Cognitive, Social, and Cultural Dimensions of Teaching and Learning in Diverse Classrooms

Dear Colleagues,

In today’s increasingly diverse educational landscapes, there is an urgent need to reimagine teaching practices that affirm the identities, strengths, and cultural wealth of all children. The editorial team of Behavioral Sciences invites submissions for a Special Issue titled “Cognitive, Social, and Cultural Dimensions of Teaching and Learning in Diverse Classrooms”.

This Special Issue seeks to bridge the fields of developmental psychology, educational neuroscience, and behavioral science by exploring how teachers’ practices influence the cognitive, emotional, and social development of children in diverse learning environments. Grounded in asset-based and culturally sustaining frameworks, this issue calls for rigorous empirical and theoretical work that repositions children as capable, meaning-making individuals and centers their identities, strengths, and cultural knowledge in educational settings.

We are particularly interested in research that interrogates traditional, deficit-oriented models of learning and behavior, and instead advances inclusive, equity-centered approaches to understanding student development. Manuscripts may draw from a range of methods, including behavioral observation, qualitative analysis, mixed-methods, and cognitive or neurodevelopmental assessments, to contribute to understanding the behavioral, psychological, or social dimensions of learning in diverse classrooms.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

• The behavioral and developmental impacts of culturally sustaining pedagogy;
• Teacher practices that promote student agency, motivation, and socioemotional well-being;
• Psychological perspectives on identity development, self-efficacy, and belonging in the classroom;
• Intersections of culture, cognition, and learning in multilingual or multicultural settings;
• Neuroscientific or psychobiological research on inclusive, asset-based learning environments;
• Teacher beliefs, cognitive frameworks, and implicit bias in educational decision-making;
• Developmentally appropriate practices that support diverse learners across domains;
• Indigenous perspectives in education, including language revitalization, place-based learning, and the impact of tribal-led teaching practices on cognitive and behavioral outcomes;
• Community-based and culturally embedded interventions that foster resilience and equity;
• Teacher preparation and professional development grounded in behavioral science and cultural responsiveness.

This Special Issue aims to advance interdisciplinary dialog among behavioral scientists, educators, and developmental researchers seeking to transform educational systems through the lens of equity, science, and human development. We look forward to your contributions.

Dr. Victoria Damjanovic
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Behavioral Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• developmental psychology in education
• behavioral science and student learning
• equity in cognitive development