Forget About It: Why Forgetting Helps You Remember More

We’ve all experienced a time when we wished our memories could be at least a little bit better. Perhaps that’s when you misplaced your keys. Maybe it’s when someone introduces themselves and you forget their name within seconds. Or it’s during a math test, and you can’t recall a formula for a particular problem. No matter the stakes, forgetting at an inconvenient time makes you wonder why your brain forgets things in the first place. Wouldn’t we be better off if we could remember everything and anything? 

As it turns out, your brain intentionally and immediately discards almost everything you experience. Sounds disappear from your brain within a few seconds — images fade even faster within half a second. For example, close your eyes and try to count the letters in this sentence. That’s how fast forgetting can happen. 

But what would it be like if we really could remember everything and anything? At its best, you could remember every detail of your favorite memory with a loved one before they passed. You could recall any information you needed on an important test. However, you’d also flawlessly remember your toughest heart break or worst failure. Not only that, but you’d remember every time you stubbed your toe and every inhale with perfect clarity. You would be hopelessly overwhelmed. 

Why do we forget? The benefits of forgetting 

If you could remember everything, you’d be paralyzed by the magnitude of your own memories. Forgetting is an adaptation that makes us better suited to thrive in our environment. We forget so that we can function.  

Forgetting helps us form associative memories. We can perceive many things at once in our environment, but that does not mean that they are all equally important or relevant to our lives. We tend to remember things that form relationships or links, whether to each other or to existing memory pathways in our brains. We forget random things, or things that aren’t related, that do not have predictive value. 

Forgetting has also shown to improve creative thinking. In a 2014 study, participants were presented with a common household item, along with four uses for said item (for example, newspaper: paper mâché, gift wrapping, fire starter, tablecloth). The baseline group simply had to remember the item and the functions. The thinking group had to remember the item, the given functions, and also think of other potential uses within one minute. Both groups were then tested on the four original uses. 

The baseline group remembered more of the four original uses than the thinking group. However, among the thinking group, the individuals who forgot more of the original uses had more creative use suggestions than individuals who remembered more original uses (and had less creative suggested uses). So, while some displayed better memory in the face of distraction, others were far more creative while forgetting the original task. 

Now we see that forgetting can, in fact, benefit us and enrich our other cognitive capacities. But the problem of forgetting the important stuff remains. Is there a way to improve our memory to at least recall what we want to remember, better? 

How to improve your memory 

Cognitive and neuroscience researchers have uncovered certain triggers that have been shown to cause the brain to hold on to information. Amplifire’s own eLearning platform is built on these triggers and has been proven to help people learn faster and retain more. 

An example is when you encounter something repeatedly, especially if those encounters are spread out in time. This type of interaction with a stimuli indicates to the brain that the particular stimuli is important and causes it to be preserved. As it turns out, there is an optimal amount of time between repeated interactions with information that can boost memory by up to 300%.  

Another powerful trigger is retrieval practice. Rereading your notes over and over again before a test won’t help you remember, but retrieval practice will. By calling the information forward in your mind and practicing the act of remembering specific information, you forge a better, longer lasting memory. 

While implementing some of these triggers into your learning and studying habits will help you remember more information, most of these triggers work subconsciously in the background as we go about our daily lives. We may think to ourselves, “I need to remember [insert information],” but all too often end up forgetting despite our attempt to program a self-reminder. 

However, if you are curious about other ways to improve your memory, read more about the triggers that power Amplifire’s learning platform: 

• Cognitive triggers  
• Emotional triggers  
• Motivational triggers 

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by checking out a demo.

How eLearning is Making the Learning Experience More Personal

In a post-pandemic world, offering virtual options is now the bare minimum. People expect personalization. Technology has been the go-to solution in the face of pandemic challenges; but, while tech often inherently allows for more flexibility, it’s not always a personalized experience for users. Whether in a virtual, hybrid, or in-person setting, employees are demanding to be seen as more than just a number. Therefore, it is critical to choose tech that understands the nuances of balancing your employees’ needs and organization-wide goals. An eLearning platform that has the capabilities to provide a highly personalized learning experience for employees is the solution. 

The importance of personalized learning 

“Personalized learning” refers to learning experiences that meet employees where they are. Many experts say it offers an elegant solution to a long-standing dilemma: Learning and development are critical to corporate success, but if leaders aren’t careful, training can quickly swallow big chunks of employees’ time and a company’s budget. One-size-fits-all never works, and as it turns out, it is an expensive waste of time for employees and the organization. That’s where personalized learning makes a difference. 

At Amplifire, we see the impact of personalized learning through our training results. Our platform guides employees to proficiency in less time at less cost. Take electronic health record (EHR) training, for example. EHR installations can cost billions. At UCHealth, a national center for EHR training, classroom instruction has been fully replaced with Amplifire. The result was a 56% reduction in training time and an estimated $1.45 million in cost savings. These consequential organizational results aside, UCHealth’s providers returned to the floor with the confidence to do their job to the best of their ability because their training targeted exactly what they needed to know and didn’t waste time reteaching what they already knew.  

