Program

Neuroscience research shows that every brain is different, having been individually sculpted by genes, experiences, adversity, poverty, parenting and education. New research is connecting our understanding about changes in children's brain structure and function to specific aspects of education, and is beginning to explain how educational learning experiences reshape the brain networks that support a child's basic cognitive skills such as paying attention, reading and mathematics. This conference will help you understand the individual differences in your students' brains, how these differences affect learning, and how your teaching, intervention and learning environments are changing the structure of their brains and influencing their life-long learning abilities and disabilities.


LEARNING OBJECTIVES

You will gain knowledge about:

  • Neural differences and strategies for LD, ADHD and autism
  • How teaching and brain diversity shape cognition and learning
  • Why genes and experiences affect learning and life outcomes
  • Ways parents, teachers and culture influence brain development
  • Strategies for teaching diverse, special and inclusion classrooms
  • Effects of stress, socioeconomics and adversity on achievement
  • Using brain strengths and differentiated teaching to reach all learners
  • Brain differences in language, reading, math and bilingual abilities
  • Role of adolescence and maturation on memory, reason and learning
  • Impact of early education and Montessori methods on the brain

>>Download PDF Conference Brochure for Educators
>>Download PDF Conference Brochure for Speech-Language Pathologists (ASHA)

EDUCATING MINDS:
TEACHING TO DIVERSE BRAINS AND LEARNERS

medina

Brain Rules: Why Every Brain Is Wired Differently and What it Means for Education

John J. Medina, PhD, Director, Brain Center for Applied Learning Research, Seattle Pacific University; Affiliate Professor of Bioengineering, University of Washington School of Medicine; Founder, Talaris Research Institute; Author; Brain Rules for Baby (2012) and Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home and School (2009)

fischer The Dynamics of Learning: Brains, Genes and Environment

Kurt W. Fischer, PhD, Charles Bigelow Professor; Director, Mind, Brain and Education Program (MBE), Harvard Graduate School of Education; Founder, International Mind, Brain and Education Society (IMBES); Founding Editor, Mind, Brain and Education Journal; Co-Author, "Learning from the developmental and biological perspective" (2010, The Nature of Learning)
Brain Bugs: How the Brain's Architecture Shapes Learning, Memory and Decision Making

Dean V. Buonomano, PhD, Professor of Behavioral Neuroscience, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles; Professor, Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles; Author, Brain Bugs: How the Brain's Flaws Shape Our Lives (2012)
principe Your Brain on Childhood: The Unexpected Side Effects of Classrooms, Homework, Testing and Grades

Gabrielle F. Principe, PhD,
Director, Child Memory Lab; Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Ursinus College; Author, Your Brain on Childhood: The Unexpected Side Effects of Classrooms, Ballparks, Family Rooms and the Minivan (2011)
fadel The Neuroscience of Learning: The 4Cs and Socio-Cultural Learning

Charles K. Fadel, MBA, Founder/Chairman, Center for Curriculum Redesign; Visiting Practitioner, Mind, Brain and Education Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Global Education Lead, Cisco Systems; Co-Author, 21st Century Skills (2009)
healy Different Learners: Brains, Genes, Lifestyles and the 21st Century Student

Jane M. Healy, PhD, Educational Psychologist; Teacher; Reading and Learning Specialist; Former Adjunct Assistant Professor, Cleveland State University; Author, Different Learners (2011), Your Child's Growing Mind (2004) and Failure to Connect (1999)
schenck Creating Experiential Learning in the Classroom to Reach Diverse Learners

Jeb Schenck, PhD, Adjunct Professor, University of Wyoming; President, KNOWA Inc.; Author, Teaching and the Adolescent Brain (2011) and Learning, Teaching and the Brain (2003)
kryza Practical Framework for Differentiation in Regular and Inclusion Classrooms

Kathleen M. Kryza, MA, Consultant; Adjunct Professor in Special Education, University of Michigan; Co-Author, Differentiation for Real Classrooms (2009), Inspiring Elementary Learners (2008) and Inspiring Middle and Secondary Learners: Honoring Differences and Creating Community Through Differentiating Instructional Practices (2007)
tomlinson The Differentiated Classroom: Five Elements that Make Classrooms Work for All Students

