Martin Storksdieck is the director of the Board on Science Education at the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences, where he oversees studies that address a wide range of issues related to science education (e.g., climate change education, science learning from games and simulations, developing a conceptual framework for new science education standards, discipline-based education research). Storksdieck previously served as director of project development and as senior researcher at the not-for-profit Institute for Learning Innovation, where he is involved in research on science learning in immersive environments; models of involving researchers and scientists in science museums and science centers; and understanding the impact of science hobbyists, such as amateur astronomers, on the public understanding of science. His areas of interest include factors that influence what and how we learn when we do so voluntarily, and how this “learning” is connected to our behaviors, identities, and beliefs. This includes the role of personal and perceptual filters in science learning, particularly related to controversial topics such as climate change or evolution, and how connections between schools and out-of-school learning can create and sustain lifelong interest in (science) learning.
Before his involvement in science education and learning research, Storksdieck developed shows and programs on global environmental change for a planetarium in Germany; served as editor, host, and producer for a weekly environmental news broadcast; and worked on local environmental management systems and sustainability for the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives’ European office. Storksdieck holds a master’s in biology from the Albert-Ludwigs University (Freiburg, Germany), a master’s in public administration from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in education from Leuphana University (Lüneburg, Germany).
