They Were Wrong
School on the Brain

Ready for a
quick math
problem?

Multiply

8,388,628 by 2

How about a
kid who can tell
you the exact
time of day?

Or a girl who can
correctly
determine the
exact size of
an object from
20 feet away?

>50 IQ

We really don’t
know!

“If you wanted to
create an educational
environment that was
directly opposed to
what the brain is good at
doing . . .

“. . . you would
probably design
something like a
modern
classroom.”
John Medina
Brain Rules

Birth of the present system?

They were wrong

“We need to care about the research
and the evidence of what works. Not
knowing this constitutes educational
malpractice.”
James Stronge
2004 What Works in Schools

How will
educators of 2108
judge us?

Many teachers
may be unaware
of new brain
research

What is
learning?

Learning is the building &
strengthening of connections
between brain neurons

Pat Wolfe 2007

So what’s
memory?

Ability to activate previously
constructed connections

“The brain developed to solve
problems relating to surviving in an
unstable, outdoor environment and to
do so in near constant motion.”

Can I eat it?

Can it eat
me?

Can I have sex with it?

What then . . . is
your job?

Convince a 13 year
old that writing a five
paragraph essay is
vital for her survival

How we do that?

Brain keeps
only 1%

What does
it keep?

Does new content connect to
something I already know?

Does new
content connect
to a strong emotion?

Prior knowledge

The brain needs structure

How does your brain work?

You’ve got 20 seconds

Write the following number from
memory

17766024365911

You’ve got 20 seconds

How’d ya do?

Declaration of Independence

Minutes, hours &
days

• Declaration of Independence
• Minutes, hours & days
• Emergency number

1776
60-24-365
911

Need something more specific?

Candy Dessert
Sour Flavor
Sugar Snack
Tooth Eat
Taste Syrup

Content to self
Content to content
Content to world

Ready Set Go Whoa
What do I know? What do I think I What new information What questions
will learn? do I have? do I still have
about the topic?

Visual Discrepant Event Inquiry

When? Where? What?

Whadda got?

Emotion

Can be good or bad

Flight or Fight

This happens before “thinking”
occurs

This happens before “thinking”
occurs

“Bad” emotion
always beats cognition

Survival isn’t always about
physical threats

If you’re a kid, what are some
examples of non-physical
threats?

• Reading aloud
• Test
• Tornado, fire, intruder drills
• Teacher behaviors
• Negative social interactions (bullies,
middle school girls)
• Presentations

• Pop quizzes
• Family crisis
• Falling in love
• Group work
• PE locker room
• Not knowing the hidden curriculum
and rules

What does it look like
when emotion is used in
a good way?

Civil War images

Video games

Whadda got?

“One reason why habits are so difficult
to dislodge is that we literally have
to rewire . . . the brain. It is much
more than just changing our minds.”
Geoffrey Caine

Read more
Talk more
Plan purposefully

German Coast Guard and
brain research?