Learning and Cognition Lab

Awards and recognition

2023 

• American Psychological Association Distinguished Scientific Award for the Applications of Psychology, for theoretical or empirical advances in psychology leading to the understanding or amelioration of important practical problems.
• The 2023 Yidan Prize Laureate for Education Research

2021

• Michelene Chi named 2021 APS William James Fellow Award


• Michelene (Micki) Chi is internationally renown for her sustained, foundational contributions to the field of modern learning science. Chi has published well over 100 papers in the top journals in her field and has been cited over 60,000 times. Her work includes pioneering studies on topics such as expertise, self-explanation, tutoring, conceptual change, and student engagement.
For instance, Chi’s study on the complex knowledge structures and reasoning skills of young children who were dinosaur experts challenged both Piagetian thought on child development and as existing conceptualizations of the nature of expertise.

• Chi is known for producing high-quality studies with innovative, rigorous methods. She once performed a painstakingly precise content analysis of a textbook’s explanation of the human heart in order to show that only about 50% of the information students needed to know was explicitly conveyed. Chi reasoned that effective learning must therefore depend on students’ ability to interpret beyond what is given in the text, a hypothesis that has now been confirmed in numerous studies, starting with her study showing that students who self-explained learned more. This conclusion has inspired a promising new area of research in discovering how to best teach students to self-explain.
• Chi’s outstanding dedication to scientific rigor, including her readiness to constantly put her own theories to the test, makes her an extraordinary researcher. Her more recent research, the ICAP theory, has challenged current learning practices and added operational definitions that can facilitate the application of the principle of Active Learning. Moreover, her ICAP theory has important implications for education worldwide and has fueled a movement to transform the way that we approach student engagement in order to better serve teachers and students alike.

2020

• Recipient of the Harold W. McGraw Jr. Prize in Education, for pioneering research in the learning sciences to promote active and engaged student learning.

2018

• The David E. Rumelhart Prize: Presented by the Cognitive Science Society for making a significant contemporary contribution to the theoretical foundations of human cognition, specifically for research that has “challenged basic assumptions about the mind and defined new approaches that have shaped a generation of cognitive and learning scientists.”
• The Best Paper Published in JLS Award: Presented by the International Society of the Learning Sciences to recognize exceptional scholarship and contributions made to the field of the learning sciences via the Journal of the Learning Sciences

2016

• The American Academy of Arts & Sciences
• Distinguished Contributions to Research in Education Award: Presented by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) for outstanding achievement and success in education research

2015

• Thorndike Career Achievement Award: Presented by the American Psychological Association (APA) for lifetime contribution in research
• The Inaugural Dorothy Bray Endowed Professor of Science and Teaching for Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Arizona State University

2014

• Wickenden Award: Presented by the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), for "the highest standards of scholarly research in engineering education published in the Journal of Engineering Education in 2013"

2013

• Faculty Achievement Award for Best Professional Application: Arizona State University
• Faculty Achievement Award for Defining Edge Research and Creative Work: Professional Application, Arizona State University
• Sylvia Scribner Award: Presented by the American Educational Research Association (AERA), Learning and Instruction Division, for research that represents significant advancement in our understanding of learning and instruction

2010

• Elected to the National Academy of Education

2006

• Chancellor's Distinguished Research Award, Senior Category
• For "innovative research of landmark impact in several research areas", University of Pittsburgh

2001

• Cited in Carnegie-Mellon University's Centennial Magazine as one of its 87 most successful undergraduates

1982

• Boyd R. McCandless Young Scientist Award
Presented by Division 7 of the American Psychological Association (APA), for distinguished theoretical contribution and programmatic research efforts in the field of developmental psychology

1977–1982

• Spencer Fellowship
  Awarded by the National Academy of Education, for promising research and professional development contributing to the theory and practice of education
  
   

Fellowships

2016

• Education Research Knowledge Forum Scholar, one of 32 scholars selected by a crowdsourcing method to engage with policy leaders in a forum about educational research; initiated on AERA Centennial year.

