Monday, February 14, 2005

The Visual Learning Style as a Kaleidoscope. There is a restlessness afoot among some parents and educators who feel that visual learners are neglected in the school system. So, you may ask, does brain research support such a thing as a 'Visual Learner'? Yes. But it's not a single type. Visual learning is more like a kaleidoscope than a single shade of a color. That's because there is a remarkable diversity to the organization visual abilities in the brain. Expertise at visual learning may mean a preference for learning by seeing visual relationships or pictures, a preference for learning by reading text, expertise at translating verbal information into visual pictures or imagining visual permutations, visual sensitivity to detail, color, texture, or motion, or a spectacular memory for visual information. A visual genius may have capabilities in one, several, or all areas of visual ability. The picture above shows the differences in brain activation patterns in adults vs. children (aged 7-10 years old) performing a verbal task in response to a target word flashed on a screen. The children appeared to respond much more powerfully in their visual cortex than adults. Another area at the front of the brain comes into play when solving the visual Tower of London puzzle. What might we conclude from this? Giftedness in visual abilities may not be 'global'. It's important to look for patterns and clusters of talents- and see that there are great variations among gifted visual learners. Age-Related Processing Differences Tower of London Visual Problem Solving By Drs. Fernette and Brock Eide. [Edubloggers Links Feed] 10:10:43 PM      Google It!.

The Architecture of Empathy. Here's a Valentine's Day treat - a wonderful review on the architecture of empathy. More to think about! Architecture of Empathy The Social Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory By Drs. Fernette and Brock Eide. [Edubloggers Links Feed] 9:55:48 PM      Google It!.

Boys and Reading. Some of the gender differences noticed by fMRI raise some possibilities about why boys might read differently from girls. Language does tend to be more one-sided in men compared to women (see figure below), accounting for why boys may be more vulnerable to language difficulties following birth trauma. But even gender-related differences in emotional memory (yesterday's post) could explain some of the differences in reading preferences that educators have noticed throughout K-12 education. A quick survey of the bookshelves of almost any elementary school classrooms reveals a heavy preference for fiction and 'school' stories, although boys prefer non-fiction, fantasy, humor, and science fiction. Could the preferences that boys and girls have be due to the gender differences in emotional memory? Would girls be as interested in situationally-based fiction if they didn't have as powerful emotional memories as they do? How about boys? Would boys be as uninterested in fiction if they had more powerful emotional memories? Something to think about... If you have a reluctant boy reader, stock up on non-fiction titles, adventure stories, technology, and fantasy. Favorite reads can be a vital way to encourage a reluctant reader. Often if there is quite a bit of technical language to learn at first, this special interest can give a child a foothold in further language learning. Helping Boys to Read Well and Often. ERIC Digest. Boys and Books Helping Boys Become Better Readers, Better Students, Better Guys Gender Differences in Learning and Emotional Memory Men Do Hear -- But Differently Than Women By Drs. Fernette and Brock Eide. [Edubloggers Links Feed] 9:54:45 PM      Google It!.