Evolution of the Learning Brain

Paul Howard-Jones is Professor of Neuroscience and Education at the School of Education, University of Bristol. He is a cognitive neuroscientist, educational expert and broadcaster.

• List of Figures Acknowledgements Chapter 1. The Idea of Evolution Chapter 2. Origins Chapter 3. The Vertebrate Brain Chapter 4. The Social Primate Chapter 5. Homo – Social Cooperative Learners Chapter 6. Speech Chapter 7. The Arrival of Numeracy Chapter 8. The Emergence of the Written Word Chapter 9. Evolution Meets Education Chapter 10. The Future of the Learning Brain References

"In Evolution of the Learning Brain, Howard-Jones provides an accessible introduction to the evolution of the nervous system and brain – hoping, perhaps, to provide readers with a more accurate model of how the brain learns. Channelling the spirit of David Attenborough, he leads us through an evolutionary history of life on Earth, dropping into the timeline at various points to talk about what is happening to the brain and nervous system."— Nick Rose, TES"In short, Paul Howard-Jones has provided us with a book which is extremely readable, provides an illuminating perspective on learning and offers much food for thought. It is certainly worth reading and is likely to become ‘well-thumbed’ as time goes on and it is referred to it again and again." — Professor Derek Bell, Learnus