“ When we expand learning from what the child knows already, then we can readily include new facts, ideas, and skills. Ignoring the child’s natural memory is to ignore what that child can bring to the learning.” -Authors: Renate Nummella Caine and Geoffrey Caine “Making Connections … Teaching and the Human Brain”
People access passion when deep meanings are engaged.
“ Psychologists know that the brain responds differently to meaningless and meaningful information. Deep meaning refers to whatever drives us and governs our sense of purpose. If we want students to use their brains more fully, we have to reach for meaningfulness. Today, as fifty years ago, students from elementary school through college have learned the process of “memorizing, retrieving, and regurgitating” information solely for “the test”. After the test, the information is often forgotten”.
“Studies launched by the American Society for Training and Development evidenced the ironic point that memorization, particularly as practiced in our schools, does not work to provide a foundation in basic skills and knowledge. This approach, predicated on the beliefs that what we learn can be reduced to specific readily identifiable parts and that equally identifiable rewards and punishments can be used to “produce” the desired learning does not open doors to the future; it imprisons students in their own minds. They are literally de-motivated in many respects; in particular, their innate search for meaning is short-circuited and they are actually deprived of some major rewards, namely the joy and excitement that are the consequences of real learning.” (Deci and Ryan 1987)
“Unless the brain is stimulated with relevant learning as opposed to behavioral reward and punishment, the brainpower of students and their capacity to participate enthusiastically in the thinking arena on issues that affect their own moral and ethical development is greatly compromised.”
(By implementing higher level thinking skills)“The global operations of the brain are more directly engaged in learning because many areas of learning including the senses and emotions are brought into play. This type of learning disperses learning throughout the brain and there is much less stress on specific brain cells. Hence, students can participate in this type of learning for much longer periods of time. They will be more deeply involved and more excited.”
“… it is extremely useful for teachers to use small and large groups in their classes … which allows for the natural self-organization of the group. The Stanford research on “Complex Instruction” (Cohen 1984; Cohen and Lotan 1990); Cohen Lotan, and Leechor 1989) demonstrates that learning increases when students are jointly engaged in problem solving. This research also demonstrates a positive and critical link between verbal interaction and learning, and groups can trigger multiple ways of interacting. Discussion in a group is also an effective way of processing experience. It provides learners with rehearsals and the opportunity to reconstruct knowledge on an individual basis. If interactions are limited to only a few high-status individuals, then the immersion effect (being totally immersed in the content and context to be learned) is minimized. Ideal social relationships … are those in which everyone is a learner and everyone is a teacher.” - Authors: Renate Nummella Caine and Geoffrey Caine“Making Connections … Teaching and the Human Brain”
Note: With 283 Bibliography References including The American Educational Research Association, Association of Teacher Education, scientific journals, child psychologists, renowned educators, medical journals, leading publishers, and international neuropsychological conferences, “Making Connections … Teaching and the Human Brain” endures as a comprehensive assessment regarding this “brain-based” issue that is so critical to students’ ability to comprehend and apply information to their lives in relevant ways.