Julia Harrington - The BrainCanDo Handbook of Teaching and Learning: Practical Strategies to Bring Psychology and Neuroscience into the Classroom

The BrainCanDo Handbook of Teaching and Learning provides teachers and school leaders with a concise summary of how some of the latest research in educational neuroscience and psychology can improve learning outcomes. It aims to create a mechanism through which our growing understanding of the brain can be applied in the world of education. Subjects covered include memory, social development, mindsets and character.

Written by practising teachers working in collaboration with researchers, the chapters provide a toolkit of practical ideas which incorporate evidence from psychology and neuroscience into teaching practice with the aim of improving educational outcomes for all. By increasing both teachers and pupils understanding of the developing brain, BrainCanDo aims to improve cognitive performance and attainment, foster a love of learning and enable a healthy and productive approach to personal development.

This book will appeal to educators, primarily those working in secondary schools, but also those within higher and primary school education. It will also be of interest to students of education, professionals looking to enhance their teaching and researchers working in the fields of education, psychology and neuroscience.

Julia Harrington is headmistress at Queen Annes School and founder and chief executive officer of BrainCanDo. She has featured in and been interviewed by publications and media outlets including the Times, the Telegraph, the Guardian and the BBC.

Jonathan Beale is researcher-in-residence at Eton College, a research fellow for BrainCanDo and head of public speaking at Queen Annes School. He is the co-editor of two books for Routledge: Wittgenstein and Scientism (2017) and Wittgenstein and Contemporary Moral Philosophy (forthcoming 2022). He has published articles on philosophy and education in journals and media outlets, including the New York Times.

Amy Fancourt is head of psychology at Queen Annes School and director of research for BrainCanDo. She has published articles on psychology and education in journals, including Nature Scientific Reports, Frontiers, Psychomusicology, Impact and Mind, Brain and Education, and in media outlets, including the Times.

Catherine Lutz is training and development manager for BrainCanDo and a PhD candidate in psychology at the University of Essex, writing a doctoral thesis on the theme of the motivational role of pregame speeches in relation to elite athletic performance.

First published 2021

by Routledge

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2021 selection and editorial matter, Julia Harrington, Jonathan Beale, Amy Fancourt and Catherine Lutz; individual chapters, the contributors

The right of Julia Harrington, Jonathan Beale, Amy Fancourt and Catherine Lutz to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Harrington, Julia (Headmistress), editor.

Title: The BrainCanDo handbook of teaching and learning : practical strategies to bring psychology and neuroscience into the classroom / Julia Harrington, Jonathan Beale, Amy Fancourt and Catherine Lutz.

Other titles: Brain Can Do handbook of teaching and learning

Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routldge, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references and index. |Identifiers: LCCN 2020008574 | ISBN 9780367187033 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367187057 (paperback) | ISBN 9780429197741 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Educational psychology. | Cognitive neuroscience. | Academic achievementPsychological aspects. | BrainGrowth.

Classification: LCC LB1051 .B4784 2021 | DDC 370.15dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020008574

ISBN: 978-0-367-18703-3 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-367-18705-7 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-0-429-19774-1 (ebk)

Julia Harrington is headmistress at Queen Annes School and founder and chief executive officer of BrainCanDo. She has featured in and been interviewed by publications and media outlets including the Times, the Telegraph, the Guardian and the BBC. She joined Queen Annes School as headmistress in 2006 and founded BrainCanDo in 2013. Prior to joining Queen Annes, she was deputy head at Prior Fields School (20036), where she also taught history and government and politics. Before training as a teacher, she worked for the Independent Television Companies Association and trained as a psychodynamic counsellor.

Jonathan Beale is researcher-in-residence at Eton College, a research fellow for BrainCanDo and head of public speaking at Queen Annes School. He is also a visiting research fellow at the University of Hertfordshire and a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He is the co-editor of two books for Routledge: Wittgenstein and Scientism (2017) and Wittgenstein and Contemporary Moral Philosophy (2022). He has published articles on philosophy and education in academic journals and media outlets, including the New York Times. He taught in the Department of Religion and Philosophy at Queen Annes from 2015 to 2019, the final two years of which he was head of department. He has lectured at the University of Reading and from 2011 to 2013 he was a fellow in philosophy at Harvard University.

Amy Fancourt is head of psychology at Queen Annes School and the director of research for BrainCanDo. She has published articles on psychology and education in journals including NatureScientific Reports, Frontiers, Psychomusicology, Impact and Mind, Brain and Education, and in media outlets including the Times. Prior to joining Queen Annes in 2014, she lectured at Goldsmiths, University of London, for five years, where she completed a PhD in psychology in 2013. Throughout her doctoral studies and in her role for BrainCanDo, Amy has worked to facilitate collaborative research partnerships with leading universities exploring the impact of active musical engagement over adolescence, the role of social networks in motivation contagion and the impact of a later school start time on well-being and cognition.

Catherine Lutz is the training and development manager for BrainCanDo and a PhD candidate in sport and exercise psychology at the University of Essex, writing a doctoral thesis on the motivational role of pre-game speeches in relation to elite athletic performance. Catherine has developed a series of resources for schools and delivers INSET training to staff and pupils in a range of primary and secondary educational settings on areas such as managing performance under pressure and the social brain. Prior to beginning her PhD, Catherine completed an MSc in clinical mental health counselling and an MSc in sport and exercise psychology. She has played professional basketball for six years. She currently plays competitively for the Essex Rebels of the Womens British Basketball League and was recently named an ambassador for Basketball England's All Girls Campaign promoting participation in basketball and a healthy lifestyle.