Wonders of the Brain
What a fascinating series of discussions by Charlie Rose with a series of senior neuroscientists and cognitive researchers about the wonders of the brain and brain plasticity.
#5 in Charlie Rose’s series on PBS is about early brain development. So much happens in the first 3-5 years of life in terms of brain growth, that scientists are focusing on this period to help them understand learning in general.
One comment struck me. One scientist was asked what she would like see in the future and she said she would like to see the education system just start to incorporate the potential of brain plasticity.
I have no doubt that in 50 years or so schools will spend at least some part of each day on learning programs aimed at changing underlying learning skills. But sadly now the entire day is devoted to teaching around learning disabilities despite all these scientific advances.
The good news for parents though is that while schools resist this science there is a cottage industry of neuroscience based treatments for dyslexia, and other learning issues for home use. Gemm Learning and Fast ForWord are at the forefront of this wave.