Who Owns the Responsibility for Learning

As a teacher or educator we often think that we are responsible for our students learning. A good test of this is to ask 'how much of the decision making am I doing on behalf of my students?' From a learning and behavioural perspective neuroscience shows that the two key areas of the brain are the limbic system which houses the emotions (often our knee jerk reactions) and the frontal lobe which is the thinking rational part of the brain. What science has shown us is that if the frontal lobe is under developed or under active then the limbic system or emotional brain is likely to be in the forefront leading to more emotional outbursts and therefore reduced learning. If on the other hand the frontal lobe is switched on then it automatically quietens the limbic system and greater learning can occur.

Science has also shown us that the two main ways of activating the frontal lobe is through questioning and decision making. So basically every time students are asked questions or are involved in decision making they are developing and activating their frontal lobe. Some researchers believe that the frontal lobe is not fully activated until the mid the late twenties and sometimes not at all. I personally believe that while teachers and parents take responsibility for thinking and decision making the frontal lobes will remain underactive leading to more problematic behaviours and reduced learning abilities.

We need to be brutally honest and ask 'how much telling do I do as opposed to asking?' As a society we are not good at asking questions so we often revert to telling. As an educator you are paid to know so naturally you will be more inclined to tell because that is the perception of your role. However I would like to challenge you with the question what impact is this having on learning and behaviour?

From a behavioural perspective if the limbic system is over active and the frontal lobes underactive then you will have more aggressive and inappropriate emotional outbursts. From an educational perspective learning will not occur in a brain where the limbic system is overactive and the frontal lobes underactive. You may also be aware that the fight and flight response resides within the limbic system. So with an overactive limbic system you can either have outwardly aggressive behaviours or withdrawal situations. Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers: The Story of Success talks about what makes people successful in life. Interesting enough it not IQ, instead his research showed a high correlation between children being involved in the decision making process and success later on in life. For example when parents took their children to the doctors they would take a back seat and allow the child to fully engage and interact with the doctor. These parents were not afraid to hand over responsibility to their children. Gladwell showed that where parents empowered their children with decision making skills early in life this translated to high levels of success later on. This fits with what we now know about the limbic system and frontal lobe.

So the real challenge becomes as an educator can you let go of the belief that you need to have all the answers. This type of thinking will naturally lead you to impart knowledge through an excess of telling thereby reducing the ability of the frontal lobes to be activated. Are you prepared to place decision making (this can include problem solving activities as well as choices) in the hands of your students and reduce the amount of telling thereby allowing learners to discover knowledge for themselves. A great example of the resourcefulness of learners is seen in the TED video 'Sugata Mitra shows how kids teach themselves.

It is very naïve to think that age determines capability with over 100 billion neurons and trillions of neural connections in the brain unprecedented learning can occur at any age. As educators in order to maximise the brains ability and activate the frontal lobes there is a need to change instruction and interaction methods with learners. This can only be achieved by changing the thinking that lies behind what we traditionally believe the role of teaching and education to be.

The advantage of this system is that everyone wins. Learners become empowered and educators do less. It is interesting to note that when you take responsibility for something that doesn't belong to you it adds to your workload physically, mentally and emotionally as well as disempowering others. Maybe it is time to rethink the approach to education and allow students to be in the driver's seat. This can be done by encouraging students to be responsible for their own learning by empowering them to think and be in control more and educators taking up the challenge to be in control less.

----------------------------------------------------
Thinkology® mission is to empower people to harness the brains amazing ability to achieve exceptional performance and results. Currently Thinkology® is focusing on assisting teachers and educators to create extraordinary performance in both themselves and their students. More information can be found at http://www.thinkology.com.au

EasyPublish this article: http://submityourarticle.com/articles/easypublish.php?art_id=257746