How Children Learn

Carey Dimmitt, Ph.D.Center for School Counseling Outcome ResearchUniversity of Massachusetts, Amherst

Session Content Brief overview of brain structures and

function Research about

Memory Attention Learning environments Assessment of learning Emotions, stress, and trauma

Session Content How can we use this information to

improve school counseling practice? Classroom guidanceTeacher consultationSystemic interventions

What does this mean for how we support student learning?

Diagnostic Assessment

What do you know already? Prevents redundancy, allows for focused

learning Allows information to be targeted at what

is not known, builds on existing knowledge

Brain Structure

Sousa, D. (2006). How the Brain Learns, Corwin Press

Brain Structure

Extend both arms palms open and facing down and lock your thumbs

Curl your fingers to make 2 fists Turn your fists inward until knuckles touch Pull connected fists to your chest to look down

on your knuckles This is the approximate size of your brain!

Brain Structure

Your thumbs are in front and crossed to remind us that the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, and vice versa

The corpus collosum connects the two halves (250 million nerve fibers)

Brain Structure

The knuckles and outside part of the hands represent the CEREBRUMCerebrum is the thinking part of the brain, 80% of

brain weightFrontal lobes (pinkies and ring fingers): planning

and thinking, problem solving, regulating complex social emotions such as love and empathy, moral thinking, working memory. Continue to mature into adulthood.

Brain Structure: Cerebrum

Motor cortex and Somatosensory cortex (middle finger): body movement, learning of motor skills, and touch signals.

Parietal lobes (pointer finger): spatial orientation Occipital lobe (thumbs): visual processingTemporal lobes (back of hand) deal with sound,

object recognition, long-term memory, speech (left side)

Brain Structure

Tips of your fingers are the LIMBIC system Buried deep in brain, symmetrical Hypothalamus controls homeostasis of the body

(hormones, appetite, thirst, sleep, etc.) Amygdala regulates emotions, especially fear,

encodes emotional content of memories Thalamus monitors incoming sensory information Hippocampus moves information from working

memory to long-term storage (mostly during sleep)

Brain Structure

Base of thumbs are the CEREBELLUMCoordinates movementAutomated movement memories (how to ride

a bike)Coordinates thoughts, emotions, senses and

memory11% of brain weightMore neurons than the rest of the brain

Brain Structure

Wrists are the BRAINSTEM Oldest part of brain = “reptile brain”Monitors basic body functions (digestion,

respiration, heartbeat, etc.)11 of the 12 body nerves that go to the brain

end in the brainstem (olfactory goes to limbic)Contains the reticular activating system

(RAS), which screens sensory information and maintains brain alertness

Brain Structure

Neurons

Brain Structure

There are approximately 100 billion neurons (nerve cells) in an adult brain.

Each neuron can have up to 10,000 dendrite branches (where it receives and transmits electrical impulses from other neurons).

Thus, it is possible to have up to 1,000,000,000,000,000 synaptic connections in one brain.

We now know that brain neurons can regenerate under certain circumstances.

Neurons

Brain Structure: Behavioral Links Brain is twice as active during first 10 years of life as

it is during adulthood Brain cells need oxygen and glucose for fuel Vigorous exercise builds capillaries that support

neuron growth The brain is active during sleep; sleep is crucial to

learning Meditation can improve attention and memory Certain foods are essential for neuron growth

Brain Structure: Implications for Practice #1 To improve test-taking, prior to test, have

students:Do 2 minutes of exercise to increase oxygen in

the blood and blood flow to the brainEat 2 oz. of fruit (not juice) for glucose

Can increase long term memory recall by 35% and working memory recall by 20%

Drink 6-8 oz. of water to facilitate neuron activity

Information Processing Model

Information Processing Model

1. Sensory Information 2. Sensory Register3. Short-Term Memory, Limited Storage

a) Immediate memoryb) Working memory

4. Long-Term Storage5. Our cognitive belief system shapes what we pay

attention to, what we retain, what we remembera) World conceptb) Self-concept

1. Sensory Information

The brain constantly takes in sensory information about the environment from the 5 senses

For learning our sight, hearing and touch are most important senses

What sensory information are you taking in right now? What information are you automatically filtering?

Sensory Information and Attention Attention is the ability to focus on sensory

information that’s important and to not focus on what’s not important

The brain (cerebellum) automatically tunes out much of what’s not important

When this doesn’t happen= ADHD If the brain isn’t filtering effectively, it can’t

tell what is most relevant, and thus there is distraction from unimportant sensory information.

