Prior to joining McGill she was an Assistant Professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Education. Her research focuses on the complex interactions among Islam, modern science, culture, and education. She focuses this interest more specifically on the conflicted, and conciliatory, relationship between evolutionary science and religious interpretations in predominantly Muslim societies. Drawing on quantitative and qualitative methods she is examining, comparing, and contrasting various trends and methodological issues across diverse Islamic cultures and communities. She has also been looking at science education reform in diverse contexts in her research. She received her doctorate in Education from Harvard University and did postdoctoral research at the Evolution Education Research Center at McGill University.