Hugh Burkhardt
Hugh Burkhardt was a British theoretical physicist and educational designer. He was Director of The Shell Centre for Mathematical Education at the University of Nottingham, UK from 1976 to 1992 and is the creator of ISDDE, the International Society for Design and Development in Education.
Life and career
Burkhardt had a bachelor's degree in Theoretical Physics from the University of Oxford, and PhD in Mathematical Physics from the University of Birmingham. He joined the Shell Centre in Nottingham in 1976 as Director and Professor of Mathematical Education, serving until 1992. Since then he has led a series of international education design projects including Balanced Assessment and MARS in the US, with visiting appointments at UC Berkeley and at Michigan State University. He is Emeritus Professor of Mathematical Education at the University of Nottingham. In 2005 Burkhardt recognised a need for an international organisation which focused on the design and development process that is used to produce educational materials, and so set up ISDDE.Burkhardt died on 3 February 2024, at the age of 88.