The Brain and Learning Quiz

Quiz

1. Imagine this: You and a friend are walking down a forest path, deep in conversation. You are fully focused on the topic of your conversation, not consciously thinking about the actions of walking. Then, all of a sudden, a rabid raccoon jumps onto the path right in front of you and begins running in your direction. What happens next?

You continue your conversation, glance at the racoon, and move to one side of the path to give the raccoon room to pass you.
You, no doubt, have a wonderful ability to concentrate. Still, it's unlikely that you would remain so calm when faced with a wild creature crazed by rabies! It's more likely that your interesting conversation would stop while the brain shifts its attention to dealing with the problem at hand.
Robert Sylwester, author of the ASCD book A Celebration of Neurons and professor of education at the University of Oregon at Eugene, uses a scenario like this to remind us that our brains are designed to ensure survival. Brains can only fully attend to one thing at a time.
Because our brains are built to act first and ask questions later, our attention will immediately go to any unusual, unexpected, or potentially threatening event. In situations like these, our emotions take over--fear in this case.
What's more, we will remember that raccoon the next time we travel down that same path. Strong emotional links create strong learning.
You immediately stop talking, give a little scream, and jump out of the way of that rabid raccoon.
Chances are, your interesting conversation would stop while the brain shifts its attention to dealing with the problem at hand.
Robert Sylwester, author of the ASCD book A Celebration of Neurons and professor of education at the University of Oregon at Eugene, uses a scenario like this to remind us that our brains are designed to ensure survival. Brains can only fully attend to one thing at a time.
Because our brains are built to act first and ask questions later, our attention will immediately go to any unusual, unexpected, or potentially threatening event. In situations like these, our emotions take over--fear in this case.
What's more, we will remember that raccoon the next time we travel down that same path. Strong emotional links create strong learning.
You continue talking and walking. What raccoon?
You are probably the type of person who lives completely in the moment. Still, I fear for your survival! What raccoon? When faced with a wild creature crazed by rabies, your brain would probably wake up and shift its attention to dealing with the problem at hand.
Robert Sylwester, author of the ASCD book A Celebration of Neurons and professor of education at the University of Oregon at Eugene, uses a scenario like this to remind us that our brains are designed to ensure survival. Brains can only fully attend to one thing at a time.
Because our brains are built to act first and ask questions later, our attention will immediately go to any unusual, unexpected, or potentially threatening event. In situations like these, our emotions take over--fear in this case.
What's more, we will remember that raccoon the next time we travel down that same path. Strong emotional links create strong learning.

2. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

A friend asks whether you think you are right-brained or left-brained. How do you reply?

You tell your friend that you use 100 percent of our brain 100 percent of the time.
That's using your noodle! You're right, the brain functions as a whole at all times. People are neither right-brained nor left-brained. Neither is it true that we use only 10 percent of our brain capacity. We use 100 percent of our brain 100 percent of the time.
The brain is a system. As with any system, all of its many parts must be functioning all of the time to be optimally effective. Understand, however, that these many parts won't necessarily all function at the same level all of the time. The distinction with the brain is that some parts will be more active at times than others, depending on the type of task a person is involved in.
You tell your friend that because you're so good at math, you must be left-brained.
Your logical-mathematical intelligence may be highly developed, but that does not mean that you're left-brained. The brain functions as a whole at all times. People are neither right-brained nor left-brained. Neither is it true that we use only 10 percent of our brain capacity. We use 100 percent of our brain 100 percent of the time.
The brain is a system. As with any system, all of its many parts must be functioning all of the time to be optimally effective. Understand, however, that these many parts won't necessarily all function at the same level all of the time. The distinction with the brain is that some parts will be more active at times than others, depending on the type of task a person is involved in.
You tell your friend that because you're so sensitive, you must be right-brained.
That you're sensitive results from a combination of factors-genetics, your environment, and so on--but it does not mean that you're right-brained. The brain functions as a whole at all times. People are neither right-brained nor left-brained. Neither is it true that we use only 10 percent of our brain capacity. We use 100 percent of our brain 100 percent of the time.
The brain is a system. As with any system, all of its many parts must be functioning all of the time to be optimally effective. Understand, however, that these many parts won't necessarily all function at the same level all of the time. The distinction with the brain is that some parts will be more active at times than others, depending on the type of task a person is involved in.

3. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

You need to convince the couch potatoes you love that their brains will work better if they exercise regularly--at least 3 times a week, 20 minutes a day. Which of the statements below do you think will most inspire your potato to get off the couch?

Research shows that aerobic exercise will improve your short-term memory.
Can't remember where you set your keys? What's that pin number for the ATM? When is that meeting and where? If you need to improve your short-term memory, you may want to work out more!
As Eric Jensen writes in the ASCD book, Teaching with the Brain in Mind, in the same way that exercise shapes up the muscles, heart, lungs, and bones, it also strengthens all key areas of the brain.
Research shows that aerobic conditioning has been known to assist in memory. At Scripps College in Claremont, California, 124 subjects were divided equally into exercisers and nonexercisers. Those who exercised 75 minutes a week demonstrated quicker reactions, thought better, and remembered more.
And, by the way, all of the answers were correct for this question. When you've finished with the quiz, you may want to return to Question #3 and read the other responses.
Research shows that exercise can reduce stress, and reducing stress boosts your brain power.
Our lives are frantic. Whether you're planning a family gathering or rushing to meet a deadline at work, stress is now a part of all of our lives.
The problem: chronic stress releases the chemicals that kill neurons in the hippocampus, the critical area of the brain that's responsible for memory formation.
Luckily, as Eric Jensen writes in the ASCD book, Teaching with the Brain in Mind, exercise can reduce chronic stress, thereby enhancing learning.
And, by the way, all of the answers were correct for this question. When you've finished with the quiz, you may want to return to Question #3 and read the other responses.
Research shows that exercise helps you respond more quickly to the unexpected.
Need the ability to "think on your feet"?
Aerobic and other forms of "toughening exercises" can have enduring mental benefits, writes Eric Jensen in the ASCD book, Teaching with the Brain in Mind.
The secret is that physical exercise alone appears to train a quick adrenaline-noradrenaline response and rapid recovery. In other words, by working out your body, you'll better prepare your brain to respond to challenges rapidly.
And, by the way, all of the answers were correct for this question. When you've finished with the quiz, you may want to return to Question #3 and read the other responses.
All of the above.
That's right! All of the answers were correct for this question. When you've finished with the quiz, you may want to return to Question #3 and read the other responses.

4. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

Consider this scenario: Your child's soccer coach greets you at the post office. He's out of uniform and you're not on the field. You raise your hand in mute greeting because you simply can't remember his name. It's embarrassing when we can't place the people who play roles in our lives. Why does this happen?

Like a computer, the brain can only hold so much information. Your brain simply didn't have room to store the coach's name.
Luckily for us, our brains are not like computers! There's no limit to what we can learn and your brain will never stop processing and storing information. There is a perfectly good reason we all experience moments of faulty memory. It has to do with how our brain stores and retrieves information.
As we learn new information, our brains form complicated webs of associations which can help us retrieve that information later. For example, if you ask a teacher about elementary school, that makes him think of his hometown, which makes him think of his mother, which reminds him that he owes her a call, which reminds him that his phone bill is overdue, which reminds him that his best friend is overdue to have her baby. Associations in our brains do exist and they can help or hinder retrieval of specific information.
You couldn't remember the name of the soccer coach because he was not in a context your brain recognized. The association you needed was weak and your memory faltered because of it. You needed a crutch--the association between the coach, his uniform, and the soccer field--to help you remember his name.

You're just getting old and your brain is tired.
You may be tired, and that certainly will affect how efficient your brain will be.
Still, it's more likely that you couldn't remember the soccer coach's name because he was not in a context your brain recognized and your memory faltered because of it.
As we learn new information, our brains form complicated webs of associations which can help us retrieve that information later. For example, if you ask a teacher about elementary school, that makes him think of his hometown, which makes him think of his mother, which reminds him that he owes her a call, which reminds him that his phone bill is overdue, which reminds him that his best friend is overdue to have her baby. Associations in our brains do exist and they can help or hinder retrieval of specific information.
When you saw your child's coach, you needed a crutch--the association between the coach, his uniform, and the soccer field--to help you remember his name. No crutch and you end up raising your hand in mute greeting!

