1. ConceptualisingAuthentic Education Presented ByChandana Watagodakumbura, PhDLecturerSchool of Electrical and Computer EngineeringRMIT UniversityMelbourneAustralia Email: chandana.watagodakumbura@rmit.edu.au1

2. Introduction The notion authentic education can be viewedfrom a multi-disciplinary perspective. Educationists discuss about deep versus surface learning, critical thinking, Blooms taxonomy, learning-styles and so on and so forth. Psychologists discuss about learning disabilities, special and gifted education, existential depression in gifted adults, emotional and other sensitivities, sequential and visual spatial learners, personality, or human development and so on and so forth. Neuroscientists study and discuss about brain structures and how they relate to learning. The challenge is to integrate and prioritise all theseperspectives to conceptualise and define authenticeducation in a sensible and meaningful manner.2 3. Authentic Education from Important Psychological, Neurological and Human Development Viewpoints Psychologists categorise different learning styles ofindividuals into two broad types: auditory sequentiallearning and visual spatial learning. The students with preference to the former learning style are more inclined to have extrovert personalities while the students with preference to the latter learning style are inclined to possess introvert personalities. Furthermore, visual special learners are generally categorised as gifted and creative individuals who usually show a very high level of emotional sensitivity. 3 4. Authentic Education from Important Psychological, Neurological and Human Development Viewpoints (Contd.) Well known Polish psychologist Kazimierz Dabrowskireferred to gifted personnel, or those with highdevelopmental potential as human beings, as havingmost prominently emotional, intellectual andimaginational over-excitabilities, meaning highintensities, and providing somewhat unusualresponses to stimuli The term high developmental potential indicates that these individual have the potential to become highly ethical, empathetic and creative human beings, overcoming their high over-excitabilities 4 5. Authentic Education from ImportantPsychological, Neurological and HumanDevelopment Viewpoints (Contd.) In a similar vein, the famouspsychologist Abraham Maslowreferred to personnel withhigh development potential asself-actualising individuals At the highest level, these individualsbecome highly creative and self-actualised human beings who becomeaware of reality as it is, facing it boldlywith much less inhibitions5 6. Authentic Education from ImportantPsychological, Neurological and HumanDevelopment Viewpoints (Contd.) We do also have significant research findingsthat visual spatial learners, or gifted learners,as they are commonly categorised, more likelyto develop negative images of themselves aswell as of the society at large when theirrequirements and preferences are not met fora prolonged period of time. These situations even extend to cause them psychological problems, sometimes leading to existential depression in some individuals during certain stages of their lives. 6 7. Authentic Education from Important Psychological, Neurological and Human Development Viewpoints (Contd.) According to the research findings, it is also possiblethat, due to their heightened sensitivity, theydemonstrate frustrated behaviours at times. Kazimierz Dabrowski even refers to individuals of these traits as psychoneurotics and identified the underlying process of psychoneuroses as a path to higher level of human development. Dabrowski has highlighted this phenomenon of psychoneuroses as theTheory of Positive Disintegration (TPD) in which he identified individualswith high developmental potential need to disintegrate from lower levelsof development before re-integrating at higher levels of development 7 8. Authentic Education from ImportantPsychological, Neurological and HumanDevelopment Viewpoints (Contd.) In authentic education, it essentially means that weare giving due recognition for different personalitytypes, based on the broad concept of neurodiversity,and thereby for diverse strengths and learning styles,so that each individual student maximises theeffectiveness of his/her learning experience inaccordance to his/her psychological and neurologicalcharacteristics. 8 9. Authentic Education from Important Pedagogical Viewpoints Authentic education essentially encompasses everysignificant feature from pedagogy. These features focuson enhancing learner understanding in general. Education researchers have identified and revealed that learning can take place in the form of deep-learning, surface learning or strategic learning. In general, we expect all students to follow a deep-learning path in which students maximise the effectiveness of learning outcomes. Education researchers also encourage a paradigm shift from a teacher- centred to student-centred or learner-centred practices of teaching- learning. In student-centred learning, the centre of attention is the student in a teaching-learning environment. In pedagogy, this scenario is referred to as a dialectic teaching-learning process. 