1. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
ENHANCING THE
LEARNER’S
CAPACITY TO LEARN
Debbie Gilmore
Executive Director
Arrowsmith Program

2. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
THE FUTURE OF BRAIN HEALTH
WHAT DOESTHISMEAN TO US?

3. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
OUR VISION
Transforming lives
worldwide by improving
cognitive capacities

4. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
A WORLD WHERE:
• everyone has the capacity
and ability to think causally
• there are many fewer
cognitive issues, leading
to much fewer behavioral
issues
• everyone makes better
decisions
• everyone is more
compassionate

5. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
A WORLD WHERE:
“every individual realizes his
or her own potential, can
cope with the normal
stresses of life, can work
productively and fruitfully
and is able to make a
contribution to her or his
community.”
World Health Organization’s Definition of Mental Health
October 2011

6. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
A SCHOOL WHERE:
• cognitive enhancement is
a focus
• targeted cognitive
exercises can be used in
the classroom to enhance
the learning of all students

7. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
A SCHOOL WHERE:
• students change their
cognitive capacities
AND
• learn the content and skills
of academic curriculum

8. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
COGNITIVE ENHANCEMENT

9. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
COGNITIVE ENHANCEMENT
through a CAPACITY BASED PROGRAM
Strengthen specific
cognitive functions in
neural networks
Change cognitive
capacity
of learner to learn
THE LEARNER CAN BE MODIFIED

10. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
COGNITIVE FUNCTION
Very
Severe
Average Superior
Cognitive functions are the characteristic function or
job of a region of the brain or network of regions
CONTINUUM OF FUNCTION

11. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
EXAMPLESOF COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS
• capacity to read non-verbal cues
necessary for navigating social
interactions
• visual memory functions
necessary to learn reading and
spelling patterns
• executive functions necessary for
thinking, planning and problem
solving
• capacity for grasping
relationships
• auditory memory functions
involved in retaining
information
• capacity for quantification
required for time
scheduling and budgeting
• ability to learn motor
patterns necessary for
writing
• capacity to recognize
faces
• spatial reasoning

12. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
ENHANCING FUNCTION FOR ALL
• Whole Cohort Model
• Symbol RelationsCognitive Enhancement Program

13. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
SYMBOL RELATIONS
Cognitive function
responsible for
understanding the
relationship among two or
more concepts
“I just don’t get it.”

14. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
RESEARCH FINDINGS
Dr. Greg Rose
Director, Center for Integrated Research in Cognitive and
Neural Science
Department of Anatomy and Psychology
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois
SharpBrains Virtual Summit Presentation
May 7 2019

15. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
COGNITIVE INTENSIVE PROGRAM SUMMER 2018
WOODCOCK JOHNSON COGNITIVE ABILITIESAND ACHIEVEMENT TESTS
Dr. Gregory Rose and Dr. Audreyana Jagger-Rickels, Southern IllinoisUniversity
450.0
460.0
470.0
480.0
490.0
500.0
510.0
520.0
530.0
WScore
W Score: CIP 2018
Start End
* ***
Overall p < 0.005; *p < 0.05 for individual tests
Arrowsmith Program 6 Week Cognitive Intensive Program

16. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
OUTCOMESOF A COGNITIVE ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM
Universidad Camilo Jose Cela, Madrid Spain
Dr. Laura Herrero Perez and Dr. Miguel Angel Perez Nieto
Population:
Elementary school students not identified as learning
disabled
Program:
Symbol Relations (reasoning) cognitive program
40 minutes per day, five days per week over 3 months
Significant positive improvements in:
• Visual-spatial ability
• Attention
• Planning abilities

17. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
STUDENT OUTCOMES

18. Strengthening Learning Capacities®
WHAT ISTHE ARROWSMITH PROGRAM?
Facilitator-led program that targets, stimulates and strengthens specific
cognitive functions
Facilitator has specialized training by Arrowsmith Program
19 cognitive functions enhanced by the Arrowsmith Program are those
involved in reading, writing, auditory memory, non-verbal learning, reasoning,
executive functioning, numeracy, visual memory and spatial awareness
Built on the principles of neuroplasticity
Software tracks all learner activity in the cognitive exercise in real time using a
sophisticated tablet software
Learner engagement and progress is presented graphically to the facilitator
and tracked against benchmarks developed over 40 years
Worldwide database for tracking learner data at all sites

19. Strengthening Learning Capacities®