| Unit name | The Cognitive Neuroscience of Learning and Learning Difficulty |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EDUC30049 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| 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) |
Biological Psychology & Development Difference EDUC20005 |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
n/a |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
n/a |
| School/department | School of Education |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
This unit provides students with a grounding in key neuropsychological concepts related to understanding and supporting both typical and atypical learners. Students will develop the ability to access and critically understand primary literature from the neurosciences that is of key interest to educational practitioners and policy makers.
Students will be provided with a broad understanding of the biological substrates of learning; how this understanding relates to established educational practices; differences in neural substrates associated with disorders and wellbeing issues commonly encountered by educational professionals (including ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and anxiety disorders); how these differences arise from an interaction of genetic and environmental factors; targeted interventions suitable for educational settings and their impact on neural substrates and behaviour;
Students will be prompted to consider critically the insights and limitations of findings from neuroscience, as they develop conceptual frameworks for critically reviewing educational thinking, practice and policy in relation to current understanding of the learning brain.
Classes will involve a combination of lectures, class discussion, case studies, debates, critical analysis pf key readings and group presentations. In addition to delivering and discussing core content, classes will also encourage a critical focus on the teaching methods used, in the light of concepts encountered on the unit. Throughout the unit, students will be expected to critically engage with readings and draw on these when contributing to class activities.
E-Learning approaches will augment face-to-face teaching to facilitate individualised study and support within the broad parameters of the unit and the programme. These will include: on-line discussion, online supervision and peer mentoring/feedback.
Formative assessment: Students will be provided with seminar support on selecting and analysing an intervention or programme they may choose to focus on in their summative assessment, in terms of putative underlying neurocognitive processes. They will then be provided with an opportunity for feedback on a poster presentation summarising the intervention or programme, together with an outline of the associated neurocognitive processes that may be involved. Students will take part in a peer assessment exercise on their poster prior to submitting it.
Summative assessment: '3000-word Critical review and analysis = 100% weighted (ILOs 1-5).
Students will carry out a critical review of the cognitive neuroscience of a neurodevelopmental disorder and analysis of an associated intervention or programme. Students will describe and critically evaluate current knowledge on the cognitive neuroscience of a common neurodevelopmental disorder covered in the unit, in terms of its profile, causes and intervention pathways. Students will then identify an intervention or programme aimed at addressing the disorder, analysing the mechanisms by which the intervention/programme might bring about positive change, while also identifying potential limitations to its effectiveness, drawing on what is known about typical and atypical learning processes in the brain.
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. EDUC30049).
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 Faculty 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. If you have self-certificated your absence from an
assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
