What we don’t yet know about cognitive science in the classroom

Dr Thomas Perry, Assistant Professor, University of Warwick To get the benefits from cognitive science we need to talk about what we don't know. Our current knowledge I am really excited about the possibilities of cognitive science. In the EEF review of Cognitive Science in the Classroom (Perry et al., 2021), after locating and reviewing hundreds of classroom studies applying cognitive science, we were convinced that cognitive science can offer significant insights into learning, and that applications of cognitive science have real potential to improve classroom practice. We also concluded, however, that cognitive science was being recommended – and even mandated – before we have a real understanding of how the basic science relating to cognition and memory translates into everyday classroom teaching and learning, across phases and subject areas.  I see far too little discussion of what we don’t know or have wrong about cognitive science and, crucially, its application in