If neuroplasticity is true, then why is change difficult?

Brain is the most complex organ in our body.  It remained a mystery for many years.  Now, Brain research has opened this ‘Pandora's box’ and new evidences point towards areas which were considered sedentary.  Engaging, challenging, moving and involving has become key terms for an active brain.  Understanding the intricacies of learning has taken a new step with the knowledge of neuroplasticity.

What is neuroplasticity?

Scientific evidence has shown that brain can learn at all ages.  Brain is not a solid frigid organ, which stops learning at a young age as previously thought, but more flexible and plastic in nature.  The ability of the brain to transform and translate comes with its ability to be plastic.  Brain based learning researches have proved that brain accepts new facts and processes when tuned to it.

However, learning has always been a challenge among students as well as adults and the question is why?

When our brain is so tuned to learn new things and understand new surroundings, training and implementing new practices is the most difficult process.  Is it because of the complexity of the new process or the basic emotional response associated with learning new things?

It is well understood the logical brain is the newly evolved brain while the primitive brain is the one which responds first when we come across any situations.  The primitive brain or the evolved brain sets its focus only on ‘fight or flight’ both emotionally opposing factors. Adult brain which carries the bitter experiences of childhood relates new experiences to the old harsh ones and the response being ‘fight’ or ‘flight’. 

Stressors or stress signaling incidents relate response to fear.  The ultimate ‘fear of failing’ makes the learner take a back step.  The problem of ‘fear’ may not be based on the current job or situation, it can be a response to traumatic childhood experiences or personal family problems which does not allow the individual to move forward towards new engagements.  Risk taking is a challenging aspect, only learners who have the ability to bend or attune this fear will overcome the hurdle of learning in a new facts in a new environment. 

The safety of the environment is also a deciding factor in learning.  Learner needs to feel safe in the environment of learning.  Organisations which do not provide this factor in terms of safety of the employee, related benefits and their functions would face failure in changing their learning attitudes.  Behaviors, systems and practices of organisations decide the continuity and the learning potential of individuals.  Google is a best example for such organisations.

1.       Do organisations provide scope for making mistakes?

2.       Are you comfortable in making mistakes?

Mistakes should help us understand the criteria’s required for the process completion, as Thomas Edison rightly puts it ‘I have not failed, I have found 10,000 ways that won’t work’.  When mistakes are pointed out claiming – waste of time or money, learning stumbles. 

Emotionally unstable or stressed brain does not function towards achievement.  When learning environments overcome such factors, change is the result.  It is important to understand that classrooms where our children learn are no different.  When the environment children are, is not emotionally safe, learning and change does not occur. As

Rita Pearson says – “Kids don’t learn from a person they don’t like’, the factor of ‘favoritism’ is based on the emotional connection the teacher or the mentor makes with the student or mentee respectively.  This emotional connection constructs memories which help in change.  Without an emotional contact, not established between organisations and teachers, teachers and students, students and parents, change will still be a far fetched dream.