Understanding how the mind works transforms human performance, and Mental Models is the brilliant blueprint for that understanding. This book manages to take a complex, scientific understanding of the mind and plugs it into real-life examples that are at once practical, powerful, and essential to how we all learn. I dont know how else to say it: life-changing ideas are inside. -- Holly Korbey, editor of The Bell Ringer, education journalist, and author of Building Better Citizens
The mental model is one of the most important concepts in teaching and learning. Experts understand ideas and make decisions quickly and effectively because they have a rich mental model-a blueprint in their mind of how a concept is supposed to look or work and why. But the critical question of how powerful mental models can be developed in learners is also poorly understood. This tremendously powerful book removes the mystery, providing practical steps educators can follow to understand mental models and help construct them optimally in the minds of learners. It is an exceptional contribution to the growing literature describing how cognitive science can and should inform learning. -- Doug Lemov, author of Teach Like a Champion and Practice Perfect
Finally a book that clearly discusses mental models, what they are, and why theyre important for teaching and learning. This book is a perfect combination of good science and what good science means for good learning. Heal and Berlin have an uncanny ability to make the most difficult concepts easy to understand. Their use of examples and analogies (two very powerful instructional techniques) serve as a hook to capture your interest, as a facilitator to make even the most difficult concepts easy to understand, and as an anchor to help you to remember. A must for all teachers, educators, and trainers! -- Paul A. Kirschner, Emeritus Professor of Educational Psychology, and author of How Learning Happens, How Teaching Happens, and Evidence Informed Learning Design
Mental Models brilliantly bridges the gap between research and real-world application, offering an accessible and actionable guide to how we think and learn. Heal and Berlin translate cognitive science into practical strategies that anyone-educators, leaders, and professionals-can use to improve understanding, communication, and decision-making. A must-read for those looking to harness the power of the mind to drive meaningful impact. -- Bridget Hamre, Cofounder and Chief Executive Officer at Teachstone and Associate Research Professor at the Curry School of Education at UVA
