The 12 brain/mind learning principles were first published in Educational Leadership in 1989 to explain how people learn naturally. They provided the foundations for what was called brain based learning.
We now call them systems principles of natural learning. They are based on the fact that natural learning is biological as well as psychological, and that every aspect of a human being - including body, emotions, mind, social relationships and physical context is involved in learning. The principles were developed by synthesizing and integrating research from many different disciplines, ranging from neuroscience to cognitive psychology.
They show that there are acutally several different types of learning, and different types of learning outcomes. There are differences, for instance, between:
- rote memorization for surface knowledge;
- problem solving for intellectual understanding and technical/scholastic knowledge; and
- learning from experience that produces a "feel" for things and results in performance knowledge.
The principles were developed in much more detail, with implications for teaching, in the Caines' best selling book Making Connections: Teaching and the Human Brain (ASCD, 1991). The principles have been used extensively throughout the world, at all levels of education, ranging from the classroom to distict offices to universities to serving as foundational material for state documents.
The problem is that the education system pays almost no attention to how natural learning works, and so it relies on some very limited capacities (like memorization) but overlooks almost everything else that is going on in a student’s world.
Educators need to know how people learn naturally. Our brain/mind learning principles provide that foundation. They are true to the research while expressed in a form that is practical and easy to understand.
The principles are summarized in the wheel at the top, right hand side of the screen. They are expanded and explained in the free downloads. And a more in depth explanation and reference to research can be found in our books and other publications.
