Question

Do we have any active research in the UK in the use of mental imagery in learning – spelling, reading, maths, comprehension etc? I have been in contact with Georgetown University that is the only centre of excellence I have found.

I have couple of questions: 1. What is the neural mechanism for explicit memory to transfer into implicit memory? 2. How do we know we learned? 3. What is thought and thought process? 4. Is there a relation between the unimodal (in association cortices) and multimodal (in Hippocampal Pyramidal neurons) associations to thoughts/meanings/concepts? 5. What is the interpretation/physical meaning/ application in learning for low frequency stimuli ( 1Hz) – LTD activation; and High frequency stimuli (100 Hz)-activation of LTP. Help in understanding these is appreciated. Thanks.

A practical question concerning early literacy. When children (age 6-7) are expressing themselves in written texts that are technically (spelling) too difficult they often write mistakes. What should teachers/parents do best (next to showing their appreciation, applauding the attempt and stimulate the child for their ability to start his or her written communication skills)? • Ignore the spelling mistakes not to discourage the child and stimulate the effort • Correct all the spelling mistakes and risk to take the child’s motivation away Lots of teachers and parents find it very difficult to ignore spelling mistakes, even in words that are far too difficult for the child at that time. What is the risk in early literacy when children write/read spelling mistakes in their process to learn how to write correctly? Will they go into ‘automatisation mode’ and remember the wrong spelling even in words that are far too complex for … Continue reading →

At what age should children begin formal education? Is it the same age for literacy and maths? Are we actually harming children by having them start so young in the UK?

Hi, I am a teacher with a psychology degree, and am currently completing my Masters in Education. I am looking at the impact of a new gifted and talented program on A/A* attainment at GCSE. I would like to ask the scientists which purpose for Gifted pupils they think is most effective: enrichment, practise on developing intrinsic motivation? And how this fits with the current neuropsychological theories of learning. I would also like to ask fellow teachers about their experiences of gifted education programs: do they work? How can did you measure impact? And are they fair? Thanks in advance for any input! Sarah

Oh I have so many questions! I work as an occupational therapist in elementary school mostly with special needs or struggling students. My role in the school is a little different than teachers since I have an opportunity to work with students more one and one and have a focus on the mind/ body connection. The thing that I noticed throughout the years is that struggling students tend to still have their primitive postural responses (ATNR, STNR, TLR) and have poor oculomotor control. Do you think that directly addressing these physical delays can have an impact on higher order learning skills? Any ideas why this is happening to students? Thank you in advance for help and I just wanted to say that this is such a wonderful idea and I hope it continues. Staying evidenced based in practice is a daunting task with so much research to sift through!

Mixed-ability classes – good or bad? I know I’m oversimplifying but – all else being equal – is setting good for some and not others, or bad/good for all?

I have a few questions regarding constructivism and how the learning process takes places. I think I read somewhere that constructivism strives to replace behaviourism (this is also somewhat stated here: http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/theories.htm) by using a more humanistic approach. But I don’t understand how the process of learning works in constructivism. First, let’s define learning: in this case it’s the process of storing information so that it can be easily retrieved later on. So, behaviourism is pretty straighforward on that issue: you repeat some input (memorizing with flashcards or repetitive practice, think Karate or the Suzuki Method to learn an Instrument). This can be verified in experiments and also be tested on animals (Pavlov’s dog). It also goes well along with the idea of neural networks forming in the brain and reinforcement of these networks by repeated stimulation. So how does constructivism explain this? Yesterday in chat it was mentioned that … Continue reading →

Measures like IQ and ‘g’ claim to show some level of objective cognitive ability or intelligence in people. But to what extent will these measures always be based upon a societally constructed concept of what ‘smart’ should look like?

How important is imagination for learning? Drama as a way of learning (developing from dramatic play) is much reduced in schools today. Is there evidence about learning through imagined experience that would be helpful to know for advocacy and teaching purposes?

