International Society of Learning Sciences Recognizes Nathan, Puntambekar

May 21, 2018

UW-Madison’s Mitchell Nathan and Sadhana Puntambekar each were recently elected as a Fellow of the International Society of Learning Sciences (ISLS).

Both are faculty members with the School of Education’s No. 1-ranked Department of Educational Psychology, and the honor is in recognition of their “substantial contributions to the learning sciences.”

Nathan, who is director of the Center on Education and Work within the School of Education, was one of the four founding officers of ISLS in 2002. His research and teaching focuses on basic learning theory and research methods for understanding and improving instruction and student reasoning in mathematics, engineering and STEM more broadly. He currently serves on the editorial board for the flagship journal of the society, The Journal of the Learning Sciences.

Nathan also was co-chair of the Program Committee for the 10th International Conference on Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) held in Madison in 2013, and he is co-author with Keith Sawyer of the chapter, "Foundations of Learning Sciences" for the 2014 second edition of “The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences.” 

Puntambekar is the Sears-Bascom Professor of Educational Psychology. Her research centers on the design and implementation of innovative, technology-rich learning environments to foster deep and engaging science and engineering knowledge for middle school students. She served as the executive officer of ISLS from 2010-16 and was conference chair of the 10th International Conference on Computer Supported Collaborative Learning held in Madison in 2013.

Puntambekar currently serves as co-chair of the CSCL Committee of ISLS and was program co-chair for the seventh International Conference on Computer Supported Collaborative Learning held at Rutgers University in 2007. She also served as the associate editor of the design research strand of the Journal of the Learning Sciences for three years, has conducted two webinars for the Network of Academic Programs in the Learning Sciences, and has authored the chapter, "Design-Based Research" for the 2018 “International Handbook of the Learning Sciences.”

The ISLS Fellows program has three main goals: to honor those who have made major research accomplishments in advancing the field of the learning sciences; to identify people who continue to take leadership roles in ISLS and serve as role models for others in the field; and to build a respected cohort of leaders who sustain the ISLS community, strengthen the organization, and advance its broader value and visibility.