Educational Neuroscience Outreach Programs for School-Aged Students: From Neuroscience-Informed Psychoeducation to Career Development
Abstract
Educational neuroscience outreach programs promote neuroscience literacy, science interest, and brain health among school-aged students, ranging from neuroscience-informed psychoeducation (NIPE) to engagement for neuroscience careers. However, their implementation, delivery, and evaluation remain poorly understood. This chapter examined programs through three questions: (1) Where and in what institutional contexts were students targeted? (2) How were programs delivered? and (3) What neuroscience content was taught and what outcomes were reported. A PRISMA-guided review searched PubMed from inception to 2025 for empirical studies of neuroscience-based educational/outreach programs targeting students aged ~5–18 years. Eligible studies reported outcomes of structured neuroscience education in school/community settings. Data included characteristics, design, content, delivery, implementation, and outcomes, and findings informed a translational roadmap. Forty-three studies met the inclusion criteria. Publications increased substantially after 2019, with approximately 65% of studies published during this period. Most programs were conducted in the United States (67.4%), implemented in schools (76.7%), and targeted high school students (58.1%). Activity-based programs were most common (41.9%), often single-day interventions (44.2%), with teachers’ moderators (44.2%) rather than trained implementers (23.3%). Content most commonly addressed addiction (25.6%), cellular/molecular (23.3%), and cognitive neuroscience (20.9%). Knowledge gain (27.9%) and attitudes/interest toward neuroscience (25.6%) were frequently evaluated. The findings provide a foundation for applying neuroscience education to NIPE-oriented goals, including brain and mental health literacy, skills and competencies, and health-related decision-making, while also supporting STEM and neuroscience career engagement. The proposed translational roadmap emphasizes global access, developmental tailoring, stronger school–academic partnerships, sustainable implementation, and rigorous, standardized evaluation to guide future educational neuroscience outreach and NIPE-informed education.
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BibTeX
@misc{zonoozi2026educational,
title = {{Educational Neuroscience Outreach Programs for School-Aged Students: From Neuroscience-Informed Psychoeducation to Career Development}},
author = {Arash Khojasteh Zonoozi and Benjamin Ostow and Sepehr Mortaheb and Steven Jillings and Shiva Sharifi and Hamed Ekhtiari and Ghazaleh Soleimani},
howpublished = {PsyArXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.31234/osf.io/se86v_v1},
url = {https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/se86v_v1/},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Educational Neuroscience Outreach Programs for School-Aged Students: From Neuroscience-Informed Psychoeducation to Career Development
AU - Arash Khojasteh Zonoozi
AU - Benjamin Ostow
AU - Sepehr Mortaheb
AU - Steven Jillings
AU - Shiva Sharifi
AU - Hamed Ekhtiari
AU - Ghazaleh Soleimani
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/13
PB - PsyArXiv
DO - 10.31234/osf.io/se86v_v1
UR - https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/se86v_v1/
AB - Educational neuroscience outreach programs promote neuroscience literacy, science interest, and brain health among school-aged students, ranging from neuroscience-informed psychoeducation (NIPE) to engagement for neuroscience careers. However, their implementation, delivery, and evaluation remain poorly understood. This chapter examined programs through three questions: (1) Where and in what institutional contexts were students targeted? (2) How were programs delivered? and (3) What neuroscience content was taught and what outcomes were reported. A PRISMA-guided review searched PubMed from inception to 2025 for empirical studies of neuroscience-based educational/outreach programs targeting students aged ~5–18 years. Eligible studies reported outcomes of structured neuroscience education in school/community settings. Data included characteristics, design, content, delivery, implementation, and outcomes, and findings informed a translational roadmap. Forty-three studies met the inclusion criteria. Publications increased substantially after 2019, with approximately 65% of studies published during this period. Most programs were conducted in the United States (67.4%), implemented in schools (76.7%), and targeted high school students (58.1%). Activity-based programs were most common (41.9%), often single-day interventions (44.2%), with teachers’ moderators (44.2%) rather than trained implementers (23.3%). Content most commonly addressed addiction (25.6%), cellular/molecular (23.3%), and cognitive neuroscience (20.9%). Knowledge gain (27.9%) and attitudes/interest toward neuroscience (25.6%) were frequently evaluated. The findings provide a foundation for applying neuroscience education to NIPE-oriented goals, including brain and mental health literacy, skills and competencies, and health-related decision-making, while also supporting STEM and neuroscience career engagement. The proposed translational roadmap emphasizes global access, developmental tailoring, stronger school–academic partnerships, sustainable implementation, and rigorous, standardized evaluation to guide future educational neuroscience outreach and NIPE-informed education.
ER -