You saw the coach in a context your brain didn't recognize. The association you needed to name the coach was weak and your memory faltered because of it.
Good news: you're mind is not deteriorating! There's a perfectly good reason we all experience moments of faulty memory. It has to do with how our brain stores and retrieves information.
As we learn new information, our brains form complicated webs of associations which can help us retrieve that information later. For example, if you ask a teacher about elementary school, that makes him think of his hometown, which makes him think of his mother, which reminds him that he owes her a call, which reminds him that his phone bill is overdue, which reminds him that his best friend is overdue to have her baby. Associations in our brains do exist and they can help or hinder retrieval of specific information.
You couldn't remember the name of the soccer coach because he was not in a context your brain recognized. The association you needed was weak and your memory faltered because of it. You needed a crutch--the association between the coach, his uniform, and the soccer field--to help you remember his name.

5. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
Cross-cultural studies have shown that there are six emotions universally shared by all people. What are those emotions?

Joy (Pleasure), Fear, Surprise, Disgust, Anger, and Sadness
If you felt this was the right answer, you were right to trust your feelings! The six emotions universally shared by all people are joy (pleasure), fear, surprise, disgust, anger, and sadness. They are called primary emotions. Secondary emotions, on the other hand, are learned behaviors that develop as a result of cultural and environmental circumstances. These include worry, anticipation, frustration, cynicism, and optimism.
In his book, Teaching With the Brain in Mind, Eric Jensen urges us to stop thinking of emotions as always irrational or of having nothing to do with the ways we think. While extremes of emotion are usually harmful to our best thinking, a middle ground makes sense. Appropriate emotions speed up decision making enormously.
Emotions are a form of learning. Our emotions are the genetically refined result of lifetimes of wisdom. Good learning requires us to engage our feelings.

Confidence, Confusion, Anticipation, Frustration, Cynicism, and Optimism
These are emotions, all right, but emotions such as worry, anticipation, frustration, cynicism, and optimism are learned behaviors--developed as a result of cultural and environmental circumstances. According to Eric Jensen, the six emotions universally shared by all people are joy (pleasure), fear, surprise, disgust, anger, and sadness. They are called primary emotions.
In his book, Teaching With the Brain in Mind, Jensen urges us to stop thinking of emotions as always irrational or of having nothing to do with the ways we think. While extremes of emotion are usually harmful to our best thinking, a middle ground makes sense. Appropriate emotions speed up decision making enormously.
Emotions are a form of learning. Our emotions are the genetically refined result of lifetimes of wisdom. Good learning requires us to engage our feelings.

Both of the Above
These are emotions, all right, but emotions such as worry, anticipation, frustration, cynicism, and optimism are learned behaviors--developed as a result of cultural and environmental circumstances. According to Eric Jensen, the six emotions universally shared by all people are joy (pleasure), fear, surprise, disgust, anger, and sadness. They are called primary emotions.
In his book, Teaching With the Brain in Mind, Jensen urges us to stop thinking of emotions as always irrational or of having nothing to do with the ways we think. While extremes of emotion are usually harmful to our best thinking, a middle ground makes sense. Appropriate emotions speed up decision making enormously.
Emotions are a form of learning. Our emotions are the genetically refined result of lifetimes of wisdom. Good learning requires us to engage our feelings.

1. Imagine this: You and a friend are walking down a forest path, deep in conversation. You are fully focused on the topic of your conversation, not consciously thinking about the actions of walking. Then, all of a sudden, a rabid raccoon jumps onto the path right in front of you and begins running in your direction. What happens next?
You immediately stop talking, give a little scream, and jump out of the way of that rabid raccoon.

2. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
A friend asks whether you think you are right-brained or left-brained. How do you reply?
You tell your friend that you use 100 percent of our brain 100 percent of the time.

3. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
You need to convince the couch potatoes you love that their brains will work better if they exercise regularly--at least 3 times a week, 20 minutes a day. Which of the statements below do you think will most inspire your potato to get off the couch?
All of the above.

4. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
Consider this scenario: Your child's soccer coach greets you at the post office. He's out of uniform and you're not on the field. You raise your hand in mute greeting because you simply can't remember his name. It's embarrassing when we can't place the people who play roles in our lives. Why does this happen?
You saw the coach in a context your brain didn't recognize. The association you needed to name the coach was weak and your memory faltered because of it.

5. Brought to you by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
Cross-cultural studies have shown that there are six emotions universally shared by all people. What are those emotions?
Joy (Pleasure), Fear, Surprise, Disgust, Anger, and Sadness

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