Carol A. Tomlinson, EdD, William Clay Parrish Jr. Professor and Chair of Educational Leadership, Foundations and Policy, Curry School of Education, University of Virginia; Principal Investigator for the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented; Author, How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms (2nd Edition, 2012), Leading and Managing Differentiated Classrooms (2010) and Fulfilling the Promise of the Differentiated Classroom (2003); Co-Author, The Differentiated School: Making Revolutionary Change for Teaching and Learning (2008), Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design: Connecting Content and Kids (2006) and The Parallel Curriculum Model: A Design to Develop High Potential and Challenge High Ability Learners (2001)

INDIVIDUAL MINDS:
USING BRAIN DIFFERENCES TO SHAPE MATH ghj_amp READING ABILITIES

mccandliss How Individual Differences in Brain Structure and Function Interact with Education During the Acquisition of Reading and Attention

Bruce D. McCandliss, PhD, Professor of Psychology and Human Development, Psychological Sciences, Vanderbilt University; Author, "Individual differences in distinct components of attention are linked to anatomical variations in distinct white matter tracts" (2010, Frontiers in Neuroanatomy), "White matter microstructures underlying mathematical abilities in children" (2008, Neuroreport) and "Development of neural systems for reading" (2007, Annual Review of Neuroscience)
Luk Bilingualism and Brain Plasticity: Implications for Lifespan Development

Gigi C. Luk, PhD, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education, Harvard University; Co-Author, "Bilingualism: Consequences for mind and brain" (2012, Trends in Cognitive Science) and "Lifelong bilingualism maintains white matter integrity in older adults" (2011, Neuroscience)
gabrieli Neurodiversity and Education: Insights from Neuroimaging for Reading and Learning Interventions

John D. E. Gabrieli, PhD, Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences; Associate Director, Athinoula A. Martinos Imaging Center, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Co-Author "Brain basis of phonological awareness for spoken language in children and its disruption in dyslexia" (2012, Cerebral Cortex)
ansari Basic Number Processing Deficits: Developmental Dyscalculia and Math Anxiety

Daniel Ansari, PhD, Associate Professor/Canada Research Chair, Department of Psychology; Faculty Member, Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Western Ontario; Co-Author, "Cognitive neuroscience meets mathematics education" (2010, Education Research Review)
Prat Individual Differences in the Neural Basis of Language and General Comprehension Abilities

Chantel S. Prat, PhD, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Institute for Learning ghj_amp Brain Sciences, University of Washington; Author, "The brain basis of individual differences in language comprehension abilities" (2011, Language and Linguistic Compass); Co-Author, "Brain bases of individual differences in cognition" (2008, Psychological Science Agenda)
mazzocco Similarities and Differences Across Math Learning Difficulties and Disabilities

Michele M. M. Mazzocco, PhD, Professor, Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota; Co-Author, "Preschoolers' precision of the approximate number system predicts later school mathematics performance" (2011, PLoS One) and "Individual differences in non-verbal number acuity correlate with math achievement" (2008, Nature); Co-Editor, Why Is Math So Hard for Some Children?(2007)
Rethinking Literacy: Universal Design for Learning, Affect Neuroscience and Emerging Technologies

Samantha G. Daley, EdD, Research Scientist, Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST): Co-Editor of the special series, "Usable knowledge in mind, brain, and education" (2009, Mind, Brain and Education) and Co-Editor of the forthcoming book, A Research Reader in Universal Design for Learning.
vasilyeva Exploring the Differences in Math Achievement: Relation to Gender, Poverty and Cognitive Skills

Marina S. Vasilyeva, PhD, Associate Professor, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Lynch School of Education, Boston College; Researcher, focusing on cognitive development and language learning in the classroom; Author, "The relation between teacher in-put and lexical growth of preschoolers," Applied Psycholinguistics

SOCIAL MINDS:
HOW PARENTS, CULTURE AND TEACHERS SHAPE BRAINS

kagan How Genes, Parents and Culture Make Us Who We Are

Jerome Kagan, PhD, Daniel and Amy Starch Professor of Psychology Emeritus, Harvard University; Author, Psychology's Ghosts (2012), "Want better students? Teach their parents" (2011, Christian Science Monitor), The Temperamental Thread: How Genes, Culture, Time and Luck Make Us Who We Are (2010) and The Three Cultures (2009)
ansari The Numerate Brain: The Role of Development, Enculturation and Individual Differences

Daniel Ansari, PhD, Associate Professor/Canada Research Chair; Faculty Member, Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Western Ontario; Co-Author, "Culture and education: New frontiers in brain plasticity" (2011, Trends in Cognitive Sciences)
luby The Effects of Parental Nurturing on Child Brain Structure, Mood and Learning

