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Dr. Kimberly M. Sheridan
(she/her/hers)
EdD, Harvard University
Professor
Educational Psychology, PhD in Education
Educational Psychology

Contact Information

Send email to Dr. Sheridan

Phone: (703) 993-9181
Email: ksherida (@gmu.edu)

George Mason University
Fairfax Campus
West Building 2204
4400 University Dr.
MS 6D2
Fairfax, VA 22030

Curriculum Vitae

Download Kimberly Sheridan's curriculum vitae

Profile

Kimberly Sheridan is a Professor of Educational Psychology.  She holds a joint appointment in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. She received her doctorate in Human Development and Psychology from Harvard University Graduate School of Education. She is a co-director of the Mason Arts Research Center (Mason ARC: http://masonarc.gmu.edu), a National Endowment for the Arts funded research lab.

Research interests: informal/nonformal education, creativity, design thinking, STEM/STEAM education, arts learning, museum education, sociocultural perspectives

Dr. Sheridan's research takes a sociocultural perspective on learning, with a particular focus on informal education settings such as museums, libraries and community programs.  

Research Interests

Informal learning, learning through making, design-based research, learner agency, methodological tools for studying learner agency, arts learning

Recent Publications

 

Stutesman, M. G., Sheridan, K., & Goldstein, T. R. (2025). Promoting general well-being, self-knowledge and addressing oppression: a qualitative study of children’s dance participation. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2025.2459397

Sheridan, K.M., Zhang, X.* & Manchester, E.J.* (2024). Tracking Agency in Open-Ended Making with Young Children.  To appear in Proceedings of the 18th International Conference of the Learning Sciences-ICLS2024. Buffalo, NY: International Society of the Learning Sciences (897-904). https://repository.isls.org/bitstream/1/11185/1/ICLS2024_897-904.pdf

Sheridan,K.M. & Zhang, X.* (2023). A temporal toolkit for analyzing agency in open-ended work.  In Blikstein, P., Van Aalst, J., Kizito, R., & Brennan, K. (Eds.). (2023). Proceedings of the 17th International Conference of the Learning Sciences - ICLS 2023. Montreal, Canada: International Society of the Learning Sciences1466-1470. https://repository.isls.org//handle/1/9949 

Sheridan, K.M. (2023). How to be a time traveler: Possible Futures. [invited]  In R. Jochum, J. Burton & Watston, J. (Eds) Turning Points: Responsive Pedagogies in Studio Art Education.  Teachers College Press. (144-156)

 

Sheridan, K.M., Veenema, S., Winner, E. & Hetland, L. (2022). Studio thinking 3: The real benefits of visual arts education.  New York: Teachers College Press.

Sheridan, K.M., Zhang, X.* & Konopasky. A.W.* (2022): Strategic shifts: How studio teachers use direction and support to build learner agency in the figured world of visual art, Journal of the Learning Sciences, https://doi.org/10.1080/10508406.2021.1999817

Sheridan, K.M. (2020). Constructionism in Studios.  In N.Holder, M.Berland & Y.Kafai (Eds.)Constructionism in Context:  The Art, Theory, and Practice of Learning Designs.  Cambridge, MA:MIT Press.

Hetland, L., Sheridan, K., & Veenema, S. (2020). Beyond the Lab: Influencing Practice and Policy. Empirical Studies of the Arts, https://doi.org/10.1177/0276237419868947

Sheridan, K.M. (2019). Artistic development.  In R. Hickman (Ed.) International encyclopedia of art and design education.  Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell

Wingo, G.* & Sheridan, K. M.  (2019). Beyond the Manifestos: Equity and Learning in Makerspaces. In E. Garber, L. Hochtritt, & M. Sharma (Eds.), Makers, crafters, educators: Working for cultural change. (p 77-80). New York, NY: Routledge

Sheridan, K.M. (2017) Design and out of school learning. In K.Peppler (Ed.) The Sage Encyclopedia of out of school learning, Vol 1. (pp. 204-208). Sage: Thousand Oaks, CA.

Sheridan, K.M. (2017) Visual Arts. In K.Peppler (Ed.) The Sage Encyclopedia of out of school learning, Vol 2. (pp. 810-814). Sage: Thousand Oaks, CA.

Sheridan, K. M., Konopasky, A. W.,* Kirkwood, S., & Defeyter, M. A. (2016). The effects of environment and ownership on children’s innovation of tools and tool material selection. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 371(1690), 20150191. http://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2015.0191

Sheridan, K.M. & Konopasky, A.W.* (2016). Designing for resourcefulness in a community-based makerspace.  In K.Peppler, Y.Kafai & E.R. Halverson (Eds.) Makeology: Makerspaces as learning environments, Vol. 1. (pp. 30-46). Routledge: London.

Konopasky, A. W.,* & Sheridan, K. M. (2016). Towards a Diagnostic Toolkit for the Language of Agency. Mind, Culture, and Activity, 1–16. http://doi.org/10.1080/10749039.2015.1128952

Scott, K.,Sheridan, K.M. & Clark, K. (2015). Culturally Responsive Computing: A Theory Revisited.  Learning, Media and Technology, 40(4), 412-436. doi:10.1080/17439884.2014.924966.

Cheema, J.R.* & Sheridan, K. (2015). Time spent on homework, mathematics anxiety and mathematics achievement: Evidence from a US sample. Issues in Educational Research, 25(3), 246-259. http://www.iier.org.au/iier25/cheema.html.

Sheridan, K. M., Halverson, E.R., Litts, B., Brahms, L., Jacobs-Priebe, L., & Owens, T. *(2014). Learning in the making: A comparative case study of three makerspaces. Harvard Educational Review, 84(4),505-531.

