Brain-BasedLearning

The wave of the brain

By Ruth Palombo Weiss

rLt's a jungle out there! We haveall heard
and probably uttered that pbrase.Well, the
Nobel Prize winning newobiologist Ger-
ald kleknan postulatesthat it's a jungle in-
side there as well. Edelrnan, director of the
Neuroscience Institute at the Scripps Re-
search Institute, compares our brains to a
dense web of interconnecting synapses.
His metaphor gives us insight into current,
sometimesconfusing, researchon how the
brain works and its connection to learning
theory.
Many of us use the Internet daily and
are astoundedby the vast and seemingly
endless connections we can make. The
brain's interconnections exceedthe Inter-
net's by an astronomical number. The typ-
ical brain has approximately 100 billion
neurons. and each neuron has one to
10,000 synaptic connectionsto other neu-
"The intricacy and
rons. Says Edelrnan,
numerosity of brain connections are ex-
traordinary."
Our brains are suffirsed with a vast
number of interdependent nefworks. We
process all incoming information through
those networks, and any information al-
ready stored influences how and what we
learn.
"The human brain is the best-orga-
nized, most functional three pounds of
matter in the known universe," sayseduca-
tor Robert Sylwester in his book, A Cele-
bration of Neurons: An Educator's Guide
"It's responsiblefor
to the Human Brain.
Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, computers,
the Sistine Chapel, automobiles, the Sec-
ond World War, Hamlet, apple pie, and a
whole lot more."
Increasingly, educators such as Syl-
wester are relying on brain-basedlearning
theory to take advantage of the gtowing
body of evidence that neurologists are un-
covering about how humans learn. He
says, "To learn more about the brain, sci-
entists had to discover how to perfonn in-
tricate studies that would provide solid
information on its most basic operations-
the normal and abnormal actions of a sin-
gle neuron, the synchronized actions of
networks of neurons. and the factors that
"
trigger neuronal activitY.
It's clear that no two human brains are
alike. Every nerve cell (neuron) servesas a
relay station. Neurons not only receive sig-
nals from other cells, but they also process
the signals and sendthem on to other cells
acrosstiny gaps called synapses.Chemi-
cals called neurotransmitters(theremay be
as many as 100) causethe signals to flow
from one neuron to another. That electro-
chemical processis the basis of all human
behavior. Every time we speak, move, or
think, electrical and chemical communica-
tion are taking place between tens of thou-
sandsofneurons.
"As a nerve cell is stimulated by new
experiencesand exposure to incoming in-
formation from the senses, it grows
branches called dendrites. Dendrites are
the major receptive surface of the nerve
cell. One nerve cell can receive input from
asmany as 20,000 other nerve cells. If you
have 100 billion cells in your brain, think
of the complexityl With use, you grow
branches; with impoverishment, you lose
them.
"The ability to changethe structure and
chemistry of the brain in response to the
environment is what we call plasticity,"
saysMarian Diamond, a neuroscientistand
professor of neuroanatomy at the Univer-
sity of California at Berkeley.
As we might imagine, for a subject as
vast and complicated as braia researchand
learning theory there are a variety of
views. Some scientists feel that there are
fundamental differences between learning
and education.They insist that brain-based
researchon learning isn't fhe same as re-
searchdone on educationtheory. They also
note that many of the initial neurological
inquiries into learning have been done on
animalsand that it's an iffy propositionto
extrapolatefrom animals to humans.
But during the past 10 Years,hown as
the Decade of the Brain, a number of sci-
entists have been using new technologies
such as Magnetic Resonance lnaging
O/RD, Functional MRI (fMRI), and
Positron Emission Topography (PET)
scans.Those tests he$ scientists explore
how human brains processmemory, emo-
tion, attention, patterning, and context-

