Dr Victoria Wong
Senior Lecturer in STEM Education
V.J.Wong@exeter.ac.uk
4848
+44 (0) 1392 724848
Baring Court BC214
Baring Court, University of Exeter St Luke's Campus, Heavitree Road, Exeter, EX1 2LU, UK
Overview
I am a Senior Lecturer in STEM (science) education in the Graduate School of Education. I joined Exeter in April 2022.
After a degree in chemistry, I qualified as a teacher and taught chemistry and science for 12 years in secondary schools in England, Spain and New Zealand.
In 2004-2005 I was awarded the Royal Society of Chemistry Schoolteacher Fellowship, to focus on writing teaching resources in up-to-date contexts. Following this I became a freelance education consultant, working for organisations such as the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Nuffield Foundation, Gatsby Science Enhancement Programme and SCORE (the Science Community Representing Education).
From 2012-2018 I held a Rosalind Driver Research Scholarship at King’s College London, researching the relationship between school mathematics and science education in the policy sphere and in schools. I taught on the PGCE courses at King’s College London and then the University of Oxford alongside completing my PhD.
My research interests include:
- Students’ use of mathematics within science
- Interdisciplinary work in schools
- The relationship between school science and other disciplines, particularly mathematics
- Chemistry education
- Science education policy and its impact on practice in schools
Qualifications
PhD Education The relationship between school science and mathematics education, King's College London
PGCE Science and Chemistry, University of Oxford
BSc (Hons) Chemistry, University of Southampton
Career
2020-2022 Wallingford School Teacher of science and chemistry
2013-2020 University of Oxford PGCE tutor
2012-2013 King's College London PGCE tutor
2004-2014 Royal Society of Chemistry Education consultant and writer
2007-2017 Catalyst magazine Chemistry editor
Freelance Science Education Consultant and writer
Gatsby Science Enhancement Programme Professional development lead
Didcot Girls' School KS3 science co-ordinator
Waitakere College, Auckland, New Zealand Teacher-in-charge chemistry
Caxton College, Valencia, Spain Head of chemistry
Cherwell School, Oxford Science teacher and Acting head of chemistry
Research group links
Research
Research interests
My research interests include:
- Students’ use of mathematics within science
- Interdisciplinary work in schools
- The relationship and overlap between school science and other disciplines, particularly mathematics
- Chemistry education
- Science and STEM education policy and its impact on practice in schools
I welcome expressions of interest from potential doctoral students in these fields
Research networks
Authored Teaching resources
Wong, V. (2012). Olympic Composites for primary. London: Royal Society of Chemistry. http://www.rsc.org/learn-chemistry/resource/res00000866/olympic-composites-primary#!cmpid=CMP00000997
Wong, V. (2012) Olympic Composites. London: Royal Society of Chemistry. http://www.rsc.org/learn-chemistry/resource/res00000865/olympic-composites
Fullick, A., Hunt, A., Punter, J., Swinbank, E., Harden, H., Sang, D., & Wong, V. (2011). 21st Century Science: Science (Higher) (2nd ed.). Oxford: OUP.
Harden, H., Hunt, A., Lazonby, J., Lister, T., Shipton, M., Wong, V., & Warren, D. (2011). 21st Century Science: Chemistry (2nd ed.). Oxford: OUP.
Wong, V. et al (2011). 21st Century Science: Chemistry workbook (2nd ed.). Oxford: OUP.
Wong, V. et al (2011). 21st Century Science: Science and additional science (foundation) workbook (2nd ed.). Oxford: OUP.
Sang, D., Skinner, G. & Wong, V. (2009). The use of Catalyst magazine in the classroom. ASE Education in Science.
Wong, V. (2009). The chemistry of climate change 14-16. London: Royal Society of Chemistry.
Wong, V. (2009). The chemistry of climate change 16-18. London: Royal Society of Chemistry.
Wong, V. (2006). Inspirational Chemistry - resources for modern curricula. London: Royal Society of Chemistry.
Catalyst magazine publications (published by Science Enhancement Programme, SEP)
https://www.stem.org.uk/catalyst
September 2007 Hydrogels; Try this - hydrogels; periodic table
November 2007 Try this - home button balance
February 2008 For debate: Food additives; Catalysts
September 2008 Careers in the pharmaceutical industry
November 2008 For debate: fluoride in drinking water; Try this – iron in cornflakes
February 2009 A life in science: Stephen Kill
September 2009 Try this – indicators
November 2009 A life in science – Dorothy Hodgkin
April 2010 Biomimetics
October 2010 Make your own elastic band
February 2011 Chemistry of the Nobel Gases
April 2011 Try this – make your own cloud; Try this – make your own spectroscope
October 2011 Power from potato peelings; The sand beneath your feet; Try this – make your own ‘lava lamp’
December 2011 Jewellery metals; Try this – pouring a gas
February 2012 The kilogram; A life in science – Marie Curie
December 2012 A life in science - Alison Foster
February 2013 Try this – eating chocolate
April 2013 This this – ice, water, steam
December 2013 Try this – ice cream without a freezer
October 2014 A life in science – Stephanie Kwolek ; Chemistry and paint ; Try this – chemistry of salt water
February 2015 Try this – water movement in potatoes
February 2016 Discovering new elements
April 2016 Dmitri Mendeleev and the periodic pattern; Try this - Make a non-Newtonian fluid; Try this – chemical reaction biscuits
October 2016 The bizarre world of high pressure chemistry; Try this – insulating ice cream; Healing of the ozone layer; Microplastics and the oceans
February 2017 Try this – chromatography; A life in science – Katherine Johnson
Publications
Books
Journal articles
Chapters
Teaching
PGCE science and chemistryMasters in Education (Online)
Masters in International Education
