‘Being the Best Learner You Can Be’ A Mind, Brain & Education Program

in Operation

Presenters:Donna Nitschke & Vicky Muir

Wandana, Dernancourt, Northfield & Para Vista Primary Schools in SA

Outline of Session

• Our assessment tool explained• Our program – Being the Best Learner You Can

Be• Our context – The Partnership• Using the Impact Tool - Resources & Research• Activities From One Classroom• Using the Impact Tool - Results

Tracking Change with the Impact Tool

• Educational change occurs in a complex environment

• Change cannot always be measured through accepted methods of quantitative data collection

• Formal qualitative data collection can be highly time consuming

• Project evolution alters the ‘change focus’ – what data is collected and why

Impact Tool (www.business.gov.au/.../CRC/...crcs/.../CRC%20Impact%20Tool%20Use, p 4)

4 schools funded

Neuroscience Coordinator

About the Impact Tool• ‘The Impact Tool aims to identify the potential impact of a proposal by

articulating the process by which research leads to impacts on the end-user and/or the broader community.

• The Impact Tool is, therefore, built on the concept that in order to assess the value of research, it must be possible to track the process along a chain, from inputs to impacts. The input to impact chain model involves a systematic grouping of information types.

• The model recognises that what is being measured (and the type of data required) will depend on the life-cycle stage at which it is used (i.e. proposal stage – projected data vs. mid-cycle performance review – real and projected data vs. wind-up stage – real data).

• The projection of future impacts is not an exact science and ‘value’ can not always be expressed in economic terms. The intent of the Impact Tool is not to generate precise estimates of all CRC costs and benefits, but rather to assist the consideration of the potential costs and benefits in a systematic way and to enable key issues that impact upon the potential projected value to be consistently addressed.’

Impact Tool User Guide, CRC Australia, p 4

Our Program• Patterns & Practice• Attention• Memory• Connectivity• Exercise• Sleep• Emotional Literacy• Higher Order

Thinking• Diet

EXECUTIVE FUNCTION

Our Context• Adelaide inner north metropolitan suburbs• Category of Disadvantage:– Cat 2 = Wandana and Northfield– Cat 4 = Para Vista– Cat 5 = Dernancourt (40% on various assistance programs)

• All schools attract an Aboriginal Education worker• Populations vary between 200 – 400 students• 3 sites include onsite preschools• 2 have both a junior primary and primary special class• All schools are impacted by the number of students with

disability & with languages other than English spoken at home• Focus on ‘wellbeing for learning’ – (what next after breakfast

club, support with clothing/school supplies, fresh fruit supplies)

Impact Tool (www.business.gov.au/.../CRC/...crcs/.../CRC%20Impact%20Tool%20Use, p 4)

4 schools funded

Neuroscience Coordinator

Class lessons, staff PD, parent sessions, handbook, postcards, posters, key cards, Community Learning & Wellbeing Policy, SIP, mindfulness training, Ph D research, collation of online resources, development/assembly of reference materials

Some Guiding Principals & Concepts

with some snapshots of our activities

1. Executive functions develop over time AND with training/practice.

2. The brain loves patterns and actively seeks them out.

3. Making mistakes is part of learning. We all make mistakes. It’s what you do after the mistake that is important for a learning outcome.

4. Attention—just because we ‘look/hear’ does not mean we ‘see/listen’. The information that gets to the brain is related to our focus and our perceptual filters.

5. Attention and Emotion—we may look at the same thing but see things quite differently depending upon how we feel (emotions) and what we know (experience).

6. The brain is shaped by both nature and nurture. How we use our brains makes an enormous difference to whether we become the best learners we can be.

7. The more you practice, the better you get at WHATEVER you practice. So, give the brain the best patterns possible from the start.

8. Just the right amount of emotion makes for strong learning.

9. No two brains are exactly the same, but they all have the same basic needs. Neural networks need to learn to work together. For example, it is important for a brain to learn to align the emotion (limbic) and cognitive (frontal lobes/executive function) networks.

10. If the focus is on learning, it is the learner who needs to take responsibility for training his/her brain.

11. Movement can consolidate learning.

12. As in any process, reflection and assessment are necessary. Assessment Modes--self-reflection checklists, formative and summative formal assessment tools, standardised testing.

Activities From One Classroom

Student conference days

• Ways to improve specific skills (eg working memory)

• Activities to promote student engagement• Brain Breaks, Sport & Fitness – importance of

movement on attention and cognition• Vocabulary development

Making Connections in their own life

And…

“Science as a Human Endeavour”

At the moment this is what I am doing.

Outputs• Posters• Postcards• Handbook of Neuroscience Games for the Classroom• Newsletter articles• Shared staff meetings once a term• Key cards from shared staff meetings• Changes to adult perceptions re learning & behaviour• Being the Best Learner excursions each term• Formal university-based research• My continued employment over 7 years

Impact Tool (www.business.gov.au/.../CRC/...crcs/.../CRC%20Impact%20Tool%20Use, p 4)

4 schools funded

Neuroscience Coordinator

Class lessons, staff PD, parent sessions, handbook, postcards, posters, key cards, Community Learning & Wellbeing Policy, SIP, mindfulness training, Ph D research, collation of online resources, development/assembly of reference materials

Class lessons used by teachers. Staff PD accessed ‘in house’ & by associated schools, Sales of handbooks & posters.Successful applications for funding & programs (eg Cirkidz, BBL excursion)Underpins school ethos & shared vocabulary

Usage • PD for schools outside the 4 in our group• Planned & incidental skills practice (eg Marshmallow Test)• Cirkidz – ‘circus’ training for children• Executive function cards at break times• Internal Professional Development• Site Improvement Plans• Feedback from formal system school review process • To underpin in-house policy development & procedures• Development of school community ethos (eg the Wellbeing

& Community Learning Policy)• Counselling approach & on site weekly clinical psychology• Use (eg fliers, information packs) and sale of our materials• Fish oil study

Impact Tool (www.business.gov.au/.../CRC/...crcs/.../CRC%20Impact%20Tool%20Use, p 4)

4 schools funded

Neuroscience Coordinator

Class lessons, staff PD, parent sessions, handbook, postcards, posters, key cards, Community Learning & Wellbeing Policy, SIP, mindfulness training, Ph D research, collation of online resources, development/assembly of reference materials

Class lessons used by teachers. Staff PD accessed ‘in house’ & by associated schools, sales of handbooks & posters.Successful applications for funding & programs (eg Cirkidz, BBL excursion)Underpins school ethos & shared vocabulary

Higher quality workforce Improved productivity & student engagement Reduction in need to draw on systemic behaviour support services Development of a ‘one stop shop’ for family psychology needs

Impact & Benefits• Behaviour statistics improved• Changes to support within classroom in relation to

‘learning’ interventions• Consolidated approach by staff• Changes in staff attitude to some struggling students• Improved student engagement• Improvement in executive function skills (various

measurement tools)• Recognition of lifelong learning (& skills

improvement) for the whole school community, including staff

Benefits – from the students’ perspective

Donna Nitschke 2013 Year 1-2 students

Benefits – from the students’ perspective

Terry Year 5

The students and staff at:Para VistaWandana

Northfield &Dernancourt Schools

in SA wish to thank you for your attention!