| 1. |
- Karlsson Wirebring, Linnea, 1979-, et al.
(författare)
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An fMRI intervention study of creative mathematical reasoning : behavioral and brain effects across different levels of cognitive ability
- 2022
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Ingår i: Trends in Neuroscience and Education. - : Elsevier. - 2452-0837 .- 2211-9493. ; 29
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Many learning methods of mathematical reasoning encourage imitative procedures (algorithmic reasoning, AR) instead of more constructive reasoning processes (creative mathematical reasoning, CMR). Recent research suggest that learning with CMR compared to AR leads to better performance and differential brain activity during a subsequent test. Here, we considered the role of individual differences in cognitive ability in relation to effects of CMR.Methods: We employed a within-subject intervention (N=72, MAge=18.0) followed by a brain-imaging session (fMRI) one week later. A battery of cognitive tests preceded the intervention. Participants were divided into three cognitive ability groups based on their cognitive score (low, intermediate and high).Results: On mathematical tasks previously practiced with CMR compared to AR we observed better performance, and higher brain activity in key regions for mathematical cognition such as left angular gyrus and left inferior/middle frontal gyrus. The CMR-effects did not interact with cognitive ability, albeit the effects on performance were driven by the intermediate and high cognitive ability groups.Conclusions: Encouraging pupils to engage in constructive processes when learning mathematical reasoning confers lasting learning effects on brain activation, independent of cognitive ability. However, the lack of a CMR-effect on performance for the low cognitive ability group suggest future studies should focus on individualized learning interventions, allowing more opportunities for effortful struggle with CMR.
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| 2. |
- Karlsson Wirebring, Linnea, et al.
(författare)
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Learning mathematics without a suggested solution method : durable effects on performance and brain activity
- 2015
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Ingår i: Trends in Neuroscience and Education. - : Elsevier. - 2211-9493 .- 2452-0837. ; 4:1-2, s. 6-14
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A dominant mathematics teaching method is to present a solution method and let pupils repeatedly practice it. An alternative method is to let pupils create a solution method themselves. The current study compared these two approaches in terms of lasting effects on performance and brain activity. Seventythree participants practiced mathematics according to one of the two approaches. One week later, participants underwent fMRI while being tested on the practice tasks. Participants who had created the solution method themselves performed better at the test questions. In both conditions, participants engaged a fronto-parietal network more when solving test questions compared to a baseline task. Importantly, participants who had created the solution method themselves showed relatively lower brain activity in angular gyrus, possibly reflecting reduced demands on verbal memory. These results indicate that there might be advantages to creating the solution method oneself, and thus have implications for the design of teaching methods.
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| 3. |
- Mc Ewen, Birgitta
(författare)
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Epigenetics and Learning
- 2015
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Ingår i: Trends in Neuroscience and Education. - : Elsevier. - 2452-0837 .- 2211-9493. ; 4:4, s. 108-111
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)
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| 4. |
- Skau, Simon, et al.
(författare)
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Proactive cognitive control, mathematical cognition and functional activity in the frontal and parietal cortex in primary school children: An fNIRS study
- 2022
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Ingår i: Trends in Neuroscience and Education. - : Elsevier BV. - 2452-0837 .- 2211-9493. ; 28
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Understanding how children acquire mathematical abilities is fundamental to planning mathematical schooling. This study focuses on the relationships between mathematical cognition, cognition in general and neural foundation in 8 to 9-year-old children. We used additive mathematics tests, cognitive tests determining the tendency for proactive and reactive problem solving and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) for functional brain imaging. The ability to engage in pro-active control had a stronger association with mathematical performance than other cognitive abilities, such as processing speed, sustained attention and pattern recognition. The fNIRS method identified differences between proactive and reactive control, i.e., the more proactive the children were, the greater the increase in oxygenated hemoglobin in the left lateral prefrontal cortex during reactive beneficiary situations. During a text-based task involving additive reasoning, increased activity in the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex was detected compared to a similar task with supportive spatial-geometric information.
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| 5. |
- van den Broek, Gesa, et al.
(författare)
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Neurocognitive mechanisms of the "testing effect" : a review
- 2016
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Ingår i: Trends in Neuroscience and Education. - : Elsevier. - 2452-0837 .- 2211-9493. ; 5:2, s. 52-66
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Memory retrieval is an active process that can alter the content and accessibility of stored memories. Of potential relevance for educational practice are findings that memory retrieval fosters better retention than mere studying. This so-called testing effect has been demonstrated for different materials and populations, but there is limited consensus on the neurocognitive mechanisms involved. In this review, we relate cognitive accounts of the testing effect to findings from recent brain-imaging studies to identify neurocognitive factors that could explain the testing effect. Results indicate that testing facilitates later performance through several processes, including effects on semantic memory representations, the selective strengthening of relevant associations and inhibition of irrelevant associations, as well as potentiation of subsequent learning.
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| 6. |
- Vestergren, Peter, 1974-, et al.
(författare)
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Testing alters brain activity during subsequent restudy : Evidence for test-potentiated encoding
- 2014
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Ingår i: Trends in Neuroscience and Education. - : Elsevier. - 2211-9493. ; 3:2, s. 69-80
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mixed testing/studying lead to better memory retention compared to repeated study only. A potentiating influence of tests on encoding, particularly during restudy of non-retrieved items, may contribute to this effect. This study investigated whether and how testing affects brain activity during subsequent restudy of Swahili–Swedish word pairs after a cued-recall test. Item-events during fMRI were categorized according to history (tested/studied only) and recall outcome at prescan and postscan tests. Activity was higher for tested compared to studied-only items in anterior insula, orbital parts of inferior frontal gyrus and hippocampus, and lower in regions implicated in the default network, such as precuneus, supramarginal gyrus and the posterior middle cingulate. Findings are discussed in terms of top-down biasing of attention to tested items with concomitant deactivation of regions in the default network. Increased/focused attention to tested items during restudy may lead to test-potentiated encoding via deeper semantic processing and increased associative binding.
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