Halverson, E.R. & Sheridan, K.M. (2014). The maker movement in education. Harvard Educational Review, 84(4), 495-504.

Halverson, E.R. & Sheridan, K. M. (2014).  Arts education and the learning sciences.  In R.K. Sawyer (Ed.) Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences (2nd Ed), (pp. 626-646).  Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, ENG.

Sheridan, K. (2014). On the intelligence in children’s making.  In Mind, Work and Life: A Festschrift on the occasion of Howard Gardner’s 70th Birthday: Vol. 2. (p. 277-287).

Sheridan, K. (2014). Permission to wonder: A review of Philip Yenawine’s Visual Thinking Strategies.  Teachers College Record, Date Published: January 31, 2014 http://www.tcrecord.org ID Number: 17396.

Sheridan, K., Clark, K., & Williams, A. (2013). Designing games, designing roles: A study of youth agency in an informal education program.  Urban Education, 48(5), 734–758. doi:10.1177/0042085913491220 (pdf)

Hetland, L., Winner, E., Veenema, S., & Sheridan, K. (2013).  Studio thinking 2: The real benefits of visual arts education. (2nd ed.) Teachers College Press: New York.

Zenkov, K. & Sheridan, K. (2012). Artistically asking about school: Picturing city youth as writers, artists, and citizens. In K. Hutzel, F. Bastos, and K. Cosier (Eds.) Urban education with a vision: Art, social justice, and the city as possibility. Teachers College Press: New York.

Sheridan, K. & Gardner, H. (2012). Artistic development: Three essential spheres. In A. Shimamura and S. Palmer (Eds.) Aesthetic Science: Connecting Minds, Brains, and Experience. Oxford University Press.

Khalili, N., Sheridan, K., Williams, A.*, Clark, K., and Stegman, M. (2011). Students designing video games about immunology: Insights for science learning. Computers in the Schools. 28(3), pp. 228-240.

Sheridan, K. (2011). Envision and observe: Using the Studio Thinking Framework for learning and teaching in the digital arts. Mind, Brain and Education. 5(1), pp. 19-26.

Sheridan, K., & Clark, K. (2010). Designing game design studios: Strategies to sustain intrinsic motivation. In Proceedings of World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications 2010 (pp. 2911-2920). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

Khalili, N.*, Williams, A.*, Stegman, M., Clark, K. & Sheridan, K. (2010). Integrating Science Content into Video Game Design. In Proceedings of World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications 2010 (pp. 2760-2764). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

Clark, K. & Sheridan, K. (2010). Game design through mentoring and collaboration. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia. 19(2), pp. 125-145. (pdf)

Scott, K.A., Clark, K., Hayes, E., Mruczek, C. & Sheridan, K. (2010). Culturally Relevant Computing Programs: Two examples to Inform Teacher Professional Development. In D. Gibson & B. Dodge (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2010 (pp. 1269-1277). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

Scott, K.A., Clark, K., Sheridan, K., Hayes, E. & Mruczek, C. (2010). Engaging More Students from Underrepresented Groups In Technology: What Happens if We Dont?. In D. Gibson & B. Dodge (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2010 (pp. 4097-4104). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

Sheridan, K., Clark, K. & Peters, E. (2009). How scientific inquiry emerges from game design.  In C. Crawford et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference 2009 (pp. 1555-1563).Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

Sheridan, K. (2009). Studio thinking in early childhood. In M.J. Narey (Ed). Making meaning: Constructing multimodal perspectives of language, literacy, and learning through arts-based early childhood education.Springer: New York.

Sheridan, K. (2008). Reading, writing and watching: The informal education of film fans. In J. Flood, D. Lapp, and S.B. Heath (Eds.) Handbook on Teaching Literacy through the Communicative, Visual and Performing Arts. (2nd ed.) Lawrence Erlbaum: Mahwah, NJ.* Updated and Reprinted in 2015

Hetland, L.,Winner, E., Veenema, S., & Sheridan, K. (2007). Studio thinking: The real benefits of visual arts education. Teachers College Press: New York.

Keinanen, M., Sheridan, K. & Gardner, H. (2006). Opening up creativity: The lenses of axis and focus. In J. Kaufman and J. Baer (Eds.) Creativity and Reason in Cognitive Development. Cambridge University Press: New York. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511606915.013 *First authorship is shared.

Winner, E., Hetland, L., Veenema, S., Sheridan, K., & Palmer, P. (2006). Studio thinking: How visual arts teaching can promote disciplined habits of mind. In P. Locher, C. Martindale, L. Dorfman, & D. Leontiev (Eds.), New Directions in Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts (189-205). Amityville, New York: Baywood Publishing Company,

Sheridan, K., Zinchenko, E. & Gardner, H. (2005). Neuroethics in education. In J.Illes (Ed) Neuroethics in the 21st Century: Defining the Issues in Theory, Practice and Policy, J. Illes (Ed.) Oxford University Press: Oxford.

Connell, M. W., Sheridan, K. & Gardner, H. (2003). On abilities and domains. In R. Sternberg (Ed) Psychology of abilities, competencies and expertise. Cambridge University Press: New York (pp. 126-155)

Other Information

Research on children's innovation of tools cited in Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/where-creativity-comes-from/

Making Connections Work: IMLS Stem ex grant 2017-2019

Learning in the Making: NSF Cyberlearning grant 2012-2016, with Dr. Erica Halverson

Game Design through Mentoring and Collaboration

Studio Thinking

  • Publication announcement for Sheridan, Veenema, Winner & Hetland (2022) Studio Thinking 3
  • New York Times article on original monograph Hetland, Winner, Veenema & Sheridan (2007) Studio Thinking: The real benefits of visual arts education "Book tackles old debate: Role of art in schools"www.nytimes.com/2007/08/04/arts/design/04stud.html

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