Wouter van Joolingen appointed as Professor and Scientific Director of the Freudenthal Institute
International leading researcher in computer-based investigative learning
The Executive Board has appointed Professor Wouter van Joolingen as professor with a specialised remit in Science and Mathematics Education and as Scientific Director of the Freudenthal Institute of the Faculty of Science. Van Joolingen is currently Professor-Director of ELAN, the institute for teacher training programmes and academic education of communication of the University of Twente. His appointment in Utrecht is a strengthening of the Freudenthal Institute as a centre of expertise for science research and education. At the same time as Van Joolingen, Professor Toine Pieters was appointed as General Director of the Freudenthal Institute.
The new professor is an internationally leading authority in the area of investigative learning with the help of computer models. For instance, by building a computer model about the causes of traffic-jams and experimenting with it, students learn how science knowledge is created. "This experience will still be useful to them twenty years onwards to determine a scientific development. I think that is important than knowing Newton's Law by heart, which is less useful for most students after secondary school."
Freudenthal unique in the Netherlands
Van Joolingen graduated in Theoretical Physics at Leiden University, including a qualification to teach senior secondary students. He obtained his PhD degree at Eindhoven University of Technology in the use of computer simulations in education. This was followed by various appointments in Eindhoven, Amsterdam and Twente, and by an appointment as Professor in Dynamic Modelling in Educational Situations at the University of Twente in 2009.His switch to Utrecht was prompted by his desire to contribute to proper science didactics. "With its size, level and focus , the Freudenthal Institute is in a unique position in the Netherlands when it concerns research into and the development of science subject didactics," says Van Joolingen.
The Freudenthal Institute
The Freudenthal Institute for Science and Mathematics Education () is a research institute of Utrecht University, faculty of Science.The institute aims to improve the quality of education in mathematics, science and IT. To this end, the institute engages in:
- research, expertise development and knowledge sharing in the field of education and pedagogy;
- teacher education and Science Education and Communication components in several other study programmes;
- continuous professional development and support for science and mathematics teachers and their networks;
- the development of teaching materials and student activities (outreach).