Steven Semken

Steven Semken is an ethnogeologist and geoscience education researcher. His research is focused on interactions of geoscience inquiry and the teaching and learning of Earth science with indigenous and local knowledge, sense of place, and the affective domain. Current projects include place-based and cross-cultural Earth system science education, informal geoscience learning in Southwestern National Parks, and strategic K-12 science teacher preparation and professional development. His research is highly trans-disciplinary and involves collaborators from diverse branches of geological science as well as from science education, anthropology, geography, and cognitive science. His work is directed toward enhancing public Earth science literacy and diversity in the geoscience profession, and is predominantly based in the geologically, ecologically, and culturally diverse American Southwest.

Semken regularly teaches courses in Southwestern Regional Geology, Southwest-based Earth System Science, Field Geology, and Introduction to Geology, as well as courses in Earth and Space Science Teaching and Science Education. Prior to joining ASU in 2003, he taught geology and environmental science for 15 years on the Navajo Nation.

Semken is a Past-President and former Distinguished Speaker of the National Association of Geoscience Teachers, a former Fellow of the Institute for Humanities Research at ASU, and a collaborator in the ASU Center for Research on Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology (CRESMET).

More Info:

Web site: http://semken.asu.edu

CV / Resume: http://semken.asu.edu/Semken_cv.pdf