Educational Neuroscience. Part- 2

Enhancing Teaching and Learning: Adapting Instruction through a Deeper Understanding of Brain Mechanisms and Neurocognitive Strategies

Introduction

Educators and parents must acknowledge neuroscientists' perspective that students are not blank slates passively awaiting instruction when they arrive at school. Instead, they bring a wealth of knowledge—some accurate and some not—shaped by intuition, everyday experiences, and prior learning in other settings. However, teachers generally focus on pre-instructional knowledge organized by subject areas, such as math, science, and others. Before introducing a new topic, teachers need to understand their students' preconceptions. Learning is influenced by these pre-existing ideas, which can be challenged and nurtured to benefit from their teachers' instruction fully. Instruction that does not align with a child's brain maturity level is not only inappropriate but can also lead to behavioral problems.

Learning brain

The science and research on the brain provide valuable insights into its structure, functions, and the processes that drive learning, memory, and behavior. These studies reveal how neural connections are formed, strengthened, or pruned, emphasizing the brain's adaptability and plasticity throughout life. The human brain is composed of approximately 85 billion neurons. When students are asked to perform tasks such as writing, speaking, or doing an activity, certain neurons in the child’s brain send messages to other neurons. These messages travel through nerve pathways, like cables, and ultimately reach the child’s fingers or tongue to execute the task. The electrical signals transmitted from one neuron to another enable the child to perform various actions such as writing, thinking, seeing, jumping, talking, computing, and more. Each neuron can connect with up to 10,000 other neurons, creating an extensive network of connections in the child’s brain, resembling a dense spider web.

Teachers' Instruction: A Stimulus for Change

Based on my professional experience as a school principal from 2009 to 2020, I observed that the vocabulary (including the mother tongue) of a kindergarten child before starting school was more than double the vocabulary they acquired after one year of teacher instruction. Similarly, it has been observed that when teachers engage students by encouraging them to ask questions, enhance their critical thinking, and promote the development of problem-solving skills, students become better equipped to explore multiple solution strategies. As a result, the teacher can implement more instructional strategies, such as asking students what they were thinking when they arrived at a particular answer, how they would explain their reasoning to another student, or whether they can provide another example to clarify their understanding.

Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to restructure trusted sources or rewrite itself when adapting to change. It can continue to develop throughout life in response to stimulation, environmental changes, and individual experiences. As the principal of a CBSE school from 2009 to 2014, I collaborated with teachers to introduce self-driven group study methods, providing students with enriched and engaging learning experiences through think-pair-share activities. This platform allowed them to rethink a lesson and construct its theme in the form of a drama, skit, mime, or similar performance to present on stage.? We named it as “PALAZHI’* where new ideas originated from this one week activity. Through this activity, the teacher's instructions function like electrical signals transmitted from one neuron to another, enabling the child to perform various actions such as writing, thinking, seeing, jumping, talking, computing, and more. When teachers played a crucial role in the self-learning instruction method, they observed that even slow learners became more engaged and proactive, driven by the positive and encouraging impact of the instructional approach.

Neuroscience helps teachers and parents understand the stages of a child's learning and development, providing insights into how the brain grows, processes information, and adapts during each phase of childhood. Teachers must understand the connection between neurological development and learning. This understanding becomes especially significant when there is a mismatch between a student's developmental stage and educational expectations. When asking a child to perform a task that requires concentration and planning, it is essential to provide ample scaffolding to help them effectively benefit from the instruction.

How Thinking Takes Place

Neuroscience explains that when a child thinks, neurons in their brain fire electrical impulses, triggering the release of chemicals known as neurotransmitters. These neurotransmitters facilitate communication between neurons, enabling cognitive processes and learning. These neurotransmitters travel across synapses to other neurons, generating a wave of electrical signals that result in the formation of thoughts. ?Research has revealed that at the most fundamental and mechanistic level, teaching and learning are neurological phenomena, involving physical changes in brain cells.

fMRI and EEG in education

Neuroscience research proved that Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) measures the small changes in blood flow that occur with brain activity and shows which parts of the brain are involved in tasks like language, motor function, and vision. It can also help identify abnormalities in the brain. Research has also shown that EEG(electroencephalogram) can be used to assess mental effort in educational contexts.

Conclusion

It can be concluded that by understanding brain mechanisms, a teacher can analyze how children are learning, and what they want to learn. and how to determine when a teaching strategy is effective in producing the best results, or when changes are needed to improve outcomes. This approach contributes to the professional growth of teachers by considering the holistic nature of individual student learning and identifying the most effective practices to help them develop into autonomous and responsible learners. Moreover, understanding the brain can revolutionize the field of education and open up a brand new window to academic advancement.

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*PALAZHI’( churning of the ocean'? is a major episode in Hinduism that is elaborated in the Vishnu Purana, a major text of Hinduism. The Samudra Manthana explains the origin of new and innovative things? like the elixir of eternal life, amrita.).