How Leveraging Neuroscience is Great. News for Inline Teachers. - Think about our changing role of educators - Consider our new profile - Mind, Brain, Health and Education - Technology - Old tools, new uses

1. Never a Better Time to Be an Educator!
How Leveraging Neuroscience is Great
News for Online Teachers
Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, Ph.D.
www.thelearningsciences.com
www.traceytokuhama.com
tracey.tokuhama@gmail.com

2. Background
• Professor, Harvard University Extension School: Psych 1609 “The
Neuroscience of Learning: Introduction to Mind, Brain, Health and Education
science”
• OECD: Member of the expert panel on Teachers’ New Pedagogical
Knowledge based on contributions from Technology and Neuroscience
• Latin American Social Science Research Faculty, Ecuador: Educational
Researcher and Professor
• Interdisciplinary researcher in neuroscience, cognitive psychology and
education (cultural anthropology and linguistics).
• Associate Editor of the Nature Partner Journal Science of Learning
• Boston University: BA, BS, magna cum laude; Harvard University:
Master’s in International Educational Development; Capella University: Ph.D.
In Professional Studies in Education (Mind, Brain and Education Science)
• Former Director of the Teaching and Learning Institute at the Universidad
San Francisco de Quito Ecuador
• Former Dean of Education at the Universidad de las Américas, Quito,
Ecuador
• Teacher at all levels of education (K-University, continuing education) with
more than 29 years of experience in 33 countries.
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3. An Invitation:
www.thelearningsciences.com
tracey.tokuhama@gmail.com

4. 3-2-1
• 3 things that are new (unknown before)
• 2 two things so interesting you will continue to research them or share with
someone else
• 1 thing you will change about your practice based on the information shared
today
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 4

5. There is no cognition without emotion
• Emotions and feeing are not the
same
• Decisions are influenced by
emotions
• You make decisions faster based
on fear than other emotional
states (shorter neural pathways)
• You are not alone
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 5

6. Agenda
1. Think about our changing role of educators
2. Consider our new profile
3. Mind, Brain, Health and Education
4. Technology
• Old tools new uses
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 6

7. • Guerrero (Ed.), February 2017
• Available on:
http://www.iep.edu.gr/images/IEP/E
PISTIMONIKI_YPIRESIA/Epist_Grafeia
/EU_Policy/2017/2017-05-11_OECD-
Pedagogical-Knowledge.pdf
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 7
• Part I: What is TPK
• Part II: How do we measure
TPK?
• Part III: The Future, 21st
Century Demands on
Teacher Knowledge
• Chapter 9: Ansari, König,
Leaske, Tokuhama-Espinosa
“Developmental cognitive
neuroscience: Implications
for teachers’ pedagogical
knowledge”
OECD Expert Panel

8. Teachers’ New Knowledge
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 8
Content Knowledge

9. Teachers’ New Knowledge
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 9
Content Knowledge
Pedagogical Knowledge
e.g. knowledge
of how to
teach Math

10. Teachers’ New Knowledge
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 10
Content Knowledge
Pedagogical Knowledge
Technology

11. Teachers’ New Knowledge
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 11
Content Knowledge
Pedagogical Knowledge
Technology
Mind, Brain, and Education: How
Do Humans Learn?

12. Teachers’ New Knowledge
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 12
Content Knowledge
Pedagogical Knowledge
Technology
Mind, Brain, and Education
Context and Culture
Educator as a
Learning
Scientist
The Science in the Art of
Teaching

13. • False
information
about the brain
and learning
Attitudes and
Predujices
(Neuromyths)
• Universal
aspects of
learning true for
all humans
Principles • Individual aspects
of learning; true for
all but lots of
human variation
Tenets
•Social influences
on pattern and
category
recognition
•Affective aspects of
learning
Culture
• What should
happen in the
classroom
Instructional
Guidelines
The “new first steps” in teacher professional
development
13
Tokuhama-Espinosa 2017
1
2
3
4
5
For example: Some people are “right-brained”
and others are ”left-brained”
For example: “All new learning passes through the
filter of prior experience”
For example: “Sleeping and dreaming
are vital for learning”
For example: Numeric symbol
representation
Example: “50 Practical Applications of Mind,
Brain, and Education science”

