21st Century Education: Engaging the Next Generation of Students

Joyce A. De Leo, PhD Vice President of Academic Affairs Professor of Biology Emmanuel College

Fueled Fueled by a million man-made wings of fire- the rocket tore a tunnel through the sky- and everybody cheered. Fueled only by a thought from God- the seedling urged its way through the thicknesses of black- and as it pierced the heavy ceiling of the soil- and launched itself up into outer space- no one even clapped. - Marcie Hans (from Teaching with Fire: Poetry

that sustains the courage to teach)

Three Major Objectives: •  To understand how neuroplasticity leads to learning and

memory ▫  How insights about brain function can be harnessed by teachers

for use in their own classrooms to address particular challenges

•  To demonstrate how emotion, cognition and learning are intimately linked

•  To utilize this information to explore innovations in teaching and learning for our students

Note: Due to the rapid growth in technology and our understanding of brain function during learning in the last 10 years, we cannot think in “centuries” but rather in 3-5 year epochs for change

OUTLINE: •  Introduce neuroscience and neuroplasticity in the

context of learning •  Challenges and opportunities for teachers in 2012

and beyond: Need for teacher plasticity •  Use of technology to enhance learning (not for the

use of technology alone) •  Movement away from traditional lecture formats:

Value of customized learning environments •  STEM education has particular teaching needs for

innovation •  Value Proposition for Society: Improve biomedical

research translation by focusing on liberal arts and ethics education

The Brain: Center of Learning and Thinking

•  The Story of Phineas Gage

Neuroscience and Learning Neuroscience & the Classroom: Making Connections      http://www.learner.org/resources/series214.html (8 min)

•  Produced by Science Media Group at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in association with the Mind, Brain, and Education program at the Harvard GSE; and the Brain and Creativity Institute and Rossier SOE at the University of Southern California, 2012.

Basic Neurochemistry and Neurotransmission

Neurotransmitters: •  Chemical substances produced and released by

neurons and glial cells that alter synaptic transmission (central nervous system communication)

Eric Kandel, PhD, 2000 Nobel prize in physiology: He showed that learning and memory changes the nature, strength and number of neuronal synaptic connections. And using Aplysia (the sea snail) Kandel demonstrated that experience alters synapses by changing gene expression.

•  Exact neurochemical cognitive circuitry of the painting’s viewer: “At a base level, the aesthetics of the images’ luminous gold surface, the soft rendering of the body, and the overall harmonious combination of colors could activate the pleasure circuits, triggering the release of dopamine.”

•  Her smooth skin can trigger the release of endorphins, oxytocin and vasopressin.

•  The excitement of seeing a Klimt may cause release of norepinephrine resulting in increased heart rate and blood pressure.

•  The repetitive patterning may stimulate the release of serotonin producing relaxation.

•  As the viewer takes in the image, and its multifaceted emotional content, the release of acetylcholine to the hippocampus contributes to storing of the image in the viewer’s memory. (Think about the new MassArt dormitory building).

Emotion, Cognition and Learning are intimately linked Examples: •  Motivation: grades, incentives •  Fear: grades, punishments •  Desire: Love the subject, personal connection to

information, deep learning elicits strong emotions •  Frustration, distraction: inhibits learning •  Once you engage, there is an eagerness to learn, to be

right, to master. Stages of competency. •  How to implement this connection: Integration of

material (multidisciplinary courses, Information Technology example at Emmanuel), less rote memorization, experiential learning (EC Biology course).

Neuroscience and plasticity in the context of learning: Role of Hippocampus

New Data J. Neuroscience, 2012: Confirmation of true physical changes following learning (water maze test for rats) Potential for experience-dependent plasticity of adult-born neurons extends well into maturity

Influence of spatial learning on the dendritic arbor complexity of neo-neurons generated 2 months (top) or 4 months (bottom) before learning. a, b, Experimental designs. c, d,

Representative examples of 2-month-old (c) and 4-month-old (d) adult-born neurons...

Lemaire V et al. J. Neurosci. 2012;32:3101-3108

©2012 by Society for Neuroscience

Key Findings

•  Adult neurogenesis (new neurons) occurs in the hippocampus, which is a key structure in learning and memory.

•  New results show that mature adult-born neurons are still plastic when they are functionally integrated into the hippocampus.

