Inhibitory control and counterintuitive science and maths reasoning in adolescence

Existing concepts can be a major barrier to learning new counterintuitive concepts that contradict pre-existing experience-based beliefs or misleading perceptual cues. When reasoning about counterintuitive concepts, inhibitory control is thought to enable the suppression of incorrect concepts. This study investigated the association between inhibitory control and counterintuitive science and maths reasoning in adolescents (N = 90, 11–15 years). Both response and semantic inhibition were associated with counterintuitive science and maths reasoning, when controlling for age, general cognitive ability, and performance in control science and maths trials. Better response inhibition was associated with longer reaction times in counterintuitive trials, while better semantic inhibition was associated with higher accuracy in counterintuitive trials. This novel finding suggests that different aspects of inhibitory control may offer unique contributions to counterintuitive reasoning during adolescence and provides further support for the hypothesis that inhibitory control plays a role in science and maths reasoning

Neural and cognitive underpinnings of counterintuitive science and maths reasoning in adolescence

Reasoning about counterintuitive concepts in science and maths is thought to require suppressing naïve theories, prior knowledge or misleading perceptual cues through inhibitory control. Neuroimaging research has shown recruitment of prefrontal cortex regions during counterintuitive reasoning, which has been interpreted as evidence of inhibitory control processes. However, the results are inconsistent across studies and have not been directly compared to behaviour or brain activity during inhibitory control tasks. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging study, 34 adolescents (aged 11-15 years) answered science and maths problems and completed response inhibition tasks (simple and complex go/no-go) and an interference control task (numerical Stroop). Increased blood-oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal was observed in parietal (Brodmann area (BA) 40) and prefrontal (BA 8, 45/47) cortex regions in counterintuitive problems compared to control problems, where no counterintuitive reasoning was required, and in two parietal clusters when comparing correct counterintuitive reasoning to giving the incorrect intuitive response. There was partial overlap between increases in BOLD signal in the complex response inhibition and interference control tasks and the science and maths contrasts. However, multivariate analyses suggested overlapping neural substrates in the parietal cortex only, in regions typically associated with working memory and visuospatial attentional demands rather than specific to inhibitory control. These results highlight the importance of using localiser tasks and a range of analytic approach to investigate to what extent common neural networks underlie performance of different cognitive tasks and suggests visuospatial attentional skills may support counterintuitive reasoning in science and maths

Scientific collaboration with educators: practical insights from an in‐class noise‐reduction intervention

Moving the field of Mind, Brain, and Education forward requires researchers and educators to reframe the boundaries of their own discipline in order to create knowledge that is both scientifically based, and of practical relevance for education. We believe that this could be done by co‐constructing research projects from the start. We present a case study of a noise‐reduction intervention in elementary classrooms, in which teachers and researchers worked together from the onset of study design. We examine the processes behind: (1) selecting research questions and measures, (2) planning interventions, (3) receiving ethical approval and funding, (4) recruiting schools, and (5) collecting data. At each step, our study provides suggestions for future collaborative efforts, keeping in mind broader theoretical and methodological implications. We believe that our concrete examples and suggestions will be useful for beginning and confirmed researchers, as well as teachers aiming to know more about research projects

Using eye-tracking and click-stream data to design adaptive training of children's inhibitory control in a maths and science game

Computerised educational neuroscience interventions that train within-domain inhibitory control (IC) can improve children's coun- terintuitive reasoning. However, the HCI or adaptive design of such en- vironments often receive less attention. Eye-tracking and click data were used to compare four versions of an IC-training game in terms of their HCI design and potential for supporting adaptive feedback. Our results provide insights for developing an adaptive system to scaffold pupils' transition towards using IC in un-cued, self-regulated scenarios

The impact of a modified initial teacher education on challenging trainees’ understanding of neuromyths

Initial Teacher Education (ITE) offers an underutilised opportunity for bridging the gap between neuroscience research and educational practice. This article reports on innovations embedded within an ITE programme to support trainee teachers to recognise and challenge the persistence of neuromyths. Education researchers, neuroscientists and psychologists collaboratively applied design-based research to create, improve and reflect on original neuroeducational teaching/learning resources for university-based primary (elementary) ITE trainees. Encouragingly, pre and post surveys showed reductions in trainees’ beliefs in neuromyths and a shift to responses showing uncertainty that suggested their beliefs became unsettled. The most persistent neuromyths were those regarding fish oils, left brain/right brain and learning styles/VAK. Trainees retained their initial interest in knowledge about the brain and education, gained confidence and became more critical about applying the Learning Sciences in educational contexts

Educational neuroscience: progress and prospects

Educational neuroscience is an interdisciplinary research field that seeks to translate research findings on neural mechanisms of learning to educational practice and policy, and to understand the effects of education on the brain. Neuroscience and education can interact directly, by virtue of considering the brain as a biological organ that needs to be in the optimal condition to learn (‘brain health’); or indirectly, as neuroscience shapes psychological theory and psychology influences education. In this article, we trace the origins of educational neuroscience, its main areas of research activity, and the principal challenges it faces as a translational field. We consider how a pure psychology approach that ignores neuroscience is at risk of being misleading for educators. We address the major criticisms of the field, respectively comprising a priori arguments against the relevance of neuroscience to education, reservations with the current practical operation of the field, and doubts about the viability of neuroscience methods for diagnosing disorders or predicting individual differences. We consider future prospects of the field and ethical issues it raises. Finally, we discuss the challenge of responding to the (welcome) desire of education policymakers to include neuroscience evidence in their policymaking, while ensuring recommendations do not exceed the limitations of current basic science