14. Six Principles of Mind, Brain, and Education
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 14
#1 Uniqueness
#2 Different Potentials
#3 Prior Experience
#4 Constant Changes
#5 Plasticity
#6 Memory and Attention Systems

15. Evidence for how learning occurs: 21 Tenets
(true for all but with wide range of human variation)
1. Motivation
2. Emotions and cognition are mutually influential.
3. Stress
4. Anxiety
5. Depression
6. Learning is influenced by both challenge and threat as
perceived by the learner
7. Reactions to facial expressions are highly individualized
8. The brain interprets tones of voices unconsciously and
almost immediately
9. Humans are social beings who learn from and with
each other.
10. Attention
11. Most learning does not necessarily occur linearly
12. Learning involves conscious and unconscious
processes
13. Learning is developmental
14. Learning engages the entire physiology
15. Sleep and dreaming
16. Nutrition
17. Physical activity
18. Use it or lose it
19. Feedback
20. Individually relevant and meaningful contexts
21. Novelty and patterns
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16. Teachers’ New Knowledge
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 16
Content Knowledge
Pedagogical Knowledge
Technology
Mind, Brain, and Education
Context and Culture
Educator as a
Learning
Scientist
The Science in the Art of
Teaching

17. Small group discussion
• What are some tools you know exist to teach online?
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 17
https://www.kindpng.com/imgv/iooTRwh_transparent-conscience-clipart-
png-person-thinking-cartoon-transparent/
https://www.shutterstock.com/es/search/people+sharing+ideas+on+a+board?im
age_type=illustration

18. Tools Teaching Neuroscience (why)
1. Large group sessions
2. Breakout rooms
3. Chat
4. Quizzes
5. Discussion Boards
6. Reflection papers (3-2-1)
7. E-portfolios
• Disinhibition Effect
• Social contagion
• Faces
• Names
• Personalization; Authentic learning
• Back channel clarifications: Attention;
Attendance
• Low stakes-testing to enhance memory
• Create a learning community (1+1=3)
• Downtime to take stock of new learning
• Document learning progress
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 18

19. Let us know if we can help…
March 10, 2020
Hello!
We realize some of you may be on your way to migrating classes into Canvas and wanted to share some ideas.
This video is a broad overview of Canvas and how we have used in the past in the Harvard course “Neuroscience of Learning:
An Introduction to Mind, Brain, Health and Education”. The objective of the video is to get you jazzed about the many
possibilities that exist!
Link: https://youtu.be/0ccZKDWywAY
Second, this is a class tour we give to students so they feel comfortable in Canvas. This tells students where they find
assignments, communicate with us and upload work. The first 50 seconds is a welcome to Harvard, but starting 0:51, it is all
about how Canvas works.
We hope this is helpful. Please let us know if we can support you in setting up classes in Canvas, filming in ScreenFlow, and/or
using Zoom as teleconferencing tool.
Warm regards,
Tracey
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 19

20. Online is…
• …a modality with a wonderful potential to save time (i.e., no more
commuting to class), reach more students (i.e., classes are no longer
limited to the physically present but can be comprised of global school
houses and the ability to include those traditionally excluded from
regular classrooms), differentiate (i.e., offer multiple levels of entry
points to topics with a wider variety of resources), and personalize
learning. This is all contingent, however, on ensuring both teachers
and students are ready for the challenge and well-equipped with
evidence-based premises before logging on.
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 20

21. Big ideas
• No cognition without emotion
• Social Contagion
• 1+1=3
• The role (and unknown power) of the teacher
• Same tools online can be leveraged for different purposes
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 21

22. 3-2-1
• 3 things that are new (unknown before)
• 2 two things so interesting you will continue to research them or share with
someone else
• 1 thing you will change about your practice based on the information shared
today
29 January 2021 Tokuhama-Espinosa 22

23. For more information:
Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa, Ph.D.
www.thelearningsciences.com
tracey.tokuhama@gmail.com