Monthly Archives: November 2013

At the upcoming Learning & the Brain® educational conference in Boston, MA, the 2013 Transforming Education Through Neuroscience Award will be presented to Dr. David B. Daniel from James Madison University for his contributions to the field of Mind, Brain and Education.

November 12, 2013 – A pioneering educator and researcher who studies classroom pedagogy, cognitive development and the translation of Mind, Brain and Education to teaching practice will be awarded the sixth annual prize for “Transforming Education through Neuroscience.” The award was established by the Learning & the Brain Foundation and The International Mind, Brain and Education Society (IMBES) to honor an individual who represents excellence in bridging neuroscience and education. The $5,000 award will be used to “support translational efforts bridging scientific findings and classroom practice.”

David B. Daniel, PhD, a James Madison University professor, is being honored for his tireless and creative efforts to develop the infrastructure of the field of Mind, Brain and Education, which tries to focus research in neuroscience, cognitive science and other fields onto classrooms and learning. Along with his efforts to create better teaching and learning in K-12 schools and at the university level, Dr. Daniel has been facilitating the building of sound organizational structures and effective communication processes in the field of Mind, Brain and Education for many years. He is a founding IMBES board member and former executive director of the Society. He has also been the managing editor of Mind, Brain and Education, the first journal focusing on the intersection between education, neuroscience, cognitive science and other fields, since it began. The journal was recognized in 2008 as the “Best New Journal in the Humanities and Social Sciences” by the Association of American Publishers Academic Division.

According to Kurt Fischer, Charles Warland Bigelow Professor and director of the Harvard Mind, Brain and Education Program, “David Daniel has been the most important force behind the creation of the journal Mind, Brain, and Education and its success in connecting the work of teachers and researchers around the world. Quietly behind the scenes he has made things happen productively and thoughtfully. We appreciate his broad and deep contributions to the International Mind, Brain, and Education Society, the journal, and so many activities that are bringing together researchers and practitioners everywhere.”

Dr. Daniel has been a strong advocate for the careful translation of appropriate scientific findings to practice, and has wisely urged caution for doing so prematurely. “In a field where it’s easy to get carried away by theory, David Daniel stands out as a voice for keeping the eye of the scientist on the classroom–as well as encouraging teachers to keep an eye on the laboratory. He is the most sensible scientist I know in this regard,” wrote Daniel Willingham, professor of psychology at the University of Virginia.

Especially important is his framing of an ecological approach to pedagogical research, which works to specify how controlled cognitive laboratory environments alter and simplify learning situations, often rendering the findings difficult or impossible to realistically implement in real-world contexts. Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, assistant professor at the University of Southern California stated that, “Dr. Daniel exemplifies the rare scholar who recognizes the complexity of the dynamic interaction between teaching and learning, and understands how to responsibly translate scientific findings into educational initiatives.”

While his high quality teaching brings him the most accolades, Dr. Daniel provides continual, but often low-profile, mentoring and advising of teachers and young interdisciplinary scholars.  He helps them make optimal contributions to the field and simultaneously furthers their own thinking and career goals. You will find Dr. Daniel’s name in the acknowledgements of many articles and books in the field. He has also played a critical role in facilitating high-quality dialogue between researchers and educational practitioners in a variety of settings. As with his efforts to develop the field, Dr. Daniel generally works quietly behind the scenes, looking for strategic, genuine and sound ways to move the field forward by supporting others in meaningfully connecting their research with practice.

Daniel Ansari, a neuroscientist and associate professor at the University of Western Ontario, wrote, “Dr. Daniel is one of the few people who really sits in the middle between science and practice and is committed to establishing ways of crossing between the two. This is a rare and difficult balancing act, but essential for the field to grow.”

The prize will be presented to Dr. Daniel by Professor Fischer at the upcoming Learning & the Brain^® educational conference in Boston, MA on Saturday, November, 16, held at the Westin Copley Hotel.  The Learning & the Brain Foundation and the International Mind Brain and Education Society wish Dr. Daniel our heartiest congratulations.

