Teachers can build a base of understanding in three essential learning sciences-neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and educational research-as a foundation that they will use throughout their careers. By combining all three fields of the learning sciences, this book puts the pieces together in one volume and makes them relevant to the work of every teacher and learner. The brain-based principles presented show how the brain and mind work in relation to what we know of behaviour and learning in the classroom.
Educational neuroscience is one of the most hotly debated areas of research and is often misrepresented with grand claims for what it means for teaching and learning. Is each side of the brain responsible for different types of mental activity? Can listening to Mozart improve long-term brain function? Can neuroscience help with reading, or student motivation? In this book, teacher, education consultant and researcher Jon Tibke fact-checks prevailing ′neuromyths′ by shining a light on what scientific research is truly relevant for the classroom and exploring the current limits of our understanding. Evidence-informed and complemented by thought-provoking practical tasks, this book will challenge readers to think critically about the human body′s most complex organ.
Foreword by Baroness Susan Greenfield CBE. In Neuroscience for Teachers: Applying Research Evidence from Brain Science, Richard Churches, Eleanor Dommett and Ian Devonshire expertly unpack, in an easy-to-read and instantly useable way, what every teacher needs to know about the brain and how we really learn and what that suggests for how they should teach. Everyone is curious about the brain including your learners! Not only can knowing more about the brain be a powerful way to understand what happens when your pupils and, of course, you pick up new knowledge and skills, but it can also offer a theoretical basis for established or new classroom practice. And as the field of neuroscience uncovers more of nature's secrets about the way we learn and further augments what we already know about effective teaching this book advocates more efficient pedagogies rooted in a better understanding and application of neuroscience in education. By surveying a wide range of evidence in specific areas such as metacognition, memory, mood and motivation, the teenage brain and how to cater for individual differences, Neuroscience for Teachers shares relevant, up-to-date information to provide a suitable bridge for teachers to transfer the untapped potential of neuroscientific findings into practical classroom approaches. The key issues, challenges and research are explained in clear language that doesn't assume a prior level of knowledge on the topic that would otherwise make it inaccessible therefore enabling more teachers to better comprehend the lessons from neuroscience while the authors also take care to expose the ways in which 'neuromyths' can arise in education in order to help them avoid these pitfalls. Laid out in an easy-to-use format, each chapter features: 'Research Zones' highlighting particular pieces of research with a supplementary insight into the area being explored; 'Reflection' sections that give you something to think about, or suggest something you might try out in the classroom; and concluding 'Next steps' that outline how teachers might incorporate the findings into their own practice. The authors have also included a glossary of terms covering the book's technical vocabulary to aid the development of teachers' literacy in the field of neuroscience. Packed with examples and research-informed tips on how to enhance personal effectiveness and improve classroom delivery, Neuroscience for Teachers provides accessible, practical guidance supported by the latest research evidence on the things that will help your learners to learn better. Suitable for LSAs, NQTs, teachers, middle leaders, local authority advisers and anyone working with learners.
A bold, brain-based teaching approach to culturally responsive instruction To close the achievement gap, diverse classrooms need a proven framework for optimizing student engagement. Culturally responsive instruction has shown promise, but many teachers have struggled with its implementation—until now. In this book, Zaretta Hammond draws on cutting-edge neuroscience research to offer an innovative approach for designing and implementing brain-compatible culturally responsive instruction. The book includes: Information on how one’s culture programs the brain to process data and affects learning relationships Ten “key moves” to build students’ learner operating systems and prepare them to become independent learners Prompts for action and valuable self-reflection
Understanding how the brain learns helps teachers do their jobs more effectively. Primary researchers share the latest findings on the learning process and address their implications for educational theory and practice. Explore applications, examples, and suggestions for further thought and research; numerous charts and diagrams; strategies for all subject areas; and new ways of thinking about intelligence, academic ability, and learning disability.
The Brain-Based Classroom translates findings from educational neuroscience into a new paradigm of practices suitable for any teacher. The human brain is a site of spectacular capacity for joy, motivation, and personal satisfaction, but how can educators harness its potential to help children reach truly fulfilling goals? Using this innovative collection of brain-centric strategies, teachers can transform their classrooms into deep learning spaces that support their students through self-regulation and mindset shifts. These fresh insights will help teachers resolve classroom management issues, prevent crises and disruptive behaviors, and center social-emotional learning and restorative practices.
Everyone agrees that what we do in schools should be based on what we know about how the brain learns. Until recently, however, we have had few clues to unlock the secrets of the brain. Now, research from the neurosciences has greatly improved our understanding of the learning process, and we have a much more solid foundation on which to base educational decisions. In this completely revised and updated second edition, Patricia Wolfe clarifies how we can effectively match teaching practice with brain functioning. Encompassing the most recent and relevant research and knowledge, this edition also includes three entirely new chapters that examine brain development from birth through adolescence and identify the impact of exercise, sleep, nutrition, and technology on the brain. Brain Matters begins with a "mini-textbook" on brain anatomy and physiology, bringing the biology of the brain into context with teaching and learning. Wolfe describes how the brain encodes, manipulates, and stores information, and she proposes implications that recent research has for practice—why meaning is essential for attention, how emotion can enhance or impede learning, and how different types of rehearsal are necessary for different types of learning. Finally, Wolfe introduces and examines practical classroom applications and brain-compatible teaching strategies that take advantage of simulations, projects, problem-based learning, graphic organizers, music, active engagement, and mnemonics. These strategies are accompanied by actual classroom scenarios—spanning the content areas and grade levels from lower elementary to high school&mdashthat help teachers connect theory with practice.
“A significant contribution to understanding the interaction among teachers, students, the environment, and the content of learning” (Herbert Kohl, education advocate and author). What is at work in the mind of a five-year-old explaining the game of tag to a new friend? What is going on in the head of a thirty-five-year-old parent showing a first-grader how to button a coat? And what exactly is happening in the brain of a sixty-five-year-old professor discussing statistics with a room full of graduate students? While research about the nature and science of learning abounds, shockingly few insights into how and why humans teach have emerged—until now. Countering the dated yet widely held presumption that teaching is simply the transfer of knowledge from one person to another, The Teaching Brain weaves together scientific research and real-life examples to show that teaching is a dynamic interaction and an evolutionary cognitive skill that develops from birth to adulthood. With engaging, accessible prose, Harvard researcher Vanessa Rodriguez reveals what it actually takes to become an expert teacher. At a time when all sides of the teaching debate tirelessly seek to define good teaching—or even how to build a better teacher—The Teaching Brain upends the misguided premises for how we measure the success of teachers. “A thoughtful analysis of current educational paradigms . . . Rodriguez’s case for altering pedagogy to match the fluctuating dynamic forces in the classroom is both convincing and steeped in common sense.” —Publishers Weekly
"Neuroteach will aid teachers and school leaders in bringing the growing body of educational neuroscience research into the design of their schools, classrooms, and work with each individual student."--Back cover.