28

A Few Brain Facts
among other areasin this vast area of in-
qulry.
Renate Numella Caine and Geoffrey
Caine,in their bookUnleashingthe Power
of Perceptual Change: The Potential of
Brain-Based Teaching, confirm the idea
that our brains are whole and intercor
nected."Even though there are a multitude
of specific modules with specific func-
tions, thought, emotion, physical health,
the nature of our interactions with others,
even the time and environment in which
we learn, are not separatedin the brain.
They are not dealt with one thing at a
time.*
"The neryous system
Says Edelman:
behavior is to some extent seH-generated
in loops:Brain activity leadsto movement,
which leads to further sensation and per-
ception and still further movement. The
layers and loops between them are the
most intricate of any object we know, and
they are dynamic. Th.y continually
change.Parts of the brain (indeed, the ma-
jor portion ofits tissues)receiveinput only
from other parts of the brain, and they give
outputs to other parts without intervention
from the outsideworld. The brain might be
said to be in touch more with itseH than
with anythingelse."
There are several areas/topics that
brain-basedlearning theoriesare examin-
ing. As we will see, they are intercon-
nectedin much the sameway as our own
complex neuronal groups.
Attention
It appearsthat the thalamus, in the center
of the brain, plays an especially important
role in attention. According to Sylwester,
'telay center between
the thalamus is the
our senseorgans and the cortex.... This
process holds the important information
within our attentional and short-term
memory systemsby ignoring the less im-
portant information, and thus seemsto cre-
ate the visual awarenesswe experience."
Eric Jensen,author of Teaching With the
Brain in Mind, ponts out that our bodies
have high-low cycles of about 90 to 110
minutes. When students are at the top of
tlose cycles, they're more attentive. At the
bottom ofthe cycle, people'senergydrops
along with their level of attention. Jensen
suggests that if educators and trainers
"learn to ride with the cycles," they'll have
fewer problems.
Renate Caine talks about the different
types of motivators and what happens in
our brains dependingon the source of mo-
tivation. "When we encounter high stress
in learning, there is apsychophysiological
responseto the tbreat, accompanied by a
feeling of helplessness or fatigue. This
type of responsekeeps people from using
29
Articie 6. Brain-BasedLearning
their higher order, more complex thinking,
and creativity."
During high-sffess situations, physio-
logically the informationtakes the primary
pathway through the thalamus and
amygdala and then moves into the cerebel-
lum. Memorization of isolated facts can be
accomplished under high-stress condi-
tions, but higher order and creative think-
ing may be lost. We tend to respond with
either a primitive mode of behaving or to
rely solely on early prograrnmedbehavior.
In situations that may involve stressbut
in which we have a sense of control or
choice, the physiology shifts. The primary
path is no longer directly tbrough the
amygdala but through other paths of the
cortex, the parts that are involved in
higher-orderfunctioning. Thus, we avoid a
"kneejerk response."
Learning situations that are low stress
favor reflection and analytic thinking. Says
"The thalamus,hippocam-
Renate.Caine,
pus, and cortex (where stored memories
are housedand higher-level thinking takes
place) are involved. With this system,you
can translate factual elements and make
connections. Furthermore, you can make
inferencesbas"6 on e1fogrrhings you know.
That higher-order tbinking includes syn-
thesizing information and integrating it to
come up with new ideas."
 :r:ii'1. ,::'

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ANNUALEDITIONS
"Ifformation w-o:fing. memory' verbal
ence on the cortex. flows .#il;;,
sodic memory'
Context and Patterns the amygdala and the iiexibilitv in tbinking'cre-
both ways between decisionmaking'
"Without context, emotions' or pat-
cortex, but many other areas are involved #;f,*ro-f;* solving'
terns, information is considered meaning- in subtle emotions," he saYs. and social interactons'
to form
1".r.'Th"r"'" a tendency to try "Making daily decisionsbasedon emo-
pattern out our
somekind of meaningful 9J tions is not an exception;it's therule," says
i"u*i"g-rnis processseemsinnate"' says
professorAntonio pamasio' a neurologist MemorY and recall
,t-" tott sPectacularuses of re-
Jensen. "t *r" Uoiu"t"ity of low4 in his book Des- ;;;

