Learning to Learn (L2L) Lab

Across multiple projects we are interested in child and adolescent development, with topics ranging from how individuals explain and reason about causality, to long-term academic achievement. Here are some L2L collaborators!

L2L’s current themes:

✦ autonomy

✦ pedagogy

✦ scientific thinking

✦ causal reasoning

✦ analogue

✦ epistemic cognition

✦ explanations

✦ education

Previous (potentially returning) themes:

✦ self-regulation

✦ self-control

✦ adult cognition

✦ teacher development

✦ dialogue

✦ discourse processes

✦ socioeconomic status

✦ academic achievement

✦ curriculum development

✦ education policy

L2L work has been supported by:

Meet My Scientists

L2L is currently recruiting both undergraduate and graduate research assistants —

Join our new hub based in the Psychology Department at CSUSB. If interested, please feel free to roam our site (that you’ve already found, given you’re reading this!) or check out our post on CSUSB’s OSR Website. Feel free to reach out to Principal Investigator Dr. Anahid Modrek directly at anahid.modrek@csusb.edu or fill-out the contact form here!

**Jillian Anderson**

Research Assistant
B.A. Candidate, Psychology at CSUSB

Hi, there!

My name is Jillian and I am a psychology major. Now in my junior year, I hope to expand my research experience to move towards becoming a developmental psychologist. A few fun facts about me are that I am adopted, I love chocolate, reading, watching rom-coms, and hanging out with my siblings, who are also adopted.

I recently received the LAEP award to work with Dr. Modrek on understanding children’s and adolescent’s learning strategies under contexts of autonomy.

**Rachel Reyes**

Research Assistant
B.A. Candidate, Psychology at CSUSB

Hello my name is Rachel Reyes and I am currently a psychology student at California State University, San Bernardino. After working as a pharmacy technician, I discovered that my true passion was in psychology. In the future I hope to pursue a PhD in social psychology. I am currently working on my honors thesis that consists of looking at reading habits and mate preferences in women through an evolutionary perspective. Some cool facts about me are that I am a first generation student, I like to sing, and I can crochet.

I have been awarded LAEP funding to work with Dr. Modrek on understanding how children draw conclusions based on sparse data.

remote team —

**Zumana Noor, M.S.**

Graduate Researcher

I recently graduated from the M.S./B.S. program in Psychology at Thomas Jefferson University. I am currently a clinical research assistant at Nemours, and am interested in pursuing a PhD to underst individual and developmental differences in learning and why some students learn more effectively than others. I am also interested in how societal inequalities play a role in these differences.

I was a 2021 Nemours Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow, where I worked on clinical, laboratory, and translational research projects. My primary interest is investigating maternal predictors of infant outcomes.

I am a recipient of the 2022-2023 Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) award as a CAIPE funding awardee through my graduate work at Jefferson.

**Emily Karras, M.S.**

Graduate Researcher

My name is Emily Karras and I recently graduated from the B.S./M.S. program in Psychology/Community & Trauma Counseling. I am interested in how reasoning, autonomy, individuals’ environments (such as home life and cultural background), preferred style of teaching, and so much more affect a child’s development and growth in learning.

I work at the Bergen New Bridge Medical Center in consortium with their Psychology Department focusing on social determinants of well-being.

I am a recipient of the 2022-2023 Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) award as a CAIPE funding awardee through my graduate work at Jefferson.

Hello! My name is Marina Campbell, and I am an undergraduate student at Thomas Jefferson University studying Psychology with a minor in Law and Society. Within the scope of L2L’s main themes, I am interested in the individual differences in students’ learning, and how different factors can influence their educational experience and sense of autonomy in and out of the classroom. In the future, I hope to be a part of a research team studying the sociocultural causes of addiction and work to reduce the stigma surrounding those suffering from drug misuse.

