Jay Cross, in his webinar on Interwise, told of a study that tested which group would have higher test scores: the ones who received an essay and the instructions "Read this. You will be tested." Or, the ones that received the instructions "Read this. It may or may not be true. You will be tested."
If you guessed the latter, you�re right. Why? Because uncertainty creates learning.
This is a great example of how we can purposefully elicit emotion and intention to create learning. A grad school professor of mine pounded it into our heads: you can't make learning happen, the best you can do is create a learning environment that promotes learning. Now I can see how emotions make up our environment.
So, when we elicit a sense of uncertainty in a task, it challenges the brain and the mind. It sparks curiosity, too, and the mixture of these feelings (among others I�m sure) influences our cognition�it influences our thinking. We then use the information to facilitate our thoughts, intentions and actions. We think, �Hmm�.why wouldn�t this essay be true? What�s the controversy? I�m curious. Let me find out.�
Next, we read the essay. We search for the answers. We read with a little more focus. It�s an egg hunt. It�s a game, or at least your brain thinks so, and it�s liking it. (It's true. Dopamine, the same chemical that's produced in response to food or sexual imagery, is also activated when we're learning. See article.) What's important, through this added meaning, the essay is better remembered. We learn.
On the opposite side, being threatened decreases learning. So, it�s not hard to understand that no learning takes place when we are fighting for survival. What�s sad is how many people there are on this planet that are dying to survive. And I don�t just mean at the hunger-famine level. I also mean surviving at the everyday level.
People fight to survive a conflict, a bad marriage or relationship, debt, a past mistake, living conditions, lack of work opportunities and education, fears, poor health and surprises. Everyday people fight for recognition or the chance to be heard, the brass ring, and on and on. Some fight just to survive to make it to the end of the day. It�s as if the wider the level of needs one is on, on Maslow�s hierarchy of needs, the more we are fighting to survive. The more difficult it is to create learning environments. Even when presented with a controversy or challenge.
Deep learning occurs once we stop fighting to survive. We�ll free up our brain space for more learning and more evolution.
Just to go a step further... Catecholamines are what trigger our 'rushes'. Endorphine, Epinephrine, and dopamine can be released as a response to a stimulus. Just like when you are speeding down the highway and look in your rearview mirror and see a cop, you get that "feeling"--epi rush. Just, who knew that it could be used in learning? Makes sense though.