Rebekah Hammack
Associate Professor
Science Education,
Curriculum and Instruction
Email:
rhammack@purdue.edu
Phone:
765-496-6194
Address:
Steven C. Beering Hall of
Liberal Arts and Education
100 N. University Street
West Lafayette, Indiana 47907-2098
BRNG 4156
Links:
LinkedInAbout
Education
- Ph.D. – Professional Education Studies, Science Education Option, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK (2016)
- M.S. – Animal Science, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK (2003)
- B.S. – Agriculture, Animal Science major, Life Sciences minor, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH (1998)
Career Experience
- 2023 – present
Assistant Professor of Science Education
Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN - 2018 – 2023
Assistant Professor of Science Education
Montana State University, Bozeman, MT - 2017 – 2018
Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow
National Science Foundation, Alexandria, VA - 2006 – 2017
Science and Engineering Teacher
Stillwater Middle School, Stillwater, OK - 2005 – 2006
Secondary Science Teacher
Hennessey Public Schools, Hennessey, OK
Awards & Honors
- 2026 Outstanding Science Teacher Educator, Level 1, The Association for Science Teacher Education
- 2024-2025 Dean’s Award for Outstanding Faculty Scholarship, Tenure-Track Assistant Professors, College of Education, Purdue University
- 2022 Best Paper Award V: Implications of Research for Educational Practice, The Association for Science Teacher Education
- 2021 Early Career Scholar Award, School Science and Mathematics Association
- 2021 Outstanding Faculty Award, College of Education, Health and Human Development, Montana State University
- 2014 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching, The White House
Professional Appointments
- Associate Editor, Journal of Science Teacher Education
- National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine Committee on K-12 STEM Education and Workforce Development in Rural Areas
Professional Affiliations/Memberships
- American Education Research Association (AERA)
- NARST: A global organization for improving science education through research
- The Association for Science Teacher Educators (ASTE)
- American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE)
- School Science and Mathematics Association (SSMA)
- Association of Middle Level Educators (AMLE)
- National Science Teaching Association (NSTA)
Research & Publications
Dr. Hammack’s research focuses on the connection of local knowledge and context to STEM interest and identity development in youth, particularly rural youth in elementary and middle grades, as well as how elementary teachers develop teaching efficacy and identity as STEM educators. Through her research, Dr. Hammack aims to advance understanding of how to enhance STEM education in rural schools and communities, providing opportunities to meet the unique needs of rural students. She has served as a PI or co-PI on over $5 million dollars in both external and internal grants, including a grant from the National Institutes of Health and several grants from the National Science Foundation.
Selected Publications
- Hammack, R., Vo, T., Lux, N. et al. A Comparative Case Study Investigating Indigenous and Rural Elementary Students’ Conceptions of Community Engineering. Res Sci Educ 55, 565–587 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-024-10206-0
- Vo, T., Hammack, R., Gannon, P., Lux, N., Wiehe, B., Moonga, M., & LaMeres, B. (2024). A Case Study Comparison of Undergraduate Education and Engineering Majors’ Understanding of Community Engineering. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 35(8), 840–861. https://doi.org/10.1080/1046560X.2024.2355687
- Hammack, R., Yeter, I., Pavlovich, C., & Boz, T. (2024). Pre-service elementary teachers’ science and engineering teaching self-efficacy and outcome expectancy: Exploring the impacts of efficacy source experiences through varying course modalities. International Journal of STEM Education, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-024-00464-9
- Hammack, R., & Stanton, C. R., Boyle, J. (2023). “Step Outside”: A portrait of an exemplary rural K-8 science educator. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 60(3), 544-567 https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21809
- Vo, T., & Hammack, R. (2022). The development and empirical grounding of the Draw-An-Engineering-Teacher-Test (DAETT). Journal of Science Teacher Education, 33 (3) 262-281. https://doi.org/10.1080/1046560X.2021.1912272
- Hammack, R., & Vo, T. (2021). A mixed methods comparison of elementary preservice teachers’ conceptions of teaching engineering. Research in Science Education, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-021-10013-x
- Hammack, R., Gannon, P., Foreman, C., & Meyer, E. (2020). Impacts of professional development focused on teaching engineering applications of mathematics and science. School Science and Mathematics, 120(7), 413-424. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ssm.12430
- Hammack, R., Utley, J, Ivey, T. & High, K. (2020). Exploring elementary teachers’ mental images of engineers. Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research,10(2), 35-46. https://doi.org/10.7771/2157-9288.1255
- Hammack, R., & Ivey, T. (2019). Elementary teachers’ perceptions of K-5 engineering education and perceived barriers. Journal of Engineering Education, 108(4), 503-522. https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20289
- Hammack, R., & Ivey, T. (2017). Examining elementary teachers’ engineering self-efficacy and engineering teacher efficacy. School Science and Mathematics, 117(1-2), 52-62.
Current Grants & Funded Research
- Understanding the Impact of Professional Learning Programs on Teacher Decision Making and Practice. The purpose of this research is to (1) better understand the factors that impact how teachers translate and adapt research-based principles that they learned in (PL) workshops into classroom practices, (2) investigate teachers’ intentional decisions and considerations as they shape and adapt knowledge from PL into personal knowledge and practice within their classroom contexts, and 3) suggest ways to modify existing knowledge mobilization models to include the role of the teacher t in the translation process.
- Collaborative Research: RET Site: Energy and Engineering Education for Rural and Reservation Elementary Schools. This collaborative project between Montana State University and Purdue University provides elementary teachers with a six-week research experience in engineering research laboratories and professional development related to Indigenous Science Knowledge and engineering curriculum development. The goals of this multi-year project are (1) promote engineering identity formation among rural and reservation students, (2) increase elementary teacher self-efficacy in engineering education, and (3) establish a collaborative ecosystem among regional elementary schools, industry, and academia focused on energy research and diversifying the future engineering workforce.
- Investigating how combining intensive professional development and modest support affects rural, elementary teachers’ science and engineering practice. This multi-institution collaborative study investigates the extent to which providing modest supports for science and engineering teaching after engaging in professional learning experiences, help sustain professional learning outcomes for 3rd-5th grade teachers in rural schools.
- My Home, My Health: Place-Based Public Health Resources for Rural Educators. This multi-institution partnership brings together land-grant and tribal colleges to create hands-on, place-based activity kits focused on a broad definition of disease ecology with the goals of (1) engaging rural youth in bioscience activities, (2) increasing youth awareness of bioscience careers, and (3) enhancing the science teaching efficacy of informal educators.
Courses Typically Taught
- EDCI 36501 Teaching Science Through Design in K-2
- EDCI 36502 Teaching Science Through Design in 3-6
- EDCI 51700 Survey of Science Education
- EDCI 62200 Place Based Teaching and Learning
- EDCI 68400 Rural Community Education and Research – The Power of Place and Partnerships