2013

• Fellow, American Educational Research Association

2002–2005

• Resident Fellow, Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh

2002

• Fellow, One of seven inaugural fellows, Cognitive Science Society

   

1988

• Fellow, Board of Ethnic Minority Affairs, American Psychological Association

   

1996–1997

• Resident Fellow, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford, CA

1992

• Fellow, Association for Psychological Science

   

1986

• Fellow, Division 7, American Psychological Association
   

Impact and Recognition of Scholarly Work

2017

• Chi (2009) paper on ICAP was the No. 1 most downloaded paper from the publisher’s website (Wiley-Blackwell)


2016

• Chi (2005) paper “Commonsense conceptions of emergent processes: Why some misconceptions are robust” was listed as one of the most cited papers on science education in the Web of Science database, first under the subcategory “Student’s Thinking about Science”.
• Cited as one of the top most influential scholars in education research in a Brookings Institution study.


2007

• Noted by the journal Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory, as one of its most frequently cited authors


2006

• Two of Chi’s papers are among the top 10 most highly cited papers published in Cognitive Science: Chi, Feltovich & Glaser (1981), and Chi, Bassok, Lewis, Reimann, & Glaser (1989), are ranked 1st and 7th, respectively. (from Rob Goldstone's 2006 Editor's report).

2004

• Chi (1978) was voted as the 7th "Most Fascinating Studies in Child Psychology", as surveyed by the Society for Research in Child Development, published in their Oct. newsletter.

2002

• Highlighted in "Reach for the Stars," an American Educational Research Association basic research in reading and literacy poster session that showcased the research careers of distinguished scholars.

2000

• Chi (1997), was noted in the editorial of the Journal of the Learning Sciences (Kolodner, 2000, p. 2), as one of its "most cited papers" on methodology.

1993

• Chi, Feltovich & Glaser (1981), was identified as a Citation Classic.

2025

• Google Scholar Page: Total citations 70,357, h-index 79, i-index 131

2021

• Google Scholar Page: Total citations exceed 57,730+, h-index 74.

2018

• ICAP paper (Chi & Wylie, 2014) has been translated and published in Chinese. Titled "Engagement Means Competence: A Summary of the Research and Value of the ICAP Framework" written by QunLi Sheng--a professor at Zhejiang University. The article is published on Open Education Research in Chinese, Volume 23, No. 2, April 2017.
• Two blogs about my work: One by Grainne Canole, the other by Adam Abdulla, both from Great Britain.
• Chi, Kang, & Yaghmourian (2017) was selected for the inaugural Best Paper Published in JLS Award to recognize exceptional scholarship and contributions made to the field of the learning sciences.

2017

• Chi, M. T. H. (2009). Active-Constructive-Interactive: A conceptual framework for differentiating learning activities. Topics in Cognitive Science, 1, 73-105. was the most dowloaded paper from the publisher's website at 3521 times, as of Sept. 2017.

2016

• Selected by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) as a Knowledge Forum Scholar to give a talk on her ICAP research as part of their “Ed-Talk” video series.
  Cited as one of the top most influential scholars in education research in a Brookings Institution study.
• “Commonsense conceptions of emergent processes: Why some misconceptions are robust” (2005) was listed as one of the most cited papers on science education in the Web of Science database, first under the subcategory, “student’s thinking about science”.

2014

• Menekse, Stump, Krause & Chi (#110) received the William Elgin Wickenden Award from the American Society for Engineering Education, recognizing it as representing “the highest standards of scholarly research in engineering education published in the Journal of Engineering Education in 2013.

2007

• Noted by the journal Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory, as one of its most frequently cited authors.

2006

• Two papers papers, Chi, Feltovich & Glaser (1981), and Chi, Bassok, Lewis, Reimann, & Glaser (1989), were ranked 1st and 7th most highly cited publications in Cognitive Science respectively, from the Editor's 2006 report.

2002

• Highlighted in “Reach for the Stars,” a basic research poster session that showcased the research careers of distinguished scholars, AERA.
• Chi (1978) (Publication #12) was voted as the 7th “Most Fascinating Studies in Child Psychology,” as surveyed by the Society for Research in Child Development, published in their Oct. newsletter.

2000

• Chi (1997), was noted in the editorial of the Journal of the Learning Sciences (Kolodner, 2000, p. 2), as one of its "most cited papers" on methodology.

1993

• Chi, Feltovich & Glaser (1981), (Publication #15 in the reference list) was identified as a Citation Classic.

