Year: 2020
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: Students are encountering media reports of cutting-edge technologies, such as brain-computer interfaces, deep brain stimulation, retinal implants, and smart prosthetic limbs, that make neural engineering a high-interest topic for the science classroom. The field of sensorimotor neural engineering brings together experts from across disciplines to develop innovative solutions to restore or enhance sensorimotor functions in the human nervous system. Engineers, scientists, ethicists, practitioners, and end-users come together to design device and therapies for neurological disorders such as stroke, Parkinson’s disease, and spinal cord injuries. A growing library of teacher-authored neural engineering curriculum units is available for free to secondary science teachers. For the past six years, the Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering at the University of Washington has hosted a Research Experience for Teachers (RET) program that engages secondary science teachers in a seven-week research experience paired with curriculum design. Each RET cohort designs, pilots, revises, and publishes one or more curriculum units. These units are aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards and provide suggestions on integrating neuroscience content with contemporary science topics through the use of engineering design challenges. Currently available curriculum units span one to two weeks of classroom instruction. The study of bioethics is integrated into the units through the use of case studies, articles, and discussions. These curriculum units engage students in designing and building models of neuroprosthetic devices, artificial neural networks, sensory substitution devices, and more.
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--30834
Authors: Kristen Bergsman, Eric Chudler
Institution: University of Washington
Language: English
Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2946937342