week 5

Question 1

automatic learning

Answer 1

evolutionarily important info (e.g., language, faces)

Question 2

difficult learning

Answer 2

culturally recent info (e.g., reading, math)

Question 3

Executive Functions (EFs)

Answer 3

EFs are mental skills needed when “autopilot” isn’t enough.
Key for success in school, jobs, health, and life.

Question 4

executive functions

Answer 4

wm
inhibition
cognitive flexbility

Question 5

Working Memory (WM)

Answer 5

Mental workspace for “maintenance” and “manipulation”

Limited capacity (3–4 chunks!)

Brain: PFC (goal setting), sensory areas (maintenance), parietal cortex (attention)

Question 6

Inhibition

Answer 6

Suppress distractions, impulses

Question 7

inhibition types

Answer 7

Cognitive inhibition (thoughts)
b. Response inhibition (actions)

Linked to self-control

Question 8

Cognitive Flexibility

Answer 8

Switch tasks/perspectives

Enables problem-solving, creative thinking

Question 9

cognitive load theory

Answer 9

learning suffers if working memory is overloaded

->educational material should take into account limited WM capacity

Question 10

three twos of wm load

Answer 10

intrinsic cognitive load
extraneous cog load
germane cog load

Question 11

intrinsic cognitive load

Answer 11

required by task

Question 12

extraneous cogntiive load

Answer 12

wm load that does not contribute to learning the task or forming a schema

irrelevant distraction

Question 13

germane cognitive load

Answer 13

wm load that is nec/useful for learning (building schemas in ltm)

Question 14

critque on wm as a container

Answer 14

container for info is too simplistic
- wm is the active maintenance of connections in LTM

Question 15

interference control

Answer 15

inhibition of thoughts/memories

Question 16

response inhibition

Answer 16

inhibition of behaiour / self control

Question 17

inhibition self control strategies

Answer 17

Question 18

what provides
the basis for cognitive flexibility

Answer 18

wm and inhibition

Question 19

cognitive flexibility

Answer 19

changing perspectives or approaches to a problem, flexibility adjusting to new demands, rule or priorities

Question 20

higher level executive functions

Answer 20

planning
reasoning
problem solving

Question 21

What is the role of the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex (DLPFC)?

Answer 21

Manipulation and coordination of information.

Question 22

What does the Ventrolateral Prefrontal Cortex (VLPFC) do?

Answer 22

Retrieval and maintenance of information.

Question 23

What is the function of the anterior Prefrontal Cortex (aPFC)?

Answer 23

Handles higher-order goals and abstract planning.

Question 24

What is the role of the Orbitofrontal Cortex (OFC)?

Answer 24

Control over emotional stimuli and reward-related decision-making.

Question 25

What does the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) do?

Answer 25

Monitors conflict and errors, supports attention and performance regulation

Question 26

Which information is being encoded?

Answer 26

info that is relevant understandable fits w existing knowledge or surprising (large prediction error)

Question 27

predicition

Answer 27

Making a statement about a future event based on available information and understanding.

Question 28

postdiction

Answer 28

Explaining or inferring the cause, nature, or characteristics of a past event based on current observations or information.

Question 29

How generating predictions may boost learning

Answer 29

Surprise may benefit learning by increasing attention to the presented information predictions may enhance the strength of activation and thus the strength or surprise if the info is unexpected

Question 30

Consolidation

Answer 30

Shift from effortful/strategic to automatic processing How? 1. Practice: repetition 2. Sleep

Question 31

Q: How does prediction support learning?

Answer 31

Predictions boost learning by increasing surprise and attention when outcomes differ from expectations.

Question 32

What is deliberate practice?

Answer 32

Structured, goal-driven practice with feedback, outside your comfort zone, aimed at building mental models.

Question 33

What is the research question? Does the type of schooling (Montessori vs. traditional) influence how children monitor and respond to errors, both behaviorally and in the brain?

Answer 33

Yes. The study investigates how pedagogical approach affects error monitoring and its neural correlates in 8–12-year-old children.

Question 34

Why is studying error monitoring in education important?

Answer 34

Error monitoring is vital for learning and academic success. Different teaching styles may shape how children detect and learn from mistakes, which can influence both their thinking patterns and brain development.

Question 35

What was the study’s method?

Answer 35

32 children from Montessori and traditional Swiss schools (ages 8–12) completed a math task during fMRI scanning. Behavioral measures: accuracy, skipped trials, reaction time. Brain measures: activation during correct/incorrect responses and functional connectivity of error-related brain regions (e.g., ACC).

Question 36

What were the main results?

Answer 36

Behaviorally: Montessori kids responded faster, skipped fewer trials, made more errors (engaged more). Neurally: Montessori group: Greater activity in math/executive regions and stronger ACC–frontal connectivity after errors. Traditional group: Stronger ACC–hippocampus connectivity after correct responses. All children showed more brain activation for correct than incorrect answers.

Question 37

What do the findings mean scientifically and practically?

Answer 37

Scientific: Learning environments shape neural pathways for error monitoring. Practical: Montessori may better support exploratory, self-corrective learning. Traditional schools could benefit from incorporating more feedback that promotes reflection and autonomy.

Question 38

What were the study’s limitations?

Answer 38

No random school assignment—possible selection bias. Small sample size (32). Cross-sectional design (no long-term data). Focused only on math tasks. No adult comparison to confirm developmental patterns.