Why Mind, Brain, and Education? Why Now?

Volume 1—Number 1 © 2007 the Authors Journal Compilation © 2007 International Mind, Brain, and Education Society and Blackwell Publishing, Inc. 1 The International Mind, Brain, and Education Society has launched Mind, Brain, and Education to promote the integration of the diverse disciplines that investigate human learning and development — to bring together education, biology, and cognitive science to form the new fi eld of mind, brain, and education. Human beings are unique in their ability to learn through schooling and diverse kinds of cultural instruction. Education plays a key role in cultural transformations: It allows members of a society, the young in particular, to effi ciently acquire an ever-evolving body of knowledge and skills that took thousands of years to invent. It is time for education, biology, and cognitive science to join together to create a new science and practice of learning and development. The remarkable new tools of biology and cognitive science open vast possibilities for this emerging fi eld. The discovery of powerful brain-imaging tools; the remarkable, burgeoning discoveries that are transforming genetics; and the growing power of methods for assessing cognition, emotion, and learning make possible an alliance that can illuminate human learning and development (Fischer, Immordino-Yang, & Waber, 2007; Stern, 2005). As hidden processes in the brain and body become visible, researchers and educators can begin to observe the biological effects of educational interventions and relate them to outcomes in learning and development. This new approach can simultaneously inform effective practice and build fundamental knowledge about the ways that children and adults learn and develop. What enables human beings to acquire cultural tools like writing and mathematics and to build and use knowledge in science and the arts that goes far beyond their personal experience? What are the principles for designing schools and other educational settings to optimize effective learning and healthy development? Answering key questions about mind, brain, and education requires reciprocal interaction between scientifi c research and practical knowledge of educators and caregivers. There must be a dynamic interaction between scientifi c research and practical knowledge, with practice shaping scientifi c questions as much as research shapes practice. For example, research in neuroscience and genetics gains different meanings and values as educators and caregivers translate it to practice, connecting it to the ways that children act and learn in schools and communities. Reading a book in school or at home is not the same as reading words in a laboratory study of reaction time. Adding brain imaging or genetic analysis may illuminate the reaction-time processes, but it will not bridge the distance from reactions to words in the laboratory to reading in a classroom or a living room. “ Results from such a laboratory context seldom apply felicitously to the classroom ” (Fischer et al., 2007, p. 4). There can be no direct transfer of insights from neuroscience and genetics to classroom practice, but only transfer mediated through a joining of practice with research. To connect mind, biology, and education, research must move beyond the ivory tower into real-life settings, and educational practices must be available for scientifi c scrutiny (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000; Snow, Burns, & Griffi n, 1998). Such a reciprocal process between research and practice is at the foundation of modern medicine, where medical practice is grounded in biology and, at the same time, medical applications of biological knowledge require independent empirical tests. For scientists to carry out useful research for education and for teachers to optimally educate based on research evidence require interweaving the perspectives of research and practice. Biology and cognitive science have as much to learn from education as education has to learn from them. During recent decades, various scientifi c fi elds have advanced the understanding of human learning and development. Empirical research on the effectiveness of schooling and education has become more common, thanks in part to international comparisons of school achievement and classroom Why Mind, Brain, and Education ? Why Now?