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Research Article Open Access

Mathematics teachers' opinions after training on educational neuroscience

Zeynep Altuntaş Zeynep Altuntaş Corresponding Author Institute Of Social Sciences, Department Of Primary Education, Ordu University, Ordu, Türkiye ORCID 0000-0001-8636-6211 View Profile , Gökhan Özsoy Gökhan Özsoy Faculty Of Education, Department Of Primary Education, Ordu University, Ordu, Türkiye ORCID 0000-0002-1250-624X View Profile , Süleyman Erkam Sulak Süleyman Erkam Sulak Faculty Of Education, Department Of Primary Education, Ordu University, Ordu, Türkiye ORCID 0000-0003-4042-891X View Profile

Abstract

Educational neuroscience is a multidisciplinary field established to provide assistance to students by bringing together neuroscience, cognitive psychology and pedagogy. With the development of this field, it is likely that different approaches such as the creation of student-centered education models that appeal to different intelligence types will be applied in education. Educational neuroscience aims to understand the practices and methods in education by examining brain activity, learning processes and mental functions, and thus to create a more supportive learning environment in school environments. One way to adapt the findings obtained from neuroscience studies to education is to first inform the teacher about the basic information of the educational neuroscience approach. In this direction, the aim of the research conducted is to examine the views of mathematics teachers after the training application on educational neuroscience. In this study, a case study, which is one of the qualitative research methods, was preferred. The data of the study were obtained from mathematics teachers working in different schools, determined through easily accessible case sampling, which is one of the purposeful sampling methods. The teachers participating in the research consist of 10 people, 2 of whom have a master's degree, 1 of whom is doing a master's degree, and 7 of whom have a bachelor's degree. The findings reveal that teachers have a positive perception of the connection between neuroscience and education. In addition, the teachers particularly emphasized that educators, neuroscientists and other relevant experts should work together for the development and applicability of educational neuroscience. Teachers commented on the application of neuroscience data to educational practice in terms of mathematics lessons, such as making mathematical knowledge permanent and determining which students should use mathematical teaching materials more. It is recommended that teachers and researchers work collaboratively to advance the developing field of educational neuroscience.
Keywords: Mathematics teachers Neuroscience Educational neuroscience Teacher training Teacher opinion

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