How can developmental and biological perspectives help us understand learning and behavior of children and adolescents in educational contexts? Our research focuses on social-emotional, motivational and meta-cognitive factors to understand what is needed for children to do well and feel well in school. In addition to child factors, our program increases insights in how individual development is influenced by the environment, such as the peer context in the classroom, and gene-environment interplay. Throughout our work we use, and further develop, research approaches which are ecologically valid (i.e., situated and implemented in real-life settings, rather than lab environments) to ensure our findings have direct relevance for education.
Contact: Elsje van Bergen