MEDIA ADVISORY     November 1, 2013

Contact: Kristin Dunay (781) 449-4010 x102 [email protected]

ENGAGING 21^ST CENTURY MINDS: USING TECHNOLOGY, NATURE, COGNITION & COLLABORATION FOR DEEPER LEARNING

WHAT:	Neuroscience and education researchers will present findings that show active, outdoor and online self-directed activities engage the brain in deeper, faster learning than sitting passively in class.  These findings support new teaching methods using online, iPad and outdoor learning projects and collaborations and provide ideas for meeting 21st Century and Common Core requirements for deeper learning. A national group of neuroscientists, psychologists and educators will be presenting this new research before 1,300 educators at this month’s Learning & the Brain® Conference in Boston, MA, to show how cognitive science, outdoor and online (or blended) technology are changing teaching, increasing student engagement and providing deeper learning experiences.During the conference, David B. Daniel, PhD, Professor in the Department of Psychology at James Madison University, will be presented with the 2013 “Transforming Education Through Neuroscience” Award. The $5,000 award was established by the Learning & the Brain Foundation and the International Mind, Brain and Education Society (IMBES) to honor an individual who represents excellence in bridging neuroscience and education.Dr. Daniel will also address the conference on the Sunday morning with the talk “Neat, But How Do We Use It: Translating Mind, Brain and Education to the Classroom.” He will discuss the tremendous pressure on educators to develop evidence-based practices that dynamically impact student learning and performance and an ever-growing list of recommendations that claim to be evidence based. Dr. Daniel will address critical issues in translating scientific findings for classroom use, focusing on the role of educators within the field of Mind, Brain and Education.
WHO:	The program is co-sponsored by several organizations including the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the Athinoula A. Martinos Imaging Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, and both the national associations of elementary and secondary school principals, and is produced by Public Information Resources, Inc. In addition to Dr. Daniel, some of the featured speakers will be:▪    Yong Zhao, PhD, Presidential Chair; Associate Dean for Global Education, Weinman Professor of Technology, College of Education, University of Oregon; Author, World-Class Learners: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Students (2012) and Catching Up or Leading the Way (2009)▪ Martha Lovett, PhD, Cognitive Scientist; Professor, Psychology Department, Carnegie Mellon University; Director, Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence; Developer of innovative, educational technologies to promote student learning and metacognition; Co-Author, How Learning Works: 7 Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching (2010) and “In search of the ‘perfect’ blend between an instructor and an online course for teaching introductory statistics” (2010, Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference on the Teaching of Statistics) ▪ Richad Louv, Founder/Chairman Emeritus, Children & Nature Network; Visiting Professor, Clemson University; Author, The Nature Principle: Reconnecting with Life in the Virtual Age (2012) and Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder (2008) ▪ Sam Wang, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Molecular Biology and the Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University; Co-Author, Welcome to Your Child’s Brain: How the Mind Grows from Conception to College (2012) and Welcome to Your Brain (2008) ▪ Jonathan Bergmann, MAEd, Lead Technology Facilitator, Joseph Sears School, IL; Pioneer in the Flipped Class Movement; Winner of the Presidential Award for Excellence for Math and Science Teaching (2002); Co-Founder of the Flipped Learning Network, Advisory Board Member of TED Education; Co-Author, Flip Your Classroom: Reach Every Student in Every Class Every Day (2012) ▪ Will A. Richardson, MA, Member of the National Advisory Council, George Lucas Education Foundation; Author, Why School?: How Education Must Change When Learning and Information are Everywhere (2012) and Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms (2010); Co-Author, Personal Learning Networks (2011)
WHEN:	Friday, November 15-Sunday, November 17. Conference begins 1:30 PM. General Registration is $599.  Contact Kristin Dunay at 781-449-4010 x 102 for media passes.
WHERE:	Westin Copley Place, Boston, MA
Learning & the Brain® is a series of educational conferences that brings the latest research in neuroscience and psychology and their potential applications to education to the wider educational community and provides professional development for educators. Since its inception in 1999, this series has been attended by more than 40,000 people in Boston, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., New York and Chicago.

For more information about the conference, visit www.learningandthebrain.com.