This paper presents a scoping review of the literature on educational neurotechnology, examining its types, methods, applications, opportunities and challenges. A total of 4236 articles were identified from PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus, Web of Science and ERIC, with 471 peer-reviewed studies selected and analysed following PRISMA guidelines and snowballing procedures. Of these, 450 studies focused on specific types of neurotechnology, while 21 centred on the applications of neurotechnology in education, emphasising both opportunities and challenges. These two categories of studies were analysed separately. The analysis of the first set (450 studies) revealed five main types of neurotechnology: (1) measurement of brain structure and function using EEG (n = 143), MRI/fMRI (n = 114), fNIRS (n = 54), MEG (n = 5), TMS (n = 1) and multimodal imaging (n = 17); (2) neurofeedback for regulating brain activity (n = 25); (3) non-invasive brain stimulation via transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS, n = 6); (4) brain–computer interfaces (BCIs) for monitoring and regulating brain activity (n = 25); and (5) AI-supported neurotechnologies (n = 60) that integrate neurotechnology with artificial intelligence to analyse or predict educational outcomes. The literature employed various research methods, primarily experimental designs, to investigate cognitive and affective domains, focusing on attention and working memory. The studies examined multiple academic subjects, particularly mathematics, language and literacy, across all educational levels, with a strong emphasis on tertiary education, including both typically developing students and those with special educational needs. The educational neurotechnologies addressed in the literature served various purposes, primarily concentrating on measuring the effectiveness of pedagogical strategies, exploring the neural correlates of learning and teaching, and developing diagnostic and intervention tools. The second set of 21 studies highlights the benefits of neurotechnology in education, along with ongoing challenges and critical pathways for future development. Key benefits include personalised learning, differentiated curriculum and instruction, and improved educational outcomes. Significant challenges such as ethical concerns, technical limitations and methodological issues were identified. It is concluded that the ethical and responsible implementation of neurotechnologies in real-world educational settings is possible when their educational applications are supported by research evidence demonstrating both scientific validity and educational relevance.