Invited keynotes, plenary sessions, colloquia, tutorials, symposia and workshops (from 1990)

2025

• Invited to present at the Bridge the Gap 2025 global summit “Bridging the Disconnect: Redesigning Curriculum and Methods to Reignite Student Passion."  Title of the online presentation was “Beyond Engagement: Four Ways of Engaging.”  Organized by the School of the Future International Academy (SoFIA). Nov. 5.
• Keynote address at the 2025 MINT Symposium “ICAP: Defining How Students Engage to Learn in Active Learning, Nuremberg, Germany, Sept. 17-18.
• Invited speaker at the Yidan Prize Conference, “How ICAP Can Improve STEMM Teaching at both College and K-12”, in the session Adopting Learner-Centered Practices, March 27.

2024

• Keynote speaker at the 2nd Meeting on Mind, Brain and Education, Universidade Catolica Portuguesa, Lisbon, Portugal, Nov. 20.
• Invited Speaker at the 2024 Yidan Prize Conference Series “Learning in a Changing World: Creativity and Evidence in Education” with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD, June 18-19, Paris.

2023

• Invited colloquium presented “ICAP: A Theory of How Students Engage to Learn,” at the University of Hong Kong, Dec. 7, 2023.
• Conversation Panel at the Yidan Prize Summit, Hong Kong, Dec. 4.
• Colloquium speaker, “ICAP: A framework for active learning and ways to apply it,” to be presented at UC San Diego Psychology Colloquium series. April 6.
• Invited speaker by the Teaching Community of Practice: A group of about 100 ASU faculty who meet regularly to discuss ideas related to engineering education. “ICAP: A framework for defining active learning and prescribing ways to apply it to design and evaluate instruction.”

2022 

• Keynote Speaker, “Using ICAP to Guide Teacher-Student Dialogs,” presented at the international conference on Advancing (digital) learning discourse in teaching, teacher education and teachers’ professional development.”  organized by the University of Zurich, at the Centro Stefano Franscini at Monte Verita, Switzerland, Sept. 4-9.
• “Co-constructive Collaborative Learning.”  Invited keynote presented at the lecture series for the Transregional Collaborative Research Center on Constructing Explainability, at Universitat Paderborn, Germany, July.
• Invited by David Oxtoby, President of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences to speak on student engagement and learning at the Higher Education Forum at the American Academy of Sciences, Aspen Meadows Resort, Aspen, June 13-16.  Title of talk: “How to foster active learning.”
• One of the invited luminaries for a Fireside Chats on Theory-Theory turns 30-something: Reflections and new directions at the pre-conference Cognitive Development Society workshop. Madison, April.

2021

• Invited Zoom special lecture about ICAP for teachers, administrators, people in business, researchers and students, at the workshop Agents for Bridging Learning Research and Educational Practice, supported by Uchida Yoko, invited by Mutsumim Imai, Japan, Nov.
• Special Zoom panel member for the online symposium “Interaction and Collaboration Learning” at How Innovations Flourish: Sn International Symposium by Catalyst @ Penn GSE and the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education on June 8-10th.

2020

• Plenary speaker, “ICAP: How to promote deeper learning by engaging students cognitively” at the 42nd Annual National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology (NITOP) in St. Pete Beach, Florida, January, 2020.

2019

• Simon Initiative Distinguished LEcture, "ICAP: How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Cognitively," Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh, November.
• Keynote speaker, "ICAP: A Framework for Active Learning," presented at the curriculum retreat of the Penn State Medical School, Hershey, PA, October.
• Plenary speaker, "ICAP: How to promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Constructively and Co-constructively" at the Annual Conference of the International Association for Medical Education in Vienne, Austria, August.
• Rumelhart Prize Address, "Translating the ICAP Theory of Cognitive Engagement into Practice" at the 41st Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society at Montreal, Canada, July.
• Plenary speaker, "ICAP: How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Cognitively" at the Chicago Symposium Series on Excellence in Teaching Mathematics and Science at Northern Illinois University, Naperville, IL, Feb.

