Mistilina Sato
Assistant professor
Ph.D., Stanford University
Teacher development and science education
Room 152B Peik Hall
612-625-7793
msato@umn.edu
Office hours: by appointment
Preferred method of contact: e-mail
I am an assistant professor of teacher development and science education at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. I hold a Ph.D. from Stanford University in curriculum and teacher education, with a specialty in science education and a BA degree from Princeton University in geological sciences. While at Stanford, I developed and directed a regional professional development program for practicing teachers pursuing National Board Certification in the San Francisco Bay area. I began my teaching career as a middle school teacher Plainsboro, NJ, and as an instructional team leader with the Merck Institute for Science Education in Rahway, NJ in the earth and space sciences. My current research interests are in teacher development using the theoretical lens of practical reasoning in teachers’ everyday work and leadership and the use of formative assessment in science classrooms.
Currently, I am the PI for the Cultural Relevance in Science Pedagogy (CRISP) regional action research network in Minnesota in partnership with the Science Museum of Minnesota and, as a Knowles Science Teaching Foundation Research Fellow, I am working with a Twin Cities high school science teacher action research group on enacting formative assessment in their everyday practice. I am also the co-PI and Director of the Teacher Education Redesign Initiative in the College of Education and Human Development. My work has appeared in the American Educational Research Journal, The New Educator, Educational Leadership, and Phi Delta Kappan. My work was recently featured in the College of Education and Human Development's publication ResearchWorks (May 2009).
Awards
2008 Young Scholars Research Fellowship
This Knowles Science Teaching Foundation fellowship is designed
to support early career scholars engaged in research critical to
the recruitment, preparation, induction, mentoring, and
retention of science and mathematics teachers in U.S. high
schools. Sato is one of only four recipients of this nationally
competitive award.
2008 Women's Philanthropic Leadership Circle Rising Star
Award
The Rising Star is given to a pre-tenured female faculty member
of the College of Education and Human Development who has
demonstrated leadership and creativity in an academic area as
shown by research, teaching, and service.
2007 Kappa Delta Pi/AERA Division K Early Career Research
Award
This award, made to a researcher in the first stages of the
research career, recognizes a significant program of research on
important problems in the areas of teaching or teacher
education.
Selected publications
Sato, M. & Lensmire, T. J. (2009). Poverty and Payne: Supporting teachers to work with children of poverty. Phi Delta Kappan, 90(5). 365-370.
Sato, M., Wei, R. C., & Darling-Hammond, L. (2008). Improving teachers’ assessment practices through professional development: The case of National Board Certification. American Educational Research Journal, 45(3), 669-700.
Sato, M. (2008). Coping with uncertainty in teacher mentoring: Cases of ethical tensions. The New Educator, 4(3), 237–251.
Sato, M., Jacobs, B. M., & Avery, P. A. (2008). Preparing Minnesota teachers for diverse contexts. CURA Reporter, 38(1), 23-29. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Center for Urban and Regional Affairs.
Sato, M. & Atkin, J M. (2006). Supporting change in classroom assessment. Educational Leadership, 64(4), 76-79.
Atkin, J.M, J. E. Coffey, S. Moorthy, M. Thibeault, & M. Sato. (2005). Designing everyday assessment in the science classroom. New York: Teachers College Press.
Shulman, J.H. & M. Sato. (Eds.) (2006). Mentoring teachers toward excellence: Supporting and developing highly qualified teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Featured research and outreach
Revised June 2009
