Program

At the San Francisco Fairmont Hotel, atop Nob Hill
San Francisco, CA

First keynote begins at 1:30 PM on Thursday, February 14

>>Download conference brochure (pdf)


>>Download conference brochure - ASHA version (pdf)

>>Download conference schedule (pdf)

Neuroscience is discovering the brain basis for the arts, music, dance, creativity, innovative thinking and even the "Aha" moments of insight. Experts suggest creativity is an essential skill students will need to succeed in the 21st Century. Discover the "science of creativity" and strategies to create more innovative schools and more imaginative, insightful students.

Learning Objectives

You will gain knowledge about:

  • Ways to integrate creativity and the arts in schools
  • The neuroscience of creativity, the arts and aesthetics
  • Teaching strategies to foster innovation and imagination
  • Ideas for incorporating 21st Century skills in the classroom
  • Promoting reflection, insight and problem-solving skills
  • Applying brain research to enhance cognitive creativity
  • Teaching reasoning, critical and creative thinking skills
  • Linking learning disorders with divergent thinking
  • Improving thinking skills in reading, math and science
  • Benefits of imagination and play for autism and learning
  • Using design, games and collaboration for innovation


Conference Schedule:

Thursday, Feb. 14
9:00 AM - 12:15 PM, Pre-Conference Workshops
Thursday, Feb. 14
1:30 PM - 5:45 PM, Conference Day 1
Friday, Feb. 15
8:30 AM - 5:30 PM, Conference Day 2
Saturday, Feb. 16
8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Conference Day 3

Follow @learningandtheb for updates and hastag #LB34 for live tweets from the event!

CULTIVATING CREATIVITY AND IMAGINATION IN STUDENTS
andreasen The Creating Brain: The Neuroscience of Creativity

Nancy C. Andreasen, MD, PhD, Chair, Department of Psychiatry; Director, Neuroimaging Research Center and Mental Health Clinical Research Center, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine; A leading expert on creativity; Recipient, President's National Medal of Science; Author, The Creating Brain: The Neuroscience of Genius (2005)
sawyer Creative Teaching for the 21st Century

R. Keith Sawyer, PhD, Professor of Education, Psychology and Business, Washington University in St. Louis; Author, Explaining Creativity: The Science of Human Innovation (2012, 2nd Edition), "A call to action: The challenges of creative teaching and learning" (2011, Teachers College Record) and "The cognitive neuroscience of creativity" (2011, Creativity Research Journal)
carson Creative Brains: Maximizing Imagination and Innovation in Students

Shelley H. Carson, PhD, Psychologist; Adjunct Faculty, Department of Psychology, Harvard University; Researcher on creativity; Blogger, Psychology Today; Author, Your Creative Brain: Seven Steps to Maximize Imagination, Productivity and Innovation in Your Life (2010)
carter Simple Steps to Boost Creativity in Children

Christine L. Carter, PhD, Sociologist; Director, Parenting Programs, Greater Good Science Center, University of California, Berkeley; Blogger, Psychology Today; Author, Raising Happiness: 10 Simple Steps for More Joyful Kids and Happier Parents (2011) and "Everyday Art" (2009, Why Make Art - Greater Good Magazine); Innovation Consultant for Fortune 500 companies
kaufman Nurturing Creativity in the Classroom

James C. Kaufman, PhD, Professor of Psychology; Founding Director, Learning Research Institute, California State University, San Bernardino; Author, Creativity 101 (2009); Co- Editor, Teaching Creatively and Teaching Creativity (2012) and Nurturing Creativity in the Classroom (2010); and Ronald A. Beghetto, PhD, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs; Associate Professor of Education Studies, College of Education, University of Oregon; Associate Editor, Journal of Creative Behavior and International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving; Author, Killing Ideas Softly? The Promise and Perils of Creativity in the Classroom (forthcoming); Co-Editor, Nurturing Creativity in the Classroom (2010)
palladino Developing Student Creativity in a Technology Driven World

Lucy Jo Palladino, PhD, Award-Winning Psychologist; Child Development Expert; Former Clinical Faculty, University of Arizona Medical School; Author, Find Your Focus: An Effective New Plan to Defeat Distraction and Overload (2007)
Ungifted: Intelligence and Talents Redefined

Scott Barry Kaufman, PhD,
Cognitive Scientist; Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychology, New York University; blogger of "Beautiful Minds" (Psychology Today); Associate Editor of The International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving; Author, Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined (2013); Editor, Beyond "Talent or Practice?": The Complexity of Greatness (Upcoming); Co-Editor, The Cambridge Handbook of Intelligence (2011)
hoeft Brain Basis of Learning Disorders, Giftedness and Creativity

