Why is the brain such a topic of fascination, even intrigue to educators? Even more interestingly, why is there such a burgeoning choice of Apps that claim to strengthen the brain’s capacities? We are also intrigued. Whenever we facilitate workshops in schools that incorporate the neuroscience of learning, our participants are curious to find out more. We often wonder why this is so....
We are not neuroscientists and would never make that claim, however we are
educators and at the heart of education is learning. Learning is something that happens in the brain and that is why we believe educators are curious and want to understand the brain in more depth. We believe educators understand this obvious connection between the brain and learning, yet unlike a woodworker whose skill is attuned to wood and understanding its nature, as educators we do not understand much about the nature of the brain, which drives learning. In fact, most neuroscientists agree that very little is known about the complexity of the brain.
The brain that can change itself
So what do we know about the brain? This question is a good place to start this exploration into the mysteries of the brain. Let us begin with the story of Carol Dweck, Professor of Psychology at Columbia University, and what ignited her lifelong research into the effect of one’s mindset on learning potential. Dweck’s research was driven by her own experience as a young student in school. She remembers vividly being seated according to her IQ. Her
curiosity around the effect of mindsets on potential evolved out of this particular experience and resulted in 30 years of research that is ongoing.
Through multiple studies involving
students, Dweck discovered they exhibited either a fixed or growth mindset toward learning. The first group believed intelligence and ability was fixed at birth with little they could do to improve it. Furthermore they believed that ability came from talent rather than from the incremental development of skills through learning. Subsequently they gave up in the face of difficulty because they believed that one could either learn with little effort or not at all. The second group of students believed that their intelligence and ability was not fixed and could be improved. These students believed that success was the result of learning that requires strategy, time and effort. When this group of students faced difficulty they recognised the need to try a different approach or strategy rather than give up.
Mindsets: Unlocking the Brain and its potential
Bern Nicholls PhD and Annelies Hoogland MEd
by
For so long society has been conditioned to believe that intelligence and ability are fixed, that one is quite literally born with a set amount of intelligence or ability that cannot be changed.
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By Bern Nicholls, PhD and Annelies Hoogland, MEd