An Innovative Curriculum Where the Lab and the Classroom Meet: Sustained Attention and Learning
Presented During:
Wednesday, June 25, 2025: 5:45 PM - 7:00 PM
Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
Room:
M4 (Mezzanine Level)
Poster No:
587
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Qiuyu Lu1, Zuo Xi-Nian1, Zuolin Li2, Yu Lei3, Yu-Feng Zang4, Chongjing Luo1
Institutions:
1Beijing Normal University, Beijing, Beijing, 2The High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China, Beijing, Beijing, 3Hangzhou Dipont School of Arts and Science, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 4Hangzhou normal university, Hangzhou, China
First Author:
Co-Author(s):
Introduction:
Mind, Brain and Education (MBE) research has long been advocated for embracing transdisciplinary learning and scientific inquiry (Gosavi and Toomarian, 2024), but it has been found a huge gap between research findings within the lab and real classroom practice (Faraone et al., 2021; Xu et al., 2022). Most students have limited exposure to brain science due to lack of curricular resources and lack of teacher knowledge (Saravanapandian et al., 2019). Here, we describe an innovative curriculum as the product of a researcher-practitioner collaboration between neuroscientists and educators, aiming to offer young minds a front row seat to frontier neuroscience research and imaging technology, as well as a novel neuroscientific perspective to approach cognitive science processes. Specifically, our program focuses on the topic of sustained attention highly pertaining to the interest of both students and practioners, empowering them to develop a critical understanding of the attentive brain through authentic, immersive, hands-on neuroscientific inquiry.
Methods:
Twenty-six middle schoolers (ages 12-15 years old; from Beijing and Hangzhou, China) who enrolled in the curriculum in 2024 participated in this study. We designed and implemented a year-long research-practice partnership neuroscience curriculum. Examples of MBE activities include Learn brain science from real neuroscientists, Measure and test my sustained attention, Participate in a MRI protocal, A study visit to the lab, An independent project as student-researchers, A workshop of MRI to 3D-printed brain. Multiple sources of qualitative data were collected through observations, semi-structured interviews, focus groups as well as course surveys. All students performed a two arrow choice test and conventional measurements of reaction time variability (including RT-SD and RT-CV) were assessed. Twelve students partcipated the structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and resting-state functional MRI scans.
Results:
Students' evaluation feedback on the curriculum was predominantly favorable. They reported being motivated by being part of a "real" scientific experiment and that they appreciated the interactive and hands-on approach of the classes, which contrasted with their typical mode of learning experiences. Notably, the feedback indicated that the program effectivly sparked their interest in STEM education as well as their future pursuit in neuroscience-related fields. The educational team praised highly of this innovative and unprecedented collaboration, highlighting that the integration of brain science with students' learning and daily lives offers valuable opportunities for them to gain deeper insights into their own experiences. The research team noted that interacting with student-researchers and educators inspires them to approach new ways of connecting brain science and education.
Conclusions:
This innovative curriculum innovates students with a deeper understading of themselves and the brain, enables data collection on a scale beyond the reach of controlled academic research, and facilitates the study of cognitive and neural functions in real-world contexts. We believe that the researcher-practioner collaboration between researchers and educators may transcend conventional knowledge-driven pedagogical practices and reshape future scientific edcuation.
Education, History and Social Aspects of Brain Imaging:
Education, History and Social Aspects of Brain Imaging 1
Lifespan Development:
Lifespan Development Other 2
Keywords:
Development
Learning
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
Abstract Information
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Provide references using APA citation style.
Gosavi, R. S., & Toomarian, E. Y. (2024). Impacts of Involving Young Learners in Mind, Brain, and Education Research. Mind, Brain, and Education,18(2),159-169.
Saravanapandian, V., Sparck, E. M., Cheng, K. Y., Yu, F., Yaeger, C., Hu, T., ... & Ge, W. (2019). Quantitative assessments reveal improved neuroscience engagement and learning through outreach. Journal of Neuroscience Research, 97(9), 1153-1162.
Xu, K., Torgrimson, S. J., Torres, R., Lenartowicz, A., & Grammer, J. K. (2022). EEG data quality in real‐world settings: Examining neural correlates of attention in school‐aged children. Mind, Brain, and Education, 16(3), 221-227.