With a recently expanded cluster of over fifteen full-time faculty in the Learning Sciences from around the world and a large endowment, the Werklund School of Education’s Learning Sciences program is one of the largest, most diverse, and fastest growing learning sciences programs in the world. Our faculty and students represent over 20 countries.
The Learning Sciences specialization is committed to engaging deeply in research-informed, research-active, and research-promotive programs for the purpose of developing and improving theories and practices of learning and scholarship. The program builds on foundational commitments to interdisciplinarity and design with deep understandings that the most pressing challenges facing our world are simultaneously cultural, social, technological, and critical.
You can find more information about the programs at: http://werklund.ucalgary.ca/gpe/programs
My research spans multiple areas, and I look for students who are interested in working with me in one or more of these general areas:
Analyzing and designing to support how in-service and pre-teachers think about and engage in design. Our goal is to support teachers in thinking about design for more fundamental changes to the cultural configurations and opportunities of their classrooms in support of increasing equity and support for diversity within their classrooms.
Engaging students and teachers in explanation and argumentation alone or in groups online, face-to-face, or in writing to learn about scientific and socio-scientific topics. This work has focused on supporting people in critical thinking around claims and evidence.
Designing simulations, games, and multimedia inquiry environments for science learning (e.g., http://www.surgeuniverse.com).
Across all of these projects I am very interested in issues of learning, design, engagement, critical thinking, problem solving, motivation, and equity. If you are interested in potentially applying to University of Calgary and working with me at University of Calgary in one of these areas or other related areas, please email me at douglas.clark (at) ucalgary.ca about your interests.
Great Reasons to Study at the University of Calgary
U Calgary was ranked 1st in Canada and North America in 2015 QS Rankings for Universities under 50 years of age.
Werklund School of Education at U Calgary is ranked 4th in Canada in Macleans Rankings for 2020 and 2021.
U Calgary was ranked 5th in Canada in the 2016 Scimago Institution rankings and 6th in Canada overall in the 2016-2017 THE rankings.
U Calgary was ranked as 101st in the world in Education for 2015 and 2016 (QS, n. d. 1).
One hour from the spectacular Canadian Rocky Mountains and Banff National Park
Ranked the 5th most livable city worldwide (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2015)
Canada’s sunniest city, with 333+ annual days of sunshine (Calgary Economic Development, 2015)
Canada’s energy and innovation hub with the most head offices per capita (FP500 Database, 2014)
Composed of a diverse population: 28% of Calgary’s 1.2 million citizens are immigrants (Statistics Canada, 2011)
Home to 6,000 restaurants, theatres, and patios
Host city of the 1988 Olympic Winter Games and cutting-edge sports facilities
One of the safest major cities in Canada (Statistics Canada, 2012)
The world’s cleanest city (Mercer Global Financial, 2014)
Home to North America’s most extensive urban pathway and bikeway system (City of Calgary, 2015)