Welcome

The National Research and Development Center on Cognition and Science was created by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute for Educational Sciences to further the goal of creating a scientifically literate citizenry which is able to meet the demands of the 21st Century. The Center’s work focuses on applying the lens of cognitive science to existing middle school science curricula in an effort to improve student learning of science.  Below is a list of the Center's publications and presentations.
 

REPORTS

Golfing in a Hurricane: Education System Instability, Randomized Controlled Trials, and Children’s Achievement

Authors: Robert F. Boruch, Andrew C. Porter (University of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, PA), and F. Joseph Merlino (The 21^st Century Partnership for STEM Education: Conshohocken, PA)

This report summarizes and extends ideas that have emerged from a large-scale cluster randomized trial on improvements to science curriculum for middle school children. We focus on instability in four school districts in which the trial was mounted, the implications for mounting further trials, and some implications beyond trials. The report expands on a commentary developed by Boruch, Merlino, and Porter (2012) for Education Week.

NSTA 2012 Presentations - Indianapolis

Middle School Biology and Geology: Increasing Student Learning Through Increasing Teacher Content Knowledge

Author: Bates Mandel and Susan Holmes (The 21st Century Partnership for STEM Education: Conshohocken, PA)

In these presentation, the authors review the structure of an upcoming study designed to answer the following questions:

1. Does deepening teachers’ knowledge of the science they are teaching  lead to increased student achievement?

2. Does giving teachers science unit materials modified using cognitive principles and providing professional development on how to implement the modifications lead to increased student achievement?

The studies will be conducted in large urban middle school geology and biology courses using commercially available curriculum.

Download the PowerPoint Presentations:
   NSTA 2012_Study of CogSci in Biology
   NSTA 2012_Study of CogSci in Geology

Cognitive Science Learning Principles in Action: Visualization

Authors: Nora S. Newcombe (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA)

Teaching students to decode Visualizations is a cognitive science, research-based learning principle that increases student learning in science. Find out how to embed it in your teaching!  (Download this presentation)

Using Cognitive Science to Improve Science Learning

Author: Donna Cleland (The 21st Century Partnership for STEM Education: Conshohocken, PA)

This PowerPoint presentation is from a NSTA session that engaged participants in four research-based cognitive science learning principles and how to embed them in existing science curricula. After experiencing learning science through activities using these principles, participants developed similar modifications for their own science materials.  (Download this presentation)

Conceptual Learning Challenges in Learning Progressions: Their use in Spaced Assessment

Author: Christine M. Massey (University of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, PA)

Using Spaced Assessment is a cognitive science, research-based learning principle that increases student retention. During this NSTA presentation Christine Massey examined formative assessment practices that can help teachers understand what their students have "MIS"understood.  (Download this presentation)

More Best Practices

Author: Donna P. Cleland (The 21st Century Partnership for STEM Education: Conshohocken, PA)

In this session, the Center shared seven cognitive science based recommendations for organizing instruction to improve student learning.  The presentation also include a brief overview of related research and strategies for classroom implementation. (Download this presentation)

NSF-OECD 2012 Presentations – Paris, France

Increasing Spatial Learning in Formal and Informal Settings

Authors: Nora S. Newcombe (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA) (Download this presentation)

SREE 2011 Presentations – Washington, DC

Using Research on Analogical Reasoning, Diagrammatic Reasoning, and Prior Knowledge to Improve Middle School Science Outcomes

Authors: Nora S. Newcombe (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA)

There have often been complaints about the lack of implementation of basic research findings from cognitive science into curricula. We are conducting a large research study to examine whether systematic modification of middle school science curricula using general cognitive science principles can significantly improve student learning in large urban school districts. A team of cognitive scientists is collaborating to systematically modify 3 curriculum units in common textbook for teaching science and 3 curriculum units in a common hands-on science curriculum. The modifications are based primarily on four main principles derived from cognitive science research: contrasting cases setup instruction, visualization conventions and challenges need to be explicitly address in instruction, instruction must build upon and address student prior knowledge, and spaced testing improves retention. We describe the foundations of these principles and provide examples of how these principles were used to modify the science curricula. This study presents an opportunity to test the cumulative benefit of basic cognitive science research applies to science education rather than just laboratory demonstrations.  (Download this presentation)