2018

• Colloquium: "ICAP: How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Constructively." Talk presented to the Tsinghua Institute of Education at Tsinghua University.
• Colloquium: "Why is it Important for Students to be Constructive while Learning?" presented to the Graduate College, Central China Normal University in Wuhan, China.
• Keynote speaker, "How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Cognitively" at the College of Development and Educational Psychology, Key Labratory of Modern Teaching Technology, Ministry of Education Shaanxi Normal University in China.
• Keynote speaker, "ICAP: How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Cognitively," at the 6th Computational Behavior Science Summit--Behavioral Data Analysis and Application in Wuhan, China.
• Keynote speaker, "Translating the ICAP Theory of Cognitive Engagement into Practice", at the 11th Annual Subway Summit hosted by Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, New York, June.
• Keynote speaker, "Conceptual change in understanding collective causality versus cumulative causality", at the 2nd Interdisciplinary REASON Spring School hosted by the Munich Center of the Learning Sciences, Munich, Germany, March.
• Workshop speaker, "Principles and methods of coding qualitative data", at the 2nd Interdisciplinary REASON Spring School hosted by the Munich Center of the Learning Sciences, Munich, Germany, March.
• Keynote speaker, “How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Cognitively” at the College of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Key Laboratory of Modern Teaching Technology, Ministry of Education Shaanxi Normal Univeristy in China.
• Keynote speaker, “ICAP: How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Cognitively,” at the 6th Computational Behavior Science Summit—Behavioral Data Analysis and Application in Wuhan, China.
• Colloqium: “Why is it Important for Students tgo be Constructive While Learning?” presented to the Graduate College, Central China Normal Univeristy in Wuhan, China.
• Colloqium: “ICAP: How to Promote Deeper Learning by Engaging Students Constructively.” Talk presented to the Tsinghua Institute of Education at Tsinghua Univeristy

2017

• Presenter, “ICAP: A theoretical framework for how to engage students to promote deeper learning,” at the Strengthening Institutional Linkages Initiative Faculty Development Seminar, Arizona State University, Jan.
• Invited speaker, Brown Bag Lunch Series Talk: “Translating ICAP on Student Engagement into Practice,”Presented to the Graduate School of Education, Rutgers, Feb.
  Featured scholar presentation, “ICAP: A theoretical framework for how to engage students to promote deeper learning”, at the Wisconsin Ideas in Education Series (WIES) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Education Research.
• Invited speaker, Brown Bag Lunch Series presentation at the University of Pittsburgh’s Discipline-Based Science Education Research Center (dB-SERC) on: “ICAP titled:ICAP: A Theoretical Framework for Active Learning to Promote Deeper Understanding.” March.
• Plenary speaker, “Teaching Emergence: An Attempt at Differentiating Science Concepts of Processes” at the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) conference for Challenges in Learning Science Concepts. April.
• Award address speaker, 2017 AERA Presidential Session on Acquired Wisdom: Lessons Learned by Distinguished Researchers titled, “Acquired Wisdom and Expertise at AERA” April.
• Award address speaker, at the Distinguished Contributions to Research in Education Award session: “Translating ICAP on Student Engagement Into Practice”, AERA, April.
  Plenary speaker, “ICAP: How to Promote Deeper Active Learning Engagement”, at the TRUSE conference on STEM education at St. Thomas Univeristy, July.
• Keynote speaker, "Implications of ICAP, a theory of student engagement for technology-enhanced practices", at the National Conference on Technology-Enhanced Learning hosted by the National University of Singapore, Nov.

2016

• Speaker, “ICAP: A theoretical framework for active learning.” Presented to the Education Development Center (EDC), Inc. New York, NY. Feb. 24.
• Presidential session speaker, “Challenging Common Sense Conceptions of Learning,” at the Public Scholarship Ed-Talk, Feb.
• Centennial Colloquium speaker, “ICAP: A theoretical framework for active learning,” at 100 th Anniversary Colloquium Series at Carnegie Mellon University Psychology Department. Pittsburgh, PA:April 19.
• Speaker, “Learning from Dialog versus Monolog Videos”. Presented at the EnFUSE Symposium hosted by the National Science Foundation’s division of undergraduate education, Washington D.C., April.
• Invited participant on an National Science Foundation-funded workshop to promote collaboration between cognitive science and discipline-based education research on STEM learning. Washington D.C. September, 2016.
• Keynote speaker, “Counter-intuitive Findings and Implications for Teaching from the Sciences of Learning. Snell Conference: Practicing the Art and Science of Teaching”, Center for the Art and Science of Teaching, Oct, 2016.

