Biography

Michael Nussbaum joined the UNLV faculty in 1999. He earned his Ph.D. in educational psychology in 1997 from Stanford University, and also holds a master's degree in  public policy from the University of California, Berkeley.

His research focuses on argumentation and critical thinking, and specifically how teachers can foster productive critical discussions in small groups and online. He is also researching argument generation during writing and the effect of argumentation on conceptual change in science.

His work has appeared in such journals as The Journal of Educational Psychology, Contemporary Educational Psychology, and The Journal of the Learning Sciences. He has been elected as President-Elect of Division 15 (Educational Psychology) of the American Psychological Association, and will serve as president in 2017-18. At UNLV, Nussbaum teaches face-to-face and distance education courses in educational psychology, problem solving and reasoning, assessment, and educational research methods.