About

My scholarship is rooted in the science of broadening participation in STEM in secondary and higher education contexts. My research team and I work to advance equitable STEM learning environments by preparing culturally responsive science teachers, designing equitable STEM instructional tools, and facilitating undergraduate Teaching Assistant development in the Life Sciences. We examine how secondary science teachers learn to enact cultural responsiveness for the students they serve through their attitudes, classroom practices, and designed curricula. We also construct and evaluate undergraduate biology TA training programs using the Scientific Teaching framework. In this scholarship my team employs design-based research methods to devise, assess, and revise theoretically-grounded interventions that are responsive to specific, contextualized problems. As a design researcher, I have produced theoretical insights for promoting equitable science teaching and positive impacts for partnering communities.

Research Interests

Curriculum Integration, Data Collection and Analysis, Middle School / Jr. High, Mixed Methods, Multicultural and Minority Education, Postsecondary Education, Professional Development, Qualitative Research, Research Design, STEM Teaching Assistant Development, Science Education, Secondary / High School Transition, Sociocultural Perspectives, Systematic Review Methods and Meta-analysis

Education

• Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction (Science Education), 2014 University of Florida
• M.Ed. in Science Education, 2006 University of Florida
• B.S. in Animal and Veterinary Science, 2003 University of Rhode Island

Professional Appointments

• Associate Professor, Science Education, University of Florida, 2018 - Present
• Associate Professor, STEM Education, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, 2018
• Assistant Professor, STEM Education, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, 2014 - 2018

Activities and Honors

• University of Minnesota -- Women's Philanthropic Leadership Circle, "Rising Star Faculty Award", 2015
• University of Florida -- Outstanding Graduate Research Award, 2014
• External Sources -- National Association for Research in Science Teaching
• Jhumki Basu Scholar, 2013

Selected Grants

Selected Publications

• Pacheco, M. B., & Brown, J. C. (2022). Newcomer Emergent Bilingual Students’ Meaning-Making in Urban Biology Classrooms: A Communities of Practice Perspective. Urban Education, doi: 00420859211073893
• Barron, H. A., Brown, J. C., & Cotner, S. (2021). The culturally responsive science teaching practices of undergraduate biology teaching assistants. Journal of Research in Science Teaching https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21711
• Stepp, Z. A. & Brown, J. C. (2021). The (lack of) relationship between secondary science teachers' self-efficacy for culturally responsive instruction and their observed practices. International Journal of Science Education. doi: 10.1080/09500693.2021.1919335
• Patrick, L. E., Barron, H. A., Brown, J. C., & Cotner, S. (2021). Building Excellence in Scientific Teaching: How Important Is the Evidence for Evidence-Based Teaching when Training STEM TAs?. Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education, 22(1). 1-10 doi: 10.1128/jmbe.v22i1.2473
• Barron, H. A., Patrick, L. E., Brown, J. C., & Cotner, S. H. (in press). What's troubling you? Examining how teaching assistants talk about pedagogical concerns.Journal of Teaching & Learning Inquiry
• Brown, J. C. & Livstrom, I. C. (2020). Secondary science teachers' pedagogical design capacities for multicultural curriculum design. Journal of Science Teacher Education.DOI: 10.1080/1046560X.2020.1756588
• Thompson, S.K., Brown, J.C., Cotner S., Zhao, F., Andicoechea, J., & Roehrig, G.H. (2020). Design features of an effective and theoretically ground training program for undergraduate teaching assistants in the Life Sciences. International Journal of Designs for Learning. 11(1), 59-74.
• Oesterle J., Upadhyay B., Brown J.C., Vernon M. (2019) Citizen Science: A Path to Democratic and Sociopolitically Conscious Science In: Trifonas P. (eds) Handbook of Theory and Research in Cultural Studies and Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education: Springer https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01426-1_28-1
• Brown, J.C., Ring-Whalen, E.A.G, Roehrig, G.H., & Ellis, J. (2018). Advancing culturally responsive science education in secondary classrooms through an induction course. International Journal of Designs for Learning, 9(1).
• Titu, P.G, Ring-Whalen, E.A.G, Brown, J.C., & Roehrig, G.H. (2018). Exploring changes in science teachers' attitudes toward culturally diverse students during an equity-focused course. Journal of Science Teacher Education.
• Crippen, K.J. & Brown, J.C. (2018). SAGE Encyclopedia: Design-Based Research. In B. Frey (Ed.) SAGE encyclopedia of educational research, measurement, and evaluation

Selected Links

• Project RIEL: Responsive Instruction for Emergent Bilingual Learners in Biology Classrooms
• Project CREST: Culturally Responsive, Equitable Science Teachers
• Project CRAFT: Culturally Responsive, Affective-Focused Teaching of Science and Mathematics