program

This event is SOLD OUT.

Please call 857-444-1500 x1 to be added to the waiting list.

Engage in intensive training to change mindsets to create a more positive school climate and better motivated students.

Cost: $1,695

Join Us This Summer in Boston

From July 16-20, Learning & the Brain is offering a Summer Institute in the heart of Boston.

How can teachers best combine our experience and wisdom with insights from neuroscience and psychology? This lively and interactive workshop explores current brain research into five essential topics: working memory, attention, emotion, motivation, and long-term memory. By approaching classroom work from each of these perspectives, we will gain rich experience in translating abstract science into specific and useful classroom strategies. Topics will range from the neural basis of long-term memory formation to practical strategies for reducing the distractions of classroom technology. To ensure that our work remains hands-on and personal, the workshop is limited to 40 participants.

The Summer Institute Is for:

  • PreK-12 Teachers and Academic Administrators
  • School Psychologists, Learning Specialists, and Counselors
  • Academic Support Staff

You Will Learn to:

  • Recognize the crucial role of working memory in all classroom learning 
  • Develop insights and strategies to anticipate, identify, and mitigate working memory overload
  • Use current research on attention to enhance student focus and boost classroom energy
  • Practice positive mindset strategies to promote learning goals and gritty resilience
  • Enhance long-term memory formation —that is, learning—by delving into research on encoding, consolidation, and retrieval
  • Enrich classroom practice by converting stresses to challenges and fostering a positive emotional climate
  • Understand psychology and neuroscience research articles, with a particular focus on developing effective and informed skepticism

 

 

About the Institute

This Learning & the Brain Summer Institute will be led by Andrew Watson and assisted by Scott MacClintic. The program translates well-established neuroscience and psychology findings into specific classroom strategies. We will especially emphasize the practical teaching application of brain research, with a consistent focus on healthy skepticism.  The program offers participants frequent opportunities to discuss their own teaching practices, and to apply research findings to their lesson-plans, syllabi, assessments, and classroom practices. Active participation is expected throughout this Institute through group discussion. Participants will be expected to bring in material and questions from their own experiences to share with the group.

The sessions will take place on the campus of Boston University where participants will also be housed.
Watson

About Andrew Watson

Andrew Watson, EdM, MA, began his classroom life as a high-school English teacher in 1988, and has been working in or near schools ever since. In 2011, he earned his MEd from the Mind, Brain and Education program at Harvard Graduate School of Education. As President of “Translate the Brain,” Andrew Watson now works with teachers, students, administrators and parents to make learning easier and teaching more effective. He has presented at schools and workshops across the country and serves as an adviser to several organizations, including “The People’s Science” and “The Brain Education Project.” Andrew is the Editor of the Learning & the Brain Blog and author of  Learning Begins: The Science of Working Memory and Attention for the Classroom Teacher (2017).

 

About Scott MacClintic

Scott MacClintic has been a classroom teacher for the past 32 years, teaching biology, chemistry, genetics, microbiology and molecular biology at the high school level. For the past 7 years, in addition to teaching, Scott has served as the Director of the Henry R. Kravis ’63 Center for Excellence in Teaching at The Loomis Chaffee School. He serves as the chair of the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools Commission on Professional Development and has presented on the neuroscience of learning at schools and conferences throughout New England. Scott is the lead teacher of the cognitive science curriculum in the UPENN GSE Boarding School Teaching Residency program.

Professional Development Credit:

This program provides a total of up to 20 hours toward professional development credit for various professionals. For details on credit offered, visit our CE credit page or call our office at 781-449-4010 ext. 104. Note: credits are not provided by Boston University.

Accommodations and Meals:

Interaction between faculty and participants outside the classroom is an integral part of the Institute. To foster this total immersion learning environment, participants are housed in shared apartments with their own bedrooms in a dormitory on the campus of Boston University in Boston, MA. The apartments contain four bedrooms and two bathrooms and are located at 10 Buick Street. The Institute provides four nights lodging with an arrival date of July 16 and a departure date of July 20. Boston University is located in the city of Boston, close to Kenmore Square and Fenway Park and along the "T" with easy access to all the sites of Boston. The accommodations are ADA compliant. If you are interested in making your own accommodations or would like to plan an early arrival, please call us at 781-449-4010 x 101. Please check the online schedule for information on the meals provided.