©
Mikhail Nilov @ Pexels
The Educational Neuroscience Policy Research Centre (ENPRC), led by UCL academics Professor Jo Van Herwegen and Professor Denis Mareschal (Birkbeck, University of London), brings together experts from neuroscience, psychology, learning sciences, AI, genomics, and educational research. Its aim is to translate robust evidence from developmental cognitive neuroscience into better teaching practices, thus improving both learning outcomes and student wellbeing.
The Department for Education has awarded £6 million to establish two new research centres, with approximately £3 million going to the ENPRC. Oxford is one of nine partner universities in the consortium, alongside institutions including Cambridge, Bristol, and Birkbeck.
Professor Scerif will lead the Centre's Early Years strand, working in close collaboration with Professor Sam Wass at the University of East London. The strand will be one of five research themes within the ENPRC, which will also investigate topics ranging from AI and children's learning to early identification of SEND and children's mental health.
Early Education Minister Olivia Bailey welcomed the initiative, saying that decisions "should be rooted in what the evidence tells us actually works for children and young people."
For Oxford's Department of Experimental Psychology, the centre represents an opportunity to connect foundational research on child development directly with national policy, with Professor Scerif's expertise in early years cognition at the heart of that contribution.
More about the UCL initiative can be found in the links below:
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/consultants/news/ucl-led-team-wins-contract-new-educational-neuroscience-centre
UCL-led team wins contract for new educational neuroscience centre
New UCL-led research centres to inform Department for Education policymaking