What Does it Mean to Learn?

What Does it Mean to Learn?

By Maya Rose, PhD & Ashley McDermott, PhD

What does it mean to learn? Is it defined by your ability to remember concepts, words, or mathematical problems? Or is it defined by how your thinking and understanding change as markers of growth?  

At Thynk, we believe growth is a critical marker of learning. 

When we talk about growth in learning, it is literal – the brain grows and changes. This ability to change is known as neuroplasticity. Everything we experience leads to brain growth. How and how much our brains change are affected by both genetics and environmental experiences. 

Thynk provides specifically designed environmental experiences that help our brains become better at the skills (e.g., executive function skills) that support learning. These experiences include opportunities to practice cognitive skills that activate neural pathways and lead to real changes in the brain through neuroplasticity.  Neuroplasticity occurs through repeated exposure or practice. The more you practice something, the stronger the signal is to your brain that this is important enough for neuroplasticity to occur.

This is why repeated practice is central to Thynk's training. Throughout the training, the most fundamental skill for learning is being able to pay attention – so players always need to maintain an active attention score to move through the game. The more they sustain their attention, the more likely they are to develop the key cognitive skills that are targeted in the training. 

Purposeful learning opportunities promote neural integration and strengthen neural networks. Thynk's training purposefully requires players to practice cognitive skills that support learning. An important part of growth and neuroplasticity is pruning connections that are not being used. Through repeatedly practicing these skills, our brains also prune away less helpful neural pathways that can get in the way of learning. Purposeful learning experiences help ensure that the brain strengthens the most useful neural pathways while allowing less useful connections to be pruned.

Childhood and adolescence are key developmental stages in which the brain experiences growth. This period of rapid brain development, combined with the purposeful design of Skylar's Run, positions students to master the 13 cognitive skills they need to succeed throughout school and life.