Joan L. Luby, MD, Professor of Child Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis; Director, Early Emotional Development Program, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine; Co-Author, "Maternal support in early childhood predicts larger hippocampal volumes at school age" (2012, PNAS)
wexler The Neurobiological Substrate for Sociocultural Influences on Mind and Brain

Bruce E. Wexler, MD, Professor Emeritus; Senior Research Scientist, Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine; Author, "Neuroplasticity, cultural evolution and cultural differences" (2010, World Cultural Psychiatry Research Review) and Brain and Culture: Neurobiology, Ideology and Social Change (2008)
immordino-yang Cultural Brains: Neural/Behavioral Correlates of Social Emotional Experience in Beijing and LA

Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, EdD, Assistant Professor, Rossier School of Education; Research Assistant Professor, Brain and Creativity Institute, University of Southern California; Editorial Board Member, Journal of Experimental Psychology and Journal of Culture and Brain
klingberg Learning Brains: The Role of Maturation, Parents and Training on Memory/Learning Difficulties

Torkel F. Klingberg, MD, PhD, Professor in Cognitive Neuroscience, Stockholm Brain Institute, Karolinska Institute; Author, The Learning Brain: Memory and Brain Development in Children (2012) and The Overflowing Brain (2008)
kirby and frohock Teaching the Traumatized Brain

Megan Kirby, PsyD;
Clinical Psychologist; Clinical Staff, The Attachment Institute of New England; Former Teacher, Supervisor, Peace Corp Volunteer; EMDR Level II Certified; Clinician, specializing in attachment therapy
and Ken Frohock, LMHC, LRC; Regional Manager, Adoption Journeys Program, offering support to adoptive families at risk for disruption; Counselor; EMDR Level II Certified; Clinician, specializing in domestic violence and addiction

SPECIAL MINDS:
STRATEGIES FOR DIFFERENT LEARNERS AND DEFICITS

herbert The Autism Revolution: Using Whole Brain-Body Strategies

Martha R. Herbert, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School; Director, Treatment Research and Neuroscience Evaluation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders; Co-Author, The Autism Revolution (2012)
semrud Brain Differences and Executive Functions:
Assessment and Interventions for Children with LD, ADHD and Autism


Margaret Semrud-Clikeman, PhD, LP, ABPdN, Professor of Pediatrics; Division Director, Pediatric Clinical Neuroscience, University of Minnesota Medical School; Co-Author, Child Neuropsychology: Assessment and Interventions for Neurodevelopmental Disorders (2009, 2nd Edition)
goldstein How Changing Brains Affect Children's Life Outcomes: The Concept of Genes, Multi-Finality,
Intelligence, Ability, Motivation, Self-Regulation and Executive Function


Sam Goldstein, PhD, Assistant Clinical Instructor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Utah Medical School; Clinical Director, Neurology Learning and Behavior Center; Co-Author, The Handbook of Neurodevelopmental and Genetic Disorders in Children (2010)
sousa How the Diverse, Special-Needs Brain Learns

David A. Sousa, EdD, Consultant; Member, Cognitive Neuroscience Society; Author, How the Brain Learns (2011, 4th Edition), How the ELL Brain Learns (2010) and How the Special Needs Brain Learns (2006); Co-Author, Differentiation and the Brain (2011)
robinson Preparing Children with Autism for Success in the 21st Century: How We Can Rewire the Brain Through Emotionally Meaningful Experiences in the Classroom

Ricki G. Robinson, MD, MPH, Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California; Author, Autism Solutions (2011); Serena Wieder, PhD, Co-Founder, Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders (ICDL); Co-Author, Engaging Autism (2009) and The Child with Special Needs (1998); and Monica G. Osgood, BA, Co-Founder/Executive Director, Celebrate the Children; Director, Developmental Center for Children and Families; Executive Director, Profectum
hill Building Each Student's Cognitive Capacity

Lou Whitaker, EdD,
Principal, Pope John Paul II Catholic School; Former Teacher and Assistant Principal; Former Associate Superintendent for Schools; Archdiocese of Milwaukee and Betsy Hill, MBA, President and COO, Learning Enhancemet Corporation; Former Teacher; Former Board Member, Chicago State University; Faculty, Lake Forest Graduate School of Management; Faculty, University of Illinois at Chicago

SHAPING MINDS:
BENEFITS OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCES ON MINDS AND MEMORY

giedd Male/Female Sex Differences in the Developing Adolescent Brain: Implications for Education

