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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew Watson
Andrew began his classroom life as a high-school English teacher in 1988, and has been working in or near schools ever since. In 2008, Andrew began exploring the practical application of psychology and neuroscience in his classroom. In 2011, he earned his M. Ed. from the “Mind, Brain, Education” program at Harvard University. As President of “Translate the Brain,” Andrew 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; he also serves as an adviser to several organizations, including “The People’s Science.” Andrew is the author of "Learning Begins: The Science of Working Memory and Attention for the Classroom Teacher."
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ADHD adolescence art education attention bilingual education boundary conditions classroom advice collaboration creativity desirable difficulty development elementary school embodied cognition emotion evolution exercise experts and novices gender high school homework intelligence long-term memory metacognition methodology middle school mind-wandering mindfulness Mindset motivation multitasking neuromyths neuroscience neurotransmitters parents pre-K psychology reading retrieval practice self-control skepticism sleep STEM stress technology working memoryRecent Comments
- Andrew Watson on Cell Phones in the Classroom: Expected (and Unexpected) Effects
- Anonymous on Cell Phones in the Classroom: Expected (and Unexpected) Effects
- landb on Research on Note-Taking: A Teachable Skill
- Beatriz Rodriguez on Research on Note-Taking: A Teachable Skill
- Nini White on Helping Today’s Students Have More Open Minds
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Strategies that Backfire: Monitoring Screen Time
Paradoxically, monitoring screen time for young children increases their screen usage. A better strategy: modeling the behavior we want to see. Continue reading
Does Drawing a Simple Picture Benefit Memory?
If a picture is worth 1000 words, how many words is drawing a picture worth? More specifically, Jeffrey Wammes & Co. have been exploring this question: is it true that drawing benefits memory? If I draw a picture of a
Spiders in Budapest: Deeper Understanding of the Brain
“Why can I forget what the capital of Hungary is, but not that I’m afraid of spiders?” Michael S. C. Thomas kicks off his website “How The Brain Works” with this intriguing question. Dr. Thomas is a good person to
Dodging “Dodgy” Research: Strategies to Get Past Bunk
If we’re going to rely on research to improve teaching — that’s why you’re here, yes? — we need to hone our skepticism skills. After all, we don’t want just any research. We want the good stuff. But, we face
Research Summary: The Best and Worst Highlighting Strategies
Does highlighting help students learn? As is so often the case, the answer is: it depends. The right kind of highlighting can help. But, the wrong kind doesn’t help. (And, might hurt.) And, most students do the wrong kind. Today’s
Let’s Have More Fun with the Correlation/Causation Muddle
We’ve explored the relationship of correlation and causation before on the blog. In particular, this commentary on DeBoer’s blog notes that — while correlation doesn’t prove causation — it might be a useful first step in discovering causation. DeBoer argues
“Wait Just a Minute!”: The Benefits of Procrastination?
“A year from now, you’ll wish you had started today.” This quotation, attributed to Karen Lamb, warns us about the dangers of procrastination. Presumably our students would propose a slightly modified version: “The night before the test, I’ll wish I
True/False: Grades Motivate Students to Study Better?
The following story is true. (The names have been left out because I’ve forgotten them.) When I attended graduate school in education, I handed in my first essay with some trepidation, and lots of excitement. Like my classmates, I had
Physics and Engineering: My New Year’s Resolution
Over on Twitter, @DylanWilliam wrote: “[P]hysics tells you about the properties of materials but it’s the engineer who designs the bridge. Similarly, psychology tells us about how our brains work, but it’s teachers who craft instruction.” In other words,
New Research: Personal Best Goals (Might) Boost Learning
Some research-based suggestions for teaching require a lot of complex changes. (If you want to develop an interleaved syllabus, you’re going to need some time.) Others couldn’t be simpler to adopt. Here’s a suggestion from researchers Down Under: encourage your
