SC Talk: “Einstein’s Error: Curiosity vs. Interest” Speaker: Suzanne Hidi, Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development, OISE

Abstract:  In 2018 December, Suzanne was a plenary speaker at the ‘Emerging Sciences and Educational Innovations Conference’ at the University of Pennsylvania. The topic of her presentation was “Curiosity, Interest and Neuroscience.” Her talk for Senior College will be an updated extension of this presentation. She will consider conceptual distinctions, relations and implications of curiosity and interest, and in her discussion she will address psychological and neuroscientific research, educational practice and grandparents’ concerns.

Biodata: Suzanne Hidi is an educational psychologist and an Adjunct Professor, Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. Her early work that addressed academic writing, attention and text processing informed her conceptualization and subsequent study of motivational issues in general, and interest development, in specific. Her current focus has been on how motivational research of psychologists could be integrated with neuroscientific investigations.  Her paper co-authored with K. Ann Renninger on the Four-Phase Model of Interest Development was the basis of their book The Power of Interest for Motivation and Engagement. She was a co-editor of an AERA volume on Interest in Mathematics and Science Learning, (2015),  The Cambridge Handbook on Motivation and Learning (2019), and Educational Psychology Review‘s Special Issue: Curiosity and interest: current perspectives (2019).