m"'ri-i#+#.h#
*While the brain is a consum-
He adds, cartes's Error: Emorton"Reason"and the
maturity "While extremesof emotion
mate pattern maker, intellectual Human Brain
the process' PET scans indi- are usually hamful to our best thinking, a
often lnriches and
player burns more **;t* inattt*oo memory' recall'
cate that a novice chess middle ground makes sense'Appropriale information and informa-
usesthe
*i.r"or" (has to work harder) and emotions speedup decision making enor- il;;;;r""ge
left side of the tion overload'
it"p-Uy-tt"p sequential mouslY." "Memory is the ability to repea! a p:r-
ihess player uses less glu- shows that emotions and
;dt. A *utt"t ..- Brainresearch it is a dy-
"ot" *O engageslarger patterns from the
tnougnt are deeply interconnected'ln Mol- formance.In thenervoussystem'
populations of neuronal
""#" "-0""v of
right side of the brain'" eculls of Emotion, CatdacePert wrote that computer-based memory'
Unlike
A lot of recent memory research on fle surfaceof every cell in the body are
in- *Ot.
One study to molecules such as Luio-tur"a memory is inexact' But it's
volves pattern-making abilities' receptors thatrespond generaliza-
in- "i* ""o"Uf" "f greatdegreesof
that n^ been replicated several times various peptides and neurotransu[tters' would be useless if it
l#.- it"*"w
nJrn", ,""diog a long list of words to Scientists used to think that those neu-
a sub-
waY take into accountthe
";d"'il t";"
ject. When the subject is asked .to rotransmitters were found only in neluons sensory
'remember in every t"rnpo.al suc"essionof events---of
certain words on the list' an in-in the brain, but it turns out they're
of movement"'
happens'Irt's say the list we havea thought' "u#, u, well as patterns
t"r"ttiog thing '.*v of ,n" Uody.When
o*
words strung togetber' including of the peptides
-with and neurotransmit- says 'nittEdehnan.
has 25 - Carter, who wtote MaPPing the
car' throughout the
cake, cookie, sugar,trrin, candy' tree' ters interact cells
saysthatnew neural connechonsare
on what Mind,
dog. If askedwhether the word sweetfody, and those interactions trigger
is and
most subjects say yel "the experienceof emotions'" -"a" *i,l every incoming sensation
tne tst (it wasn't), *" "uU as memories fade'
"Good learning engages feelings' old onesdisappear
U""u"t"'of the words cake' cookies',and "Each fleeting impression is recorded
of the as a'n add-on'
,unot. f"t"."ttingly, the sarnearea Rather than viewing them
for a while in somenew configuration'
but
on ttre Iist Emotions
Criio,t ", t"gisteied other words "-o,io"* are a fornof learning' the paftern
future if it's not laid down in memory'
lights uP on an MRL ut* "rrgug" meaning and predict
of they involve our goals' degeneratesand the impression disappears
Thai clearly illustrates the economy l"t-l"ilt"tse iit"" the buttocks-shapedhollow in a foam
mechanisms' The brain
fJ"f*,"Ui*"., and expectancies'Emotions
$rain-processing meailng' rubber cushionafter you standup' Patterns
makeJ a connection and generalizes drive the threesomeof attention'
even and
that linger may in turn connect with'
though the generalization might be and memory," saYsRenateCaine'
wrong'
_. spark off, activity in other groups--rorm-
of Har-
O""?o""f*io" is that detail isn't effrcient e""o.C"! to Daniel Schacter ing associationsimemories)or combining
and generalization is, though not u-J Uoi"".iLy, author of Searching for
always
to createnew concepts'
"ip]Tl;
""rrir. The brain doesn't have Memory, there are two possible
values; it's "Little explosionsandwavesof new ac-
arbiter of chargeo
an information organ' It isn't an tions fbr the way emotionally tivity, each with a characteristic pattern'
"uf**, of right *d *toog' What events are emblazoned in our'memones'
we do
are produced moment by moment as the
eventsto- and chemical
have is a systemthat puts related O"" it ,n" stresshormones braiir reactsto outside stimuli' That activ-
are re-
gether il hierarchies and categones' messengers'or neuroEansmitters' "tag" the event ity creates a constantly changrng internl
"The brain-mind
Geofftey Caine states: leaseda]tsuchtimes' which environment,which the brainthenreacts
to
give it prom-
natually organizes inforrnation *itn *p""iuf signifrcance and
into cate-
as well. That creates a feedback loop that
'pat- other
gories. We can generically call thatinence in the memory pathways' Jh3 ensuresconstant change. The loop-back
t t whalare commonly known
L*i"g.' These patterns always involve J"pf*uri* process,sometimesreferred to as neural
even though
interpieting infornration in as flashbulb memones is that
context'
barwinism, ensuresthat patternsthat pro-
rehearsedor reiter-
,n"VT""', need to be "People'":d.t",g::
to show
fn"a"'t u*gt"ut deal of research ducethoughts (and thus behavior) and that
as
u,"i, *l"v usually are'
,nu, *" leam from focused attention tlrer uves help the organismthrive arelaid down per-
;;li ^ ftom peripheral perception' "o*r'*d go over 15gthings in
When
manently wbile those that areuselessfade'
and that
p"opt" are forrning patterns' a lot of the in- that are imPortant to tl"*' It's not a rigid sYstem."
S-cha.cier'-
itnil"ri"" tnat Urings the pattem snengtbensthe memory"' saYs
together
According to Carter, it seemsthat in-
the climate
is peripheral or contextual idormatron" Rlnate Caine points out that coming information is spiit into several
the kind of
of the workplace is critical to parallel paths within tbe brain' each or
feel lup-
oroao", nout'" going to get' lfwe *ni"n ii given a siightly different -treat-
;;;; ;"; "i'i'J'"-"''' the PlYsiolog-
Emotion mentdepeidingon the routeit takes'Infor-
effect is a slight increasein dopamrne'
The amygdala, an almond-shaped
struc- iJ mation that's of particular interest to one
G tigttt amount of .u":y-
ture in the brain's center' seernsmost rn- *ni"n."f"*"t side of the brain will activate that side
choline (another neurotransminer) uar
volved wfth emotions' According
to more strongly than the other' You can see
sdmulates the hippocampus'People.witb
Jensen,it has 12 to 15 distinct emotive re- that happenin a brain scan:The side that's
a tremendous influ- increased dopamine show improved epl-
gions anOoften exerts
30
 Article6. Brain'BasedLearning

