Biography
Seamus Delaney is a Science Education Lecturer and Researcher at Deakin University. Seamus has worked as a secondary teacher, teacher educator and researcher in Switzerland and Australia. He is a committee member of the Chemistry Education Association (CEA), he co-founded the Early Careers Chemistry Network (ECCN) and is a member of the Royal Australian Chemistry Institute (RACI). He has consulted for government on chemistry and science curriculum as well as national large-scale assessments. He recently returned from Switzerland, where he worked on a number of science, technology and educational assessment projects with the Centre for Science and Technology Education (Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz). Seamus completed his PhD at the School of Chemistry, Monash University. Seamus is currently involved in an ongoing, international interdisciplinary project focussed on re-positioning chemistry as the sustainability science through systems thinking approaches. Seamus' other research interests are the incorporation of digital technologies such as augmented and virtual reality into teaching and learning, and science education in out-of-school/informal learning contexts.
Further Information
Read more on Seamus's profileBiography summary
Qualifications
Doctor of Philosophy (2010)
- School of Chemistry, Monash University, Australia
- Thesis topic: Electrically Regenerable Mesoporous Carbon for CO2 Capture
Master of Education Policy (International) (2012)
- Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of Melbourne
Master of Teaching (Secondary) (2008)
- Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of Melbourne
Bachelor of Science (1st class Honours) (2001)
- Monash University
Career highlights
Australian National Commission for UNESCO project grant
The Periodic Table of Sustainable Elements
- 2019-2020: with Dr Madeleine Schultz (Deakin), A/Prof Joanne Jamie (Macquarie University)
Invited presentations, International
Pre-service Teachers in Research – A Museum Learning Experiences Model
- 12th Conference of the European Science Education Research Association (ESERA), Dublin, Ireland, August 2017
- Invited Symposium – ESERA SIG3 – Out-of-school contexts
Deconstructing science demonstrations: incorporating video self-reflection into pre-service teacher education
- 11th Conference of the European Science Education Research Association (ESERA), Helsinki, Finland, September 2015.
- Chair, Organiser of Invited Symposium – ESERA SIG2 – Video-based studies
Teaching and Research Awards
- 2013 – Learning and Teaching Initiative Grant (“Incorporating collaborative interactive experiences with digital video into Science education teaching”), The University of Melbourne
- 2008 – Ken Mappin Prize for Beginning Teachers, Chemistry Education Association, Victoria.
- 2006 - Best CO2 Capture Project, Australian Institute of Energy National Postgraduate Student Energy Awards, ‘Electrically Regenerable Mesoporous Carbons for CO2 Capture’.
Research interests
(Potential Areas for Honours, Masters or PhD (Associate) supervision)
Chemistry Education
- Situating sustainable development within chemistry education
- Systems Thinking in Chemistry Education (STICE)
- Practical-based teaching and learning processes
- International comparative studies in chemistry education
Digital Technology Education
- Augmented Reality (AR) in primary and secondary education
- Educational affordances of digital technology in pre-service teacher education
Science Education in Informal / Out-of-school contexts
- Pre-service teacher education in Science Education Learning Centres (SELCs) and Museums
- Evaluating science education best practice in Museums, SELCs and Tech Schools
General Education
- Positioning Theory
- Measuring student attitudes towards and motivations for post-secondary pathways
- Video-based education research methodology
- Lecturer self-study in Teacher Education
Affiliations
- European Science Education Research Association (ESERA)
- Chemistry Education Association (CEA) - Committee Member
- Gesellschaft für Didaktik der Chemie und Physik (GDCP)
- Royal Australian Chemistry Institute (RACI)
- Science Teachers Association of Victoria (STAV)
- Verband Fachdidaktik Naturwissenschaften Schweiz (DiNaT)
- International Federation of Information Processing (IFIP), Technical Committee 3 – Education – Working Group 3.3 - Research into Educational Applications of Information Technologies
Teaching interests
Chemistry Education
Secondary Science
Digital Technologies
Teacher education in Informal and Out-of-school settings
International Comparative Education
Education Research Methodologies
Units taught
Current Teaching
Unit Chair
- ESS768 Curriculum Studies (Senior Chemistry)
- ESJ460 Curriculum Studies (Senior Chemistry or TESOL B)
- ESS415 Resources in the Contemporary Science Curriculum
- ESS755 Resources in the Contemporary Science Curriculum
Campus Co-ordinator / Tutor
- EES245 Primary Science Education 1 (Burwood)
- EES345 Primary Science Education 1 (Burwood)
- ESS440 Primary Science Education 2 (Burwood)
Previous teaching (Teacher Education)
- Secondary Science Education
- Science Learning in Informal settings
- Primary Education (Fachwissenschaft Sachunterricht)
- Education Methodologies in Science Education (Forschung und Entwicklung Naturwissenschaftsdidaktik)
- Kindergarten/Early Primary Education – Nature, Man and Society (Fachwissenschaft Natur, Mensch und Gesellschaft)
Knowledge areas
Fields of Research (FoR)
130212 – Science, Technology and Engineering Curriculum and Pedagogy
130313 – Teacher Education and Professional Development of Educators
130306 – Educational Technology and Computing
130202 – Curriculum and Pedagogy Theory and Development
130302 – Comparative and Cross-Cultural Education
130303 – Education Assessment and Evaluation
Professional activities
Outside Deakin
Committee Member – Chemistry Education Association (CEA), Victoria (2012-2014, 2018 - current)
- The CEA is a non-profit organisation that promotes the teaching and learning of chemistry in schools, particularly at the secondary level
Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority (VCAA)
- VCE Chemistry curriculum review panel (2013-2016)
- VCE Chemistry benchmarking report (2019)
Working Group Member - International Federation of Information Processing (IFIP), Technical Committee 3 – Education
- Working Group 3.3 - Research into Educational Applications of Information Technologies
Within Deakin
Course Director - Bachelor of Teaching (Science) / Bachelor of Science (D351) (2019-current)
Faculty of Arts and Education Teaching and Learning Committee (FTLC) (2019-2020)
Human Ethics Advisory Group (HEAG) reviewer (2019-current)
Projects
Ongoing projects
Chemistry Education Research
The Periodic Table of Sustainable Elements: school activities for learning and engagement (2019-2020)
- Collaboration with Macquarie University
- Australian National Commission for UNESCO grant recipient (2019)
Incorporating systems thinking approaches into a High School Chemistry Depth Study (2018-2022)
- Collaboration with Wollondilly Anglican College, NSW.
