Benefiting Students Through a Brain-Based Learning Environment
Benefiting Students Through A Brain-Based Learning Environment
Jaime Pike
ESE 370
Instructor Pickens
December 18, 2011
Benefiting Students Through A Brain-Based Learning Environment
The question of nature versus nurture as it pertains to human development has been a debate among psychologists for years. And after decades of research, there is still no definitive answer as to whether nature (genes) or nurture (environment and upbringing) are responsible for certain characteristics of an individual. However, many researchers now believe that environmental factors play a more significant role than genetic factors. The acceptance of this belief has many implications for teachers, because it directly affects the teaching strategies they will use in the classroom. In addition, recent findings in brain-based research are providing educators with an understanding of how the brain learns, and how it learns best. As a result, in order to optimize student motivation, involvement, and retention, teachers can no longer ignore the importance of brain-based learning in the educational environment (Wilmes, Harrington, Kohler-Evans, Sumpter, 2008).
In the text, Brain-Based Learning The New Paradigm of Teaching, Eric Jensen emphasizes the correlation between students’ emotional states and their learning potential. Adjacently, of the various emotional states a student experiences at any given time, distressed is the most detrimental. A brain in distress results in a long list of negative impacts on learning, including the loss of the ability to correctly interpret subtle clues from the environment, the loss of the ability to index and access information, diminished long-term memory, loss of the ability to perceived relationships, and a lessened capacity for high-order thinking (Jensen, 44). Therefore, managing classroom stress through brain-based strategies is an enormous advantage for students.
Childhood stress can be caused by any situation that requires a
Jaime Pike
ESE 370
Instructor Pickens
December 18, 2011
Benefiting Students Through A Brain-Based Learning Environment
The question of nature versus nurture as it pertains to human development has been a debate among psychologists for years. And after decades of research, there is still no definitive answer as to whether nature (genes) or nurture (environment and upbringing) are responsible for certain characteristics of an individual. However, many researchers now believe that environmental factors play a more significant role than genetic factors. The acceptance of this belief has many implications for teachers, because it directly affects the teaching strategies they will use in the classroom. In addition, recent findings in brain-based research are providing educators with an understanding of how the brain learns, and how it learns best. As a result, in order to optimize student motivation, involvement, and retention, teachers can no longer ignore the importance of brain-based learning in the educational environment (Wilmes, Harrington, Kohler-Evans, Sumpter, 2008).
In the text, Brain-Based Learning The New Paradigm of Teaching, Eric Jensen emphasizes the correlation between students’ emotional states and their learning potential. Adjacently, of the various emotional states a student experiences at any given time, distressed is the most detrimental. A brain in distress results in a long list of negative impacts on learning, including the loss of the ability to correctly interpret subtle clues from the environment, the loss of the ability to index and access information, diminished long-term memory, loss of the ability to perceived relationships, and a lessened capacity for high-order thinking (Jensen, 44). Therefore, managing classroom stress through brain-based strategies is an enormous advantage for students.
Childhood stress can be caused by any situation that requires a
References: Galla, B. M., & Wood, J. J. (2012). Emotional self-efficacy moderates anxiety-related impairments in math performance in elementary school-age youth. Personality & Individual Differences, 52(2), 118-122. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2011.09.012 Harris, B., & Lambert, C.. (2011, May). Impacting Learning. School Planning & Management, 50(5), 44. Retrieved December 19, 2011, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 2382182351). Jensen, E. (2008). Brain-Based Learning The New Paradigm of Teaching. (2 ed.). Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press. Larzelere MM, Jones GN. Stress and Health. Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice. December 2008;35(4). Rogers, D. (2010). Mmmmmm . . . Peppermint and rustling leaves. Times Educational Supplement, (4887), 3. Rushton, S., & Juola-Rushton, A. (2008). Classroom Learning Environment, Brain Research and The No Child Left Behind Initiative: 6 years Later. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36(1), 87-92. doi:10.1007/s10643-008-0244-5 SHAH, N. (2011). Students ' Stress Linked To Class Environments. Education Week, 30(24), 5. Wilmes, B., Harrington, L., Kohler-Evans, P., & Sumpter, D. (2008). COMING TO OUR SENSES: INCORPORATING BRAIN RESEARCH FINDINGS INTO CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION. Education, 128(4), 659-666.