Frigör den outnyttjade potentialen! – en kvalitativ studie om möjligheterna att etablera ett kollaborativt forskningsfält mellan neurovetenskap, psykologi och pedagogik

Abstract

According to Swedish school authorities and the Education Act all education should be based on science and proven experience (Skolverket, 2020). Scientific based means that knowledge from scientific studies should be a starting point when schools plan, conduct and evaluate their operations. How learning happens has been proven in many research studies, but this knowledge does not seem to filter down to the education programs or to the teacher students. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to investigate and analyze the possibilities of establishing a collaborative field of research between pedagogy, neuroscience, and psychology. Where the different fields of research interact in a fruitful manner and thus develop the knowledge about learning and how this knowledge can improve learning itself. Research questions: “What would be the benefits of establishing a collaborative field of research between neuroscience, pedagogy and psychology”? “What might be the obstacles and barriers in establishing a collaborative field of research between neuroscience, pedagogy and psychology”? Methodology: We have used a qualitative research approach and conducted interviews with eight leading researchers from the fields of neuroscience, psychology, and pedagogy. The interviews were done in a semi structured and elaborative way. Main Results: The study identified benefits on several levels. It would create synergies between different research fields that would increase the knowledge about educational neuroscience which will improve both teacher education and the actual teaching in the classroom. The main identified obstacles were: Different philosophies on how to conduct research creates ideological tensions. There is no common view on what this research field should include which creates confusion. The gap between neuroscience and pedagogy is still wide and need to be bridged with cognitive models from psychology.