2015

• Featured speaker, “Modeling and correcting students’ misunderstanding for conceptual domains (especially in science)” at the Rice Workshop on Personalized Learning, Houston, TX: April 1.
• Colloquium speaker, “Differentiating four modes of engagement in active learning” at the Learning Sciences Research Institute, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle: April 3.
• Invited presentation on a panel on how fundamental principles of cognitive science, technology and data impact K-12 teaching and learning to the Carnegie Corporation of New York, NY: June 15.
• Award address speaker, E. L. Thorndike Career Achievement Award, American Psychological Association, in recognition for original, scientific, and empirically-based research that contributes significantly to knowledge, theory, or practice in educational psychology, July.
• One of 32 outstanding scholars of education selected to participate in the AERA Scholars Retreat and Forum Santa Fe, NM: October 1-4.
• Speaker, “Teaching the crosscutting concept of emergent cause-and- effect to overcome misconceptions.” Paper presented at the Conference on Complex Systems ’15. Tempe, AZ: September 29.
• Speaker, “Ways to enhance your understanding while you are learning.” Talk presented at Penn State University to their instructors and professors. State College, PA: Oct. 19.
• Plenary speaker, “Differentiating four modes of engagement for active learning: The ICAP framework.” A university-wide talk sponsored by the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence Penn State University, State College, PA: Oct. 20.
• Speaker, “Engaging students cognitively in active learning.” Talk presented at the AERA Coordinated Committee Meeting. Washington, DC: Oct. 23.
• Colloquium speaker, “Robust misconceptions: What are they and how to overcome them,” at the Human Development Department Colloquia at Columbia University. New York, NY: Nov. 3.

2014

• "Conceptual Change in Science,” on the plenary panel of the International Conference on Conceptual Change, University of Bologna, Italy
• Speaker, “ICAP: Differentiating four levels of engagement for active learning.” Presented at How to Actively Engage Your Students: A Workshop on Active Learning. Arizona State University: March.
• Award Address Speaker, “Differentiating 4 Modes of Engagement in Active Learning: From theory to practice.” Sylvia Scribner Award Address lecture, AERA, April.
• Plenary speaker, “Conceptual Change Across Domain: Science,” Conceptual Change Sig meeting of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, Bologna, Italy: Aug.
• Invited participant at IES annual meeting, Sept.

2013

• Speaker, “Overcoming misconceptions for conceptual understanding,” Paper presented at the Improving Middle School Science Instruction Using Cognitive Science, A National Conference, sponsored by IES’s National R & D Center for Cognition and Science Instruction Conference, Washington, DC: May 21-22.
• Speaker, “Using the ICAP hypothesis to Design Instruction and Student Assignments.” Talk presented at the 2013 Gordon Research Conference on Chemistry Education Research and Practice, Newport, RI, June.
• Speaker, “Why are dialogues better instructional materials than monologues?” Paper presented at the symposium Trends in Support for the Analysis of Collaborative Learning, Part 1: Support, organized by Nikol Rummel & Tamara Van Gog, Ruhr-Universitat Bochum: Aug.

2012

• Invited participant at a Gates Foundation M.I.T sponsored workshop on Quality Matters. Boston, MA: Jan. 24-25.
• Speaker, “ICAP: A Hypothesis Generated from a Framework for Differentiating Levels of Cognitive Engagement in Active Learning.” Invited talk for Pearson’s Mastering Leadership Conference, Scottsdale, AZ: March.
• Invited participant in a workshop on Optimal Teaching Workshop, UC San Diego, May.
• Presenter, “Two Approaches to Enhancing Learning: Dialogue Videos and Engagement Activities.” Talk presented at the 2012 University/Microsoft Research Summer Institute, titled Crowdsourcing Personalized Online Education, Suncadia, WA: July.
• Colloquium speaker, “Two Kinds and Four Sub-types of Misconceived Knowledge, Ways to Change it, and the Learning Outcomes.” Presented to the Mathematics and Science Education Ph.D. Program, UC San Diego: Oct.
• Colloquium speaker, “Two Kinds and Four Sub-types of Misconceived Knowledge, Ways to Change it, and the Learning Outcomes.” Presented to the joint Cognitive Science and the Learning Sciences program, Northwestern University, Nov.

