ABSTRACT
Educational neuroscience is an emerging field whose goal is to translate new insights, garnered from the study of neural mechanisms underpinning learning, into practical applications in the classroom in order to improve educational outcomes. The contribution of educational neuroscience is intended to be more modest: an understanding of mechanisms of learning may help improve some learning outcomes. Educational outcomes need to be thought of in terms of the nested constraints that encompass the individual, classroom, school, family, and society. Educational neuroscience remains controversial in some quarters. Some researchers feel that neuroscience data are simply too remote from the classroom to be of educational value, approaches that focus more overtly on behaviour, such as psychology, are appropriate. The direct route can be thought of in terms of ‘brain health’—placing the organ in the optimal condition to maximise the individual’s learning when he or she enters the classroom. This chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
