Inter-brain coupling reflects disciplinary differences in real-world classroom learning

Abstract

The classroom is the primary site for learning. A vital feature of classroom learning is the division of educational content into various disciplines. While disciplinary differences could substantially influence the learning process toward success, little is known about the neural mechanism underlying successful disciplinary learning. In the present study, wearable EEG devices were used to record a group of high school students during their classes of a soft (Chinese) and a hard (Math) discipline throughout one semester. Inter-brain coupling analysis was conducted to characterize students’ classroom learning process. The students with higher scores in the Math final exam were found to have stronger inter-brain couplings to the class (i.e., all the other classmates), whereas the students with higher scores in Chinese were found to have stronger inter-brain couplings to the top students in the class. These differences in inter-brain couplings were also reflected in distinct dominant frequencies for the two disciplines. Our results illustrate disciplinary differences in the classroom learning from an inter-brain perspective, suggesting that an individual’s inter-brain coupling to the class and to the top students could serve as potential neural correlates for successful learning in hard and soft disciplines correspondingly.

Student-teacher inter-brain coupling causally predict academic achievement over semesters

“…This study conducted a comparative analysis of academic performance predictions based on student-teacher inter-brain coupling versus inter-brain coupling among students, thereby affirming the unique value of student-teacher coupling. Prior research has demonstrated the predictive effectiveness of student-class coupling in high school math and biology class, as well as the capacity of student-excellence coupling to forecast Chinese performance (Chen, Qian, et al, 2023;Dikker et al, 2017). This study found that student-class coupling for math learning offers superior predictive performance.…”

“…A 'segment' was defined as a matched epoch, recognized as such only when it included artifact-free and valid data from both the teacher and the student. A minimum threshold was established, requiring that only student-teacher pairs with at least six valid segments were to be included (Chen, Qian, et al, 2023;Dikker et al, 2017). For Chinese classes, the average proportion of valid student-teacher coupling segments for each session was 50.2%, while for math classes, it was 46.6% (Fig.…”

“…However, these studies are predominantly conducted in controlled laboratory settings, which may not fully capture the complexities of real-world classroom dynamics, thus limiting their ecological validity (Sonkusare et al, 2019;van Atteveldt et al, 2018). With the development of wearable electroencephalogram (EEG) and guided by the perspective of inter-brain coupling, recent hyperscanning studies have begun to move towards real-world classroom scenarios, primarily focus on inter-brain coupling among students (Chen, Qian, et al, 2023;Chen, Xu, et al, 2023;Davidesco et al, 2019;Dikker et al, 2017). The portability, ease of use, and low operational cost of wearable EEG devices are anticipated to facilitate the longitudinal recording of data in classroom settings, providing a rich, comprehensive description and analysis of learning processes.…”

How a speaker herds the audience: Multi-brain neural convergence over time during naturalistic storytelling

“…It is worth noting, however, that there may be different kinds of effective speech. For example, a speaker may seek to (mis)direct listeners toward a different understanding than their own; listeners that are unfamiliar versus experts with a particular topic may experience the same speech very differently (Meshulam et al, 2021; Chen et al, 2023); and a speaker may attempt to “meet certain listeners where they are” rather than wrangling all listeners similarly.…”

“…The efficacy of a given narrative has been shown to vary across individuals. Both higher LL neural coupling and higher SL neural coupling have been separately associated with better behavioral estimates of speech comprehension across individuals (Stephens et al, 2010; Zadbood et al, 2017; Cohen et al, 2018; Zheng et al, 2018; Davidesco et al, 2019, 2019; Liu et al, 2019, 2022; Pan et al, 2020; Meshulam et al, 2021; Nguyen et al, 2022; Zhang et al, 2022, 2022; Zhu et al, 2022; Chen et al, 2023). Individuals performing better in the post-test often showed higher neural coupling with the speaker or other listeners.…”