APS 2011 Presentations – Washington, DC

Contrasting Cases Can Facilitate Hands-on Middle School Science Learning at Scale

Authors: Christian D. Schunn, J. Elizabeth Richey and Louis Alfieri (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA)

Contrasting cases were added to the beginning of extended investigations in an existing hands-on, month-long middle school science unit. A large-scale field experiment assessed student learning and found improved learning outcomes for the following: Focal concepts in the cases, material that built up on the cases, and broader concepts from the unit.  (Download this presentation)

AERA 2011 Presentations – New Orleans, LA

Teaching Middle School Students to Reason With Visual Representations in Science

Authors: Jennifer G. Cromley, Nora Newcombe, Theodore W. Wills, Melanie Wills, Melissa Karakus and Michael Batchelor (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA)

As part of the 21st Century Center on Cognition and Science Instruction, 3 textbooks/modules each were modified from both traditional and inquiry-based middle-school science curricula, using principles regarding reasoning with diagrams and other visual representations. Why and how the 6 curricular units were modified is described.  (Download this presentation)

IES 2011 Presentations – Washington, DC

Introduction to CaSE

Authors: Christian D. Schunn (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA) and Christine M. Massey (University of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, PA) (Download this presentation)

CSS 2010 Presentations – Portland, OR

Using Analogical Learning in Science Curricula to Improve Conceptual Understanding

Authors: J. Elizabeth Richey, Alicia Chang, Timothy J. Nokes, Christian D. Schunn (University of Pittsburg, Pittsburgh, PA) (Download this presentation)

IES 2010 Presentations – National Harbor, MD

Improving Diagrammatic Reasoning in Middle School Science Students

Authors: Jennifer G. Cromley, Nora Newcombe (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA), Christian D. Schunn (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA) and Christine M. Massey (University of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, PA)

Middle school students who completed an 11-week diagrams interventions showed greater achievement in content and in transfer of diagrammatic reasoning that did students in no-treatment control groups. (Download this presentation)

AERA 2010 Presentations – Denver, CO

Translational Science of Cognitive Science in Middle School Science Curricula

Authors: Christian D. Schunn (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA), F. Joseph Merlino (LaSalle University: Philadelphia, PA), Jennifer G. Cromley (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA), Christine M. Massey (University of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, PA), Nora Newcombe (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA) and Timothy J. Nokes (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA) (Download this presentation)

Designing a Mixed-Methods Evaluation to Measure the Impacts of Modified Middle School Science Curricula

Authors: Morgan S. Polikoff, Rebecca A. Maynard and Robert Boruch (University of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, PA)

This paper begins by laying out the foundational conditions that shaped the impact evaluation design and discussing their implications for designing the study sample and data collection plan. It then proceeds to a discussion of the sample and timeline of the parallel randomized trials. Finally, the planned analytical strategies are discussed. (Download this presentation)

WPA 2010 Presentations – Cancun, Mexico

Scaffolding Middle School Science Learning with Contrasting Cases

Authors: Alicia Chang, Timothy J. Nokes and Christian D. Schunn (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA) (Download this presentation)

PSA 2009 Presentations – Boston, MA

Using Cognitive Science to Improve Middle School Science Learning

Authors: Alicia Chang, Timothy J. Nokes and Christian D. Schunn (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA) (Download this presentation)

IES 2009 Presentations – Washington, DC

Cognitive Science Applied to Middle School Science Curricula

Authors: Christian D. Schunn (University of Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, PA), Christine M. Massey (University of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, PA), Nora Newcombe and Jennifer G. Cromley (Temple University: Philadelphia, PA) (Downlaod this presentation)