Year 9 Cognizance Session 3
On Thursday 5 August our Neuroscientist-in-Residence, Dr Jared Cooney Horvath delivered a third session to our Year 9 cohort as part of the Cognizance Research Project. This Independent Schools Victoria program is now in its third year at Geelong College and, as with previous cohorts, the Year 9s are learning about the neuroscience of learning and metacognition. Having their second session online during remote learning earlier in the term, we were very fortunate to have the students together with Dr Jared in the flesh on for this third workshop.
This session looked at the notion of memory – how our brain does memory, how to enhance our memory when we study, and how to use our learning for maximum outcomes. It was a brain-based masterclass in studying for our students. We learned that the encoding of memories is best achieved through short and sharp periods of highly-focused study and, as a second strategy, thinking in stories helps our brains to remember facts. Students also learned about how to store those memories and the importance of recall for study. It will be exciting to see our Year 9s use their new understanding to enhance their study in the coming weeks and months.
Parent Session: A journey through the adolescent brain
We were so appreciative of Jared’s flexibility in switching from our live evening to an online format for the presentation. Despite the lockdown announcement at 4.30pm, we had many Senior School families joining our virtual session. Talking on the adolescent brain, Jared presented an overview of human brain development from birth to death, and then focused on the uniqueness of the adolescent journey, neurologically speaking. We talked about the pre-frontal cortex development, sleep, and a range of other interesting features. Parents had a chance to ask great questions and the end.
For parents who missed the session but would like to listen, the recording can be found here. This is a hosted site by Independent Schools Victoria: https://vimeo.com/583590551/c9dfbabbca