•  This suggests a new perspective with regard to the role of neo-neurons by highlighting that even mature ones can provide an additional source of plasticity to the brain to process memory information.

OUTLINE: •  Introduce neuroscience and neuroplasticity in the

context of learning •  Challenges and opportunities for teachers in 2012

and beyond: Need for plasticity by the teacher •  Use of technology to enhance learning (not for the

use of technology alone) •  Movement away from traditional lecture formats:

Value of customized learning environments •  STEM education has particular teaching needs for

innovation •  Value Proposition: Improve biomedical research

translation by focusing on liberal arts and ethics education

Plasticity of Teachers: Tipping point of education?

•  Learning management systems (LMS) ▫  Students use of current technology beyond the

classroom • Hybrid learning environments • Use of technology to enhance learning (not for

the use of technology alone) ▫  Can we use technology for personalization that

enhances the performance of a human tutor? ▫  Two examples: Flipped classrooms, Augmented

Reality (AR)

New age in technology

• Movement away from traditional classroom/ lecture formats: Value of customized learning environments ▫  “Flipping” the classroom �  Inversion of expectations in the traditional

classroom, it takes many forms including interactive engagement, just-in-time teaching- students respond to web-based questions before class and the teacher uses the feedback to inform her teaching and peer instruction.

�  Do “homework” in class to prevent frustration and learn from peers, teach each other.

Flipped Classrooms •  Scaffold learning outside the classroom. Lectures and

other non-interactive aspects of the class are pushed outside the classroom while more active, creative project work and peer instruction are pulled in.

•  Flipped classroom instruction is often used in hybrid models but can be used in traditional classes. Lectures can be recorded on video and delivered by the LMS with readings and additional activities.

The Traditional Classroom and Lecture Format

The New Classroom

University of Minnesota: active learning classrooms

•  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfT_hoiuY8w (3:38)

University of Minnesota: active learning classrooms

Use of Augmented Reality for teaching innovation: Can’t beat them, join them

•  How to use mobile devices for learning: “mobile learning” •  Many of the applications thus far have been in K-12

•  What is AR?

•  Games combine real-world experiences with virtual

information using QR codes (quick response two-dimensional code) with GPS.

•  Complex learning: Students can become game designers: programmers, narrative writers and media collectors.

Handheld Augmented Reality Project: HARP

•  Researchers at Harvard, Univ. Wisconsin and MIT have developed an "augmented reality" game designed to teach math and science literacy skills to middle school students. The game is played on a handheld computer and uses GPS technology to correlate the students' real world location to their virtual location in the game's digital world.

•  As the students move around a physical location, such as their school playground or sports fields, a map on their handheld displays digital objects and virtual people who exist in an augmented reality world superimposed on real space. 

•  This capability parallels the new means of information gathering, communication, and expression made possible by emerging interactive media (such as Web-enabled, GPS equipped cell phones with text messaging, video, and camera features).

Augmented Reality: coming to a school near you

Middle school students walk the Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison campus using mobile phones to view footage of Vietnam war protests that occurred in the same campus locations. From Mind/Shift, Sarah Jackson

High School teacher in Wisconsin:

•  Designed experiences provide an entry point and invites users to visit places they may not otherwise go.

•  Engage and motivate learners to enhance learning: Emotion of learning

“Mobile is, in that way, scaffolding,” Matthews says. “The narrative helps students understand why they should care about collecting these data points. And hopefully that encourages them to do other stuff, to get a microscope and collect more data on their own.”

OUTLINE: •  Introduce neuroscience and neuroplasticity in the

context of learning •  Challenges and opportunities for teachers in 2012

and beyond: Need for plasticity by the teacher •  Use of technology to enhance learning (not for the

use of technology alone) •  Movement away from traditional lecture formats:

Value of customized learning environments •  STEM education has particular teaching needs for

innovation •  Value Proposition: Improve biomedical research

translation by focusing on liberal arts and ethics education

STEM: Science, technology, engineering and math •  STEM education has particular teaching needs

for innovation ▫  One million STEM teachers needed in next 10

years ▫  Less than 40% of STEM majors persist to college

graduation. ▫  Retaining 10% would generate ¾ of the need ▫  STEM graduates are wanted by non-STEM

employers for problem solving skills

Why: • High performing students cite uninspired intro

courses: Lack of integration of the scientific process, lack of appreciation for discovery and innovation, textbooks simplify and underwhelm

•  Low performing students cite math difficulty and little support

• Women and underrepresented minorities cite unwelcoming atmosphere and no role models

• What can we do differently?

