This article draws out the implications for school and classroom
practices of an emerging consensus about the science of learning and
development, outlined in a recent synthesis of the research. Situating
the review in a developmental systems framework, we synthesize evidence
from the learning sciences and several branches of educational research
regarding well-vetted strategies that support the kinds of relationships
and learning opportunities needed to promote children’s well-being,
healthy development, and transferable learning. In addition, we review
research regarding practices that can help educators respond to
individual variability, address adversity, and support resilience, such
that schools can enable all children to find positive pathways to
adulthood.Educational research and development
As
knowledge regarding human development and learning has grown at a rapid
pace, the opportunity to shape more effective educational practices has
also increased. Taking advantage of these advances, however, requires
integrating insights across multiple fields—from the biological and
neurosciences to psychology, sociology, developmental and learning
sciences—and connecting them to knowledge of successful approaches that
is emerging in education. This article seeks to contribute to this
process by drawing out the implications for school and classroom
practices of an emerging consensus about the science of learning and
development (SoLD), outlined in a recent synthesis of the research .
Using
these articles as a foundation, we synthesize evidence from the
learning sciences and several branches of educational research about
well-vetted strategies that support the kinds of relationships and
learning opportunities needed to promote children’s well-being, healthy
development, and transferable learning. In addition, we review research
regarding practices that can help educators respond to individual
variability, address adversity, and support resilience, such that
schools can enable all children to learn and to find positive pathways
to adulthood.
This work is situated in a relational developmental
systems framework that looks at the “mutually influential relations
between individuals and contexts” (Lerner & Callina, 2013, p. 373).
This framework makes it clear how children’s development and learning
are shaped by interactions among the environmental factors,
relationships, and learning opportunities they experience, both in and
out of school, along with physical, psychological, cognitive, social,
and emotional processes that influence one another—both biologically and
functionally—as they enable or undermine learning (Fischer &
Bidell, 2006; Rose, Rouhani, and Fischer, 2013). Although our society
and our schools often compartmentalize these developmental processes and
treat them as distinct from one another—and treat the child as distinct
from the many contexts she experiences—the sciences of learning and
development demonstate how tightly interrelated they are and how they
jointly produce the outcomes for which educators are responsible.
Key
insights from the science of learning and development are that the
brain and the development of intelligences and capacities are malleable,
and the “development of the brain is an experience-dependent process”
(Cantor et al., 2018, p. 5), which activates neural pathways that permit
new kinds of thinking and performance. As a function of experiences,
the brain and human capacities grow over the course of the entire
developmental continuum and across the developmental spectrum (physical,
cognitive, affective) in interactive ways. What happens in one domain
influences what happens in others. For example, emotions can trigger or
block learning. Emotions and social contexts shape neural connections
which contribute to attention, concentration, and memory, to knowledge
transfer and application. Understanding how developmental processes
unfold over time and interact in different contexts can contribute to
more supportive designs for learning environments.
Furthermore,
general trends in development are modified by interactions between
unique aspects of the child and his/her family, community, and classroom
contexts. As a result, children have individual needs and trajectories
that require differentiated instruction and supports to enable optimal
growth in competence, confidence, and motivation.
A central
implication for educators is that this integrated and dynamic
developmental system is optimally supported when all aspects of the
educational environment support all of the dimensions of children’s
development. This calls for a deeply integrated approach to practice
that supports the whole child in schools and classrooms that function
coherently and consistently to build strong relationships and learning
communities; support social, emotional, and cognitive development; and
provide a system of supports as needed for healthy development,
productive relationships, and academic progress. This holistic approach
must necessarily connect with family and community contexts: developing
strong, respectful partnerships to understand and build on children’s
experiences and, as needed, to strengthen any aspects of the
developmental system where there are challenges to children’s health and
well-being.
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