Julie Christensen is an Assistant Professor (fixed-term) in the Office of Medical Education Research and Development within the College of Human Medicine (CHM). Her background includes a recently earned PhD in Curriculum, Instruction and Teacher Education from MSU with an emphasis in Science Education and nine years of experience teaching high school science (biology & physics). Over the past several years, she has taught courses for the Department of Teacher Education at MSU that focus on the preparation of future secondary science teachers. Christensen uses her academic background and teaching experience to inform her new role in CHM, which focuses on supporting curricular and faculty development activities.
Christensen’s research has included practice-based teacher learning, responsive planning, and teachers’ use of formative assessment. This research has been conducted within the current K-12 science educational context, which includes a strong emphasis on phenomenon-based instruction, elicitation and use of students’ prior knowledge and lives experiences to inform instruction, and the integration of scientific knowledge with science and engineering practices. Christensen’s current research goals are to determine the ways in which medical education overlaps with the K-12 science educational context and adapt her research agenda to the medical education field.