Education And Psychology

A new Peabody study found that early spatial ability – the skill required to mentally manipulate 2D and 3D objects – predicts the development of new knowledge, and especially innovation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) domains, above and beyond more traditional measures of mathematical and verbal ability. Read More

A common reading disorder goes undiagnosed until it becomes problematic, according to the results of five years of study performed by researchers at Peabody College of education and human development. Read More

A new approach to teaching pre-kindergarten could take a bite out of the achievement gap and level the playing field for America’s growing population of English language learners, according to a recently published study by researchers at Vanderbilt’s Peabody College. Read More

What exactly pushed Christopher Columbus to embark on a voyage across the Atlantic, or Edward Jenner to test his theory for an early smallpox vaccine on a child, or Henry Ford to bet that automobiles could replace horses? David Zald, professor of psychology, studies risk-taking and is quoted. Read More

Kindergarten teachers report spending much of their math instructional time teaching students basic counting skills and how to recognize geometric shapes—skills the students have already mastered before ever setting foot in the kindergarten classroom, new research finds. Read More

The latest research on the nation’s key education issues will be presented by Vanderbilt University Peabody College faculty April 27 - May 1 at the American Educational Research Association’s annual conference in San Francisco. Read More

The American Educational Research Association (AERA) will present its 2013 Outstanding Book Award to Vanderbilt University professor Christopher Loss for "Between Citizens and the State: The Politics of American Higher Education in the 20th Century." Read More

Velma McBride Murry is the recipient of the Society for Research in Child Development’s 2013 Distinguished Contributions to Cultural and Contextual Factors in Child Development Award presented April 18 at SRCD’s biennial meeting in Seattle. Read More

In the fall of 2012, Vanderbilt launched the nation’s first educational neuroscience doctoral program. This interdisciplinary program brings together Vanderbilt’s Peabody College of education and human development and the Vanderbilt Brain Institute to research educational issues within the context of brain science. Read More

Addressing demographic shifts, revamping school governance and improving public communication are among the recommendations made for Metro Nashville Public Schools by Claire Smrekar, associate professor of leadership, policy and organization, Vanderbilt senior Hilary Knudson and Candice McQueen, dean of education at David Lipscomb University, in a new report. Read More

Young children—even toddlers—are spending more and more time with digital technology. What will it mean for their development? Georgene Troseth, associate professor of psychology, has studied how toddlers interact with screens and is quoted. Read More

While critics of expanded preschool argue that their cognitive effects fade out after the first few years of schooling, they ignore a body of longer-term evidence that indicates impoverished students who experience a high-quality preschool program are less likely to repeat grades, to spend time in special education, to become teen parents or to get arrested, writes Camilla Benbow, Patricia and Rodes Hart Dean of Education and Human Development. Read More

To help ease youth with disabilities' transition into adult life, Erik Carter and Carolyn Hughes have developed a model that combines skill development with support, strategies they outline in a new handbook. Read More

Three widely implemented practices intended to strengthen teaching actually do more to undermine professionalism and demoralize teachers, according to Richard Milner, associate professor of education in Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development. Read More

When new state standards and high-stakes testing have raised the bar for all students, how can teachers increase the rigor of mathematics instruction while keeping it accessible to a broader range of classroom learners? Collaborative learning is one answer, according to Ilana Horn, associate professor of mathematics education at Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development. Read More

Watch a panel discussion on the effects of early intervention on children living in poverty hosted by the Peabody Research Institute March 18 at The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons. Read More

Double major students may be the innovative thinkers society needs to tackle the complex problems of the 21st century, Vanderbilt sociologists Richard Pitt and Steven Tepper argue in a new report. Read More

Peabody professors Paul Yoder and Ann Kaiser have received Autism Centers of Excellence grants to study language interventions for young children with autism. Read More

Peabody Professor Christopher Loss addresses the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA) act, speculating what this new regulatory regime might look like. Read More

New research by Ron Zimmer may shed some light on the debate among state lawmakers over whether to create a state-level charter authorizer, which could open the door to more charter schools in Nashville and Memphis. Read More