Neil Heffernan
Neil T. Heffernan (born June 1970 in Worcester, Massachusetts) is a professor of computer science at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. He is known for his role in the development of the ASSISTments online learning tool and app, which assists students with homework and classwork while helping teachers assess where to focus instructional time in mathematics, and is used by over 50,000 students a year in the US.[1] His work gained prominence when a New York Times Magazine story by Annie Murphy Paul featured ASSISTments and Heffernan's research with the tool.[2]
Dr. Neil Heffernan | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 1970 |
| Nationality | USA |
| Citizenship | USA |
| Alma mater | Carnegie Mellon University (PhD) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Computer Science, Learning Sciences |
| Institutions | Worcester Polytechnic Institute |
Early life and education
Heffernan obtained a bachelor's degree in History and Computer Science at Amherst College, and a doctorate in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University. His doctoral advisers were Kenneth Koedinger and John Robert Anderson.
Career
Following his doctoral studies, Heffernan worked as Assistant Professor and then Associate Professor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, establishing the Learning Sciences research group in the Computer Science Department at WPI and the Learning Sciences and Technology graduate program at WPI.
References
- "About ASSISTments - TeacherWiki". Teacherwiki.assistment.org. 2015-11-18. Archived from the original on 2014-06-06. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
- Murphy Paul, Annie (14 September 2012). "The Machines are Taking Over". The New York Times Magazine.
