Rate My Professor Michelle De Kok

Mrs Michelle De Kok serves as Associate Lecturer in the School of Education at Curtin University, part of the Faculty of Humanities, located on the Perth campus under the Office of the Provost portfolio. She holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) and a Graduate Diploma in Education (Grad.Dip.Ed), followed by a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) awarded by Curtin University in 2025 with distinction. Her thesis, supervised by Karen Murcia, Audrey Cooke, and Geoff Lowe, is titled Exploring the Influence of Digitalisation in a Science Discovery Centre on Children’s Creative Agency and STEM Engagement. This qualitative case study examined interactive digital exhibits in a Perth-based Science Discovery Centre, utilizing exhibit mapping, video observations, and interviews to assess their role in fostering creative agency and 21st-century skills in young children. Findings highlighted the effectiveness of co-designed exhibits like Move It! in stimulating creativity and recommended purposeful digital experiences in GLAM institutions.

De Kok's academic interests center on STEM education, including the integration of digital technologies in informal learning environments, computational thinking via embodied cognition, design thinking, digital literacy, problem-based learning, and empowering girls in STEM. Her verified Google Scholar profile, affiliated with Curtin University, lists key interests as STEM, STEM Education, Design Thinking, Informal Learning, and GLAMSi. She has co-authored peer-reviewed publications such as From conception to fruition: Co-designing a digital exhibit incorporating embodied cognition to encourage young children’s computational thinking in a Science Discovery Centre (2025, with Emma Cross and William Peng) and Exploring young children’s computational thinking through embodied action with an interactive digital exhibit in a Science Centre (2025). Additional contributions include work in Transformative STEAM Education for Sustainable Development (Brill, 2023), where she is described as a Lecturer in Education with teaching interests in inquiry-based learning and primary science. De Kok has participated in the Digital Child project, presented at the WAIER Forum 2024 on related topics, and coordinates the NCP 2026 initiative. Her research has garnered 8 citations on Google Scholar and 4 on ResearchGate.