Proceedings of the 3rd Biennial Conference of the Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) 2015: advancing efficient methodologies through community partnerships and team science

It is well documented that the majority of adults, children and families in need of evidence-based behavioral health interventionsi do not receive them [1, 2] and that few robust empirically supported methods for implementing evidence-based practices (EBPs) exist. The Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) represents a burgeoning effort to advance the innovation and rigor of implementation research and is uniquely focused on bringing together researchers and stakeholders committed to evaluating the implementation of complex evidence-based behavioral health interventions. Through its diverse activities and membership, SIRC aims to foster the promise of implementation research to better serve the behavioral health needs of the population by identifying rigorous, relevant, and efficient strategies that successfully transfer scientific evidence to clinical knowledge for use in real world settings [3]. SIRC began as a National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded conference series in 2010 (previously titled the “Seattle Implementation Research Conference”; $150,000 USD for 3 conferences in 2011, 2013, and 2015) with the recognition that there were multiple researchers and stakeholdersi working in parallel on innovative implementation science projects in behavioral health, but that formal channels for communicating and collaborating with one another were relatively unavailable. There was a significant need for a forum within which implementation researchers and stakeholders could learn from one another, refine approaches to science and practice, and develop an implementation research agenda using common measures, methods, and research principles to improve both the frequency and quality with which behavioral health treatment implementation is evaluated. SIRC’s membership growth is a testament to this identified need with more than 1000 members from 2011 to the present.ii SIRC’s primary objectives are to: (1) foster communication and collaboration across diverse groups, including implementation researchers, intermediariesi, as well as community stakeholders (SIRC uses the term “EBP champions” for these groups) – and to do so across multiple career levels (e.g., students, early career faculty, established investigators); and (2) enhance and disseminate rigorous measures and methodologies for implementing EBPs and evaluating EBP implementation efforts. These objectives are well aligned with Glasgow and colleagues’ [4] five core tenets deemed critical for advancing implementation science: collaboration, efficiency and speed, rigor and relevance, improved capacity, and cumulative knowledge. SIRC advances these objectives and tenets through in-person conferences, which bring together multidisciplinary implementation researchers and those implementing evidence-based behavioral health interventions in the community to share their work and create professional connections and collaborations

Language phenotypes in children with sex chromosome trisomies

Background Sex chromosome trisomies (47,XXX, 47,XXY and 47,XYY) are known to be a risk factor for language disorder, but typical outcomes are hard to estimate, because many cases are identified only when problems are found. Methods We recruited children aged 5-16 years with all three types of trisomy, and divided them into a High Bias group, identified in the course of investigations for neurodevelopmental problems, and a Low Bias group, identified via prenatal screening or other medical investigations. Children from a twin sample were used to compare the pattern and severity of language problems: they were subdivided according to parental concerns about language/history of speech-language therapy into a No Concerns group (N = 132) and a Language Concerns group (N = 41). Children were individually assessed on a psychometric battery, and a standardized parent checklist. After excluding children with intellectual disability, autism or hearing problems, psychometric data were available for 31 XXX, 20 XXY and 19 XYY Low Bias cases and 13 XXX, 25 XXY and 32 XYY High Bias cases. Results Variation within each trisomy group was substantial: within the Low Bias group, overall language scores were depressed relative to normative data, but around one-third had no evidence of problems. There was no effect of trisomy type, and the test profile was similar to the Language Concerns comparison group. The rate of problems was much greater in the High Bias children with trisomies. Conclusions When advising parents after discovery of a trisomy, it is important to emphasise that, though there is an increased risk of language problems, there is a very wide range of outcomes. Severe language problems are more common in those identified via genetic testing for neurodevelopmental problems but these are not typical of children identified on prenatal screening.</p

Language phenotypes in children with sex chromosome trisomies

Background Sex chromosome trisomies (47,XXX, 47,XXY and 47,XYY) are known to be a risk factor for language disorder, but typical outcomes are hard to estimate, because many cases are identified only when problems are found. Methods We recruited children aged 5-16 years with all three types of trisomy, and divided them into a High Bias group, identified in the course of investigations for neurodevelopmental problems, and a Low Bias group, identified via prenatal screening or other medical investigations. Children from a twin sample were used to compare the pattern and severity of language problems: they were subdivided according to parental concerns about language/history of speech-language therapy into a No Concerns group (N = 132) and a Language Concerns group (N = 41). Children were individually assessed on a psychometric battery, and a standardized parent checklist. After excluding children with intellectual disability, autism or hearing problems, psychometric data were available for 31 XXX, 20 XXY and 19 XYY Low Bias cases and 13 XXX, 25 XXY and 32 XYY High Bias cases. Results Variation within each trisomy group was substantial: within the Low Bias group, overall language scores were depressed relative to normative data, but around one-third had no evidence of problems. There was no effect of trisomy type, and the test profile was similar to the Language Concerns comparison group. The rate of problems was much greater in the High Bias children with trisomies. Conclusions When advising parents after discovery of a trisomy, it is important to emphasise that, though there is an increased risk of language problems, there is a very wide range of outcomes. Severe language problems are more common in those identified via genetic testing for neurodevelopmental problems but these are not typical of children identified on prenatal screening.</p