Harvard Graduate School of Education, Boston Children s ...

[Pages:1]The Impact of Technology on Teaching and Learning:

Evidence from Cognitive Neuroscience "

Laura A. Edwards"

Harvard Graduate School of Education, Boston Childrens Hospital"

Context"

Technological advances and access to digital learning environments are transforming what teaching and learning look like in todays classrooms. "

Latin America and the Caribbean!

Figure 1. Proportion of educational institutions with CAI, 2010. Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics "ICT In Education in Latin America and the

Caribbean.""

Computer assisted instruction has been integrated in primary and secondary institutions in many Latin American and Caribbean countries, particularly at the secondary level, as students prepare to enter the workforce, or institutions of higher education."

United States!

%

Elementary Secondary

40

37.5

37.5

35

32.5

30

29

25

24

20 16.5

15

13

10

7.5

5

1.5 2

0

Not available

Never

Rarely

Some:mes

O=en

Figure 2. Percentage distribution of teachers reporting how frequently they or

their students use computers during instructional time in the classroom or in

other locations in the school, 2009. Source: National Center for Educational

Statistics, "Teachers Use of Educational Technology in U.S. Public Schools.""

In public schools in the United States, a 2009 survey found that 97 percent of teachers had one or more computers located in the classroom everyday. Teachers reported that they or their students used computers in the classroom during instructional time often (40 percent), or sometimes (29 percent), and in other locations in the school often (43 percent) or sometimes (29 percent). "

Need for Scientific Evidence"

Although rapid advances in technology--along with increasing access to new technologies in schools--hold great potential for improving educational outcomes in typically developing children and perhaps particularly for those with developmental disabilities, these advances must be of high quality, and responsibly implemented if they are to improve learning in todays global educational landscape. Moreover, as digital learning options become increasingly ubiquitous, research is needed to document the impact of these modes of teaching and learning, in comparison to traditional teacher-student classroom interactions."

Current Study"

Neural Correlates of Imitation Using Live and Video Models!

Imitation is a common means by which learning takes place in early childhood classroom environments. "

In my current research, I measure the functional activation of cortical brain regions implicated in imitation using functional Near InfraRed Spectroscopy (fNIRS). fNIRS measures blood flow to the cortex and enables elucidation of neural substrates of behavior with better spatial resolution than EEG. fNIRS is also well-suited to the study of a younger and more developmentally homogeneous population than is fMRI, as it is relatively insensitive to movement artifacts commonly encountered in studies involving young children."

Children between 3.5 and 6 years old watch experimenters perform actions to activate the

outcomes (e.g. lights flashing, toy part rotating, beeping

sounds) of novel toys. " Experimenters model toy actions either on pre-recorded videos, or

live. "

Neural activation (indicated by an increase in oxyhemoglobin to action demonstrations) is measured in the fNIRS channels overlying cortical regions implicated in imitation:" ? The superior temporal gyrus (STG), implicated in the processing of goal-oriented behaviors (Shultz & McCarthy, 2011)" ?The inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), implicated in the neural representation of others actions and imitative behaviors (Dapretto et al, 2005)" ?The temporoparietal junction (TPJ), implicated in processing the mental states of others (Saxe, 2010)"

Hypotheses!

?Similar patterns of neural activation in regions of interest across live and video modeling conditions" ? Neural activation responses of higher amplitudes observed in the IFG and TPJ during live demonstration as compared to video modeling (see Redcay et al., 2010)" ? Neural response latencies may vary between live and video imitation conditions" ? Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may show differential patterns of neural activation across live demonstration and video modeling conditions, as compared to typically-developing children" ? Children with ASD may show no change in neural response amplitudes across live and video modeling conditions"

Future Directions"

Is the mere presence of another human body necessary to produce stronger brain activation in learning situations? Or is it possible to preserve the crucial components of an in-person demonstration in digital or online learning environments? "

Followup studies will utilize live video feeds in place of in-person interactions to mimic the video modeling setting, but enable contingent social interactions between the experimenter and the research participant. In so doing, the effects of contingency on brain activity may be examined. Eyetracking may also be utilized to examine the role that joint attention may play in the processing of the experimenters intention and the imitative task. "

Hari et al. (in press), also advocate a move toward "two-person neuroscience" (2PN), in which brain activity is recorded from two people at the same time. "

By applying 2PN to experimental designs involving dyadic interactions, we will gain unprecedented insight into the moment-bymoment neural underpinnings of social interactions, including potential shared neural networks created between a teacher and a student in learning interactions. "

References"

Dapretto, M., Davies, M. S., Pfeifer, J. H., Scott, A. A., Sigman, M., Bookheimer, S. Y., & Iacoboni, M. (2006). Understanding emotions in others: mirror neuron dysfunction in children with autism spectrum disorders. Nature Neuroscience, 9(1), 28-30. doi: 10.1038/nn1611"

Gray, L., Thomas, N., and Lewis, L. (2010). Teachers Use of Educational Technology in U.S. Public Schools: 2009 (NCES 2010-040). National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC."

Hari, R., Himberg, T., Nummenmaa, L., Hamalainen, M., & Parkkonen, L. (in press). Synchrony of brains and bodies during implicit interpersonal interaction. Trends in Cognitive Neurosciences. "

Saxe, R. (2010). The right temporo-parietal junction: a specific brain region for thinking about thoughts. In Handbook of Theory of Mind (Leslie, A. and German, T., eds). Taylor & Francis."

Shultz, S. & McCarthy, G. (2011). Goal-Directed Actions Activate the Face-Sensitive Posterior Superior Temporal Sulcus and Fusiform Gyrus in the Absence of Human-Like Perceptual Cues. Cerebral Cortex. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhr180"

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2012). ICT in Education in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Regional Analysis of ICT Integration and E-Readiness. UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Montreal, Quebec."

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