Professor Heather King’s research examines the ways in which educators foster learner engagement with science across many contexts including schools, museums, the natural environment, and non-formal spaces such as maker-spaces. In particular, her work explores social and environmental justice concerns with respect to science education practice.

Heather is co-chair of the Science and Technology Education Research Group at King’s College London and teaches modules in STEM education leadership, in STEM Making and Creating, and in Education in Arts and Cultural Settings.

She is also the Vice President for Education at the British Science Association.

Research interests

• Equitable engagement of learners in science
• Pedagogies to support environmental and climate change education
• Teaching and Learning through Making
• Teaching and learning in museums and galleries and other out of school settings

For details of Heather's publications please see her Research Staff Profile. 

Teaching

Heather leads the following modules for the MA programme in STEM Education:

• STEM Education: Making and Creating
• Leading Practices in STEM Education

She also contributes to the teaching and supervision of students on the Education in Arts and Cultural Setting MA programme.

PhD supervision

Heather supervises students working across the STEM education landscape in both formal and informal settings.

Current PhD students include

• Julie Robinson: How does regionality affect UK curriculum policy and what does this mean for environmental education provision?
• Anthea Ameer: Investigating STEM Trajectories: Insights from Alumni of Specialist Math Schools
• Shukri Mohamed: Computational Thinking and Making in the primary setting.
• Tiantian Wang: Students' identity dynamics and negotiation mechanisms in SSIs-based instruction at Chinese lower secondary schools.
• Alex Tak: The value of shared frameworks and indicators in understanding the impact of museums on wider society.
• Lydia Vasiliki Kapournioti: Learning through installation art interactions: an exploration of innovative resources and approaches for designing gallery and museum experiences.
• Zsuzsa Lugosi: The ways young children (6–11-year-olds) connect to nature at the Natural History Museum.
• Munira Elmi: Perceptions of air pollution, health and COVID in minority ethnic communities in White City, West London Recently completed doctoral students
• Sophie Perry: How do environmental education programmes influence young people's perceptions of their role in environmental action?
• Ye Cao: Applying the lens of science capital to understand student engagement in China.
• Marie Hobson: Evaluation Utilisation: How can evaluation findings impact Museum policy and practice?
• Brad Irwin: The international work of UK national museums.
• Kate Greer: Governmentalities of Climate Change Education: Perspectives from History, Policy and Position-holders
• Rachel Cook: Exploring the role of family context in shaping students’ resources for outdoor science: a study of Nigerian -Yorùbá and Sierra Leonean- Krio students in London
• Vicky Wong: The relationship between school science and mathematics education