Zacharias Zacharia
Professor of Science Education
Zacharias C. Zacharia is a Professor of Science Education and director of the Research in Science and Technology Education Group at the University of Cyprus. He completed a B.A. in Education at the University of Cyprus (Cyprus), a B.A. in Physics at Rutgers University – New Brunswick (USA), and his graduate studies (M.A., M.Sc., M.Phil, and Ph.D.) in Science Education at Columbia University, New York (USA). He was the (co-) coordinator of several research projects concerning science and technology education that received continuous financial support over the years from the Cyprus Research & Innovation Foundation and the European Commission. In particular, Prof. Dr. Zacharia researched topics focusing on, among others, the design and development of technology-supported learning environments in science, the development and assessment of science curriculum, the training of teachers for designing and implementing technology-enhanced science teaching materials, physical and virtual laboratory experimentation, modeling, science and STEM+ curriculum development and assessment, RRI, conceptual understanding, teacher training and professional development, Open Schooling, educational evaluation and informal science education. Zacharias Zacharia has received several awards in recognition of outstanding scholastic achievement and excellence and has published many papers in major ISI journals (e.g., SCIENCE, Cognition and Instruction, Learning and Instruction, Journal of Research in Science Teaching). In addition, he is enlisted in the 'World Ranking Top 2% Scientists' list, created by Stanford University. He was an associate editor for the Journal of Research in Science Teaching and currently serves as an editor for the Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, and as a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Science Education and Technology and the Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching. He is also a reviewer for several major ISI journals.
orcid: 0000-0002-6381-0962
Marios Papaevripidou
Specialist Teaching Fellow of Science Education
Marios Papaevripidou holds a B.A. in Educational Sciences-Primary Education (University of Cyprus), an M.A., and a Ph.D. in Learning in Natural Sciences (Department of Educational Sciences, University of Cyprus). In the past, he worked as a Primary School Teacher at local schools in Cyprus and as a Research Fellow at the Department of Educational Sciences at the University of Cyprus. Since 2004, he holds a Specialist Teaching Fellow of Science Education position at the Department of Educational Sciences at the University of Cyprus. He teaches science methods courses and technology-integrated science courses and supervises the design and implementation of science lessons for undergraduate students (primary and pre-primary education) in the context of the school practicum program. He served as a member of the scientific and organizing committee of international conferences organized at the University of Cyprus (e.g., EARLI, ESERA, JURE, GIREP, CBLIS), as the chair of the JURE of EARLI conference 2013, and is a member of international learning and teaching associations (e.g., EARLI, ESERA, AERA, NARST). His research interests entail the use of modeling as both a competence, a learning tool, and an instructional approach in science teaching and learning, and also the design and research validation of computer-supported curriculum materials to foster teachers' professional development in STEAM education. He participated (and is currently participating) in several European-funded research projects, presented the outcomes of his research in local and international conferences, and published papers and chapters in peer-reviewed journals and books.
orcid: 0000-0002-2008-1464
Tasos Hovardas is a Senior Research Associate of ReSciTEG at the Department of Education, University of Cyprus. He has a Degree in Biology, an MSc in Environmental Biology, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Education from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. His expertise includes model-based inquiry, quantitative and qualitative methods in assessing educational intervention and teacher training. He has worked on 30 research projects, has published 40 papers in citation-index journals and he has reviewed papers for more than 30 citation-index journals. He served as Editor-in-Chief for Society & Natural Resources (2017-2020) and as Editorial Board Member for the Journal of Research in Science Teaching (2017-2020). He coordinates the Special Interest Group (SIG) of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction on inquiry learning (EARLI; 2021-2023).
orcid: 0000-0003-1776-2493
Υvoni Pavlou
Ph.D.
Researcher
Yvoni Pavlou holds a Bachelor's degree in Education and an M.A. and Ph.D. degree in "Learning in Natural Sciences" (University of Cyprus, Department of Education). She has been working as a teaching assistant and a researcher at ReSciTEG since 2015. She participated in several national and EU-funded projects (e.g., SNAC Polar Star, LfE, Digi-Science, SALL). Her research interests concern the development of digitally enhanced learning environments, teachers’ professional development for designing and implementing current educational methods (e.g., Open Schooling, Inquiry-based approach, STE(A)M, living labs) in formal and non-formal learning environments and the experimentation with physical and virtual manipulatives for K-12.
orcid: 0000-0002-4893-1846
Kyriaki Vakkou
Ph.D. Candidate
Researcher
Kyriaki Vakkou is a Ph.D. candidate in “Learning in Natural Sciences” at the University of Cyprus. She holds a B.Sc. in Physics (University of Cyprus, 2019) and an M.Sc. in “Learning in Natural Sciences” (University of Cyprus, 2021). She has been working as a teaching and research assistant in ReSciTEG at the University of Cyprus since 2020. She was involved in a variety of national and EU-funded projects (e.g., GINOBOT, Bridges). Her research interests focus on STEM education and educational robotics for fostering students’ and teachers’ digital competencies and literacy, as well as on the training of teachers to design and implement STEM lessons through innovative approaches such as inquiry-based learning, the engineering design process, and project-based learning.
orcid: 0000-0003-4935-1867
Theodoros Karafyllidis
Ph.D. Candidate
Researcher
Theodoros Karafyllidis is a Ph.D. candidate in "Learning in Natural Sciences" at the University of Cyprus. He holds a B.Sc. in Physics (2019) and an M.Sc. in "Didactics in Physics and Educational Technology" (2021) from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
Currently serving as a Teaching Assistant in the Department of Education at the University of Cyprus and holding the position of Special Research Scientist in ReSciTEG since 2022, Theodoros is actively involved in a variety of EU-funded projects, including SEISMO-Lab and AI4EDU.
His research interests focus on Artificial Intelligence in Education and the development and evaluation of scaffolding tools aiming to support the development of undergraduate students' inquiry and experimental skills.
orcid: 0009-0004-3040-146X
Ph.D.
Researcher
Marilena Savva holds a Ph.D. in Education from Durham University, United Kingdom, where her thesis focused on Educational Technology. Additionally, she holds a B.A. in Pre-Primary Education from the University of Cyprus and an M.A. in Inclusion and Special Educational Needs from the University of Birmingham. Since 2020, she has held the position of research assistant within the Research in Science and Technology Education Group (ReSciTEG). She is actively engaged in a diverse range of initiatives that are National and EU-funded projects. Examples of such initiatives include the Horizon 2020 project SALL (Schools As Living Labs) and SpicE (Special Education STEAM Academy). Her research interests focus on optimizing the application of digital technologies for educational purposes in schools, assessing the efficacy of technology-enhanced interventions, and devising strategies to aid teachers in enhancing the quality of teaching and learning in their classrooms.
Researcher
Evridiki Eracleous has completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Cyprus, earning a bachelor’s degree in Educational Sciences – Primary Education. As of September 2024, she began pursuing her postgraduate studies in the program “Learning in Natural Sciences” at the University of Cyprus. She is currently working as a teaching assistant and researcher at ReSciTEG. She participates in several national and European projects (e.g., TeLeMaT IBL).
Researcher
Chloe Savvidou completed her studies at the University of Cyprus with a Bachelor's Degree in Educational Sciences – Primary Education. Since September 2024, she has been pursuing a Master's degree in "Learning in Natural Sciences" and working as a teaching assistant and research scientist in the ReSciTEG research group, participating in various European programs (e.g TeLeMat.)
