects at the Institute, to which students will contribute. The Ph.D. program in Learning Sciences and Technology Design will prepare graduates for career positions in many different work sectors—higher education, K–12 education leadership, industry, training, and federal and state government—with opportunities for teaching, research and development, consulting, writing, and public policy. Professor Pea brings to his new position 20 years of work in the field. His research has centered on how innovations in computing and communications technologies can influence learning, thinking, and educational systems. His areas of specialization include inquiry learning using scientific visualizations, computer-supported communities of learning, web-based video case studies for teacher learning, and learning with wireless palmtop computers. He has also contributed to building numerous interdisciplinary research centers and complex projects that engage researchers, educators, and industry leaders in collaborative design partnerships. Dr. Pea’s doctorate is from Oxford University where he studied developmental psychology and psycholinguistics with a Rhodes Scholarship. He co-authored the broadly used How People Learn books of the National Academy Press, and is currently co-chairing the National Research Council Committee on “Improving Learning with Information Technology” with National Academy of Engineering President Bill Wulf. |
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