Uncommon Sense Teaching: Practical Insights in Brain Science to Help Students Learn

Top 10 Pick for Learning Ladders’ Best Books for Educators Summer 2021

A groundbreaking guide to improve teaching based on the latest research in neuroscience, from the bestselling author of A Mind for Numbers.

Neuroscientists and cognitive scientists have made enormous strides in understanding the brain and how we learn, but little of that insight has filtered down to the way teachers teach. Uncommon Sense Teaching applies this research to the classroom for teachers, parents, and anyone interested in improving education. Topics include:

  •  keeping students motivated and engaged, especially with online learning
  •  helping students remember information long-term, so it isn't immediately forgotten after a test
  •  how to teach inclusively in a diverse classroom where students have a wide range of abilities

Drawing on research findings as well as the authors' combined decades of experience in the classroom, Uncommon Sense Teaching equips readers with the tools to enhance their teaching, whether they're seasoned professionals or parents trying to offer extra support for their children's education.

Barbara Oakley, PhD, is the bestselling author of A Mind for Numbers and a professor of engineering at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan. Her research involves bioengineering with an emphasis on neuroscience and cognitive psychology. Dr. Oakley is an internationally recognized expert on learning and on creating high-quality online materials for massive open online courses (MOOCs). With Terrence Sejnowski, she teaches one of the world's most popular MOOCs, called Learning How to Learn. Dr. Oakley has received many awards for her teaching, including the American Society of Engineering Education's Chester F. Carlson Award for technical innovation in education, the National Science Foundation New Century Scholar Award, and the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education.

Beth Rogowsky, EdD, is a professor of education at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. In addition to completing postdoctoral training in neuroscience, she has fourteen years of experience teaching English language arts to middle-schoolers in rural and urban public schools.

Terrence Sejnowski, PhD, is the Francis Crick Professor at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, where he directs the Computational Neurobiology Laboratory. He is among only twelve living scientists who have been elected to the Institute of Medicine, the National Academy of Sciences, and the National Academy of Engineering.