Brain State Technologies Announces Publication of Peer-Review Article Describing New Brain-Centric Model of Education
(PRWEB) August 18, 2015 -- A newly published scientific article presents an innovative, brain-centric model of educational practice that the authors propose will serve both learners and society to be better prepared for the accelerating changes of the twenty-first century. Published on August 17 in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, Section on Cognitive Science, the peer-reviewed article “A Groundwork for Allostatic Neuro-Education” is authored by Lee Gerdes and Dr. Sung Lee, both staff members of Scottsdale, Arizona-based technology company Brain State Technologies, and Dr. Charles Tegeler of the Department of Neurology at Wake Forest School of Medicine.
Opening with the question of whether education should be designed to mold students to be functional members of society as it currently exists, or to help students realize their unique gifts so society itself can be constantly renewed, the authors introduce a brain-centric model of educational practice, which they call a “Groundwork for Allostatic Neuro-Education” or GANE, that is positioned to help learners develop their talents and use them constructively, for both their own benefit and for society at large.
The authors describe the GANE in terms of a perspective, an objective, and a strategy:
“The perspective is to view learners in terms of their long-term developmental trajectory,” said article co-author, Dr. Sung Lee. “This perspective pays special attention to studies that show how “toxic stress” can have long-term negative effects on the developing brain.”
The GANE maintains that educational practices should be sensitive to the learning environment.
“Excessively competitive academic cultures, and certainly social bullying, are likely to be detrimental to learning and may even contribute to maladaptive forms of brain activity,” Dr. Lee said.
The objective of the GANE is to support the learner to develop competent, expansive, and integrated forms of executive function.
“This view of the brain’s executive system is aligned with research in neuroscience which has shown that healthy reasoning is not completely ‘cold’ and impersonal,” explained co-author Lee Gerdes, Founder and CEO of Brain State Technologies.
According to the authors, research shows that integration of the feeling, emotional, or “gut” senses is necessary not only for mental and emotional health, but also for effective cognitive processing of even abstract forms of knowledge.
“Furthermore the GANE view of executive brain function upholds a philosophy of true human freedom, as put forth by the philosopher and educator Rudolf Steiner,” Gerdes added.
The strategy of the GANE is for educators to be attuned to rhythms, and especially those for arousal.
According to Dr. Lee, “Activity in the autonomic nervous system—composed of divisions for ‘fight or flight’ and ‘rest, digest, or freeze’—should be dynamically flexible and variable, and facilitation of sympathetic arousal (excitement) for learning should be central to any educational practice.”
To describe implications of the GANE for educational practice, the authors narrate a pair of case histories in which a noninvasive allostatic neurotechnology developed by Brain State Technologies was used by learners in ways aligned with the principles of the GANE.
In one of the case histories the mother of a female student, placed in a Special Education Program at age nine, reports significant improvement in the child’s academic performance and overall well-being over the course of three years after using the technology. Upon entering the eighth grade, the student’s skills were re-evaluated and she was moved from the Special Education Program to a regular eighth grade classroom where she excelled.
"In the context of debates about education reform, the GANE invites us to steer away from arguments about standards and testing, toward a view of education that acknowledges the value of standards but aims to go beyond them, in the service of higher-order goals,” said Gerdes. “This orientation entails a need to focus on care and optimal activity patterns for the brain, the central organ of learning.”
The article, which can be found at http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01224, is a contribution to a special research topic on neuro-education and neuro-rehabilitation. According to the editors, “In the last decade, important discoveries have been made in cognitive neuroscience regarding brain plasticity and learning… Time has come to consider the societal impact of these findings.”
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Media Note: If you would like more information about Brain State Technologies or Brainwave Optimization, please call 480.588.6840 or send an email to pr(at)brainstatetech(dot)com. Brain Sate Technologies, 15150 N. Hayden Rd. Suite 106, Scottsdale, Arizona 85260
About Brain State Technologies (http://www.brainstatetech.com): Brain State Technologies® is the world’s leading provider of brainwave balancing technology, Brainwave Optimization®.
Founded in 2001 and developed by Lee Gerdes, the modality combines the latest advances in neuroscience, neuroplasticity, computer technology, mathematics, and physics. Brainwave Optimization™ offers a non-invasive way for people of all ages to overcome cognitive, emotional, and physical challenges, and enhance overall performance and wellbeing. With over 60,000 clients and more than 200 affiliated centers in 18 countries, the company is growing by licensing Brainwave Optimization® to providers worldwide.
Brainwave Optimization with RTB™ is not intended to treat, cure, heal or diagnose any disease, mental illness or symptom. Brainwave Optimization with RTB™ is intended to facilitate relaxation and auto-calibration for neural oscillations. Individual results may vary.
Steve Wilcox, Brain State Technologies, http://www.brainstatetech.com, +1 4805886840, [email protected]
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