Is there a difference between what you see in the brain of a child and what you see in the brain of an adult? It is said you can’t teach old dogs new tricks, and the best to learn a new language as young as possible – is this backed up by your data?

Are there any proven methods that can inspire intrinsic motivation? My students (11-16) seem to respond to various degrees to the old “carrot – stick” adage, but it damages the relationship with my students and costs me money to do! I’m keen to get them to take more responsibility and passion for their learning. It’s a poor socioeconomic school.

I was wondering if people know of good studies supporting either side in the ‘math’ wars ? My suspicion is that skils learning makes ypu good at precisely that, and rote learning likewise just makes you good at that. But is there much evidence to suggest which approach has more merit generally ?

Yoiu definitely seem to have a ‘growth mindset’ – do you think that has come ‘from within’ or has someone encouraged you to be like this? If so, who?

Why does autism mean that some children cannot speak?

We try to encourage student response to feedback via metacognition. But it simply doesn’t work as well as I’ve read that it should. Do you have any advice or alternatives that I could put into practise with my students (11-16) regarding how they respond to feedback, in terms of HOW and WHY they did things the way they did?

Is there an age where interventions are too late and the social oremotional damage is permanent

What is a good tool to measure social/emotional skills especially around reflective capacity or empathy?

Are there any Masters or doctoral level programs for teachers interested in this area?

Hello, I am a teacher in a mixed comprehensive secondary school. We have introduced the IMYC program of study in year 7 and will roll it out to year 8 next year. This is how the IMYC defines itself on its website: The IMYC helps your students to make meaning of their learning by: Linking all subject learning to a conceptual theme Responding to the specific developmental needs of 11-14 year olds Working towards understanding through a personal and global perspective How effective is that approach in helping students develop learning skills? It is an “off the peg” curriculum. Is it better to stick to recommendations made by the providers in terms of learning activities or is it better to amend and customise? If we customise, are we at risk of losing the essence of the course, thereby negating any benefits? If we don’t customise, are we reducing teachers’ ability … Continue reading →

How strong is the evidence that a high protein meal helps students think / concentrate better ?

Hi, I am teaching English literature to senior Cambridge How can your search be helpful in improving my teaching style?

Which books or papers would you recommend are best reading for teachers as an introduction to the field of Neuroeducation?

There seems to be a lot of information out there with regards sleep and brain functioning. If a student has no exam in the morning and has an exam at 1.30, what would you advise in terms of sleeps and naps and so on for peak performance? Also, how can they keep themselves fresh for peak performance between exam time slots?

Based on what I think I have understood about the disproval of left/right brain dominance etc, is there such a thing as someone who is naturally “good at languages”? Or are all pupils equally capable of excelling in foreign languages, dependent upon how good the teacher is?

I am a woman engineer and educator. I often hear people say that boys and girls (men and women)”think differently”. For example we all know that 2+2=4 but how we get to that is different. I have to say that I’ve never observed that either personally or as an instructor. Are there any reputable studies on this topic?

To what extent does the theory of the multiple intelligences proposed by Howard Gardner influence language learning? Are there any studies that show concrete proof of its effectiveness?

Is there any research into the effectiveness of what teachers call ‘differentiated’ teaching? Does any of it suggest an optimal approach to teaching method?

I teach in an American middle school located in a rural area five hours away from a major metropolitan city. I have noticed my students are coming to my classroom with lower reading and critical thinking skills. There is never one reason for this, and I am not looking for the silver bullet to solve this puzzle for me. I also have more and more students failing standardized tests (past failures do not motivate the masses!). More and more, I see students who truly do not know what to do when they hear directions or students who are so behind, it is hard to catch them up; this not an excuse to not know my students as scholars and individuals. That does not mean it is impossible! It is a challenge. Please, can you tell me how to best plug into brains of this age group, according to your research, … Continue reading →

There is a lot of discussion amongst english teachers at the moment about how technology is affecting learning- as an English teacher I’m particularly interested in reading. Claims range from ideas like technology in the classroom leads to shorter attention spans, less recall, less deep understanding and less empathy, link chasing, checking behaviour, unhealthy multitasking and reduced social skills, to ideas like technology encourages socialising for shy students, enhances engagement in reading for reluctant readers, creates more opportunities for collaboration and even redefines learning all together. What reliable research is there really out there about the impact of technology on student learning?

