Old Dog New Tricks? Or New Tricks Every Dog?

New Brain Science of Learning is Important

Pay attention to what scientists are learning with regards to how the brain learns. After learning how to make a sandwich as a kid, did you stop learning about food preparation? Once you learned the basics of addition, did you continue on and learn about multiplication? Your dentists and surgeons have learned new and better ways to do their job. Thank goodness they kept learning as scientists discovered Novocain and anesthesia. Do you think that as an educator you should continue to learn about how the brain learns?

The Science I Explored

For University of Chicago neuroscientist David Freedman, PhD, associate professor of neurobiology, the key to better understanding the brain’s ability to learn has been to focus on a specific cognitive function where learning, memory and decision making all intersect – visual categorization.

Why would building a scientific groundwork for learning, teaching, and assessment matter?

A number of factors place pressure on education systems to change swiftly and profoundly. They include rapid advances in communications and information technology; growing urbanization; concerns for environmental sustainability; shifts in geopolitics, demographic patterns, and labor markets; increasing unemployment, especially of young people; and the widening divide between rich and poor. Brain science is now providing new discoveries about the basic mechanisms of learning that can begin to inform, in an authentic manner, everyday practices. This is a two-way venture in which scientists can explore their concepts in “real world” environments, and education can gain insight into learning processes and practices. Techniques such as neuroimaging allow us to study brain function while active learners acquire skills. Through understanding the underlying processes of learning, educators and scientists are starting to collaborate on developing neurocognitive and psychological interventions (for typical and atypical learners) for improving literacy, numeracy, reasoning, and many other skills.

15 Kevin Jiang, “Learning how the brain learns,” UChicago Medicine, Updated January 29, 2016, https://www.uchica 16 P. T. M. Marope, “Brain Science, education, and learning: Making connections,” Springer Link, Updated April 29, 2017, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11125-017-9400-2.

A Situation

A new teacher and a seasoned teacher discuss the tactics for getting children to understand different topics. They are having the same problem with children retaining information. It seems math formulas and science ideas slip away after the first few days in the children’s brains.

Learning How the Brain Learns

We are discussing the idea that scientists continue to discover how the brain learns. Assess yourself with regards to education practices and educational environment. Look for the scientific research regarding how the brain actually learns information. Examine your practices and environments to determine if there are any blocks to student learning or missed opportunities. For example, we discussed emotional safety allowing students to make and strengthen neural connections. Is your room a safe place to be and to learn? We have also learned that hands on activity allows the body to become part of the learning experience and encourages better understanding. Be willing to adjust based on learning new scientific information about how the brain learns. The science has shown the outcomes of celebrating student progress. Implement a schedule of individual student chats. Talk goals and celebrate progress. Recent studies make us aware that differentiated lessons meet students’ needs better. Create a regular practice of presenting the lessons and assessments in varied ways. Look! There it is—that little grin on your face as you look in the mirror, knowing your class is a success because of what you are learning and using. Do a little mirror dance! And say it with me: “New connections are made all the time.”