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Principals learn about neuroscience

Posted on February 9, 2010, 7:07am

More than 100 education leaders from across the Limestone Coast converged on Mount Gambier City Hall yesterday and Sunday for a conference focused on tapping into neuroscience research to enhance classroom learning.

Renowned scientist Martin Westwell, director of the Flinders Centre for Science Education in the 21st Century, discussed recent studies and their implications for children.

“What we’re talking about is the evidence from neuroscientific research into learning and what happens to the brain when learning is taking place,” Dr Westwell said.

“Team leaders know their kids, communities and education, but coming at learning from a different perspective of neuroscience allows them to perhaps think about things in a slightly different way.”

Department of Education and Children’s Services Limestone Coast regional director Garry Costello said around 120 people attended the event, including principals, deputy principals, school directors and other leaders from the primary, secondary and pre-school sectors.

Dr Westwell completed his PhD at Cambridge University before undertaking research projects at Oxford University and has won numerous awards for communicating science to non-scientists, including being named The Times newspaper’s Scientist of the New Century in 1999.

He moved to Adelaide in 2007 and was previously involved with South East schools as part of the Learning to Learn program a few years ago.

He said increasing scientific knowledge could promote strategic shifts for educators and leave them better equipped for curriculum planning and meeting the needs of children.

“Kids sometimes don’t get the opportunity to practice sustaining attention, controlling their thinking and those sort of things,” Dr Westwell said.

“What we’re seeing with neuroscience is that can be taught and developed with kids and when you do that it makes a big difference in terms of outcomes.”

McDonald Park School principal Sandy Davey, who is also chairperson of the Limestone Coast Leaders executive that arranged the forum, said a conference was held at the start of each year by the group, which also met twice per term.

“It is great to start the school with this type of inspiration,” she said.

Millicent North kindergarten director Charmaine Koch said the forum expanded her understanding of learning, which would help in her work with children and their families.

“How do you teach children to learn if you don’t know how we learn and the brain works?” she said.

Keith Area School principal Steve Bennett said theory explained by Dr Westwell was well matched by his co-speaker’s discussion of classroom applications.

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Comments

One Response to “Principals learn about neuroscience”

  1. Pyrrho on February 9th, 2010 12:09 pm 1

    What a fantastic concept.
    This should be a front page headline.

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