My name is Jacklyne Sandaldjian and I am interested in STEM learning both from a cognitive and applied perspective. I received my BS in Human Biology from UC San Diego where I minored in Global Health. I am currently working as a medical assistant, and as a L2L Lab RA I am interested in research that answers questions about how evidence is used both to facilitate decision making and develop questions that inform health policy and practice.

people who have left the building

…and whose whereabouts are known to this office

(former) doctoral students

ALEX KWAKO [UCLA] was a doctoral student in Social Research Methodology at UCLA and interested in science education and scientific discourse. In particular, he is interested in studying how we measure authenticity, engagement, and epistemological relevance in learning environments that educators and researchers strive to create. Prior to UCLA, he worked in the field of medical research, studying rare genetic disorders and how to address them pharmacologically

HEATHER CLARK [UCLA] completed her PhD in Education at UCLA where she was interested in studying the teaching and learning of climate change. Working with teachers in urban schools I hope to research and design classroom practices that support the transfer of climate science learning to meaningful decision-making in everyday contexts.

* Currently a postdoctoral fellow at UC Irvine in the School of Education.

Prior to UCLA, I was a high school teacher and received my BA from Wellesley College, and MS from Yale University.

LILIA RODRIGUEZ [UCLA] completed her Ph.D. in the division of Urban Schooling at the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information studies. Her research interests include children’s agency in the context of public schools, imaginary play and learning, and undergraduate learning in service courses. She also has an interest in children’s rights and their impact on education and immigration policy.

Prior to her doctoral studies she received her B.A. in Anthropology from UCLA. She has worked at the Center for the Study of Urban Literacies and around different schools coordinating after school programs, family literacy, and offering classroom support.

MIKE FOSTER [UCSD] was a doctoral student in SDSU’s Math and Science Education (MSED) program. His research interests range from the future of STEM online education at the undergraduate level to analysis of the types of math questions we ask students.

He received his Masters of Science in Pure Mathematics from DePaul University, where he taught as adjunct faculty for over two years. Teaching math at the undergraduate level sparked many questions, questions that he hopes to explore.

(former) undergraduate students

* succeeding position obtained

Austin Smith (UPenn)
PSYC 399 Advisee

Austin continued his research as an RA in Dr. Stephanie Carlson’s Developmental Social Cognitive Neuroscience Lab at Univ. of Minnesota. Austin subsequently completed his undergraduate honors project at UPenn in Psychology.

Austin is currently a Lab Manager at U of Chicago.

Vivian Leung (UCSD)
PSYC 199 Research Assistant
co-mentored with Dr. Caren Walker and Dr. Gail Heyman

Alicja Piatkowiak (UCSD)
PSYC 199 Research Assistant
co-mentored with Dr. Pamela Smith

Danelly Rodriguez (Hunter College)
*RA, Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE), Hunter College

Currently: RA, Princeton University, Neuroscience Institute.

Nicole Daniel (UCLA)
*Dr. Frank Keil, RA, Yale University, Dept. of Psychology

* Dr. Hedy Kober, RA, Yale University, Dept. of Psychology

Currently: After successfully completing her RA appointments at Yale with Dr. Frank Keil and Dr. Hedy Kober in the Department of Psychology, Miss Daniel is pursuing Clinical Psychology as a full-time RA at UC San Diego's Stein Clinical Institute.

Ruiqi He (UCLA)
*Masters of Social Work Candidate, USC

MirIam Green (UCLA)
* RA, UCLA Anxiety and Depression Research Center (ADRC)

Josephine Money (UCLA)
*Atlas College Marketing Group, Inc.

Michael Buenaventura (UCLA)
* RA, Cedars-Sinai Hospital, Digital Health Lab

Currently: After successfully completing his RA appointment at Cedars-Sinai Hospital, Michael took an RA position at CRESST UCLA. He is now a full-time RA at LRW.

Cherry Huang (UCLA)
*RA, Summer Fellow, Joint Research Institute in Science & Engineering by Peking University/ UCLA.

MA Candidate, I/O Psychology

Catherine Trinh (UCLA)
* Dr. Joseph Manson, RA, UCLA, Department of Anthropology

Candice Hannani (UCLA)
* Research Coordinator, SEMEL Institute

Neuroscience & Human Behavior, thinkSMART program, UCLA

Aneet Sidhu (UCLA)
*Post-baccalaureate Premedical Program at USC

Neema Moeini-Rastegar (UCLA)
*MD Candidate, Wake Forest School of Medicine

Samantha Stephens (UCLA)
* Dr. William A. Sandoval, RA UCLA, Department of Education