How Educational Theories Can Use Neuroscientific Data

ABSTRACT— Although many articles have addressed the relationship of neuroscience and education at a theoretical level, none has considered as a practical matter how one integrates neuroscientific data into a behavioral theory that uses hypothetical constructs. We describe 4 techniques by which researchers may do so: (a) direct observation of hypothetical constructs in the brain, (b) validation of hypothetical constructs through brain imaging, (c) using neural architecture to infer a behavioral architecture, and (d) using well‐developed knowledge of brain function to select among competing behavioral theories. A detailed examination of these 4 techniques indicates that they are amenable to educational research and, indeed, have been used to inform research and theory. We argue that these techniques are not applicable to all educational research problems, but rather they are appropriate to relatively low‐level behaviors (e.g., reading) rather than complex behaviors (e.g., classroom management).