Executive Function in Education, First Edition: From Theory to Practice

This uniquely integrative book brings together research on executive function processes from leaders in education, neuroscience, and psychology. It focuses on how to apply current knowledge to assessment and instruction with diverse learners, including typically developing children and those with learning difficulties and developmental disabilities. The role of executive function processes in learning is examined and methods for identifying executive function difficulties are reviewed. Chapters describe scientifically grounded models for promoting these key cognitive capacities at the level of the individual child, the classroom, and the entire school. Implications for teaching particular content areas—reading, writing, and math—are also discussed.

Table of Contents:
I. Executive Function: Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks1. Executive Function: Binding together the Definitions of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Learning Disabilities, Martha Bridge Denckla2. "Hill, Skill, and Will": Executive Function from a Multiple-Intelligences Perspective, Seana Moran and Howard Gardner3. Executive Capacities from a Developmental Perspective, Jane Holmes Bernstein and Deborah P. Waber4. Connecting Cognitive Science and Neuroscience to Education: Potentials and Pitfalls in Inferring Executive Processes, Kurt W. Fischer and Samantha G. DaleyII. Executive Function Difficulties in Different Diagnostic Groups: Challenges of Identification and Treatment5. Executive Function Difficulties and Learning Disabilities: Understandings and Misunderstandings, Lynn Meltzer and Kalyani Krishnan6. Nonverbal Learning Disabilities and Executive Function: The Challenges of Effective Assessment and Learning, Judith A. Stein and Kalyani Krishnan7. Executive Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorders: From Research to Practice, Sally Ozonoff and Patricia L. SchetterIII. Interventions to Address Executive Function Processes8. Executive Function in the Classroom: Embedding Strategy Instruction into Daily Teaching Practices, Lynn Meltzer, Laura Sales Pollica, and Mirit Barzillai9. Executive Control of Reading Comprehension in the Elementary School, Irene West Gaskins, Eric Satlow, and Michael Pressley10. Addressing Executive Function Problems in Writing: An Example from the Self-Regulated Strategy Development Model, Steve Graham, Karen R. Harris, and Natalie Olinghouse11. The Strategic Math Classroom: Executive Function Processes and Mathematics Learning, Bethany N. Roditi and Joan Steinberg12. Teaching Metacognitive Strategies That Address Executive Function Processes within a Schoolwide Curriculum, Irene West Gaskins and Michael Pressley13. Deficits in Executive Function Processes: A Curriculum-Based Intervention, David Rose and Katherine Rose

About the Author :
Edited by Lynn Meltzer, PhD, Institute for Learning and Development (ILD) and ResearchILD, Lexington, MA, USA; Harvard Graduate School of Education; and Department of Child Development, Tufts University, USA

Review :
"From an impressive list of contributing authors, this book goes well beyond the traditional 'frontal lobe metaphor' in describing the executive function construct, challenging its conceptualization as a static, unitary skill. In doing so, the contributors consider the unique roles of brain development, personal experience, and the changing demands and supports in the classroom setting. Not only do Meltzer and colleagues explain the role of executive dysfunction in the classroom, they provide explicit strategies for intervention, with clear teaching examples. Hence, this volume will be a welcome resource for educators, psychologists, and other practitioners." - E. Mark Mahone, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, USA "Finally, a book that clearly describes the significant role that executive function plays in learning! More importantly, this book presents very practical suggestions for effectively teaching students to use their executive functions. The contributing authors are among the leading experts in the field." - Donald D. Deshler, Center for Research on Learning, University of Kansas, USA