Prof Andy Tolmie
Bio
Andy Tolmie is Chair of Psychology and Human Development at the UCL Institute of Education, and Deputy Director of the University of London Centre for Educational Neuroscience. He is a developmental psychologist with longstanding interest in the neurocognitive and social factors underpinning the growth of children’s conceptual representations and behavioural skills in real world settings, particularly in the primary school age range. Most of his work has focused on educationally-relevant topics and settings, with a substantial emphasis on primary school science, but also on the acquisition of road-crossing skills among children.
What is Educational Neuroscience?
Educational neuroscience attempts to coordinate evidence from behavioural and neuroimaging studies in order to obtain a more complete understanding of learning processes that can then be used to specify the pedagogical approaches and educational systems that will support these most effectively. The translational nature of this objective poses challenges because of its requirement for triangulation between researchers and educational practitioners. However, educational neuroscience research in literacy, number development and science learning illustrates the potential of the field to explain both typical and atypical learning in a coherent fashion and to identify novel pedagogical strategies that fully address individual variation in capability. In this talk, he will aim to give a flavour of all this work.
Recommended Books and Links
Mareschal, D., Butterworth, B. & Tolmie, A. (Eds.) (2014). Educational Neuroscience. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Thomas, M. S. C., Mareschal, D. & Dumontheil, I. (Eds.) (2020). Educational Neuroscience: Development Across the Life Span. Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group.
http://www.howthebrainworks.science/