9 10. Authentic Education from Important Pedagogical Viewpoints (Contd.) Blooms taxonomy is another commonlyused measure to evaluate whether deeplearning is focused in an educationenvironment. According to Blooms taxonomy, higher- order learning takes place when learners engage in analysis, synthesis and evaluation of material. When we focus on reaching the higher end of Blooms taxonomy by engaging in activities such as analysing, synthesising and evaluation, we usually leave behind a lasting experience behind us. The important point to note here is that in Blooms taxonomy, creativity is a given the prominence as it should correctly be.10 11. Authentic Education from Important Pedagogical Viewpoints (Contd.) In pedagogy, one of the learning theories discussed popularly andwidely is constructivist theory of learning. According to constructivist theory, learners individually make meaningfrom what they learn. They align new learning with their existing knowledge and create newknowledge altogether. 11 12. Generic Learning Attributes as Part of Assessment Metrics When we, as educators, focus on providing authenticeducation, how we assess our learners is a veryimportant aspect that needs serious consideration. As a result, it is of paramount importance that weunderstand and define learning objectives well,purposefully and clearly and align assessment criteriaaccordingly. In this regard, contrary to widely used contemporary practices, the author suggests that it is more appropriate that we assess learners general learning attributes such as problem solving abilities, analytical or logical thinking skills, reflective or critical thinking abilities, abilities to generalise or synthesis, abilities to express or communicate clearly of ones standpoint, abilities to evaluate looking from different perspectives and so on and so forth.12 13. Generic Learning Attributes as Part ofAssessment Metrics (Contd.) We deviate here from testing and allocating grades for a particularcourse, or unit, or subject area specific knowledge or facts; instead wesuggest evaluating a generalised set of skills or attributes,representing higher-order learning, and that are meaningfulirrespective of the area of study. More importantly, these generalised set of skills can be coherentlylinked to an individuals personality traits, suggesting that theseevaluations yield more authentic value and meaning.13 14. Generic Learning Attributes as Part ofAssessment Metrics (Contd.) A learners generalised learning attributes or skills evaluations can bebased and compared with the same attribute evaluation of the samelearner on a previous occasion, as opposed to comparing them withsame attributes of the fellow students. There will be no competition between students to outperform others, butthe challenge will be to improve ones own attribute or skill level from theprevious level or status. This will be a very healthy environment fostering authentic and uniquelearning experience to meet learners individual needs.14 15. Authentic Education from the Viewpointsof Neuroscience It would be very interesting and useful if we couldunderstand learning from the perspective ofneuroscience. In fact researchers have advanced significantly in thearea though we have not yet seen any significantchanges incorporated into pedagogical practicesaccordingly. Years ago, a long held belief was that intellect was of high significance and emotions are of much less significance from the point of view of learning. In fact emotions were believed to be associated with the heart, instead of the brain. From the research findings of neuroscience and other related areas, it has become clearer that the previously held belief was not quite accurate as it is understood that we cannot disentangle intellect from emotions, rather they are more inter-wound and inseparable from each other15 16. Authentic Education from the Viewpoints ofNeuroscience (Contd.) Studies from neuroscience also reveal that when deep learning takesplace through enrichment, brain cells, or neurons, or more specificallyreceptive parts called dendrites, grow physically to make morecommunication connections among them Dendrites receives inputs from other nerve cells and are very responsiveto these inputs, increasing in number and length in use while decreasingin disuse. This growth of dendrites takes place within the cerebral cortex of thebrain that deals with higher cognitive processing. Another important point is the growth of these dendrites could happenthroughout the life span, not restricted to any age limit. Thus, as educators, it is very important for us to provide enriching, deeplearning environments for our learners, irrespective of any agerestrictions 16 17. References Armstrong, T. 2011. The Power of Neurodiversity: Unleashing the Advantages of Your Differently Wired Brain. Da Capo Lifelong Books. Biggs, J. 2003. 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