Are the experiments regarding physical activity before revision enhancing exam results valid. Saw this on tv some 5 years ago where they had kids run around then do short revision sessions. Do you know the studies ?

Some schools use CAT tests or similar to try to predict outcomes for students across a whole range of subject areas. Do we know how reliable they are and if not, is there a better alternative?

It’s great that so much more information is coming out with regards learning and the brain but if we can’t get students to access it or believe in it, what’s the point? That sounds very defeatist and I know change takes time…

I was told recently that ‘experts’ in a subject still have the natural misconceptions of others, but can somehow override these assumptions due to regular reinforcing of correct pathways. . . pruning of sorts?

During spaced learning to improve LTM how have the 2 input sessions been structured within the below article? Is the evidence based on repeating the same input, is it altered slightly or is it entirely different input?(http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnhum.2013.00589/full)

Some years ago Tracy Tokuhama-Espinosa suggested a model whereby those responsible for teaching become Mind, Brain and Education scientists. Has this model ever been tested and where in the UK would I be able to link with schools adopting this approach?

I work with children who have specific learning difficulties, dyslexia, dyscalculia etc those with most difficulties have poor working memories. I am interested what neuroscience can tell us to provide robust and reliable teaching strategies that can be used one to one and within the classroom whilst teaching a very fast paced curriculum.

We have been instilling retrieval/spaced learning into our Scheme of work over the past year to great success. We are now in our revision period and students tend to switch off as soon as you mention the word revision. Do you have any practical revision strategies that we can use at school now the content has been covered? Thank you!

I showed students this: http://bigthink.com/neurobonkers/assessing-the-evidence-for-the-one-thing-you-never-get-taught-in-school-how-to-learn and as I was telling them, it suddenly occurred to me that there is a paradox at play with regards students and brain research. They are interested to listen but much brain research suggests that due to the late development of the teenage brain, they can be stubborn and refuse to change their minds despite the evidence put in front of them. What do x Is there no link between stubbornness and brain development then?

Imagine, if you will, that you are alone in a void. There is no light to see with. The are no sounds to hear. There are no odours to smell. There are no items to taste. There are no objects to touch. There is not even any gravity to give you a sense of which way is up. You have no perception of any sensory input. Is it possible to learn anything in this emptiness?

Are there any good resources I can use as a science teacher to try to encourage more physical activity in my students? Something that shows what the benefits are now and in later life?

how can teachers help students retain information to help them succeed in maths?

What might research suggest is the best time for the length of lessons in school? Does it matter how long/short they are? Or is it more about what is done in that time?

I have been interested in spacing he learning of my students over their 2 year GCSE / A Level course. What do you suggest the optimum spacing time is over the two year course that would enable students to cover all the content and review it? Also it what format has it been shown best to review the content, re teach? Testing?

Can mindfulness be explicitly taught?

ello! Are any of you aware of, or involved with, a company called www.mycognition.com? Do you think the methodology works?

In a previous question, Catriona said that eating eggs and getting some omega 3 would be a good way to set yourself up for exams. I thought a big study was done in Scotland that showed Omega 3 had little impact and where does the egg thing come from?

Is it detrimental to students’ use of language if a teacher uses non standard English?

What does research say is the best time of day for the brain to work? Is there a best time? What can schools do to optimise this?

According to the book the shallows by nicholas Carr, excessive use of social media and its accordant distractions and surface engagement results in superficial thinking and an inability for the brain to ‘deep think’. I wonder if there is any validity to this. Isn’t it too early to tell? He makes a compelling case!