Jay N. Giedd, MD, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist; Chief, Brain Imaging in the Child Psychiatry Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health; Co-Author; "Brain and cognition sex differences in the adolescent brain" (2010, Brain and Cognition) and "Adolescent maturity and the brain" (2009, Journal of Adolescent Health)
kosik Schools and Synapses: Memory, Education and Cognitive Reserve

Kenneth S. Kosik, MD, Co-Director, Neuroscience Research Institute; Harriman Professor of Neuroscience Research, Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara; Co-Author, The Alzheimer's Solution (2010)
cottle Adolescent Brain Maturation and Culture

Thomas J. Cottle, PhD, Professor, School of Education, Boston University; Sociologist; Psychologist; Author, Sense of Self (2003), Beyond Self Esteem (2003) and Mind Fields: Adolescent Consciousness in a Culture of Distraction (2001)
willis How Education Can Best Shape Each Brain's Memory Construction and Durability

Judy A. Willis, MD, EdM, Board-Certified Neurologist; Adjunct Faculty, Graduate School of Education, University of California, Santa Barbara; Author, Learning to Love Math (2011), How Your Child Learns Best (2008) and Brain Friendly Strategies for the Inclusion Classroom (2007)
Learning from Experiences, Experiential Education and Gaming to Improve Memory

Jessica Cruickshank, EdM, Recent Graduate, Mind, Brain and Education Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Vice President, KNOWA Inc; Administrative Director, Solid Rock Outdoor Ministries
The Effects of Experiences on Adolescent Development: Using the I-MAX approach to help at Risk Students

Erich Engelhardt, MA,
EdD candidate, Boston University School of Education; Clinician/Counselor, CASTLE (Clean and Sober Teens Living Empowered), High Point Treatment Center; Counselor /Manager, WestBridge Community Service

MOLDING MINDS:
EARLY EDUCATION, EXPERIENCES AND ADVERSITY

nelson Early Experiences and Adversity on Brain Development and Architecture

Charles A. Nelson, PhD, Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School; Co-Author, "How the timing and quality of early experiences influence the development of brain architecture" (2010, Child Development) and Neuroscience of Cognitive Development: The Role of Experience and the Developing Brain (2006)
mccandliss Socioeconomics Factors Influences in Brain-Behavior Relationships Early in the Education Process

Bruce D. McCandliss, PhD,
Professor of Psychology and Human Development, Psychological Sciences, Vanderbilt University; Author, "Educational neuroscience: The early years" (2010, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences); Co-Author, "Socioeconomic gradients predict individual differences in neurocognitive abilities" (2007, Developmental Science)
hughes What Maria Montessori Got Right and What Developmental Neuroscience Still Can Learn from Her
Steven J. Hughes, PhD, LP, ABPdN,
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Neurology, University of Minnesota Medical School; Director, The Center for Research on Developmental Education; Chair, Association Montessori International Global Research Committee
densmore Your Successful Preschooler: How to Help Young Children Become Confident and Connected

Ann E. Densmore, EdD, CCC-SLP/A, Consultant, Eliot Pearson Children's School, Tufts University; Author, Helping Children with Autism Become More Social (2007); Co-Author, Your Successful Preschooler: Ten Skills Children Need to Become Confident and Socially Engaged (2011)
evans The Environment of Childhood Poverty

Gary W. Evans, PhD, Professor, College of Human Ecology, Cornell University; Author, "Childhood poverty, chronic stress and adult working memory" (2009, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) and "Childhood poverty and health" (2007, Psychological Science)
rushton Shaping the Diverse Brain: Connecting Neuroscience, School Environment and Teaching Practice from Kindergarten to Graduate School

Stephen P. Rushton, PhD; Associate Professor, University of South Florida; Recipient, Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award (2001. 2007); Winner, Outstanding Professor Award (2003); Researcher, focusing on how teachers can become more effective; Author, "Linking brain principles to quality early childhood education" (Exchange, 2011)



Co-Sponsors Include:

  • Mind, Brain and Education Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education
  • Athinoula A. Martinos Imaging Center, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • School of Education, Johns Hopkins University
  • Comer School Development Program, Yale University School of Medicine
  • The Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, The Dana Foundation
  • The Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara
  • Dept. of Speech, Language ghj_amp Hearing Sciences, Sargent College, Boston University
  • National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP)
  • School of Education, Boston University
  • LEARNING ghj_amp the BRAINĀ® Foundation
  • NASSP

For conference updates and information, follow us on Twitter @learningandtheb and hashtag #LB33

Presented by Public Information Resources, Inc.