| Unit name | Brain, Mind and Education |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EDUCM5404 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Professor. Howard-Jones |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School of Education |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Why this unit is important
This unit provides students with an understanding of the complex interrelationship of mind, brain and behaviour, focusing particularly upon those issues pertinent to learning in educational contexts. It will develop awareness of recent research in areas of cognitive neuroscience pertinent to education and its relationship to evidence arising from other disciplines. It will provide students with critical awareness of the insights and limitations of techniques such neuroimaging in the investigation of cognitive mechanisms, developmental disorders and the effects of psychopharmacological drugs. It will facilitate their ability to access and understand primary neuroscientific literature that is of potential interest to those involved with education. In this way, the unit provides an understanding of cognitive neuroscience that can support students wishing to apply such concepts in education as part of further studies within their programme of study.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
This unit is mandatory for the MSc Psychology of Education, and for the Neuroscience and Education pathway of the MSc in Education, emphasising its importance for those wishing to enrich their understanding of education by drawing on insights from the sciences of mind and brain. It will offers insight at the neural level into cognitive concepts such working memory, attention and memory encountered in other mandatory units on these programmes.
An overview of content
Terminology, principles and concepts of the central nervous system (CNS), including nerve transmission, structure and organisation of the CNS and cortical localisation of function; mind/brain/behaviour relationships, their multidisciplinary investigation via empirical behavioural data, physiological measurements (e.g. neuroimaging), observation and evolutionary perspectives; neurocognitive function, including aspects of perception, attention, learning, memory, motivation & emotion, sleep and arousal, and its significance in developmental and educational contexts; neurocognitive processes for a range of developmental disorders pertinent to education, and the actions of psychopharmacological drugs in the context of ADHD; relationships between the neurocognitive concepts explained in this unit and concepts encountered elsewhere, including those associated with developmental disorders such as dyslexia.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
The abilities gained by students successfully completing the unit are indicated in the Learning Outcomes.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this unit students will be able to:
This unit will be taught using a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous activities including seminars, lectures, reading and discussions. In addition to lectures, students can choose an area they would like to focus on from a list of topics for their assignment and then attend seminars focused solely on this area. In these seminars, students engage in small-group exercises that support the building of confidence, their learning and the development of their thinking for their assignment.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Formative assessment includes an opportunity to present an initial draft of their poster and essay structure and receive feedback from peers and tutors that can be incorporate in assessed work.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Students will select an appropriate topic for their assignment and explore their chosen topic in terms of neurocognitive function. They will produce a 1,000 word equivalent (words and images) poster (40%) and 2000 word essay (60%) that reviews the cognitive neuroscience of this topic with appropriate and extensive use of the terminology, principles and concepts associated with this topic in terms of the central nervous system and neurocognition.
The poster assesses students' ability to explain visually their critical understanding of neurocognitive processes underlying their chosen topic (ILO 1-5).
The essay will assess students' ability to analyse relevant texts and synthesise concepts from cognitive neuroscience, psychology and education, to make links/connections and recognise associations/relationships between these concepts, and to draw upon current understanding of mind/brain/behaviour relationships. Students will be expected to develop balanced arguments that reflect a multidisciplinary awareness and an ability to contextualise concepts, and draw appropriately upon a wide range of evidence that includes empirical behavioural data, physiological measurements (e.g. neuroimaging), observation and evolutionary perspectives. (ILO 1-5)
When assessment does not go to plan
Re-assessment arrangements for students who have not been able to take or pass a summative assessment will involve a second attempt at the assignment tasks in their original form. Assessments for this unit are individual and do not involve group work
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. EDUCM5404).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
