Faculty/Staff Directory
Dr. Sumitra Himangshu-Pennybacker
478.757.2544
Professor & Graduate Coordinator
Credentials: Ph.D.
| Office Hours: | OFFICE HOURS: BY APPOINTMENT (or see course syllabus for current semester) |
| Locations: (Campus & Office) |
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| Biography: | I currently serve at Middle Georgia State University (MGA) as faculty and Graduate Program Coordinator in the department of Teacher Education & Social Work. My research is focused on learner empowerment in science using both face-to-face and virtual environments. My interest in advancing pedagogical conceptual knowledge is intertwined with my extensive science background drawn from the areas of zoology, molecular biology, and developmental genetics. During my tenure at Middle Georgia State University, I have had the opportunity to spearheaded a variety of community projects both domestic and international to enhance K-12 students and student teacher conceptual understanding in science and pedagogy through partnership with - local museums, local schools, international exchange program in the United Kingdom, establishing community gardens, and being a content developer, science mentor and judge both at local schools as well as on a longitudinal international virtual science fair project funded by the Department of Education. While my research interests involve higher education policy, science education, and authentic learning environments, my current research focus is in using meta-cognitive tools for measuring learner conceptual change. I am currently involved ,at MGA, with several inter-departmental and intra-departmental research projects which focus on advancing student research in the field of science and science education. These research projects provide the opportunity for students to advance their own learning through collaboration with faculty and peers. |
| Syllabi: |
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| Teaching and Research Interests: | Interested in advancing STEM education. My research focuses on using metacognitive tools to advance teacher preparation, learner empowerment, and undergraduate research in STEM education. |
| Courses: | Area F Courses: Integrated Science-Physical Science, & Integrated Science Life Science & Earth Science Upper Level: SCIE courses for Early Childhood Special Education, Middle Grades and Secondary Education Programs; EDUC 3550 - Assessment for Learning; ECSE 4560 - Action Research Project. |
| Education: (All institutions attended and degrees or credentials earned) | B.Sc. Zoology (Honors), Calcutta University, Calcutta, India B.A. Biology (Pre-Med), Goshen College, Goshen, IN, USA M.S. Zoology (Molecular Genetics), Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA M.S. Biology (Developmental Genetics), University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA ABD Biology (Developmental Genetics), University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA Ph.D. Higher Education Thought and Policy, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA |
| Publications and Scholarships: (Last 5 Years) | Hartle, L., Himangshu-Pennybacker, S., Dixon, M., Westray, J., & Lopez, J. (2025, October). Empowering educators: Engaging cross-disciplinary lessons [Conference presentation]. Georgia Mathematics Conference, Rock Eagle, GA. Hartle, L., & Himangshu-Pennybacker, S., Jennifer, W., Dixon, M., & Lopez, J (2025, February). STEMing the way: The influence of professional collaboration on leading in STEM education [Conference presentation]. Middle Georgia State University Annual Leadership Conference, Macon, GA. Himangshu-Pennybacker, S., Fuller, D.P., Schwake, D.O., & Jones, A. (2024). Hydroponics: A STEM-Education [Ad]Venture! Presentation accepted by Conference of the Southeastern Association for Science Teacher Education, Mississippi, October 2024. Miller, M.C., and Himangshu-Pennybacker, S. (2024). Nurturing a Research Idea: Using Concept Maps to Encourage Higher Order Thinking. USG Teaching and Learning Conference 2024, Athens, GA, April 2024. Himangshu-Pennybacker, S.(2023). Children’s Science Digital Stories: Integrating Science, Mathematics & Literacy! Presentation at USG Teaching & Learning Conference, Athens, GA, March 27-29, 2023. Himangshu-Pennybacker, S. (2022). Innovating Science Education: prior Knowledge as an Asset. Presentation at Annual Conference of the Southeastern Association for Science Teacher Education, Gulf Shores, AL, October 2022. Himangshu-Pennybacker, S.(2022). Mapping The Scientific Inquiry Process: Transforming Student Understanding During A Global Pandemic. Conference Proceedings of Ninth International Concept Mapping Conference 2022, Valletta, Malta, September 26-28, 2022. Himangshu-Pennybacker, S. and Fuller, D. P. (2017). Preparing Pre-Service Candidates as Effective Reflective Practitioners Using edTPA. [Book Chapter] In Fostering Reflective Teaching Practice in Pre-Service Education [Editor, Z. Dijoub]. IGI Global, pp 205-216. Himangshu-Pennybacker, S. (2016). Transforming science pedagogy: using concept mapping to design an interdisciplinary approach to teaching middle school science. Published in Communications in Computer and Information Science (CCIS) Series, Springer. |
| Organizations: | Georgia Assessment Directors Association Georgia Professional Standards Commission South Eastern Association for Science Teacher Education |
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