2011

• Invited presenter, “Engaging Students with Differential Effectiveness: The ICAP (Interactive>Constructive>Active>Passive) Hypothesis.” Presentation at the Frontiers in Education Workshop, Pearson, Boston, Feb.
• Invited speaker, “Misconceived Causal Explanations for Emergent Science Processes.” Talk for the symposium New Approaches to the Problem of Conceptual Change in the Learning of Science and Math. Presented at the 33 rd Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, Boston, July.
• Invited speaker, “Students’ Self-explanations.” Talk for the symposium Explanation-based
  mechanisms for learning: An interdisciplinary approach. Presented at the 33 rd Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, Boston, July.
• Panel member to discuss explanations for the impact of dialog, in Socializing Intelligence Through Academic Talk and Dialogue, Talk titled: “What accounts for the benefits of dialoguing or learning collaboratively, for learning?” Pittsburgh, Sept.
• “Highlighted Session Speaker” at International Conference on Computers in Education, for the sub-conference track Computer-supported Collaborative Learning, Chiang-Mai, Thailand, Nov.

2010

• Plenary speaker for the Communication Analysis Workshop, Tempe, AZ.
• Presenter, “Using a Cognitive Framework of Differentiated Overt Learning Activities (DOLA) for Designing Effective Classroom Instruction in Materials Science and Nanotechnology,” poster presented at the National Science Foundation-sponsored Awardee Conference, Reston, Va. Jan.
• Presenter, “Dialogue Analyses for Learning.” Paper presented at the Communication Analyses Workshop, Tempe, AZ Feb.
• Discussant, for IES symposium Solving Problems in School: Concepts, Procedures, and Instruction to Support Learning, at the 2010 APS Annual Convention in Boston, May.
• Invited participant, “Intelligent Tutoring Systems and Games for STEM instruction.” At the ONR- sponsored workshop, UCLA CRESST, Nov.

2009

• Invited speaker, “What are misconceptions and how might they be overcome?” Brownbag presented to the Applied Psychology Program, Polytechnic Campus, ASU, Feb.
• Speaker, “Ways of optimizing student learning.” Talk presented at K-12, Hendon, VA, May 7.
• Speaker, “Expert learners.” Talk presented at the 36th Carnegie Cognition Symposium on Expertise June 2.
• Speaker, “Why are some processes so hard to understand? An instructional module targeted at misconceptions.” Talk presented at the Cognitive Science Symposium on Transfer of Learning.
• Colloquium speaker, “Ways to optimize student learning: A learner-centered approach.” Colloquium presented at the Cognitive Science Colloquium Series, Bloomington, Indiana, Oct.
• Speaker, “An instructional module targeted at misconceptions.” Talk presented at the symposium From Child to Scientist: Mechanisms of Learning and Development, Carnegie-Mellon University, Oct.

2008

• The VI European Meeting in Conceptual Change, Turku, Finland
• Plenary speaker for The VI European Meeting on Conceptual Change, Turku, Finland.
• Presenter, “Co-construction from Joint Explaining”. Paper presented at International Conference of the Learning Sciences, Utrecht, Netherlands, June.
• Keynote address, “Qualitative misunderstanding of emergent processes.” Presented at the VI European Meeting in Conceptual Change, Turku, Finland, August 16.
• Speaker, “Qualitative misunderstanding of emergent processes.” Presented to Arts, Media and Entertainment, ASU, Oct.
• Colloquium speaker, “Does Qualitative Understanding of Emergent Processes Transfer to Learning Science concepts? A Pilot Intervention.” Presented a colloquium to kick off the colloquium series at Duke University’s Science Center, Nov.

2007

• Participant in the Evolution Challenge Workshop, Las Vegas, NV Feb.
• Discussant, along with Rich Shavelson, for a Presidential session on “Professional Expertise”, Chicago, IL, April.
• Lead discussant on Expertise at the National Science Foundation meeting. Oct.

2006

• Participant at the Santa Fe Institute’s Educational Outreach Workshop on Complex Dynamic Systems, Santa Fe, NM, March.
• Discussant for the symposium How to support explanation in the classroom: The role of teachers and tasks. AERA meeting, San Francisco, CA, April.
• Lead discussant on Transfer at the National Science Foundation meetings, October.
• Participant at the National Science Foundation workshop on Transfer and Expertise, Arlington, November.
• Colloquium speaker, Learning from Tutoring and Observing Tutoring Collaboratively, OISE, Toronto, Canada, Nov.

