In my opinion, brain-based learning shouldn’t be a means of just “informing” differentiation, but rather it should guide all of our teaching. If we aren’t teaching to our students neurobiological needs, then how are we reaching them at all? We know that students carry in to school their happiness, uneasiness, stress, and trauma to school every day (Desautels, 2016). “Over 29 percent of youth ages 9-18 are affected by depression and anxiety disorders (Child Welfare, 2001).” This was a study done over 16 years ago, so I can only imagine the percent today with our increase of social media and technology. Teaching to the whole student means understanding and recognizing trauma in a student. Even a less severe case can cause students to go in to survival mode and constantly question, am I safe or not? Our ability to see students in this chemically-wired state will help us meet their education and emotional needs (Desautels, 2016). How do we exactly look at the brain and use it to teach our curriculum? Edutopia suggests three daily practices- movement, practice focused attention (breathing), and teach our students (any age) about the brain (Wilson, 2015). The latter seems especially important but the most forgotten. Brain Connection posted an article on brain-based learning and said, “teaching without an awareness of how the brain learns is like designing a glove with no sense of what a hand looks like–its shape, how it moves. Hart pushes this analogy even further in order to drive home his primary point: if classrooms are to be places of learning, then “the organ of learning,” the brain, must be understood and accommodate (Hart, 1983).” We practice perfecting teaching, but I have seen within myself and many educators that we blindly ignore the chemical disposition of the brain. My most frustrating experience with seeing other educators completely dismiss the brain’s wiring in a trauma student is punishing or threatening them when they get in trouble causing their survival mode to heighten. Differentiation through brain-based learning implies we think, act, and teach to respond to our student’s brains. In How Poverty Affects Behavior and Academic Performance, it illustrates our role as educators. Though we can’t change a student’s home life, we can influence positive interactions during the school hours. A few examples were teaching students how to interact with people- speak clearly, look in the eye, be kind and respectful. We can also role-model for students what healthy communication looks like by saying things like, “I would like you to have a seat at your desk, please.” Instead of, “go back to your seat.” Keeping a clear, direct, and calm tone with students can greatly shape the way they understand how people interact. We can also help their meta-cognitive skills by teaching them how to know their self, know their partners, know the difference, and revisit. (Jensen, 2009 )”. References: Brain Connection. Brain Based Teaching and Learning. Retrieved from http://brainconnection.brainhq.com/2004/03/26/what-is-brain-based-learning/ Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2001).Retrieved from https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/earlybrain.pdf Degen, R. J. (2014). Brain-Based Learning: The Neurological Findings About the Human Brain that Every Teacher should Know to be Effective. Amity Global Business Review, 915-23. Jensen, E. (2009). Teaching with Poverty in Mind: What Being Poor Does to Kids' Brains and What Schools Can Do About It. Alexandria, Va: ASCD. Jensen, E. (2005). Teaching with the Brain in Mind. Alexandria, Va: Assoc. for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Wilson, Donna. (2015) Strategies for Strengthening the Brain's Executive Functions. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/strategies-strengthening-brains-executive-functions-donna-wilson-marcus-conyers
1 Comment
Shauna Scudero
3/11/2017 11:42:00 am
I really really LOVE how you applied the social emotional aspects of teaching. Before this reading, I had not known how critical these factors are to teaching. I knew they had impact but it was nice to learn about how the brain responds to it. These factors tremendously affect how the brain learns.
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Author2nd Grade teacher at Keet Gooshi Heen in Sitka, Alaska Archives
April 2017
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