Neuroscience

There are many different ways to look at the brain and how it functions

A computer generates an image based

on these blood flow changes.

fMRI

Similar to a PET scan, an fMRI is able to show spatial information about the brain and cognitive processing.

This has lead to great advances in brain mapping

When an area of your brain is active, there is more blood flow to that area

This change in blood flow is detected by a powerful magnet

Functional

Magnetic

Resonance

Imaging

Observations of patients with a brain injury have given us a lot of information on certain parts of the brain and its function. For example ......

a stroke,

when a patient suffers from

they may lose certain cognitive abilities

based on the area that was affected

A patient with a stroke involving Wernike's area is capable of speech but the speech does not make sense

(Roche, 2009)

A patient with a stroke involving Broca's area will be capable of understanding speech, but is unable to speak coherent words

(Roche, 2009)

Brain injury

patients

By placing a large, rapidly changing magnetic field close to the head,

TMS

it can induced underlying cortical tissue to fire in response

A single pulse will cause the underlying cortical tissue to fire. This allows for cortical mapping.

When the pulse is administered repeatedly, the underlying cortical tissue temporarily loses its ability to function. This allows researchers to create a brain injury scenario without the permanency; a virtual lesion.

Transcranial

Magnetic

Stimulation

Autopsy

ERP gives us temporal information about the brain's activity

ERP

Many electrodes are placed on the head and the brain's electrical activity is measured

A computer reads these electrical activities and notes changes that occur preceding, during, and after a particular event or stimulus

The event or stimulus is repeated multiple times and the average of electrical activity changes are recorded

(Zhang, 2013)

Positive Emission Tomography (PET)

Using this technique, researchers have been able to garner data on the timing of information processing within the brain

• a method of functional brain imaging
• radioactive isotope is injected into the blood stream
• metabolically active areas use more of the isotope then non-active areas
• this is read by the scanner and shows us the distribution of brain activity

PET

Event

Related

Potential

Animal studies

Inside the Brain

The Reactive Brain

The prefrontal cortex is the 'reflective' part of the brain

The Reflective Brain

Overstimulation of the amygdala can be caused by....

Fear

Anxiety

Embarrassment

Boredom

Frustration

The Amygdala

Tests

The Amygdala responds to danger through...

(Willis as cited in Bernard, 2010)

• Fight

The amygdala is the 'reactive' part of the brain

• Flight

When the amygdala is overstimulated

it enters a hypermetabolic state. Information cannot pass from sensory awareness, memory connection and storage in the brain.

Prefrontal Cortex

• Fright

Executive Functions include...

organizing

Creative Problem Solving

The prefrontal cortex is also known as the 'reflective brain' and is responsible for several processes including executive functioning.

Self Correcting

Self Monitoring

(Willis, 2006)

Predicting

Making Connections

Prioritizing

Focusing

Abstraction

Strategies for Creating a Positive Emotional Climate

The Influence of Dopamine

on learning

Create a stress free environment by...

Teaching Strategies that Support Executive Functioning

• establishing daily routines
• encouraging open dialogue
• constructing achievable challenges

Benefits for Learners

Encouraging participation, not perfection

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter. It is associated with ....

Stimulation of dopamine can lead to....

Actively listening to the ideas, opinions, and felling of students

• Create a learning environment that is student centered
• Introduce material in ways that are physically and emotionally energizing
• Cross Curricular teaching
• Differentiated Instruction
• Engage the senses (hearing, seeing, touching)
• Encourage students to make personal connections
• Activate prior knowledge
• Utilize graphic organizers

• Increase data acquisition
• Increase memory construction
• Intrinsic reinforcement

• Executive Functioning
• Attention
• Decision making
• Pleasure

(Willis as cited in Bernard, 2010)

(Willis, 2006)

(Willis, 2006)

The Science

audition

spatial cognition

memory

imitation

language

The aim

To investigate brain function and cognitive processing

The year is 1979.

The fields of cognitive psychology, experimental and clinical neuropsychology and neuroimaging amalgamate.