Teacher practices to link macro-level observations with sub-micro representations of chemistry understanding (2018-2020)
- Collaboration with University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, Tallinn University, Estonia
Re-positioning chemistry as the ‘sustainability science’ through systems thinking (2018-)
- Science and Society Network (SSN) Interdisciplinary Establishment grant (2018).
Teacher as researcher - Co-design of systems thinking in chemistry education (STICE) activities through an educational design research approach (2019- )
- Funded by Chemistry Education Association (CEA), Victoria
Digital Technology Education Research
Maximising Affordances of Augmented Reality in Science Learning (2018-)
- In collaboration with Centre for Advanced Design in Engineering Training, Deakin
STEM Education research in Interdisciplinary and Informal contexts
Putting the Tech into Tech Schools - Longitudinal research evaluation of the Victorian Tech School Initiative (2019-2023)
- Research Evaluation funded by Department of Education and Training, Victoria, Australia
Completed projects
Digitale Transformation - Industrie 4.0 (Digital Transformation – Industry 4.0) (2016-2017)
- Competencies, Perceptions and Opportunities for Teaching and Learning ‘Industry 4.0’ in general Technology Education
- Financially supported by Schweizerische Akademie der Technischen Wissenschaften (Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences)
Aufgabenentwicklung (Checks) (2014-2017)
- Development and Implementation of hands-on, on-line large scale assessments for Kantons (States) in Northwestern Switzerland.
- Financially supported by Bildungsraum Nordwestschweiz (Swiss Curriculum body), Institute for Educational Evaluation, Universität Zürich
Voraussetzungen MINT in Kindergarten (Teacher perceptions of STEM curriculum in Kindergartens (2017)
Transdisciplinary STEM/STEAM approaches in schools - a systematic review (2018)
Integrated STEM learning through robots, drones and coding (2016-2018)
- In collaboration with The University of Melbourne
Incorporating collaborative interactive experiences with digital video into Science education teaching (2013-2014)
- Learning and Teaching Initiative Grant, University of Melbourne
Contemporary Practices, new technologies and science education (2012-2014)
- Financially supported by Office of Learning and Teaching (OLT)
Science education learning opportunities in Science Education Learning Centres and Museums (2014-2017)
Chemistry Demonstration digital project (ECCNvideos) (2013-2014)
Electrically Regenerable Mesoporous Carbon for CO2 Capture (2003-2007, 2010)
- PhD research project.
- Financially supported (Joint-scholarship) by CRC for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC) and CRC for Clean Power from Lignite
Publications
L Vinko, S Delaney, I Devetak
(2020), Vol. 10, pp. 9-25, Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal, Ljubljana, Slovenia, C1
Jared Carpendale, Seamus Delaney, Emily Rochette
(2020), Vol. 97, pp. 2534-2543, Journal of Chemical Education, Washington, D.C., C1
Victorian Certificate of Education senior secondary chemistry benchmarking report 2020
Seamus Delaney, Amanda Peters, Lisa Chiavaroli
(2020), [Melbourne, Vic.], A6
Andrew Eaton, Seamus Delaney, Madeleine Schultz
(2019), Vol. 96, pp. 2968-2974, Journal of chemical education, Washington, D.C., C1
Experiments in science instruction: for sure! Are we really sure?
P Labudde, S Delaney
(2016), pp. 193-204, Science education research and practical work: a collection of invited papers inspired by the 23rd Symposium on Chemistry and Science Education held at the TU Dortmund University, May 26-28, 2016, Aachen, Germany, B1
Funded Projects at Deakin
Other Public Sector Funding
The Periodic Table of Sustainable Elements
Dr Seamus Delaney, Dr Madeleine Schultz, A/Prof Joanne Jamie
- 2019: $16,500
Tech Schools Evaluation
A/Prof Linda Hobbs, Dr John Cripps Clark, Dr Seamus Delaney, Dr Peta White, Dr George Aranda, Prof Russell Tytler, Prof Christine Ure, A/Prof Coral Campbell
- 2020: $185,724
- 2019: $112,000
VCE Chemistry benchmarking research and report.
Dr Seamus Delaney
- 2019: $6,000
Defining and mapping out-of-field (OOF) teaching in Victorian government schools.
A/Prof Linda Hobbs, A/Prof Coral Campbell, Dr Seamus Delaney, Mr Chris Speldewinde
- 2020: $45,048
Secondary Mathematics and Science initiative for out-of-field teachers.
Prof Russell Tytler, Dr Jill Brown, Dr Peta White, A/Prof Linda Hobbs, A/Prof Coral Campbell, Dr Sandra Herbert, Dr Carly Sawatzki, A/Prof Wanty Widjaja, Dr Seamus Delaney, Dr John Cripps Clark, Prof Damian Blake
- 2020: $764,034
Industry and Other Funding
Chemistry Education Research Catalysed Professional Learning Communities.
Dr Seamus Delaney, Dr Madeleine Schultz
- 2019: $17,500
Supervisions
No completed student supervisions to report