Professor Svein Sjøberg

Member, Judging Panel, Yidan Prize for Education Research;

Professor Emeritus in Science Education, Oslo University

Svein Sjøberg is professor emeritus in science education at Oslo University, Norway. He is a nuclear physicist (cand.real), and holds an MA in education and PhD in educational psychology. He became the first professor in the field of science education in the Nordic countries and has been instrumental in building STEM education as an academic discipline in this region. 

 

Svein has worked with children's conceptual development, gender and science education, and education in developing countries. He has led two comparative studies on pupils' interests, attitudes, perceptions, etc. of importance to science teaching and learning. Researchers from 80 countries participated in the ROSE (The Relevance of Science Education) study, 2002–2019. 

 

His current research interests are the social, ethical, and cultural aspects of science education, in particular the impacts and influence of standardized large-scale assessment studies like PISA and TIMSS. 

 

He has worked extensively with international and comparative aspects of science education through UNESCO, OECD, and the European Union. He has won national and international prizes and awards for his research, teaching, and promotion of science literacy and public understanding of science. Svein is an elected member of The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and represents the Academy in international matters regarding science education, for instance in International Science Council (ISCU) and the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities (ALLEA).