Dr Senka Henderson
Faculty of Creative Industries, Education & Social Justice,
School of Teacher Education & Leadership
Biography
Dr Senka Henderson is a science educator who lectures in the School of Teacher Education and Leadership within the Faculty of Education at QUT. She teaches multiple science curriculum and pedagogy units in secondary studies across both undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Senka began her career as a lecturer in Pharmacology, followed by lecturing in Biochemistry for 10 years where she developed her passion for teaching science. After finishing her MSc and Ph.D. in Science she worked in a biopharmaceutical drug discovery company before becoming involved in developing Science laboratories in the school. In her second career as a science educator, she has worked on three Australian Research Council (ARC) science education research projects exploring the emotions of pre-service science teachers in university settings and students in high school science classrooms. She has been involved in other projects related to context-based science education and mindfulness. In 2018, she also contributed several chapters to a Brill volume “Eventful Learning: Learner Emotions" and a Routledge volume “Mindfulness in Education”. In 2019 Senka was the lead author on a paper published in Cultural Studies of Science Education (CSSE) that describes how using cogenerative dialogue can help to address heightened emotions with difficult students. Currently, she is one of the teaching team of the Australia Awards Graduate Certificate in STEM Education course for teachers from Papua New Guinea. Additionally, Senka became a reviewer and assistant editor of the international journal Research in Science Education. Senka is a Health and Safety Advisor for the Faculty of Education. Senka has been nominated four times for QUT Academic Learning and Teaching awards and awarded two Team Learning and Teaching awards. She has been awarded two Health, Safety, and Environment Recognition Awards for helping to achieve excellence in the management of Health and Safety at QUT, and received a QUT Vice Chancellors award for performance. Senka was a key member of the organising committee for the 2019 HDR (Higher Degree Research) conference for four Universities (QUT, CQU, GU, and UQ).
Personal details
Positions
- Senior Lecturer
Faculty of Creative Industries, Education & Social Justice,
School of Teacher Education & Leadership
Keywords
Context-based Learning, Science Pedagogy, Secondary Science Teacher Education, STEM Education, Science Inquiry, Emotions, Middle School Science, Science and Drama, Initial Teacher Education, Socioscientific Issues
Discipline
Curriculum and Pedagogy, Specialist Studies in Education
Field of Research code, Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC), 2008
Qualifications
- PhD (Central Queensland University)
- Master of Science (Pharmacology) (University of Zagreb)
- Graduate Diploma Education (Queensland University of Technology)
- Bachelor of Science (Pharmacy) (University of Zagreb)
Professional memberships and associations
Queensland College of Teachers
Associate Fellow, Higher Education Academy
Fellow, Higher Education Academy
Associate Fellow (Indigenous), Higher Education Academy
Science Teachers' Association of Queensland (STAQ)
Australasian Science Education Research Association (ASERA)
Teaching
Senka is currently teaching in the Bachelor of Education (Secondary) and Masters of Teaching (Secondary) courses.
She is currently teaching the following units:
- EUB107: Introduction to Curriculum, Pedagogy, and Assessment (Secondary)
- EUB224: Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment 1: Science
- EUB420: Curriculum, Pedagogy, and Assessment: Innovation
- EUN120: Curriculum and Pedagogy 1: Foundation
- EUN121: Curriculum and Pedagogy 2: Planning
- EUN122: Curriculum and Pedagogy 3: Assessment
- EUN221: Curriculum and Pedagogy 4: Senior A
- EUN222: Curriculum and Pedagogy 5: Senior B
- EUN223: Curriculum and Pedagogy 6: Learning Project
- EUZ636: Designing for Connected STEM Understanding
Selected publications
- King D, Sandhu M, Henderson S, Ritchie S, (2018) Managing emotions: Outcomes of a breathing intervention in year 10 science. In K Tobin & SM Ritchie, Eventful learning: Learner emotions, Brill, pp. 193-216.
- Tomas L, King D, Henderson S, Rigano D, Sandhu M, (2018) The resolution of frustration in middle school science classes: The role of the classroom teacher. In K Tobin & SM Ritchie, Eventful learning: Learner emotions, Brill, pp. 133-156.
- King D, Henderson S, (2018) Context-based learning in the middle years: achieving resonance between the real-world field and environmental science concepts, International Journal of Science Education, 40 (10), pp. 1221-1238.
- King D, Henderson S, Sandhu M, (2018) Deep breathing as a mindfulness practice in year 10 science, Learning: Research and Practice, 4 (1), pp. 91-101.
- King D, Ritchie S, Sandhu M, Henderson S, Boland B, (2017) Temporality of emotion: Antecedent and successive variants of frustration when learning chemistry, Science Education, 101 (4), pp. 639-672.
- Ritchie S, Hudson P, Bellocchi A, Henderson S, King D, Tobin K, (2016) Evolution of self-reporting methods for identifying discrete emotions in science classrooms, Cultural Studies of Science Education, 11 (3), pp. 577-593.
- Tobin K, King D, Henderson S, Bellocchi A, Ritchie S, (2016) Expression of emotions and physiological changes during teaching, Cultural Studies of Science Education, 11 (3), pp. 669-692.
- Ritchie S, Sandhu M, Henderson S, King D, (2015) Emotionally intense science activities, International Journal of Science Education, 37 (12), pp. 1886-1914.
- Bellocchi A, Ritchie S, Tobin K, King D, Sandhu M, Henderson S, (2014) Emotional climate and high quality learning experiences in science teacher education, Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51 (10), pp. 1301-1325.
- Ritchie S, Tobin K, Sandhu M, Sandhu S, Henderson S, Roth W, (2013) Emotional arousal of beginning physics teachers during extended experimental investigations, Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 50 (2), pp. 137-161.
QUT ePrints
For more publications by Senka, explore their research in QUT ePrints (our digital repository).
Awards
- Type
- Fellowships
- Reference year
- 2021
- Details
- Received QALT HEA Associate Fellowship (Indigenous)
- Type
- Fellowships
- Reference year
- 2020
- Details
- Received QALT HEA Associate Fellow (2017) and Fellow (2020)Awards
- Type
- Other
- Reference year
- 2019
- Details
- Received Health Safety and Environment Recognition Award for 'Recognition for significant and superior contribution to health, safety, and environment'
- Type
- Other
- Reference year
- 2017
- Details
- Received Health Safety and Environment Recognition Award for 'Recognition for significant and superior contribution to the promotion of wellness activities, dedication, and advocacy for HSE'
- Type
- Academic Honours, Prestigious Awards or Prizes
- Reference year
- 2013
- Details
- QUT Vice Chancellor's Performance Award
Supervision
Current supervisions
- Exploring pedagogical approaches to develop early childhood students' knowledge of the nature of science
Professional Doctorate, Associate Supervisor
Other supervisors: Dr Reece Mills, Professor Dann Mallet