Brendan is a fifth-year doctoral student at the Berkeley School of Education in the Learning Sciences and Human Development (LSHD) cluster and is advised by Prof. Michelle Wilkerson. His research sits at the intersection of the learning sciences, computer science (CS) education, and teacher education. His research focuses on critically conscious CS education, studying the ways in which pre-service teachers navigate critical perspectives of computing in a CS teacher preparation program.
He is a graduate student researcher with Prof. Lisa Yan in the College of Computing, Data Science, and Society, where he examines introductory undergraduate data science courses that emphasize social science. As a part of this project, he has performed a curriculum analysis and crosswalk of course versions across multiple institutions.
Brendan also mentors undergraduate research assistants through the Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program (URAP) on two projects related to his work in critical CS education. The first is a follow-up interview study with graduates of a critical CS teacher education program. The second analyzes the curricula of CS teacher credentialing programs across multiple states to understand how, if at all, they address the societal impacts of computing, ethics, and social justice.
Additionally, Brendan works as a graduate student instructor for the undergraduate education major and has taught and mentored over 150 students as a part of Education 144.
Specializations and Interests
Computer Science Education, Teacher Education
