Trends in Learning
It turns out that living in situations of chronic stress , such as poverty , domestic violence , abuse , protracted divorce , and even having parents that put constant pressure on you to succeed , can slow the development of this part of the brain . In his book , How Children Succeed , Paul Tough ( 2013 ) draws the correlation between poverty and poor academic achievement due to lack of executive function . Is it possible , then , that the rush to purchase better instructional materials and provide professional development to teachers to offer better lessons might not provide the answer to student achievement as much as would building executive function ? Consider that most content you need to master today is easily found on the Internet . What is not found there is the ability to think critically , reason , see unintended consequences — the skills of executive function . The good news is that the part of the brain that handles executive function has the ability to develop further ; we can improve students ’ executive function .
The history of classroom design has been to focus on teaching , with students being able to face the front of the room for lessons ; but what if , instead , we design classrooms that focus learning , with an emphasis on ensuring growth in executive function that will lead to student achievement ? In Learner-Active , Technology-Infused Classrooms ( Sulla , 2011 ), students engage in solving real-world problems . Drawing from myriad related learning activities identified and designed by the teacher , students schedule how they will use their class time to learn the content needed to solve the problem . While there are times when the teacher addresses the whole class , these are short 10-15 minute presentations to introduce concepts and raise students ’ awareness of what they need to learn . So rather than designing the room to accommodate those few moments over the course of a day or week , the classroom is designed to allow for various opportunities to engage with and grapple with content .
Executive function skills are not strengthened through lessons as much as they are through classroom structures and continued use . In my book , Building Executive Function : The Missing Link to Student Achievement ( 2018 ), I take a different approach to executive function skills . Rather than starting with the skills themselves , I recommend focusing on the greater life skills that executive function skills support , namely conscious control , engagement , collaboration , empowerment , efficacy , and leadership . Following are ideas for building educational spaces that support these skills .
LEADERSHIP EFFICACY EMPOWERMENT COLLABORATION ENGAGEMENT CONSCIOUS CONTROL
Consider the following physical spaces in a classroom to promote greater executive function while advancing academic achievement :
Discourse Center
An area of soft seating with couches and chairs provides a comfortable place for students to discuss their work and texts they are reading . If you can , physically design the space to be tucked into an indented area and have a “ nook ” feel to it . Here students build conscious control and engagement , practicing the executive function skills of focus , attending to a person or activity , concentrating , maintaining social appropriateness , and more . Offer students discussion protocols , or “ norms of engagement ,” so that they see what is expected of them in this area . These may include summarizing what others have said , making a connection to or transition from the last person who spoke , ensuring that all students participate in the conversation , etc .
Observation Deck
Creativity is an executive function skill : it is not a personality trait that only some possess ; it can be developed in all . Highly creative people observe ( Kaufman & Gregoire , 2015 ). Design an area where students can observe . It should have a window to the outside ; however , it could also have a counter on which to place various objects , plants , and animals for observation . Here , students build conscious control and engagement . As students build the ability to observe and record observations , they can advance to anticipating and making predictions .
Conference Area
A conference table offers students a place to discuss their readings and research when they need to have perhaps texts , paper , and / or computers with them . Design seating for a group of no more than four at the elementary grades and up to eight at the secondary level . Students sign up to use the conference area for their small-group discussions . Offer students discussion protocols to follow . Here , given the appropriate tasks , students build conscious control , engagement , empowerment , efficacy , and leadership .
Collaborative Area
Collaboration requires the executive function skills of seeing multiple sides of a situation , being open to others ’ points of views , maintaining social appropriateness , and overcoming temptation . Students also build skills related to problem-solving , advancing efficacy . The keys to designing collaborative spac-
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