Esther van Dijk. I was born in 1969 in Breda (The Netherlands) and obtained a M.
Sc. in Biology from Radboud University. Nijmegen. My M.Sc. thesis reported on ...
Esther van Dijk I was born in 1969 in Breda (The Netherlands) and obtained a M.Sc. in Biology from Radboud University Nijmegen. My M.Sc. thesis reported on the experimental work I did on benthic foraminifera in order to demonstrate the anthropogenic influence in the Adriatic sea. I obtained a Bachelor of Education in biology for lower-level secondary school teaching from Fontys University of Professional Education Tilburg and a Bachelor of Education in biology for upper-level secondary school teaching from the University of Professional Education Utrecht. I did my Ph.D. in biology education (Fachdidaktik der Biologie) in the graduate program “Didaktische Rekonstruktion” at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Oldenburg University (Germany) and graduated with a thesis titled “Teaching Evolution: A Study of Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge” in 2009. From 1999 until 2004 I have held various educational positions: as secondary school teacher for biology and public understanding of science; as education assistant in the project “Foundations of Biology” at Leiden University; and as location coordinator and tutor at the Learning centre Blom in Leiden. As of September 2009 I am a member of the Arbeitsgruppe Biologiedidaktik at the Institute for Biology and Chemistry, University of Hildesheim. My active research interests include: the role of philosophy of science in science communication, especially the disunity of science and the demarcation problem; representations of science within science teaching and informal settings; the communication of contemporary scientific issues that have an impact on society with a focus on evolutionary biology and conservation biology (which involves an analysis of relevant and accessible nature of science features). Contact E-Mail:
[email protected] Key Publications Van Dijk, E.M. & Kattmann, U. (2010). Evolution im Unterricht: Eine Studie über fachdidaktisches Wissen von Lehrerinnen und Lehrern. Zeitschrift für Didaktik der Naturwissenschaften, 16, 7-21. Van Dijk, E.M. & Reydon, T.A.C. (2010). A conceptual analysis of evolutionary theory for teacher education. Science & Education, 19, 655-677. Van Dijk, E.M. & Kattmann, U. (2009). Teaching evolution with historical narratives. Evolution: Education and Outreach, 2, 479-489. Van Dijk, E.M. (2009) Teachers’ views on understanding evolutionary theory: A PCKstudy in the framework of the ERTE-model. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25, 259-267. Van Dijk, E.M. & Kattmann, U. (2007). A research model for the study of science teachers’ PCK and improving teacher education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 23, 885-897.
