Do emotions mess up clear headed thinking? For centuries, culture and science has dismissed the value of emotions when it came to thinking about intelligence, learning, and critical thinking. This may have led to classrooms with a certain level of sterility and emotional reciprocity. Instead however, by focusing on how students feel, what emotional connections they make during their learning experiences, and how they translate that experience into a personal narrative is proving to be at the heart of transformative personal growth.On this episode Professor of Education, Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Southern California, and founding director of the USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Dr. Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, discusses what creates a tapestry of rewarding and engaging learning experiences for all kinds of learners. Through her work she suggests, “learning is dynamic, social and context-dependent because emotions are, and emotions form a critical piece of how, what, when and why people think, remember and learn.” 

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