A recent op-ed (opinion article) lists nuero-myths of education, and claims to have the facts straight. The opinion article neglected to list the complete research used/referenced for the reader to evaluate. One of the myths listed is left/right brain differences, another is that learning styles matter. The left/right brain concept won the researcher the Nobel Prize in his day, so this op-ed opinion could be equally incorrect, however, for dyslexia, current research suggests rather than truly being right-brained, it is the inefficient or different connections between the two hemispheres, and MRIs show less efficient processing of language/reading for dyslexic readers, which is typically a left brain function. Consider this quote: The left hemisphere specializes in picking out the sounds that form words and working out the syntax of the words, for example, but it does not have a monopoly on language processing. The right hemisphere is actually more sensitive to the emotional features of language, tuning in to the slow rhythms of speech that carry intonation and stress. “It’s absolutely true that some brain functions occur in one or the other side of the brain. Language tends to be on the left, attention more on the right. But people don’t tend to have a stronger left- or right-sided brain network. It seems to be determined more connection by connection, explained the studys lead author Dr. Jeff Anderson. Second, as Dr. Shaywitz pointed out to Congress, evidence-based methods of instruction vs. research-based methods get confused. Orton-Gillingham instruction is evidenced-based and proven to be effective for dyslexic students of all ages. Not sure what the researcher/writer is referencing in terms of learning style, but multi-sensory instruction, which O-G is, is better for all children, yet rarely used in our auditory-sequential linear learning rote memorizing classrooms that neglect at least 20% of student learning needs--not sure if the researcher is equating learning style with learning needs? Terms need to be better defined these days. Third, any research coming out of the recession-reform era is highly suspect, since funding for said research, and the hypotheses attempting to be proved, are often coming out of budget-reduction and assembly-line mass-implementation/mass-broad-data-analysis politically-charged general ed standards goals that ignore individual needs or differences, and from economics departments as much as neuroscience or education departments. How economically convenient to say only teaching one way is the best way. Ref: psychology.about/.../a/left-brain-right-brain.htm and sciencedirect/.../pii/S0006322305001204 etc.
Posted on: Tue, 21 Oct 2014 13:49:34 +0000
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