2005

• Discussant at the Adaptive Expertise Colloquium, organized by the LIFE Science of Learning Center, VaNTH Engineering Research Centers, and SRI International, Palo Alto, CA, Sept.

2004

• Keynote speaker, “How Students Learn”. Colloquium on Teaching and Learning, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, May.

2003

• The 10th European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, Padova, Italy.
• Distinguished Speaker, “Emergent systems versus Causal Events: Schemas for Overcoming versus Generating Misconceptions in Science”, presented for the Cognitive Science Colloquium Series, Department of Psychology, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, Georgia, March.
• Keynote speaker, “Emergent versus Commonsense Causal Processes: How Misconceptions in Science Arise and How They Can Be Overcome,” presented at the 10 th European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, Padova, Italy.

2002

• Presenter, “Learning through collaborative observation of tutoring” at the CIRCLE Advisory Board Meeting, Pittsburgh, March.
• Presenter, “Learning from physics text: Effects of interactive and observed discourse with tutors and peers”, at a Symposium on Conceptual Learning from Scientific Text and Discourse, at the Society for Text and Discourse conference. Chicago, IL, June.
• Commentary provided for the Graduate Record Exam Symposium, at the Graduate Record Exam Board Meeting, Seattle, June.
• Workshop presenter, to help Office of Navel Research shape a new 6.1 ONR program on Cognitive Science and Human Performance. Las Cruces, NM, October.

2001

• Presenter, “Why do students fail to understand complex dynamic type of concepts?” at the symposium Conceptual change and complex causality: Furthering the conversation. AERA, Seattle, April.
• Participant in a Workshop, sponsored by the Russell Sage Foundation, to react to their report on their Literacy Program. New York, NY, June.

2000

• Speaker, “Emergent versus Causal Schemas”, presented at an interactive symposium on Conceptual Change and Complex Causality, organized by David Perkins, AERA, New Orleans, April.
• Distinguished Lecturer, “Assessment of Learning at Three Different Grain Sizes”, presented at the American Society for Engineering Education Conference, St. Louis, June.
• Presenter, “How Can We Enhance Students’ Learning?” at a workshop of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Complex School of Profusion, Nov.

1999

• Annual meeting of the American Society for Engineering Education, St. Louis, MO
• Speaker, “What makes human tutoring effective?” National Science Foundation, Washington D.C., Jan.
• Speaker, "Why are decentralized concepts so hard to learn?" at the UCI Conference on Decentralization. Sponsored by the Institute for Mathematical Behavioral Sciences and the Department of Economics, University of California at Irvine, Feb.
• Speaker, "Assessment of Conceptual Change", presented to the Committee on the Foundation of Assessment, National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council, Board on Testing and Assessment, Irvine, CA, May.
• Keynote speaker, annual meeting of the American Society for Engineering Education, St. Louis. June.
• Guest speaker, “Understanding Emergent Versus Causal Mechanisms: Overcoming Obstacles to Learning Science Concepts”, along with Jay McClelland, at a Seminar on How the Brain Learns, Harrisburg, PA, June.
• Colloquium speaker, "Misclassifying Processes as Objects and Emergence as Causality: Why We Misunderstand Many Complex Concepts and Phenomena". NEBARS at University of Connecticut, Nov.
• Workshop speaker, Classroom and Tutorial Discourse. Organizers: Brian MacWhinney, Catherine Snow and Steven Bird. Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, December.

1998

• Workshop speaker, "Current Research in Medical Education", presented at the Workshop on Formalizing the Informal: A Rationale for the Clinical Teaching of Medical Students and Residents. University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Center for Continuing Education in the Health Sciences, March.
• Presenter, "Learning Concepts of Equilibration Processes", at the Conference on Designing for Science, Learning Research and Development Center, April.
• Tutorial speaker, "Discourse in Contexts of Learning ", Twentieth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, Madison, WI, August.
• Conference speaker, "Misrepresenting Complex Dynamic Systems as Events: A barrier to Learning Science", EARLI Second European Symposium on Conceptual Change. Madrid, Spain, November.
• Speaker, "What Makes Human Tutoring Effective?" Circle Seminar Series on Tutoring. Carnegie Mellon University, December.

