Module B: Human Development

Brain DevelopmentEducation Foundations, 2012, Semester 1

Grad. Dip. in Education

Overview• Brain development: neuroscience and education

• The brain’s physical structure• Brain development• Brain development and environment• Neuroscience and education• Limitations of neuroscience

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Brain Development: Neuroscience and Education

• The brain’s physical structures

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The neuron receives messages through its dendrites and passes messages along its axons and across the synapse to other cells (Krause, et al., 2010)

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Brain development

• Generation of new cells

• Synaptogenesis

• myelination

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Brain development and environment

• ‘Pruning’ of synaptic networks

• Language and thinking

• Mother-infant interaction

Applications of neuroscience in education

• Working memory

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Applications of neuroscience in education, cont’d

• Emotion and thinking

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Applications of neuroscience in education, cont’d

• Connections in thinking: multiple representations, perspectives and prior knowledge

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Applications of neuroscience in education, cont’d

• Attention and mental visualisation

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Limitations of neuroscience

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• Study of human potentials vs. Study of developmental status quo