Rate My Professor Jan van Driel

Jan van Driel is the Professor of Science Education in the Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne, where he co-leads the Mathematics, Science and Technology Education Group in the Melbourne Graduate School of Education. A former chemistry teacher from the Netherlands, he earned his PhD in chemical education from Utrecht University. Early in his career, he worked as a teacher trainer and educational consultant at Delft University of Technology. In 1995, he joined the Leiden University Graduate School of Teaching, advancing to Professor of Science Education in 2006 and later serving as Director of ICLON, Leiden University's Graduate School of Teaching. In 2016, he moved to Australia to become the inaugural Professor of Science Education at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education.

Professor van Driel's research focuses on science teacher knowledge, teacher education and professional learning, and interdisciplinary science and STEM education. Recognized as a world-leading scholar, his extensive work in teaching, teacher education, and higher education has profoundly influenced the professional development of science teachers globally. He is co-editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Science Education and held key roles including Vice-President of the Netherlands Educational Research Association from 2001 to 2009, chair of the Interuniversity Centre for Teacher Education, and secretary of the board of the Technasium Foundation in the Netherlands. He currently serves as a Chief Investigator on an Australian Research Council-funded project, "Primary Teachers’ Adaptive Expertise in Interdisciplinary Mathematics and Science Education," in collaboration with RMIT University, Monash University, and Deakin University. A notable publication is his book Science Teachers' Knowledge Development (2021), which overviews research on the professional knowledge science teachers develop and enact.