ADRIAN L. ADAMS portrait
  • Graduate Research Assist (RA), Educational Psychology

Research Summary

My research focus is on student engagement in scientific practices at the undergraduate level. I approach my work via the frameworks of Knowledge-in-Pieces and Resource Theory, looking at what kinds of knowledge elements students use and how they use them in experimental and field settings. My goal is to help develop a clearer understanding of student cognition in a scientific setting.

Education

  • Bachelor of Science, Biological Sciences, Psychology, University of Tulsa
  • Master of Science, Learning & Cognition, Educational Psychology, University of Utah. Project: Exploring Students' Sensemaking When Engaging with Anomalous Data

Biography

I'm born and raised just outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma. I attended the University of Tulsa, graduating in 2020 with bachelors of science degrees in biology and psychology. While at the University of Tulsa, I spent three years as an academic tutor and as an undergraduate research assistant in two psychology labs. I also was an undergraduate teaching assistant for the introductory biology labs for one year. I was introduced to the world of science education research during a summer internship in 2019, and have been directly engaged in science education and science education research ever since. I completed my master's of science in Learning and Cognition in 2023, and am currently working on my Ph.D. in Learning and Cognition.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time at the gym, hiking the Wasatch and all over Utah, gardening, and reading all sorts of novels.