1997

• Colloquium speaker, "How to Learn More Effectively”, presented at Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, February.
• Colloquium speaker, "Self-Explaining: A Domain-General Learning Activity". Presented to the Education in Math, Science, and Technology group, U.C. Berkeley, March.
• Colloquium speaker, "Self-Explaining: A Domain-General Learning Activity". Presented to the Center for Research in Mathematics and Science Education, San Diego State University, April.
• Colloquium speaker, "Learning Compatible vs Incompatible Concepts: Incrementally versus Conceptual Change", presented to the Department of Psychology, Stanford University, April.
• Guest Lecturer, Symbolic Systems, School of Education, Stanford University, June.
• Colloquium speaker, "Conceptual Change in Learning Complex Concepts", presented to the Cognitive Science Program, Georgia Tech, Nov.

1996

• Workshop participant, Sage Foundation on Literacy, New York, April.

1995

• The 17th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, Pittsburgh, PA
• Keynote speaker, The 17 th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society.
• Invited speaker, "Acquisition of concepts of processes." Creative Concepts Conference, Texas A & M University, College Station, Texas, May.
• Invited speaker, "Creating Schools that Develop Expertise in Students." Workshop on The Gifted School. Hosted by OERI and Council for Exceptional Children. Tyson's Corner, Virginia, June.
• Keynote speaker, "Revising a mental model as one learns." The Seventeenth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, July.
• Keynote speaker, "Self-explaining is the construction of a mental model" at the University of Memphis Conference on Reasoning, Memphis, TN, September.
• Invited speaker, "Learning from text by self-explaining." Clarion University, Clarion, PA, Nov.

1994

• Invited Speaker, "What is learned in context?". Naturalistic Decision Making Conference, Dayton, Ohio, June.
• Symposium speaker, "Stolen knowledge: Knowledge acquired through practice". Third Practical Aspects of Memory Workshop. University of Maryland, College Park, MD, August.
• Colloquium speaker, "Self-explaining: An effective general learning skill?" New Mexico State University. Las Cruces, NM, December.

1993

• The 10th International Conference on Machine Learning, Amherst, MA
• Keynote speaker, 10 th International Conference on Machine Learning
• Colloquium speaker, "Self-explanations improve understanding: But do they promote conceptual change?" Presented at the Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Princeton, February.
• Colloquium speaker, "Can misconceptions in science be removed?" Graduate Institute of Science Education, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan, March.
• Lecturer, "Self-explanations improve learning." At the Research Center of Cognitive Studies, National Chung Cheng University's conference on math education, Chia-yi, Taiwan, March.
  Exhibit, "Constructing knowledge: How talking to yourself may improve learning." Carnegie Science Center, Pittsburgh, May 2-15.
• Panel Discussant, "Conceptual change and the acquisition of expertise." The Third International Workshop on Human and Machine Cognition, Seaside, Florida, May. (I was the panel member invited to represent the cognitive science view. Other members represented views from A.I., anthropology, situated cognition, and so forth.)
• Presenter, "Barriers to conceptual change in learning science concepts: A Theoretical Conjecture." Paper presented to the Cognitive Science Conference, Boulder, June.
• Symposium presenter, "Cascade and self-explanations." For the symposium, Cognitive models of problem solving, Cognitive Science Conference, Boulder, June.
• Keynote speaker, "The role of self-explanations as a form of knowledge construction." At the Tenth International Conference on Machine Learning, Amherst, June. (The Machine Learning conference invites a keynote speaker each year from an outside discipline. Other cognitive psychologists invited in the past were Doug Medin, Mike Posner, and so forth.)
• Workshop participant and speaker, "Teaching for understanding." Harvard Project Zero, Boston, October.

1992

• Presenter, "Self-explanations improve learning." Poster presented at the NATO Advance Study Institute on Psychological and Educational Foundations of Technology-Based Learning Environments. Orthodox Academy, Kalymbari, Greece, July.
• Chair/Discussant of the session on Capturing and Modeling the Process of Conceptual Change in the Physical Sciences. At the NATO Advance Study Institute on Psychological and Educational Foundations of Technology-Based Learning Environments. Orthodox Academy, Kalymbari, Greece, July.