Fumiko Hoeft, MD, PhD,
Associate Professor of Child ghj_amp Adolescent Psychiatry; Director, Laboratory for Educational Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco; Co-Author, "The brain basis of the phonological deficit in dyslexia is independent of IQ" (2011, Psychological Sciences)
Genetics is Different NOW: Big Changes in Understanding Talents and Abilities

Kurt W. Fischer, PhD,
Director, Mind, Brain, and Education Program (MBE), Harvard University Graduate School of Education; Past President, International Mind, Brain, and Education Society (IMBES); Editor, Mind, Brain and Education Journal; Co-Author, "Directions for mind, brain, and education: Methods, models, and morality" (2011, Journal of Educational Philosophy and Theory), and "Mind, brain and education in the era of globalization" (2007, Learning and Living in the Global Era)
FOSTERING THINKING SKILLS IN CONTENT, MATH AND SCIENCE
devlin First Person Solvers: Rethinking Mathematics Education in the Video Game Era

Keith J. Devlin, PhD, "The Math Guy" on National Public Radio; Co-Founder and Executive Director, H-Star Institute, Stanford University; World Economic Forum Fellow and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; Recipient of the Carl Sagan Award; Author, Introduction to Mathematical Thinking (2012) and Mathematics Education for a New Era: Video Games as a Medium for Learning (2011)
Developing Critical Thinking and Creativity through Academic Conversations

Jeff Zwiers, EdD,
Senior Researcher, Stanford University School of Education; Author of Academic Conversations: Classroom Talk That Fosters Critical Thinking and Content Understandings (2011), Building Reading Comprehension Habits in Grade 6-12 (2010) and Building Academic Language: Essential Practice for Content Classrooms (2008)
kosik Bridging The Arts and Humanities with Brain Science and Education

Kenneth S. Kosik, MD, Co-Director, Neuroscience Research Institute; Harriman Chair and Professor of Neuroscience Research, Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara; Founder/Executive Director, Clinical Research, Cognitive Fitness and Innovative Therapies, which uses therapies from music and games to reduce cognitive decline
landy Literature and Cognitive Science in the Classroom

Joshua Landy, PhD,
Associate Professor of French who teaches a course on "Literature and the Brain"; Co-Director of the Literature and Philosophy Initiative, Division of Literatures, Cultures and Languages, Stanford University; Author, How To Do Things with Fictions (2012) and Philosophy as Fiction: Self, Deception, and Knowledge in Proust (2004)
zwirn.brooks Fostering Student Creativity by Teaching with Unifying Concepts in Science and Art

Susan G. Zwirn, EdD, Associate Professor of Arts Education, Hofstra University; Author, "Research study: The artist teacher in the K-12 classroom" (2010, Studies in Art Education); Instructor on brain research, learning and the arts; and Jacqueline Grennon Brooks, EdD, Professor of Science Education; Director, Institute for the Development of Education in the Advanced Sciences, Hofstra University; Author, Big Science for Growing Minds (2011), Schooling for Life (2002) and In Search of Understanding (2001)

IMPLEMENTING INNOVATION IN SCHOOLS FOR THE FUTURE
chen The Creativity Edge in Education: Arts, Technology and Passion

Milton Chen, PhD, Senior Fellow and Executive Director Emeritus, Edutopia, The George Lucas Educational Foundation; Former Assistant Professor, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Former Director of Research, Sesame Workshop's Sesame Street, The Electric Company and 3-2-1 Contact; Fulbright New Century Scholar; Author, Education Nation: Seven Leading Edges of Innovation in Our Schools (2010)
boss Bringing Innovation to Schools: Empowering Students for a Changing World

Suzanne K. Boss, BA, National Faculty Member, the Buck Institute for Education; Blogger, Edutopia; Contributor, Stanford Social Innovation Review, Stanford University; Author, Bringing Innovation to School: Empowering Students to Thrive in a Changing World (2012); Co-Author, Reinventing Project-Based Learning: Your Field Guide to Real-World Projects in the Digital Age (2008)
seelig The Art of Teaching Creativity and Innovation

Tina L. Seelig, PhD, Neuroscientist; Executive Director, Stanford Technology Ventures Program, School of Engineering; Director, Stanford Entrepreneurship Network, Stanford University; Director, National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation; Winner of the 2009 Bernard M. Gordon Prize from the National Academy of Engineering for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education and the 2008 National Olympus Innovation Award; Author, inGenius: A Crash Course on Creativity (2012)
ness Mind Expansion as a Means to Innovation