Science Buddies

Science Ambassadors

• Science Majors, • Visit classrooms to engage middle school students in inquiry science

 

Emmanuel’s  teacher  educa0on  students  and  science  majors  involve  

K-­‐8  students  in  a  variety  of  contexts,  in  scien0fic  inquiry  and  engineering  design  

challenges  

Saturday Morning Science

Emmanuel College’s Center for Science Education

The Framework for K-12 Science Education (2012) presents a vision for K-12 science education in which students over multiple years of school, “actively engage in scientific and engineering practices and apply crosscutting concepts to deepen their understanding of the core ideas in these fields.” Rationale: It’s what scientists do! AND we know from cognitive neuroscience that inquiry is how children learn!

Research Focus

Examines pedagogy to prepare pre-service teachers in elementary education for the challenge of meeting the standards described in the new ramework for K-12 Science Education.

The Research Method

Involve pre-service teachers in a) conducting authentic scientific inquiry into scientific phenomena they will teach and b) engage students in proposing solutions to design challenges.

A New Vision for K-12 Science Education

Value Proposition: • How change in science education can improve

society and human health ▫  Recognizing the billions of dollars spent on

biomedical research, there is a dismal translation of scientific discovery to clinical translation to improve the health and well-being of people is the U.S. and the world

•  Focus in grade school and college on ethical and critical decision-making. (career choices emerge as early as grades 5-6)

• Move to content integration, innovation and problem-based learning to attract, engage and retain students (Fiona McDonnell, EC).

• One of the most important goals of a liberal arts education today is to give students the personal experience of discovery.

A&S Dean, Michael Smith, Harvard College

Conclusions

•  Take Home points: ▫  Recognition of the role of neuroscience in

learning and memory ▫  Intimate link between emotion, cognition and

learning, how to use this to improve teaching and learning ▫  Importance of understanding our millennial (aka

generation AO –always on) students in 2012

Value of Human Contact in the Educational Process

•  The human species requires communication and personal touch

•  Increased research demonstrates value of F2F communities and communication

•  Job dissatisfaction with “at home” work environments

•  Recognizing communication style differences (text, e-mail, phone, in person) and students know this too.

Making Contact I believe The greatest gift I can conceive of having from anyone is to be seen by them, heard by them, to be understood and touched by them. The greatest gift I can give is to see, hear, understand and to touch another person. When this is done I feel contact has been made.

- Virginia Satir

Acknowledgements

Karen Storin Linitz, PhD, JD: Director of Academic Technology and Innovation, Emmanuel College Fiona McDonnell, PhD: Chair and Associate Professor of Education, Emmanuel College Walesk Dube, Al Oswald, IT Support, Emmanuel College Courage to Teach by Parker Palmer, Wiley. 1998, 2010. Teaching with Fire: Poetry that sustains the courage to teach, S.M. Intrator and M. Scribner, Wiley, 2003.   

Questions/Comments?

References Peer instruction ▫  Website http://www.physics.umd.edu/perg/role/PIProbs/ ▫  Video   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBYrKPoVFwg

VoiceThread   Overview: http://voicethread.com/about/features/ Description of one professor’s use of VoiceThread as an example of flipped classroom and peer instruction in action Here is an example of an art walk created by three of Heidi Upton's Discover New York students with VoiceThread. https://voicethread.com/share/2968523/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FA_hCmfsp8

The Flipped Classroom Infographic:        http://www.knewton.com/flipped-classroom/ Videos:               http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FA_hCmfsp8 Inside Active Learning Classrooms http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfT_hoiuY8w Augmented Reality Information and examples: http://isites.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=harp http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2012/04/augmented-reality-coming-soon-to-a-school-near-you/ http://www.magicvisionlab.com/   Videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-A1l4Jn6EY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBG0_jfXt7o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTU73_i8AOg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkbwiQrdGMo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQIH4dBf0tk&feature=plcp http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3meAlle8kZs&feature=plcp