Kieran O'Mahony

Dr. Kieran O’Mahony is a founding member of the Institute for Connecting Neuroscience with Teaching and Learning (iCNtl)—a Seattlebased nonprofit that provides professional development for K–12 teachers with a view to improving learning outcomes. As a learning scientist with a focus on cognitive neuroscience, Dr. O’Mahony carried out systems research at the University of Washington College of Education LIFE Center (Learning in Informal and Formal Environments), the first NSF-funded Science of Learning Center that studied the social aspects of how children learn. LIFE consisted of a collaborative research team from several universities and research institutes including the following: University of Washington College of Education, Stanford University College of Education, Stanford Research Institute (SRI), and the Institute for Learning and Brain Science at the University of Washington (ILABS). As new knowledge is disseminated and insights are made at the biomolecular level in brain labs, and as research results emerge from modern scanning devices, the iCNtl team translates these findings into practices and processes for teaching and learning. The goal is to discover and invent applications that impact teaching and training in schools and workplaces and at home. Dr. O’Mahony’s other research interests include sociocultural perspectives on cognition, learning, graphical representation, and use of technology in formal and informal learning environments. He explores diffusion of innovations systemically across multiple learning environments and stakeholder communities. In particular, he is interested in teacher/learner interaction across various settings, including multidimensional design-based implementation research in various workplace and academic institutions.

Website: http://neuraleducation.org