The Teaching Brain

From Dear @ArneDuncan … The Teaching Brain

Harvard graduate student Vanessa Rodriquez is still kicking herself for not introducing herself to the person sitting across the aisle from her on a cross-country flight: U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

In this short video, Rodriquez shares what she wishes she had discussed with Secretary Duncan: the importance of brain-based learning and teaching.

Rodriquez notes that there has been abundant research about how the brain learns that teachers have used to improve classroom instruction; but equally important, and less frequently studied, is how the brain functions when teaching.

"We need to study and explore more about the teaching brain—the cognitive, biological, and psychological processes that are occurring in the brain while we teach. Children as early as the age of 3 begin to teach—and it's not because they're in a classroom or because they have students," says Rodriquez. "Let us support research that further explores the teaching brain."

While Rodriquez may not have spoken up on the flight, she is certainly making her voice heard.

ASCD Express, Vol. 7, No. 24. Copyright 2012 by ASCD. All rights reserved. Visit www.ascd.org/ascdexpress.