June
Welcome to the Alite newsletter, June
2001
In this month's newsletter we have comments on recent
research into how teenage girls may be damaging their IQ
through dieting, intriguing research that seems to demonstrate
that giving birth improves memory, thoughts on surprising
results from research funded by the English Football Association,
and some light-hearted stuff just to make you smile.
Feeding the brain
A British study has found that one in four schoolgirls studied are damaging
their IQs by dieting and depriving themselves of iron.
"We were surprised that a very small drop in iron
levels caused a fall in IQ," explained Dr. Michael
Nelson, study author and senior lecturer in nutrition at
King's College, London. "We conclude that poor iron
status is common among British adolescent girls and diet
and iron status play an important role in determining IQ,
independent of factors such as menstrual status or social
class".
The researchers surveyed 595 girls, aged 11 to 18, attending
three comprehensive schools in North London, making up
a cross-section of racial groups. The girls provided blood
samples that were assessed for haemoglobin and packed cell
volume. The investigators found that there was a highly
significant difference in IQ between iron-deficient anaemic
girls, with the lowest levels of iron in their blood, iron-deficient
and iron-replete girls.
'On all our training programmes we stress the importance
of physiological considerations in learning', says Alite
founder Alistair Smith. 'Sleep, movement, hydration,
nutrition and the physical environment are all significant
in shaping learning performance'.
The study abstract was prepared for The Nutrition Society's
summer meeting and will be published in the Spring issue
of "The Nutrition Society 2001". It was funded
by the UK Department of Health.
Giving birth could improve your memory
If you are walking around with a bump in front of you,
and anxiously wondering if there really is going to be
a long, hot summer, there's good news coming.
Scientists have shown that female rats that have given
birth do significantly better in memory tests than other
female rats.
The researchers from the University of Richmond, Virginia,
US, led by Dr Craig Kinsley, conducted two tests of learning
and memory in which the animals were required to find their
way through different mazes. Those rats which had given
birth took much less time to find their way through the
mazes and locate the food rewards on offer. Even foster-mother
rats which had been given the young of others to look after
performed better than the rodents that had not mated or
had any contact with offspring.
The team believe that the hormones produced during pregnancy,
or the experience of giving birth and suckling pups, may
cause physical changes in the brain that make it easier
for the female rat to remember where things are.
"Neural activity brought about by pregnancy and the
presence of pups may literally reshape the brain, fashioning
a more complex organ that can accommodate an increasingly
demanding environment," the team write in the science
journal Nature. The suggestion is that the mental stimulation
of caring for newly-born offspring effectively re-wires
nerve cells and boosts brain power.
The researchers believe "rich sensory events" generated
by caring for young are likely to affect brain structure
as well as hormones.
The significance of 'rich sensory events' ties in with
our view that experiences which are unique to the individual,
which have an emotional resonance and which are disruptive
to the normal pattern of events get coded as significant
and thus get remembered. Good teaching offers this - it's
available to both sexes, and it's less complicated than
getting pregnant!
Why big kids get ahead
Research funded by the English Football Association into what makes an elite
performer in soccer has thrown up some surprising findings. In addition to
physique, mental attitude, perceptual speed, self regulation, parenting and
other factors such as willingness to persist in adversity, your date of
birth makes a difference.
In England, 50% of the squads for the last two world cups
and European Championships were born in the autumn months!
In a school system where the academic year starts in September
being born in those Autumn months gives you a head start
in terms of size. You are more likely to be a big kid and
big kids get picked for the team. Being picked for the
team all the way through the school years helps confidence,
provides incentives as well as structure, attracts coaching
and opportunities to compete.
Change the rules about age limits for teams in schools
sport and of course you change this factor.
Just for fun!
Think you want to be a teacher? Take this test first.
Part One: June 2001
- Buy stylish clothes. Crush chalk onto flat, dry surface.
Roll around on chalk.
- Plan holiday and on first day of holiday get very
ill. As holiday ends, get better.
- Place biro in top pocket and break nib. Wait until
all ink has spread throughout pocket before removing.
Think you want to be a parent? Take this test first.
Part One: June 2001
- Find your best item of clothing. Eat Coco Pops in
milk but do not swallow. After holding in mouth for 45
seconds vomit onto shoulder of expensive item of clothing.
- Find your most recently purchased houseplants. Urinate
on them. Blame it on the dog
- Not got a dog? Buy one. Not the well-behaved puppy
at the kennels but the naughty one with the badly chewed
tail.
Note from Alistair Smith
I have been carrying out research among Head Teachers
in Primary Schools, and many have told me that they would
like more practical input to help their staff to adopt
Accelerated Learning methods. Given the many demands on
teachers' time, it is clearly important to offer interventions
that can be implemented quickly and easily, but to maximum
effect. In response to this need, I have developed a practical,
interactive course specifically for Primary School teachers.
Based on my book The
ALPs™ Approach, Accelerated Learning in Primary
Schools, the course provides delegates with practical
techniques that can be applied in the classroom straight
away. To help teachers to apply the techniques as soon
as they return to the classroom, each school receives
a pack of resources including 'Brain
Break' activities, posters, and specially-designed
ALPs™ tools. These have been tried and tested in
classrooms, and proven to work. Participants will also
come away with a full set of course documentation, which
will serve as a reference source as they apply the techniques
in their own classroom.
If you would like to learn more about the course, please
contact my PA, Melanie Hill, on 01628 810700, or email melanie@alite.co.uk
Are you excited by the world of brain-based and accelerated
learning? A number of career opportunities exist within
Alite for talented individuals with a keen interest in
education and learning. If you would like to join our team,
please answer the following questions and send your answer
with a brief CV to melanie@alite.co.uk,
or by post to
Alistair Smith
Alite Ltd
Bourne End Business Park
Cores End Road
Bourne End
Bucks SL8 5AS
Questions:
- Please explain in no more than 100 words what interests
you about Accelerated Learning
- How has your knowledge of Accelerated Learning techniques
affected your work to date?
|
