Adolescence is a time characterized by change--hormonally, physically, and mentally. We now know that some brain areas, particularly the frontal cortex, continue to develop well beyond childhood. There are two main changes with puberty. First, there is an increase in axonal myelination, which increases transmission speed. Second, there is a…

In this article, we discuss the role of rostral prefrontal cortex (approximating Brodmann Area 10) in two domains relevant to education: executive function (particularly prospective memory, our ability to realize delayed intentions) and social cognition (particularly our ability to reflect on our own mental states and the mental states of others).…

Education lacks a strong infrastructure for connecting research with educational practice and policy. The need for this linkage grows as findings in cognitive science and biology become ever more relevant to education. Teachers often lack the background knowledge needed to interpret scientific results, whereas scientists often lack an…

Stanislas Dehaene has published a remarkable book on the neurons of reading. It is a comprehensive description of the main issues related to the "paradox of reading": how humans process linguistic information using the visual brain path while the brain has not evolved in the short period of time since the invention of writing. The article presents…

Ethical quandaries abound in the emerging field of neuroeducation. Concepts and findings from the GoodWork[R] Project may help neuroeducators deal ethically with these quandaries. In particular, ethical work is easier to carry out when all stakeholders concur on the means and goals of the profession. Similarly, when professionals wear only one…

We explored the effects of task-related factors on reasoning processes in geometry focusing on a comparison-of-perimeters task in which the irrelevant feature area interferes with the reasoning process. We studied the effects of congruity, salience, and complexity on participants' accuracy of responses and reaction times. The study shows that…

This study investigated the relationship between 3 ability-based cognitive styles (verbal deductive, spatial imagery, and object imagery) and performance on geometry problems that provided different types of clues. The purpose was to determine whether students with a specific cognitive style outperformed other students, when the geometry problems…

The aim of the current study was to examine the role of individual differences in neurocognitive and temperamental systems of self-regulation in early adolescents' social and academic competence. Measures used in the study included the Attention Network Test, the Early Adolescence Temperament Questionnaire, a peer-reported Social Status…

Genetics contributes importantly to learning abilities and disabilities--not just to reading, the target of most genetic research, but also to mathematics and other academic areas as well. One of the most important recent findings from quantitative genetic research such as twin studies is that the same set of genes is largely responsible for…

This article offers some thoughts on possible connections between genomics and education. Genomics is already revolutionizing the way medical care is delivered and distributed; it will inevitably affect children's developmental trajectories by introducing more pharmacological and behavioral therapies. Educators should be prepared to understand the…

Under what conditions can a true "science of mental life" arise from psychological investigations? Can psychology formulate scientific laws of a general nature, comparable in soundness to the laws of physics? I argue that the search for such laws must return to the forefront of psychological and developmental research, an enterprise that requires…

Recent advances in neuroscience are highlighting connections between emotion, social functioning, and decision making that have the potential to revolutionize our understanding of the role of affect in education. In particular, the neurobiological evidence suggests that the aspects of cognition that we recruit most heavily in schools, namely…

How do people spell the thousands of words at the tips of their tongues? Are words with "regular" sound-to-letter correspondences (e.g., "blink") spelled using the same neural systems as those with "irregular" correspondences (e.g., "yacht")? By offering novel neuroimaging evidence, we aim to advance contemporary debate about whether people use a…

We describe what may well be the first course devoted explicitly to the topic of Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE). In the course, students examine four central topics (literacy, numeracy, emotion/motivation, and conceptual change) through the perspectives of psychology, neuroscience, genetics, and education. We describe the pedagogical tools we…

In recent years, educators have been looking increasingly to neuroscience to inform their understanding of how children's brain and cognitive development are shaped by their learning experiences. However, while this new interdisciplinary approach presents an unprecedented opportunity to explore and debate the educational implications of…