John McCullagh is a senior lecturer in science education at Stranmillis University College where he teaches on the primary and post-primary education programmes and contributes to the College’s professional development courses for teachers. His research interests include the use of collaborative approaches to initial teacher education such as coteaching and the use of digital video. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and involved in science curriculum development in primary science and chemistry. Before working in higher education he taught science at secondary level in Northern Ireland