About this Event
LARC Book Club Discussion: What About My Mind? (Willingham, Chapter 10)
Most discussions of learning focus on students—but what about teachers?
In this session of the Language Acquisition Research Colloquium (LARC) Book Club, we will explore Chapter 10 of Why Don’t Students Like School? by Daniel Willingham, which shifts the focus to the teacher’s mind. Drawing on cognitive science, Willingham argues that teaching is a complex cognitive skill—one that improves not through experience alone, but through deliberate, reflective practice.
Together, we will:
- Examine teaching through a cognitive science lens (working memory, knowledge, and mental procedures)
- Connect Willingham’s ideas to Shulman’s Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) framework
- Extend the discussion to TPACK, considering how technology intersects with pedagogy and content
- Explore what these frameworks mean specifically for language teaching and learning
- Discuss practical ways to move from “autopilot teaching” to intentional improvement
This session is ideal for:
- Language teachers and teacher educators
- Graduate students in TESOL, applied linguistics, or education
- Anyone interested in how teachers learn to teach better
Come prepared to discuss, reflect, and connect theory to your own teaching practice.
Book Access: Why Don’t Students Like School? (2nd edition) – EbookCentral link
BYU Aims: aims.byu.edu
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Brigham Young University, 4010 JFSB, Provo, United States
USD 0.00
