The more we learn about brain development, the more we realize just how wrong we are about educating the kids.
We now know that college students, especially freshmen and sophomores, as well as high schoolers, learn best in the late afternoon and early evening.
Whereas universities will find it easier to schedule classes at the optimal time for learning, I just don't see public schools conforming to this information, but it might be interesting to give teachers the opportunity to make a choice as to when to hold their classes. Just an experiment, really.
Whereas universities will find it easier to schedule classes at the optimal time for learning, I just don't see public schools conforming to this information, but it might be interesting to give teachers the opportunity to make a choice as to when to hold their classes. Just an experiment, really.
Teens have a "biologically 'natural' day" that lags two hours behind that of a prime-age adult. So, when the fully mature adult teacher encounters the high schooler in class at 8 a.m., that teen's brain will be ready to work at 10 a.m. The adult's brain is ready to teach and the high schooler's brain is not ready to learn. Can you see where this ends up?
High school and college classes should start around noon and no earlier if we're going with a brain-based schedule.
This concept makes a great deal of sense in light of the fact that, for most males, their pituitary gland starts working at about 2 a.m. causing them to be ill-prepared to be awakened at 6 or earlier, for school.
The pituitary gland, also known as the master gland, is about the size of a pea just behind the bridge of your nose. A thin stalk attaches it to the base of your brain. It's the "master gland" because it controls several other hormone glands in your body. The actions of the thyroid, adrenal glands, ovaries and testicles are controlled by the pituitary.
Various parts of the pituitary control various functions in the body including:
High school and college classes should start around noon and no earlier if we're going with a brain-based schedule.
This concept makes a great deal of sense in light of the fact that, for most males, their pituitary gland starts working at about 2 a.m. causing them to be ill-prepared to be awakened at 6 or earlier, for school.
The pituitary gland, also known as the master gland, is about the size of a pea just behind the bridge of your nose. A thin stalk attaches it to the base of your brain. It's the "master gland" because it controls several other hormone glands in your body. The actions of the thyroid, adrenal glands, ovaries and testicles are controlled by the pituitary.
Various parts of the pituitary control various functions in the body including:
- Growth
- Aspects of pregnancy and childbirth
- Production of breast milk
- Function of sex organs for both males and females
- Blood pressure
- Thyroid gland
- Converting food to energy (metabolism)
- Water regulation
- Temperature regulation
- Pain relief
No single time frame meets the needs of each person's chronotype. A chronotype is the term used for that time of the day during which you stay cognitively alert and active.
Those of us who operate best in the evening outnumber you folks who work optimally in the morning by two-to-one. That could make for a lot of folks out of sync.
You just might want to pay attention to the chronotypes of those in your life to determine if their schedules are compatible with yours. Is their chronotype enhancing your relationship or causing stress? Just a thought...
Do the best you can, Claudia
Join me on Facebook at Dr. Claudia McCulloch
Those of us who operate best in the evening outnumber you folks who work optimally in the morning by two-to-one. That could make for a lot of folks out of sync.
You just might want to pay attention to the chronotypes of those in your life to determine if their schedules are compatible with yours. Is their chronotype enhancing your relationship or causing stress? Just a thought...
Do the best you can, Claudia
Join me on Facebook at Dr. Claudia McCulloch
