How the Brain Learns Learning is a biological process invented for survival.
P. Wall, SJDCJanuary 2012
Understand
Learn
Understand
Learn Remember
Understand
Learn Remember
Put to use
If the upcoming final exam is weighted only 10% and currently I have an 87% average, do I have to take the final exam in order to receive a B in the course?
LEARNING = Growing dendrites…
…and making connections between neurons.
So… why will a student say, “I understood everything during lecture, but when I went home I couldn’t do a single homework problem”?
Messages are sent from
one neuron to another as
electrical signals across the synapse.
When you learn something well
(through practice), the contact area of the synapse grows
wider, making a more solid
connection.
With even more practice, the dendrites grow thicker
and the signals travel faster.
Eventually, dendrites build a double
connection—which will last a long time.
Janet Zadina:
“Fire until it’s wired.”
If you learn something new but practice it only once or twice, the dendrite connection is fragile and will disappear quickly.
● Within 20 minutes, you remember only 60%.● Within 24 hours, you remember only 30%.
But if you practice
within 24 hours,
and then practice
again later, you
remember 80%.
You grow dendrites for exactly what you are practicing.
• If you listen or watch while problems are solved, you grow dendrites for listening or watching.
• If you actually solve the problems yourself, you grow dendrites for solving.
Eventually, knowledge and skill
look like this…
Cerebrum
Cerebral cortex(grey matter) =neurons
Interior(white matter) =dendrite branches
Corpus Callosum
Experiment:• Lift your right foot a few inches
from the floor AND• Begin moving it in a clockwise
direction• Now, using your right index
finger, try to draw the number 6 in the air
The left side of your brain, which controls the right side of your body, is responsible for rhythm and timing. It cannot handle two opposite movements at the same time, so it combines them into a single motion.
Cerebrum
Highest Priority: SURVIVAL and Procreation
←
Frontal lobe
Next highest priority:Emotional security
Next:
Pedagogical implications
Jeopardy game “Brain-based pedagogy”
Powerful 5-minute anecdote from Sir Ken Robinson