OODA FLOWDuring the past six years, I have become increasingly
interested in understanding how specific training, including both
movement and breath-work, can enhance learning. The primary goal is
using this knowledge to deliver a competitive advantage for
individuals, teams, and organizations.
COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE
Cognitive neuroscience is the study of mental processes and their
underlying neural systems. Broadly speaking, it examines how thinking
and behavior are underpinned by the brain as a physical organ.
Therefore, part of cognitive neuroscience looks at how the brain
learns: encoding, storing, retrieving and using the information it
encounters. It is through learning that the brain enables us to adapt
to our ever-changing environment successfully.
IMAGING
Increasingly sophisticated imaging tools have allowed researchers to
study the nervous system in real-time. We are literally able to see
the brain at work. As a result, today we know more about learning than
ever before. This provides excellent opportunities for trainers and
human development professionals to harness these insights and advance
in their fields.
LEARNING IS A PHYSICAL PROCESS
Nerve cells communicate through a complex interaction of chemical
release and electric impulse, similar to running software on a
computer. Correct learning upgrades this software by changing the
type, amount and timing of these signals.
But, our brain does not only change its function. New connections form
based on use, leading to alterations in brain structure. This is akin
to upgrading our hardware. Our experiences continuously re-shape our
brain and modify behavior over the entire lifespan (Neuroplasticity).
A variety of hormones, transmitter chemicals, and other growth factors
facilitate the number and strength of these connections. We know from
studies, over the past decade, that the availability of these factors
can be enhanced. For example, specific exercise routines, optimal
sleep, and “silencing the mind” can all improve the availability
of desired growth factors. Poor recovery, chronically elevated stress
hormones and suboptimal nutrition can negatively impact learning and
in some cases degrade neural pathways.
MOVEMENT IS PART OF HOW WE LEARN AND THE TAD 0-13 LAB
Research also suggests that full engagement, including movement, is a
prerequisite for ideal changes in the brain. Exercise boosts blood
supply and the availability of key neurotransmitters. There is
evidence that the size of our hippocampus (a key region of the brain
associated with memory) increases with regular exercise. Changes in
neural connections, which are fundamental for deep learning to take
place, do not seem to occur optimally when the learning experience is
not active.
This is why the TAD 0-13 educational lab supports all available
movement systems. Our goal is not to compete, as there is a benefit in
each approach. We are constantly researching new developments, to
assist the entire training community, through increasing the amount
and accuracy of applicable knowledge.
We do this in order to learn how to use movement correctly, not just
in recreational, aesthetic or acrobatic type training, but as a
powerful tool to improve health and acquiring advanced cognitive
skills.
EMOTION
Neuroscientists believe that emotions greatly affect our
interpretation of information. One of the earliest advocates of this
was Plato, who wrote more than 2,000 years ago that "All learning has
an emotional base."
Motivation in the brain is driven by emotion, which also determines
what we focus on in a situation. Individuals are motivated to engage
with situations we perceive as having an emotionally positive valence
(being enjoyable or attractive) and seek to avoid those with
emotionally negative valence (things seen as harmful or aversive).
Research findings indicate that two people could be in the same
situation and walk away with completely different learning based on
their emotional state. We activate different brain regions and encode
different parts of the information based on the context it appears
in.
Using this gives the possibility of driving a subject through a
specific routine of parameters to stimulate the optimal emotional
state for the type of learning required. The ideal pathway often
goes through a sense of “struggle” to a “release and growth”
stage.
A well-designed protocol takes the subject, or team, through these
emotional steps, allowing them to improve rapidly and trust the
information they are engraining is correct. Over time, subjects are
better able to deal with complex decision making, re-call information
under pressure and problem solve effectively.
ATTENTION - CONTROL
A sustained focus has been found to be mostly an unconscious process,
but it is essential for performance, learning and creative thinking.
We utilize scientific techniques for actively silencing the mind
through controlled attention (focusing on the essential senses while
breathing deeply), or open monitoring (actively allowing incoming
stimuli without reacting or responding to them). When applied
correctly for 20 minutes per day, these go a long way toward enhancing
the abilities of sustained attention and “laser-focus” as needed.
OODA flow uses specially designed and tested protocols of movement and
breathing, with different degrees of complexity and variability. These
are integrated with unique applications of challenging cognitive
drills. The level of challenge and type of drill is based upon the
effect desired and skill of the subject. Selected correctly, they make
use of evolving scientific knowledge on codifying information. Using
our body and breathing, we are able to train the brain as a potent
tool in a scientific way.
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19/08/2019 Last update