Roberta B. Ness, MD, MPH, Internationally Renowned Physician and Scientist; Dean, School of Public Health and School of Biomedical Informatics, Health Science Center at Houston, University of Texas; Developer of the "Innovative Thinking" course; Author, Innovation Generation: How to Produce Creative and Useful Scientific Ideas (2012)
fadel Creativity and Innovation: from Man vs Machine, to Man and Machine

Charles K. Fadel, MBA, Founder/Chairman, Center for Curriculum Redesign; Visiting Practitioner, Mind, Brain and Education Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education, and visiting lecturer at MIT/ESG; Former Global Education Lead, Cisco Systems and Cisco Board Member at the Partnership for 21st Century Skills; Co-Author, 21st Century Skills: Learning for Life in Our Times (2009)
World Class Leaders: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Students

Yong Zhao, PhD, Presidential Chair; Associate Dean for Global Education, College of Education, University of Oregon; Director, Center for Advanced Technology in Education; Author, World Class Leaders: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Students (2012) and Catching Up or Leading the Way: American Education in the Age of Globalization (2009)
goldman Imagination and the Fires Within: Design and Math Thinking for the 21st Century

Shelley V. Goldman, EdD, Professor of Education; Director, Learning Sciences and Technology Design; Principal Investigator, REDlab Research in Education ghj_amp Design; Stanford University School of Education; Former Elementary and Middle School Teacher; Author, "Destination, imagination and the fires within," (2010, International Journal of Art ghj_amp Design Education); Co-Editor, Educating Learning Technology Designers (2008) and Thinking Practices in Mathematics and Science Learning (1998)
curtis Reimagining Teaching and Technology: The Napa New Tech School

Paul Curtis, EdD,
Assistant Director of School Development, New Tech Network, Napa CA. New Tech Network works nationwide with schools, districts and communities to develop innovative public high schools. While providing services and support that enable schools to fundamentally rethink teaching and learning, their goal is to enable students to gain the knowledge and 21st century skills they need to succeed in life, college and the careers of tomorrow.
DEVELOPING INSIGHT, PROBLEM-SOLVING AND REASONING SKILLS
bunge Reasoning Ability: Neural Mechanisms, Development and Plasticity

Silvia A. Bunge, PhD, Neuroscientist; Associate Professor, Department of Psychology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute; Principal Investigator, Building Blocks of Cognition Lab; Principal Investigator, The Neurodevelopment of Reasoning Ability Study, University of California, Berkeley; Co-Author, "Experience-dependent plasticity in white matter microstructure: Reasoning training alters structural connectivity" (2012, Frontiers in Neuroanatomy)
beenman The "Aha!" Moment: The Cognitive Neuroscience of Insight

Mark Beeman, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience Program, Northwestern University; Co-Author, "Visual attention modulates insight versus analytic solving of verbal problems" (2012, The Journal of Problem Solving), "Aha! The cognitive neuroscience of insight" (2009, Current Directions in Psychological Science) and "The origins of insight in resting-state brain activity" (2008, Neuropsychologia)
sawyer Group Genius: The Power of Collaborative Brainstorming, Flow and Insight

R. Keith Sawyer, PhD, Professor of Education, Psychology and Business, Washington University in St. Louis; Author, Group Genius: The Creative Power of Collaboration (2007); Editor, Structure and Improvisation in Creative Teaching (2011)
aziz Exploring the Neural Correlates of Insight Solutions and Visual Creativity

Lisa S. Aziz-Zadeh, PhD, Assistant Professor, Brain and Creativity Institute; University of Southern California; Author, "Exploring the neural correlates of visual creativity" (2012, Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience) and "Aha!: The neural correlates of verbal insight solutions." (2012, Human Brain Map)
immordino Brains "At Rest": Implications of Reflection and Daydreaming for Learning and Memory

Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, EdD, Assistant Professor, Rossier School of Education; Research Assistant Professor, Brain and Creativity Institute, University of Southern California; Co-Author, "Rest is Not Idleness: Implications of the Brain's Default Mode for Human Development and Education" (2012, Perspectives on Psychological Science) and "Musings on the neurobiological and evolutionary origins of creativity via a developmental analysis of one child's poetry" (2011, LEARNing Landscapes)
simonton Scientific Genius, Creativity and Insight

Dean Keith Simonton, PhD,
Distinguished Professor, Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis; Member of the Publisher Advisory Committee, Education, Creativity, and Social Development (East China Normal University Press); Winner of the 2011 Farnsworth Award for Outstanding Service to the Society for Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts by the American Psychological Association; Author, Great Flicks: Scientific Studies of Cinematic Creativity and Aesthetics (2011), Genius 101 (2009) and Creativity in Science: Chance, Logic, Genius, and Zeitgeist (2004)
BENEFITS OF THE ARTS ON BRAINS, LANGUAGE AND LEARNING
shimamura Experiencing Art: In the Brain of the Beholder

