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Teachers can influence brain development |
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Written by Caroline Zentner
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Thursday, February 18 2010, 9:57 PM |
Teachers can influence brain development in their students and sometimes they may make all the difference in the world to a child.
Children require physical protection, limit setting and a stable environment but their primary need is for ongoing, nurturing relationships, said Robbin Gibb, a University of Lethbridge neuroscientist, during her keynote speech Thursday at the Western Canadian Association for Student Teaching conference at the U of L.
“You can have a huge impact on early negative experiences,” she told a packed house of teachers, student teachers and faculty from across Western Canada at the U of L theatre. “One of the best ways to do that is to establish a relationship with them.”
Experience provides tremendous input for the developing brain and those experiences, in concert with one’s genetic code, produces a unique brain for every person. Brains are sculpted throughout life as some cell connections wither and die while others are reinforced. The sculpting process allows us to be adaptable but some experiences leave a mark. For example, pregnant women who are in a happy relationship can have babies whose brains are more resilient.
But developing brains go through sensitive periods. Vision and hearing development are most sensitive up to age five while social skill development is sensitive until age seven. The frontal lobe of the brain, which is involved in memory, learning, social and emotional behaviour and spontaneity, is particularly vulnerable to experiences.
Sensory and motor experiences can influence a baby’s brain development even before it’s born. Research has shown pregnant rats placed in an enriched environment produced smarter offspring.
“We are really underestimating the developing period in utero,” Gibb said.
Drugs such as nicotine, caffeine, antidepressants and antipsychotics can affect brain development, as does stress. While some stress is needed for optimal development, overwhelming stress has long-term health consequences.
Hormones also shape the way the brain develops.
“Male brains and female brains are different,” Gibb said.
Brain development occurs at different rates, with peak development for girls at about age nine and age 13 for boys. Males and females also have different brain capacities. Females tend to be better at tasks like mathematical calculations, recall of stories and remembering where objects are located. Males are better at mathematical reasoning and mentally rotating objects and they have better target-directed skills.
The school system expects boys and girls to be able to do the same things at the same age but that may not be the best strategy, Gibb said.
Other research has shown children are not as resilient as once thought. Romanian orphans adopted before six months of age tended to fit into their adoptive families better than those who were adopted after six months of age.
Play experiences affect the developing brain, too. Fathers and mothers play differently with their children, with dads offering the more rough and tumble type of play experiences that are also needed for healthy development.
The annual WestCAST conference is running concurrently with the South Western Alberta Teachers Convention, also being held at the U of L. Pamela Adams, a U of L education professor and co-chairman of WestCast 2010, said the conference drew 500 delegates from across Western Canada.
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