The brain sciences and education is the topic for this yearbook volume, which is divided into five parts. Part one consists of an introduction to the brain sciences that is a primer on the neuroanatomy, neurochemistry, and neurophysiology of the brain. Part two contains chapters on some of the basic processes of the brain: attention, cognition,…

This paper discusses a multi-part longitudinal study which compared the developmental movement levels and the academic learning level in young children, noting that the relationship between movement education and academic education is based on the assumption that both realms of learning are dependent on the adequate development of the brain. The…

Article discusses the child with learning disabilities and how music rhythm has an effect on brain rhythm and thus on brain function. (Author/MM)

Brain-based learning may be the most important influence on teaching practice since the first school was founded. This article addresses key brain-research findings, the thinking-skills movement, popular literature on the brain, applications in education (on learning and memory, learning environment, the mind/body connection, music and the arts),…

Argues that viewing learning from a biological basis is particularly fruitful for technology-and-science education. Demonstrates the potency of this new view of learning in making sense of the findings of empirical studies of technology-and-science learning, modeling technology-and-science education as a set of five natural and contiguous acts.…

Recent research has revealed remarkable data about the intricacies of brain-based learning and the integration of this knowledge into the academic setting. Prudent educators can create a brain-friendly classroom by developing an emotionally and physically safe environment, using laughter and simple exercises to eliminate mental cobwebs, creating…

Inquisitiveness is what drives children's learning. Cognitive scientists have devised constructivist theory to explain how an individual progresses from curiosity to new knowledge. Formal schooling has struggled unsuccessfully to simulate real-life learning situations. Emerging brain research supports bringing the community into the learning…

Describes the author's research on learning and brain activity, which involved more than 5,000 students and faculty members. Explores six stages of learning: (1) preparing to learn; (2) starting to learn; (3) consolidation; (4) branching out; (5) gaining fluency; and (6) continued improving. States that merging educational research with…

Results of numerous human imaging studies and nonhuman neurophysiological studies on "reward" highlight a role for frontal, striatal, and thalamic regions in operant learning. By integrating operant and functional neuroimaging methodologies, the present investigation examined brain activation to two types of discriminative stimuli correlated with…

Studies of gene expression following fear conditioning have demonstrated that the inducible transcription factor, "egr-1," is increased in the lateral nucleus of the amygdala shortly following fear conditioning. These studies suggest that "egr-1" and its protein product Egr-1 in the amygdala are important for learning and memory of fear. To…

The goal of this epilogue is to use the methodological contributions of the studies presented in this special issue as a starting point for suggestions about methodology in conducting future interaction research. As is the case in most developing fields, interaction research develops methods internally as it continually borrows and extends…

The author is skeptical about the implications of neuroscience for education currently and into the near future. His skepticism derives from several concerns, but a common theme runs through all of them: attempts to link neuroscience with education pay insufficient attention to psychology. In this article, the author presents four variations on…

This study focused on effective teaching strategies for university professors. The researchers studied the relationship between teaching effectiveness and the dynamics of student demographics. An examination of the changes in the composition of the college population over the last few decades, based on statistical data, as well as an overview of…

This article reviews the impetus for higher quality, culturally appropriate early learning experiences. It investigates the economic costs of low quality learning and the absence of early learning programs as well. The article identifies and explores the tenets of brain-based learning and its connection to culture. Finally, the article describes…

Using similar research in Britain as a basis, a study in New Zealand explored schema learning in young children. The primary purpose of the study was to determine the effects of a curriculum intervention designed to increase the richness and amount of stimulation teachers and parents give 4-year-olds in response to observations of children's…