Arthur P. Shimamura, PhD, Creative Photographer; Professor, Psychology, University of California, Berkeley; Director, Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory; Faculty, Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute; Scientific Advisor, San Francisco Exploratorium Science Museum; Co-Editor, Aesthetic Science: Connecting Minds, Brains and Experience (2012)
marshall Integrating Art, Learning and Creativity in School Curriculum

Julia Marshall, EdD, MFA, Studio Artist; Professor, Department of Fine Art, San Francisco State University; Research on curriculum development and arts integration; Artist-in-the-Museum with the Oakland Museum of California and the Bay Area Children's Museum; Member, Arts Education Task Force, California Arts Council; Author, "Five ways to integrate: Using strategies from contemporary art"
(2010, Art Education) and "Connecting art, learning, and creativity" (2005, Studies in Art Education)
zaidel The Neuropsychology of the Arts: Artistic Creativity, Talent, Beauty and the Brain

Dahlia W. Zaidel, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Behavioral Neuroscience, Brain Research Institute; Director, Brain, Cognition, and Neuropsychology Lab, University of California, Los Angeles; Researcher on art and talents who has studied Einstein's brain; Author, "Neuroscience, biology, and brain evolution in visual art" (2011, The Aesthetic Mind)
o'neal When Walls Become Doorways - The View from Creative Classrooms: An Empirical Investigation of the Impact of Arts Integration on Student Outcomes

Ivonne C. O'Neal, MA, Director of Research and Evaluation, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; Member, American Psychological Association and American Association of Museums; Former Associate Curator, Museum of Creativity, Milken Family Foundation
kraus Tuning Up the Brain: Biological Benefits of Music Education for Language and Learning Skills

Nina Kraus, PhD; Hugh Knowles Professor, Principal Investigator, Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory, Northwestern University; Co-Author, "A little goes a long way: How the adult brain is shaped by musical training in childhood" (2012, The Journal of Neuroscience); and Jessica Slater, PhD Candidate, Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory, Communication Services and Disorders, Northwestern University
IMAGINATION, IMPROV AND PLAY FOR LEARNING AND DISORDERS
seely brown A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating Imagination and Play for a World of Constant Change

John Seely Brown, PhD, Visiting Scholar and Advisor, Provost, University of Southern California; Independent Co-Chairman, Center for the Edge, Deloitte; Co-Founder, Institute for Research on Learning; Member, American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Education; Co-Author, A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination in a World of Constant Change (2011)
hono webb The Imaginative Gifts of ADHD: How Fantasy Creates Reality

Lara Honos-Webb, PhD, Clinical Psychologist; Former Assistant Professor, Santa Clara University; Former Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of California, San Francisco; Author, The Gift of ADHD: How to Transform Your Child's Problems into Strengths (2005)
palladino Dreamers, Discoverers and Dynamos: Helping Divergent Thinkers Stay Focused in Class

Lucy Jo Palladino, PhD, Award-Winning Psychologist; Child Development Expert; Former Clinical Faculty, University of Arizona Medical School; Author, Dreamers, Discoverers and Dynamos: How to Help the Child Who is Bright, Bored and Having Problems in School (1999)
limb The Neural Substrates of Musical Improvisation

Charles J. Limb, MD, Associate Professor, Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University; Peabody Conservatory of Music; Researcher on neural connections to music, creativity and improvisation; Author, "Neural Substrates of Spontaneous Musical Performance: An fMRI Study of Jazz Improvisation" (2008, PLoS ONE)
wolfberg Fostering Play and Imagination in Children with Autism with Typical Peers

Pamela J. Wolfberg, PhD, Professor, Special Education, San Francisco State University; Faculty Advisor, Autism Spectrum Program; Founder, Autism Institute on Peer Socialization and Play; Author, Play and Imagination in Children with Autism (2009)
bernstein Spontaneity, Creativity and Improv in Class: The Theater Games of Viola Spolin

Ben Bernstein, PhD, Psychologist; Performance Coach; Opera Producer and Composer; Theater Director who was trained Viola Spolin, author of the landmark book, Improvisation for the Theater. Bernstein is the author of Test Success!: How to be Calm, Confident, and Focused on Any Test (2012)
Teach Your Children Well: Creativity, Play and Authentic Achievement

Madeline Levine, PhD, Nationally Known Psychologist; Clinician; Consultant; Educator; Co-Founder of Challenge Success, a project born at the Stanford University School of Education; Author, Teach Your Children Well: Parenting for Authentic Success (2012) and The Price of Privilege (2006)

Featured Speakers