Principle One:
The brain is a complex adaptive system.
Perhaps the most
potent feature of the brain is its capacity to function on many levels
and in many ways simultaneously. That is one reason why we have here subsumed
two former principles ("The brain is a parallel processor" and
"Learning engages the entire physiology"). Thoughts, emotions,
imagination, predispositions and physiology operate concurrently and interactively
as the entire system interacts with and exchanges information with its
environment. Moreover, there are emergent properties of the brain as a
whole system that can not be recognized nor understood when the parts
alone are explored. Education MUST come to terms with the complex, multifaceted
nature of the human learner.
Principle Two:
The brain is a social brain.
"For the first year
or two of life outside the womb, our brains are in the most pliable, impressionable,
and receptive state they will ever be in" (Zen Physics, P.18). We
begin to be shaped as our immensely receptive brain/minds interact with
our early environment and interpersonal relationships. Vygotsky was partially
responsible for bringing the social construction of knowledge to our awareness.
It is through this dynamical interaction with others that therapy works,
for instance. It is now clear that throughout our lives, our brain/minds
change in response to their engagement with others - so much so that individuals
must always be seen to be integral parts of larger social systems. Indeed,
part of our identity depends on establishing community and finding ways
to belong. Learning, therefore, is profoundly influenced by the nature
of the social relationships within which people find themselves.
Principle Three:
The search for meaning is innate.
In general terms the
search for meaning refers to making sense of our experiences. This is survival-oriented
and basic to the human brain/mind. While the ways in which we make sense
of our experience change over time, the central drive to do so is life long.
At its core the search for meaning is purpose and value driven. Something
of the extent of human purposes was expressed by Maslow. Included are such
basic questions as "who am I?" and "why am I here?"
Thus, the search for meaning ranges from the need to eat and find safety,
through the development of relationships and a sense of identity, to an
exploration of our potential and the quest for transcendence.
Principle Four:
The search for meaning occurs through "patterning."
In patterning we include
schematic maps and categories, both acquired and innate. The brain/mind
needs and automatically registers the familiar while simultaneously searching
for and responding to novel stimuli. In a way, therefore, the brain/mind
is both scientist and artist, attempting to discern and understand patterns
as they occur and giving expression to unique and creative patterns of
its own. It resists having meaninglessness imposed on it. By meaninglessness
we mean isolated pieces of information unrelated to what makes sense to
a particular learner. Really effective education must give learners an
opportunity to formulate their own patterns of understanding.
Principle Five: Emotions
are critical to patterning.
What we learn is influenced
and organized by emotions and mind-sets involving expectancy, personal
biases and prejudices, self-esteem and the need for social interaction.
Emotions and thoughts literally shape each other and cannot be separated.
Emotions color meaning. Metaphors are an example as Lakov so aptly describes.
Moreover, the emotional impact of any lesson or life experience may continue
to reverberate long after the specific event that triggers it. Hence an
appropriate emotional climate is indispensable to sound education.
Principle Six: Every
brain simultaneously perceives and creates parts and wholes.
Although there is
some truth to the "left-brain right-brain distinction, that is not
the whole story. In a healthy person, both hemispheres interact in every
activity, from art and computing to sales and accounting. The two brain
doctrine is most useful for reminding us that the brain reduces information
into parts and perceives holistically at the same time. Good training
and education recognize this, for instance, by introducing natural global
projects and ideas from the very beginning
Principle Seven:
Learning involves both focused attention and peripheral perception.
The brain absorbs
information of which it is directly aware, but it also directly absorbs
information that lies beyond the immediate focus of attention. In fact
it responds to the larger sensory context in which teaching and communication
occur. "Peripheral signals" are extremely potent. Even the unconscious
signals that reveal our own inner attitudes and beliefs have a powerful
impact on students. Educators, therefore, can and should pay extensive
attention to all facets of the educational environment.
Principle Eight:
Learning always involves conscious and unconscious processes.
One aspect of consciousness
is awareness. Much of our learning is unconscious in that experience and
sensory input is processed below the level of awareness. That means that
much understanding may NOT occur during a class, but may occur hours,
weeks or months later. It also means that educators must organize what
they do so as to facilitate that subsequent unconscious processing of
experience by students. In practice this includes proper design of the
context, the incorporation of reflection and metacognitive activities
and ways to help learners creatively elaborate on the ideas, skills and
experiences. Teaching largely becomes a matter of helping learners make
visible what is invisible.
Principle Nine: We
have at least two ways of organizing memory.
Although there are
many models of memory, one that provides an excellent platform for educators
is the distinction made by O'Keefe and Nadel between taxon and locale
memories. They suggest that we have a set of systems for recalling relatively
unrelated information (taxon systems, from "taxonomies"). These
systems are motivated by reward and punishment. O'Keefe and Nadel also
suggest that we have a spatial/ autobiographical memory which does not
need rehearsal and allows for "instant" recall of experiences.
This is the system that registers the details of your meal last night.
It is always engaged, is inexhaustible and is motivated by novelty. Thus
we are biologically supplied with the capacity to register complete experiences.
It is through a combination of both approaches to memory that meaningful
learning occurs. Thus meaningful and meaningless information are organized
and stored differently.
Principle Ten: Learning
is developmental. Development occurs in several ways.
In part, the brain
is "plastic". That means that much of its hard wiring is shaped
by the experiences that people have. In part, there are predetermined
sequences of development in childhood, including windows of opportunity
for laying down the basic hardware necessary for later learning. That
is why new languages as well as the arts ought to be introduced to children
very early in life. And finally, in many respects there is no limit to
growth and to the capacities of humans to learn more. Neurons continue
to be capable of making new connections throughout life.
Principle Eleven:
Complex learning is enhanced by challenge and inhibited by threat.
The brain/mind learns
optimally - it makes maximum connections - when appropriately challenged
in an environment which encourages taking risks. However, the brain/mind
"downshifts" under perceived threat. It then becomes less flexible,
and reverts to primitive attitudes and procedures. That is why we must
create and maintain an atmosphere of relaxed alertness, involving low
threat and high challenge. However, low threat is NOT synonymous with
simply "feeling good". The essential element of perceived threat
is a feeling of helplessness or fatigue. Occasional stress and anxiety
are inevitable and are to be expected in genuine learning. The reason
is that genuine learning involves changes that lead to a reorganization
of the self. Such learning can be intrinsically stressful, irrespective
of the skill of, and support offered by, a teacher.
Principle Twelve:
Every brain is uniquely organized.
We all have the same
set of systems, and yet are all different. Some of this difference is
a consequence of our genetic endowment. Some of it is a consequence of
differing experiences and differing environments. The differences express
themselves in terms of learning styles, differing talents and intelligences
and so on. An important corollary is both to appreciate that learners
are different and need choice, while ensuring that they are exposed to
a multiplicity of inputs. Multiple intelligences and vast ranges in diversity
are, therefore, characteristic of what it means to be human.
(See R. Caine and
Caine, G. (1994) Making Connections: Teaching and the Human Brain,
Addison-Wesley)
____________________________________
21st
Century Learning Initiative
http://www.21learn.org
mail@21learn.org
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