Thread by @naomicfisher

This is not the case and @tes I think an editorial comment should be added to make this clear. Cognitive science does not show that teacher-led learning is best. 1/

https://twitter.com/tes/status/1450831256070074370

@tes I assume she is referring to the #cogsci models which are theories of information processing. The models themselves are silent on the question of how that information is provided and the context. 2/

@tes Many have extrapolated from the #cogsci models to claim that particular education techniques are based on science, but the evidence for this extrapolation is nothing like as strong as the basic model, as the EEF review by @TWPerry1&colleagues shows. 3/educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/news/new-what-…

@tes @TWPerry1 There is an important difference between a pure scientific model, based on experimental studies, and applied education practice. The #cogsci models are pure science.They are silent on context, emotions, individual differences and many other things. 4/

This isn't a weakness of the model, it's just fact. The #cogsci models set out to explain how our brains process information. They don't set out to measure the role of emotion, personality, autonomy, or even teacher-led instruction, that's just not the aim of the model. 5/

Other cognitive scientists have different models of learning. @AlisonGopnik suggests that children learn as scientists, testing hypotheses, generating new ones, combining what they know with new experiences and new information. 6/blog.dropbox.com/topics/work-cu…

Context matters. Emotions mostly don't come into pure #cogsci studies because they take learning out of context - they bring people into a psych lab.People who are really angry, frustrated, anxious or upset won't be included in the study. Not part of the model.7/

The lack of context in pure #cogsci studies doesn't mean that context doesn't matter for real life learning. @DTWillingham's book makes clear that learning comes from a range of sources, including incidental learning.His model uses 'environment' for input - that is very wide. 8/

Neuroscientists such as @CandleUSC suggest that emotion and cognition are supported by interdependent brain processes and emotions therefore cannot be ignored. 9/ cpb-us-w2.wpmucdn.com/web.sas.upenn.…

@CandleUSC And if emotions are important, then it's never enough to say that one approach fits all, or that teacher-led instruction is the best. How a child feels about what they do is fundamental to the learning process. 10/

Which brings us to autonomy, and how important this is for learning and education. When a person feels that they can make meaningful choices, they learn better and are happier. There are many articles on this topic here. 11/ selfdeterminationtheory.org/education/

So whilst someone might believe that teacher-led instruction is the best way to learn, to claim that cognitive science proves this is a narrow and limited interpretation of only part of the evidence base. It is lacking in context and nuance. 12/

Education and learning in childhood, by contrast, is full of context and nuance. If anything seems too simple and cut-and-dried, that's because it probably is. Life and learning is messy, and so is science. 13/