Adar Ben-Eliyahu

Summer 2013 Fellow

Adar Ben-Eliyahu is a current post-doctoral fellow in the Connected Learning Network (2012-current). Prior to becoming part of the MacArthur Foundation, she was a post-doctoral fellow in the Science Activation Lab (2011-2012), Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh. In both of these positions, Dr. Ben-Eliyahu was part of a multi-disciplinary team of scholars focused on overcoming challenges related to speaking across disciplines and connecting academic research to practical work aimed at improving youth’s lives. She was a recipient of the American Psychological Association Dissertation Research Award. Trained in the Psychology and Neuroscience Department at Duke University, Dr. Ben-Eliyahu applies a developmental lens to understand how relationships scaffold and shape motivation and self-regulation towards learning. In particular, she focuses on social relationships (e.g., teachers or mentors) as well as relationships with the environment (e.g., content or activity). Digital media serves as a tool through which educators can relate to learners, and also shapes the learning environment by presenting content and activities. Trained in Experimental Psychology from Bar Ilan University (Israel), Dr. Ben-Eliyahu thinks critically about how to plan and conduct research to inform educators and policy makers on adaptive ways to support learning through shaping motivation and self-regulation.