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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew Watson
Andrew began his classroom life as a high-school English teacher in 1988, and has been working in or near schools ever since. In 2008, Andrew began exploring the practical application of psychology and neuroscience in his classroom. In 2011, he earned his M. Ed. from the “Mind, Brain, Education” program at Harvard University. As President of “Translate the Brain,” Andrew now works with teachers, students, administrators, and parents to make learning easier and teaching more effective. He has presented at schools and workshops across the country; he also serves as an adviser to several organizations, including “The People’s Science.” Andrew is the author of "Learning Begins: The Science of Working Memory and Attention for the Classroom Teacher."
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ADHD adolescence attention autism book review boundary conditions classroom advice conference speakers constructivism/direct instruction creativity desirable difficulty development dual coding elementary school embodied cognition emotion evolution exercise experts and novices gender high school homework intelligence long-term memory math methodology middle school mind-wandering mindfulness Mindset motivation neuromyths neuroscience online learning parents psychology reading retrieval practice self-control skepticism sleep STEM stress technology working memoryRecent Comments
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ABOUT THE BLOG
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Can We Improve Our Students’ Executive Function? Will That Help...
New research suggests that the right kind of Executive Function training just might help struggling readers. Continue reading
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The Best Length of Time for a Class [Repost]
Quite consistently, this post has been among the most searched for and most popular on…
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Laptop Notes or Handwritten Notes? Even the New York Times...
Which helps students learn more: handwritten notes, or laptop notes? The best-known research on the subject might surprise you… Continue reading
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Growing Mindsets in Argentina? [Repost]
A study with 12th graders in Argentina highlights an important message about Growth Mindset: doing one thing once is unlikely to have much of an effect. Continue reading
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Obsessed with Working Memory [Reposted]
I’m on vacation for the month of August, and so we’ll be reposting some of…
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Deliberate Practice Doesn’t Align with Schooling (Well: Not Precisely)
Anders Ericsson’s model of “deliberate practice” offers wise guidance in creating expertise. But, it might not apply to the work that teachers do in schools every day… Continue reading
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Retrieval Practice is GREAT. Can We Make It Better?
Retrieval practice and common sense add up to a winning combination. Which means: they help students remember more. Continue reading
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Executive Function Isn’t What You Think It Is (Maybe)
As a soccer coach, I want my students to get better at soccer. As an English…
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What’s Better than Attention? Attention + LEARNING!
We know that exercise breaks help young students pay attention. Do those breaks help older students pay attention, AND LEARN? Continue reading
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What’s the Ideal Size for Online Discussion Groups?
We’re all learning lots about online teaching these days: new software (Zoom), new vocabulary (“asynchronous”),…