Department of
Science Education

Sugat Dabholkar obtained his PhD in Learning Sciences from Northwestern University, USA. He joined IISER Pune as Assistant Professor in 2025. Prior to joining IISER, Sugat worked as Research Assistant Professor at Tufts University, USA, as a Postdoctoral Associate at Rutgers University, USA, and as a Distinguished Research Fellow at Northwestern University. 

Research 

Sugat Dabholkar is a Learning Scientist whose research primarily focuses on science education. Sugat partners with teachers and educators to design and study curricula in schools and undergraduate classrooms.

A key strand of his work is to explore how technological and pedagogical innovations can be co-designed to support students’ epistemic agency—their ability to actively construct and critique knowledge as they learn and do science. This work involves developing and using agent-based computational models and model-based inquiry curricular units to support student learning about scientific inquiry practices and emergent phenomena such as natural selection.

His research work also investigates how students learn science as they navigate their identities and values within educational environments. Central to his research and design approach is working with students and teachers from diverse backgrounds to honor and integrate context-specific funds of knowledge into curricular design. As technology becomes increasingly embedded in educational settings, Sugat works to design for equitable, student-centered uses of technology that enhance learning and participation.

Selected Publications

Dabholkar, S., Irgens, G.A. & Wilensky, U. Characterizing Integrated Learning of Disciplinary Core Ideas and Science Practices in a Computational Thinking (CT)–Integrated Biology Curriculum. J Sci Educ Technol (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10956-025-10242-z 

Bhurkunde, S., Pillai, V., Dabholkar, S. (2025). Integrating Computational Thinking and Scientific Inquiry Practices into a Co-designed Biology Unit. In: Mishra, S., Kothiyal, A., Iyer, S., Sahasrabudhe, S., Lingnau, A., Kuo, R. (eds) Proceedings of the International Conference on Technology 4 Education 2024, Volume 1. T4E 2024. Lecture Notes in Educational Technology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-96-5761-2_5 

Dabholkar, S., & Wilensky, U. (2024). Designing computational models as Emergent Systems Microworlds to support epistemically agentive learning of emergent biological phenomena. International Journal of Science Education, 47(8), 1028–1050. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2024.2356228 

Peel, A., Dabholkar, S., Anton, G., Horn, M., & Wilensky, U. (2023). Characterizing changes in teacher practice and values through co-design and implementation of computational thinking integrated biology units. Computer Science Education, 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/08993408.2023.2265763

Dabholkar, S., Gouvea, J., & Uricchio, L. (2023). Designing for and characterizing critical navigation of disciplinary values in an undergraduate computational biology course. In Blikstein, P., Van Aalst, J., Kizito, R., & Brennan, K. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 17th International Conference of the Learning Sciences - ICLS 2023 (pp. 1386-1389). International Society of the Learning Sciences. https://doi.org/10.22318/icls2023.832331

Dabholkar, S., Danish, J., & Wilensky, U. (2022). Guided epistemic expansion in a science classroom. In Chinn, C., Tan, E., Chan, C., & Kali, Y. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference of the Learning Sciences - ICLS 2022 (pp. 361-368). International Society of the Learning Sciences. https://repository.isls.org//handle/1/9049

Dabholkar, S. & Wilensky, U. (2022). Epistemic games with emergent systems microworlds. In Chinn, C., Tan, E., Chan, C., & Kali, Y. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference of the Learning Sciences - ICLS 2022 (pp. 480-487). International Society of the Learning Sciences. https://repository.isls.org//handle/1/8829