Dana Miller-Cotto is an Assistant Professor at UC Berkeley’s School of Education. She earned her PhD in Education from Temple University and her MEd from Temple University.
Dr. Miller-Cotto has used approaches from cognitive science, sociology, and educational psychology to study predictors of educational inequity, particularly as they relate to marginalized students learning math. A significant portion of her research focuses on individual differences in math performance for Black and Latine students living in poverty who generally demonstrate lower performance in mathematics in the United States.
Recently, Dr. Miller-Cotto has focused on the role of executive functions — a set of core cognitive processes that regulate our thoughts, behaviors, and emotions — in how children learn mathematics, using this information to design effective learning materials based on cognitive science. Within this area, her work 1) tests prominent theories of working memory, a component of executive functions, within the context of early math learning; 2) designs learning materials that support students’ working memory skills; and 3) examines the potential role of context and culture when conducting and interpreting executive function assessments conducted with Black and Latine children.
Her work is published in a range of journals and other outlets, including Journal of Educational Psychology; Infant and Child Development; Educational Psychology; Developmental Review; and Journal of Experimental Education. She also serves on the editorial board for Contemporary Educational Psychology, and the Principal Review Board for Journal of Educational Psychology. Her work has also been funded by the Society for Research in Child Development’s (SRCD) Black Caucus, and the Brady Education Foundation.