Motivation sic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic mo-

in charge of a particular task will light up
while the matching iuea on the other side
will glow more dullY.
Geoffoey Caine reminds us that when
we can connectrote memory with ordinary
experience,we understandand make sense
of things and remember more easily. To
fiansfer inforrnation effectively, we needto
seethe relevanceof what we're learning.
Richard Restak,a neurobiologist, writes in
his book The Brain:'Learning is not pri-
marily dependent on a reward- In fact,
consis-
rats-as well as humans-will
and behaviors
tently seeknew experiences
with no perceivablereward or impetus. Ex-
perimental rats respond positively to sim-
ple novelty. Studies confirm that the mere
pursuit of information can be valuable by
itself and that humans are just as happy to
seeknovelty."
Robert Aitken at tle Vancouver British
Columbia Community College poiats out
that we chooseto stay motivated.
"One of
the things becoming clear is that our brains
have been built for survival- That hasn't
changed in 30,000 years. If something
helps us survive, we're motivated to learn.
'"Trainershaveto find ways to convince
learnersthat this is vital to their survival. If
we get an emotional buy-in then learning
takesplace."
We can approachmotivation from sev-
eral different points of view, saysGeoffrey
"The distinction is between intrin-
Caine.
tivation hasto do with what we want' need,
and desire.It's deeply groundedin our val-
ues aad feelings. Extrinsic motivation is
often an attempt by someoneelse trying to
make us want to do something' In terms of
learning and creativity, we know there's a
positive correlation betweencreativity and
intrhsic motivation. When we're organiz-
ing information in our minds' tle way we
formpattems is deeply motivated by what
we're interestedin."
'
We have all heard the phrase Use it or
lose it. That's the ultimate truth of the
healthy brain's capability to learn, change,
and grow aslong as we're alive.
'"fhe most exciting discovery about all
of this work is that education should con-
tinue for a lifetime. With emichment' we
grow dendrites; with imFoverisbment, we
losethem at any a1e:'concludesDiamond'
Ruth Palombo Weiss is afreelatrc e writer
based in Potomac, Marylnnd; Pivotal@
erols,com

Reprintedby permission'
Fromkaining & Development,luly2000, pp- 20-24' @2000 by ASTD Magazines'

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