The Teenage Brain & Effective Study Habits Mr I Dicksee, Deputy Headteacher (Learning & Teaching)

OUR PRIORITIES A crucial part of our work post-16 To ensure we guide our post 16 students to develop the skills to be effective independent learners. To support our Sixth Form students to be ‘future-ready’ through exciting and challenging learning opportunities.

Video (play to 2mins, 48secs) THE YOUNG NOWADAYS ‘The children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise.’ - Socrates, 400 BC The stigma associated with teenagers is not new but perhaps we now better understand why. Video (play to 2mins, 48secs)

THE PREFRONTAL CORTEX A key area of brain development responsible for: Planning Personal Expression Decision Making Deciding Good/Bad, Right/Wrong Predicting Outcome Moderating Behaviours Rule Learning (…) think of the teenage brain as an entertainment center that hasn't been fully hooked up. There are loose wires, so that the speaker system isn’t working with the DVD player (…) and to top it off, the remote control hasn’t even arrived’ (M Edmunds, 2016).

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR US? What are the implications for teenage students (Sixth Formers)? May struggle with planning and organising time; May miscommunicate needs/thoughts; May not immediately see the solution-focussed decision; May struggle with the ‘right thing to do’; May not predict the inevitable outcome; May inappropriately moderate behaviours; May take time to ‘learn the rules’ This is not an excuse! But this provides with a context and reason to provide additional support for young adults finding themselves with a lot of responsibility for their own learning.

EFFECTIVE STUDY HABITS Sixth Formers need to learn the habits of effective learning (and need to be given an environment in which to practice them). Time away from technology and social media (even at 16, 17 & 18); A space to privately study; Knowing the difference between working hard and working effectively; Parent-school partnership; Getting enough rest; Focussing on what is difficult.

EFFECTIVE STUDY HABITS