Upcoming Conferences

We are not currently planning any conferences for 2006.

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Previous Conferences 
2005     2004     2003     2002     2001     2000     1999     1998

2005 Conferences

Early Childhood Math Education:
Promoting Young Children's Understanding of Math Concepts

Herbert P. Ginsburg, Ph.D. & Kelly S. Mix, Ph.D.
Friday, October 28, 2005

This symposium examined current approaches to early childhood mathematics education and explored children's formation of number concepts. Dr. Ginsburg showed that new mathematics curricula need to be developed for young children in order to promote learning of mathematics. Dr. Mix explained how children form abstract number concepts and discussed ways to promote the development of those concepts.

Download Dr. Mix's presentation here.

Gender Differences and Environmental Pathways in Early Childhood Aggression

Nicki Crick, Ph.D. and Sheryl Olson, Ph.D.
Friday, April 15, 2005

This symposium examined aggressive behavior in young children, addressing differences between genders and early risk pathways to long-term aggressive behavior. Dr. Crick addressed recent studies of relational aggression, discussing differences from other forms of aggression, gender differences in children's use of relational aggression, and implications for intervention efforts. Dr. Olson discussed research perspectives that inform our understanding of how aggressive behavior exhibited by young children can develop into long-term academic and social behavioral problems.

2004 Conferences

Young Children with Autism:
A Closer Look at Language, Communication, and Developmental Patterns

Helen Tager-Flusberg, Ph.D. and Catherine Lord, Ph.D.
Friday, October 22, 2004

This symposium explored the variation among the the language and communication impairments and developmental patterns of adults and children afflicted with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Dr. Tager-Flusberg discussed language impairments, comparing the language deficits of autistic children and children with other developmental language disorders. Dr. Lord focused on the variable developmental paths among children with ASD and these patterns' effects on the conceptualizations of ASD.

Enhancing Children's Engagement in Learning

E. Tory Higgins, Ph.D. and Claude Steele, Ph.D.
April 16, 2004

This symposium explored the possibilities for increasing the performance of children in school. Dr. Tory Higgins discussed how attempting to add fun to activities can undermine interest in those activities, and how instructing children to have fun with tasks they believe to be important decreases their performance. Dr. Claude Steele addressed the powerful effects of stereotype and group threat on the academic performance of various minority groups, and discussed ways to help students overcome those threats.

2003 Conferences

Fostering Young Children's Desire to Learn

Carol Dweck, Ph.D. and Deborah Stipek, Ph.D.
October 3, 2003

This symposium examined the ways that feedback and rigid standards from parents and teachers affect young children's motivation and achievement in school. Dr. Carol Dweck addressed the differences between types of feedback that inadvertently promote "helpless" reactions in children and more process-oriented kinds of feedback that can promote resilient reactions. Dr. Deborah Stipek discussed the disadvantages that low-income children face upon entering kindergarten, and the further frustrations in education caused by the current stress on standards and accountability in elementary schools.

2002 Conferences

Individual Differences in Children's Learning

Mel Levine, M.D.
November 1, 2002

This symposium examined brain functioning in light of what we know about the individual differences in how children learn and behave. Dr. Mel Levine's research identifies eight fundamental systems, or components, of learning. These systems draw on a variety of neuro-developmental capacities. Some students are strong in certain areas and some are strong in others, but no one is equally capable in all eight. Recent findings regarding these eight areas of learning bring new understanding of the factors influencing individual learning patterns in children. Determining individual learning styles and encouraging each student's strengths can contribute to improved academic satisfaction and achievement.

Developmental Pathways in Young Children with Special Needs

Heidi Feldman, M.D., Ph.D. and Jack Shonkoff, M.D.
May 3, 2002

This symposium explored the plasticity of the human nervous system by examining the different developmental trajectories of children with disabilities. Questions discussed included: How do early brain injuries impact a child's language learning? What are the effects of language learning on the developing brain? Can family interactions make a difference in child outcomes? Does early intervention shift developmental trajectories? This symposium also addressed the implications of these research findings for intervention policy and practices.

2001 Conferences

Critical Periods in Language Development

Helen Neville, Ph.D., and Elissa Newport, Ph.D.
November 9, 2001

In this symposium, the effects of a child’s experiences on the visual, auditory, and language systems of the brain were examined. Behavioral research demonstrates that children learn second languages more easily than adults. Can this fact be explained by the existence of critical periods in language development or by differences in input and attitudes toward learning? To address this question, studies of language acquisition by hearing individuals learning English as a second language and by deaf individiuals learning sign language were examined.

Self-Control and Temperament in Young Children

Adele Diamond, Ph.D., and Nathan Fox, Ph.D.
April 27, 2001

This symposium examined how biological factors, such as the development of the prefrontal cortex portion of the brain, and environmental factors, including caregiver input and support, affect the emergence of self-control and adaptive social behavior. Recent research findings bring new understanding of the factors influencing behavior in young children.

2000 Conferences

This symposium examined how biological factors, such as the development and organization of the brain, and environmental factors, notably the way children are taught mathematics, affect the emergence of number skills. Recent behavioral and brain-imaging studies as well as cross-cultural studies of classroom teaching shed new light on how children develop mathematical proficiency and how teaching strategies improve mathematics learning.

Jerry Levy, Ph.D., and Nora Newcombe, Ph.D.
March 3, 2000

This symposium examined how biological factors, such as brain lateralization and specialization, and environmental factors, including treatment of boys and girls, influence the development of these skills. Teaching strategies to maximize both physical world and social world skills will be discussed.

1999 Conferences

Ursulla Bellugi, Ph.D., and Roger Downs, Ph.D.
October 15, 1999

This symposium examined what areas of the brain are involved in spatial understanding. Through the use of imaging machines and other research, the speakers have been able to identify findings that have important implications for our understanding of how the brain functions.

Child Care Policy: Progress and Challenges

The current era is a particularly active one for developments in federal and state childcare policy, stimulated in the mid-1990's by major federal welfare reform. More recently, policy initiatives have been driven by the needs of working families for more affordable and better quality childcare. A new wave of research is both confirming and disconfirming our prior suppositions about childcare and early development. Dr. Deborah Phillips discussed childcare policy from a national perspective and Dr. Lawrence Aber discussed it from the perspective of the states.

Sally E. Shaywitz, M.D., and Bennett A. Shaywitz, M.D.
March 12, 1999

This symposium examined what areas of the brain are involved in reading. Through the use of imaging machines, the speakers have been able to identify differences in the brains of people with reading deficits and those without deficits. These findings have important implications for our understanding of how the brain functions during reading.

1998 Conferences

Jeffrey Elman, Ph.D., and Elizabeth Bates, Ph.D.
December 11, 1998

This symposium addressed how nature and nurture influence language development. The long-held view that language is strictly genetically determined was challenged. New evidence from molecular, behavioral, and computer simulation research on the brain was discussed. This evidence will provide the framework for an interactive model of language development that incorporates genetic and environmental influences.

Harry T. Chugani, M.D., and Craig T. Ramey, Ph.D.
April 17, 1998

This symposium addressed brain and cognitive development in young children. Research on these two aspects of development provides complementary approaches to the study of intelligence. The speakers discussed the role of the environment in influencing development: one from the perspective of a brain scientist, and the other from the perspective of a developmental psychologist.

Erikson Institute and the University of Chicago co-sponsor this symposium series, "The Developing Child: Brain and Behavior," which brings well-known researchers to speak to the early childhood community of the greater Chicago area.

Both institutions are engaged in major projects funded by the McCormick Tribune Foundation as part of its Focus on Quality Initiative.

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