Psychologists and others who study multitasking and its effects on human attention, learning, and cognition have yet to decide if the effects are “good” or “bad.” Much of the difficulty comes from the differences between the observations made in the highly controlled environments of the laboratory and the observations that are made in the real Read More
The brain functions associated with learning occur when neurons communicate with each other by the release and uptake of neurotransmitters. Many chemicals are known to function as neurotransmitters, and also many chemicals are known to influence the functioning of neurotransmitters. Further, cognitive scientists have identified several environmental factors that are associated with the production and Read More
This post continues the theme that has appeared previously in my blog… see the embedded posts at the bottom on the page. Behaviorism is only one concepts of how learning occurs, and many cognitive and learning scientists concur it does not accurately explain and predict most of what happens in schools and classrooms. Cognitive psychology Read More
This question was posed to me by one asking with a sarcastic tone. Here is my response: Human beings are social creatures; it is through working together that we have met our survival needs from our first days on the African savannah to the busy life in the 21st century city. We share information about Read More
In his 1981 book The Mismeasure of Man, the late biologist Stephen Jay Gould reviewed the history of measuring intelligence. He observed that that intelligence has become reified in our concept of knowledge and learning. He noted that mental capacity is important to humans, that “We therefore give the word ‘intelligence’ to this wondrously complex Read More
… specifically for educators who perceive their role very narrowly. Learning comprises many different types of abilities and actions. While not all may be applicable to every area, many teachers are too quick to dismiss those they deem “marginal in my field.” Those who are knowledgeable and can reason in any field demonstrate what they Read More
143: Some Observations of Learning
Here is a version of my “learning to walk at 42” story that seems to capture an important lesson for educators. In my therapy, there were two kinds of activities: exercises and authentic activities. Exercises were just what one expects from the name, actions the therapists directed me to perform to strengthen the neural connections Read More
Schooling (at whatever level it is experienced) is intended to help students become knowledgeable. Being knowledgeable is a construct we could spend many pages exploring, but let’s assume that whatever readers might have in mind is a sufficient proxy for this multi-dimensional aspect of human life. The nature of knowledge has changed over the course Read More
School and technology leaders spend great amounts of time trying to figure out what they should prioritize; this guides their decisions about where resources are used and which efforts receive attention. Despite their insistence that they are data-driven, many school leaders seem to ignore much that we know about how the phenomena they are trying Read More