معرفی
Dr. Simon J. Büchner is a Lecturer and Course Coordinator for Life Sciences at University College Freiburg (University of Freiburg). He holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Freiburg (2010) and has conducted interdisciplinary research on spatial navigation, perception, and decision-making. He is responsible for designing the Life Sciences curriculum, mentoring teaching fellows, and supervising student theses. His research focuses on spatial cognition, visual attention, and applied cognitive methods like eye-tracking. Academic service roles include Co-Chair of the 2024 Interdisciplinary College (IK2024) and Board Member of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Education:
- PhD in Psychology (2010), University of Freiburg
- MSc in Cognitive Psychology (2005), University of Massachusetts, Amherst
- Bachelor in Education/Cognitive Science/Philosophy (2003), University of Freiburg
Teaching Innovations: Introduced Problem-Based Learning (PBL) and flipped classroom approaches in courses like Introduction to Life Sciences. Teaches core LAS program courses including Sensation & Perception and Human Cognition.
Research Highlights: Studies spatial wayfinding in complex environments, integrating eye-tracking and behavioral experiments. Explores top-down/bottom-up attention interactions and applied cognition in real-world scenarios. Recent work includes pandemic management education (2023 E-Teaching Fellowship).
Awards:
- Julie Johnson Kidd Travel Research Fellowship (2020)
Grants/Projects: Managed €9.5K Blended Learning initiative (2023), Robot Systems interdisciplinary course (2018–2020), and DAAD IVAC pandemic research (2020–2022). Served on ERASMUS+ CREATES project (2017–2020).
Labs/Teams: Collaborated on SFB/TR 8 Spatial Cognition research, contributing to SpaceGuide project (2005–2012). Active in University College governance since 2013.