Sensory Information and Attention: Implications for Practice #2 Use novelty, humor, emotion, multi-sensory

content, and movement to generate attention Reminders work:

“It’s time to pay attention to what we are doing” Identify what’s most important for students to

pay attention to: “This is important” “This will help you know what to do”

2. Sensory Register

The RAS (in brainstem) and thalamus filter incoming sensory information to determine how important it is:Does it affect survival?Emotional content?Previous experience impacts retentionUnimportant sensory information is let go8+ seconds to move to immediate memory or

forgotten (most gets forgotten!)

Sensory Register:Implications for Practice #3 Emotion is a powerful force in learning because

new information goes through the emotional centers of the brain first (limbic system)

Prior experience and how someone feels about a piece of information determines the amount of attention that will be given to it

Students barely begin to register information if they are overly stressed, anxious, or fearful

Environments where students feel physically and emotionally safe promote learning

Sensory Register:Implications for Practice #3 (con.) Emotions can both enhance and hinder learning,

since hormones can signal other parts of the brain to strengthen memory or can suspend complex cerebral processes such as long-term memory

Learning how to manage emotions (controlling impulses, expressing emotions, reducing stress, delaying gratification) is a crucial part of developing into a successful learner

Memory Activity

If you have a pen or pencil, please take it out Please do what it asks on your paper Turn the paper over Write down the words you remember

How many did the vowel count group remember? Memory group? Emotional ranking?

Why the differences?

3. Short-Term Memory

Immediate Memory is first step in short-term memory processing

Primarily “unconscious,” not conscious decision Data is held for 30+ seconds Sensory data move from thalamus to sensory

processing areas of the cortex (sense specific) If previous experience determines that information is

not important, it’s forgotten Fan turning on – notice when it starts, then stop noticing Those counting vowels didn’t need information past

immediate memory, so they forgot it

3. Short-Term Memory: Immediate Memory Hierarchy of response to sensory input:

Data affecting survival Data generating emotions

Data for new learning

Students must feel safe and emotionally secure before they can focus on learning

3. Short-Term Memory:Working Memory Information next moves from immediate memory to

working memory Conscious processing Intend to remember, decide to do so Content of working memory can come from recent

sensory memory and/or be retrieved from long-term memory

Includes auditory and visual rehearsal Those trying to remember words moved content into

working memory, remember more

Capacity of Working Memory

Get pencil and paper Look at number for 7 seconds, then write down 6934015 How many remembered? Look at number for 7 seconds, then write down 9560174283 How many remembered? Chunked? What

strategies did you use?

3. Short-Term Memory:Working Memory Working memory capacity changes with age

(average of 6-8 chunks for adults) Time limits for working memory depend on

motivation, age, how content is being used, and emotional content

Intense processing can occur for 5-10 minutes for children and 10-20 minutes for adolescents and adults

Working Memory:Implications for Practice #4 Breaking information down into chunks

of fewer than 6 pieces of information will improve learningTeach 5 steps to problem-solving, not 9First 3 steps in college application process,

not whole process at onceDo a concrete application of learning activity

before introducing new information

Working Memory:Implications for Practice #4 (con) In an elementary classroom, changing the

learning activities every 5-10 minutes, or creating learning stations so that children can change what they are doing on a regular basis, will maintain involvement in learning

Changing the learning activities (lecture, role play, discussion groups, writing, and so on) in a high school class every 15-20 minutes will maintain student interest and promote learning

Working Memory: Reading

Information taken in while reading fades as text changes to new subject

Information is displaced if amount added exceeds limit of working memory

To learn something that was read requires concentration and active effort

Concentration is the rehearsal and practice that allows information to become neural networks

Reading: Implications for Practice #5 Consultation tip:

Short reading times, interspersed with questions about text, group conversations about meaning of text, or individualized note taking on text, will improve reading retention

4. Long-Term Storage

Content moves from working memory to long-term storage when new information: Makes sense based on prior experience

Does this fit, given what I know about how the world works? Has meaning based on prior experience

Is this relevant to my life?

Of the two, meaning is more significant TV makes sense, but often has no meaning- not remembered Those ranking words for meaning remembered more

Long-term Storage

Likelihood that the information will get stored?

Does this make sense?

Yes No

Does this have meaning?