The discipline of cognitive neuroscience is born.

consciousness

emotions

motor function

vision

Image courtesy of arztsamui / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Functional modularity

References

Different discrete areas of the brain are critically involved in mediating various cognitive behaviours

(Geake, 2003)

language

memory

Temporal lobe

planning

reasoning

object recognition

audition

Frontal lobe

ability to use speech

emotional reactions

Occipital

lobe

vision

touch sensation

perception

Parietal lobe

spatial processing

Ansari, D., & Coch, D. (2006). Bridges over troubled waters: Education and cognitive neuroscience. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 10(4), 146-151. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2006.02.007

Bernard, S. (2010, January 12). To enable learning put (emotional) safety first. Retrieved from Edutopia website: http://www.edutopia.org/neuroscience-brain-based-learning-emotional-safety

Blake, P.R., & Gardner, H. (2007). A first course in mind, brain, and education. Mind, Brain, and Education, 1(2), 61-65. doi:10.1111/j.1751-228X.2007.00007.x

Brain-based learning [Journal compilation]. (2009, January 22). Journal of Philosophy of Education, 42(3-4), 357-359. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9752.2008.00654.x

Bringing neuroscience to the classroom [Editorial]. (2005, June 30). Nature, 435, 1138. doi:10.1038/4351138a

Coch, D., & Ansari, D. (2009). Thinking about mechanisms is crucial to connecting neuroscience and education. Cortex, 45, 546-547. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2008.06.001

A cure for dyslexia [Editorial]. (2007, February). Nature, 10(2), 135. doi:10.1038/nn0207-135

Geake, J., & Cooper, P. (2003). Cognitive Neuroscience: implications for education? Westminster Studies in Education, 26(1), 7-20.

Neuromyths: Why do they exist and persist? (2012). Mind, Brain, and Education, 6(2), 89-96. doi:10.1111/j.1751-228X.2012.01141.x

Pascual-Leone, A., Nguyet, D., Cohen, L. G., Brasil-Neto, J. P., Cammarota, A., & Hallett, M. (1995). Modulation of muscle responses evoked by transcranial stimulation during the acquisition of new fine motor skills. Journal of Neurophysiology, 73(4), 1037-1045.

Roche, R.A.P., Commins, S., & Dockree, P.M. (2009). Pioneering in Cognitive Neuroscience. Berkshire, England: McGraw-Hill Education.

Simpson, J. R., Ongur, D., Akbudak, E., Conturo, T. E., Ollinger, J. M., Synder, A. Z., . . . Raichle, M. E. (2000). The emotional modulation of cognitive processing: An fMRI study. Journal of Cognitive neuroscience, 12(Suppl 2), 157-170.

Society for Neuroscience. (2012). Neuromyths. Retrieved from http://www.brainfacts.org/neuromyths/

Willis, J. (2013, March 11). An unprecedented opportunity for educational equity. website: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/unprecedented-opportunity-for-educational-equity-judy-willis-md

Willis, J. (2011, September 1). Improving executive function: Teaching challenges and opportunities. Retrieved from Edutopia website: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/improving-executive-function-ju dy-willis-md

Willis, J. (2006). Memory, learning and test taking success. In Researched-based strategies to ignight student learning. insights from a neurologist and classroom teacher . Viginia, USA: Association For Supervision And Curriculum Development.

Zhang, L., Peng, W., Zhang, Z., & Hu, L. (2013). Distinct features of auditory steady-state responses as compared to transient event-related potentials. PLoS One, 8(7), epub, ahead of print e69164.

Now lets look at some of the theories that have come from cognitive neuroscience research....

Emotion and cognition

Adaptive plasticity

Research shows that there is a closely intertwined relationship between emotional and cognitive processes

Neuroscientific research has shown that the brain has capacity to change in response to changes in cognitive environment

Emotions can affect cognitive performance

Cognitive tasks can attenuate emotional states

(Simpson, 2000)

One such study was conducted by Simpson et al.

One such experiment was conducted by Pascual-Leone

When shown negatively valenced pictures,

His objective was to find the effect of piano drill practice on performance and on the brain

They used fMRI to determine the effect of negatively valenced pictures on cognitive performance compared to neutral pictures

Cognitive performance deteriorates

Heightened autonomic responses are seen

He divided his participants into three different groups

(Simpson, 2000)

Increased activity is seen in areas associated with emotional processing

(Pascual-Leone, 1995)

Group 1

Physical practice group

Group 3

control group

All participants in this group practiced 2 hours per day, for 5 days

These participants had daily performance tests

Group 2

image practice group

A performance test was done daily

and daily TMS

mental /visualization practice 2 hours per day, for 5 days

TMS was also done daily

performance test was done daily

TMS was also done daily

After the performance test and TMS on the 5th day, participants were given 2 hours to practice physically followed by another performance test and TMS

Important findings from the study

Physical practice leads to better performance

This is mirrored by expansion of cortical tissue devoted to control of a specific area (in this experiment, the area for finger extension and flexion)

Some performance gains are seen with just imagined practice / visualization

There is also some cortical expansion in the relevant areas of the brain with imagined practice

The most striking finding in this study was that just two hours of physical practice was all that was needed for the imagined practice group to obtain equivalent performance gains and cortical expansion compared to the physical practice group