Yes Very High Moderate to High

No Moderate to High

Very Low

Long-term Storage

The hippocampus sends information from working memory to long-term storage areas Occurs during sleepMore than one storage areaTesting for knowledge after 24 hours can

determine if information made it into long-term storage

Long-term Storage:Implications for Practice #6 Much of classroom learning content makes sense

but lacks meaning More of a challenge to move this content to long-

term storage! Teachers need to help students find the

personalized meaning of the content as much as to understand it, for it to be remembered

Connect new content to students’ prior knowledge and experience-- creates meaning

Testing for knowledge after 24 hours is more accurate

Implications for Practice #6

Counselors can help teachers think about what is meaningful for their students

Assessment of learning immediately after teaching it measures working memory only

Ongoing informal (not graded) learning assessments help students identify what is important, create opportunities for rehearsal, and generate information about what is being retained

Sousa (2006) How the brain learns. Corwin Press

5. Cognitive Belief System (CBS)

All of the information in our long-term memory combined forms our cognitive belief system, which determines how we understand the world and ourselves

Our CBS determines what we pay attention to, what we remember, what we learn

Every person’s CBS is unique

Cognitive Belief Systems: Implications for Practice #7 Students who have a CBS of “I can’t learn” or

“I’m not good at this” will not be receptive to new information (the sensory register is closed!)

The most effective intervention for these kinds of beliefs (which may not be conscious), is to connect with what the student finds meaningful, so the sensory register will open

Student must believe (CBS) that the learning experience will lead to experience of success rather than failure in order to be open to learning

Memory Rehearsal

Brain structure review

Learning

Learning = repeating a thought or action strengthens specific connections between nerve cells

Moves content from working memory into long-term storage

Takes long chains of neural pathways and lots of rehearsal and repetition

There are monitoring and controlling circuits of nerve cells which determine what’s important to learn

Learning is Connection

Connections between dendrites and axons Connections between prior knowledge and

understandings and new information Connections between existing neural

pathways and new pathways New learning= new pathways=more

dendrites

Caine, Caine, McClintic, & Klimek (2005)

Learning and Meaning Activity

Think of something that you’ve done that you enjoy and find relatively meaningful.When I do this I feel….While I am doing this I believe that…My behavior/actions can be described as….

Caine, Caine, McClintic, & Klimek (2005)

Learning and Meaning Activity

Now think of something that you’ve done that has little meaning, something that you do because you “should.”When I do this I feel….While I am doing this I believe that…My behaviors/actions can be described as…

What were the differences?

Under what conditions did you feel most competent? Motivated?

How did your feelings influence your performance or behavior?

What could happen with learning if more of the curriculum could be connected to students’ prior experience and to what they value and want to know?

Classroom Environments that Promote Learning Environments free from threats or possibility

for failure promote learningBuild community in the classroom by developing

positive group rules and consequences for problematic behavior

Provide students with ongoing informal learning assessments so they can see what they are and are not understanding

Build toward competence rather than focusing on errors or deficits

Classroom Environments that Promote Learning Support for student competence and meaning

“How does that relate to what you know or understand?”

“Where did you experience something like that in your life?”

“What follows next?” Help students find their own questions and connections

by providing opportunities to explore subject matter Let students make choices Use arts to connect content to meaning

Classroom Environments that Promote Learning Enriched physical environment

Complex environments stimulate learningVisual stimulationChange in displaysAdequate light, natural if possibleOpportunity for physical movementStudent work displayedStudent input into classroom environment

Stress

When the amygdala identifies a threat or stressor, it releases neurochemical information (cortisol and others) to downshift the brain out of learning mode into response/fight or flight mode

Trauma and Stress

Stunt and misshape the neurons in the right frontal cortex

One part of brain can take over for another that doesn’t work

Movement therapy bypasses wounded areas using music, movement

Stressed Brain

Implications for Practice Summary:How Can You Use this Information?

Can use information about the brain and learning to teach students how they learn and how to become better learners

Can provide information to promote student learning, achievement and testing success

Can consult with teachers about students struggling to learn: where is it falling apart?

Can provide systemic interventions regarding how learning environments are structured

Implications for Practice Summary:How Can You Use this Information?

Can use information about the impact of stress on learning to prioritize safety

Knowledge about learning and the brain helps people look at learning processes and environments (systemic) as the place to improve learning

Remind others that all learning is brain based, all teaching is not

Questions and Discussion

How many of your words do your remember now?

How much of the initial brain structure information do you remember? Why?

Contact Information

Carey Dimmitt cdimmitt@educ.umass.edu

Center for School Counseling Outcome Research

www.cscor.org