Personalized, “learner-centric” training can be applied in corporate training settings with the same results: a >50% reduction in training time is common across the board. It is possible to achieve strong results consistently because learner-centric training puts the learner back at the center of the learning process — they are active agents in their learning. To truly offer an effective personalized learning experience, your training platform must be learner centric. 

3 Must-haves to personalize the online learning experience 

It may seem contradictory to claim that online learning could be more personal than literal in-person instruction. But as a company whose job is to ensure learning is effective and long-lasting, a personalized, learner-centric approach is at the heart of Amplifire’s eLearning platform. We rely on features that not only make the online learning experience better but have also proven to be more effective than traditional teaching and training methods. Here are some examples of what personalized learning looks like in a training platform: 

1. Adaptive platform 

An adaptive platform that adjusts to individual learners’ knowledge levels is essential to learning personalization. It tailors the experience to learners’ needs, filling in knowledge gaps, shoring up uncertainties, and correcting misconceptions. By adapting to their knowledge level, trainees don’t waste time relearning things they already know. Instead, they spend more time only on subjects they demonstrate struggle with. The platform then provides feedback to support active learning that sticks. Furthermore, trainees receive real-time guidance from Amplifire’s virtual coach. The coach encourages and cajoles trainees to keep up the good work, improve their pace, or to keep focused when they get off track. 

Amplifire’s adaptive platform is uniquely learner-centric because it allows trainees to indicate whether they don’t know an answer, are unsure about the answer they’re providing, or if they are answering confidently. This feature represents a particularly effective brain science technique that allows the platform to identify areas of weakness and adjust accordingly.  We’ll explain this personalized aspect in a bit more depth… 

2. Brain science-based techniques 

A common assumption about online learning is that platforms tend to neglect the humanity of the learner on the other side of the screen. However, our platform harnesses the brain’s natural learning mechanisms, which are innately personalized to the human experience. Combined with our adaptive algorithm that guides each learner, the cognitive science principles built into the platform provide yet another level of personalization. 

Amplifire is built on 23 cognitive triggers that are proven to make learning stick. One such trigger is meta-cognition which is built into the answering format we previously described. When learners think about how well they do or do not know something, it forces extra attention to strengthen or fill in any knowledge gaps, thus, better learning! What’s more personal than a platform that values how a trainee thinks and feels while they learn. 

Another trigger is feedback. Research indicates that a slight delay in feedback is optimal for better learning. So, when a learner gives an answer, feedback is adjusted to whether they answer incorrectly, correctly, or hesitantly, and is given with a slight delay. This is experience is tailored to individuals and is not one-size-fits-all feedback.   

These are just two examples of nearly two-dozen triggers embedded in the Amplifire platform to enhance the learning process on a personal level. 

3. Analytics

Robust analytics collected on an individual basis provide an outlook on a learner’s starting point and progress, down to the exact instances of misconceptions, uncertainties, and gaps up to the degree of mastery.  

But analytics aren’t only for back-end use — they can help learners inform their own progress, too. If learners are preparing for certification exams, tests, or simply gauging their knowledge on a particular topic, self-assessment pre-tests are a great way to identify where to focus time and effort. These pre-tests also act as a priming mechanism — another powerful cognitive trigger to make learning stick. 

Learners can also access their personal dashboard, which is constructed on the fly during learning. The dashboard gives each learner insight into their pathway to mastery. 

Online training doesn’t have to be cold, impersonal, and boring. In fact, when built right, it can be extremely engaging, highly personalized, and uniquely effective. 

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by checking out a demo.

Leverage Online Learning to Enhance Your Learning & Development Strategy

Over the past two-plus years, the workforce has changed dramatically. Although we are emerging from the chaos of a pandemic, the reality is that we live in a changed world. Technology has enabled remote work and made us more productive than ever before. In this same vein, online learning — including online training and professional development opportunities — has the potential to make us smarter than ever. Forward-thinking employers have been investing in training platforms that quickly and effectively onboard, train, reskill, and upskill their employees at all stages of their career while reaping the analytics to continuously optimize and refine their process to achieve maximum ROI.

To help their people and your organization at large achieve their full potential, leaders and learning and development professionals need to evaluate their L&D strategy with a critical eye. The most effective way to gain insight into if an employee training and development program is working, is to employ an adaptive learning platform, such as Amplifire. The adaptive nature of the platform allows for a completely personalized learning experience which, in turn, collects valuable learner analytics. These learner analytics can provide deeper insights into employees’ progress, knowledge, and skill levels; inform instructional intervention; and help calculate your ROI. Eventually, these insights inform organizational development strategy moving forward.

In the modern world, the strength  of your learning and development strategy cannot be comprehensively evaluated without the help of an effective eLearning platform. To maximize your organization’s potential, here is what industry leaders should be looking at:

Employee training and development audit

When it comes to providing a learning experience that helps your people learn the right things faster and retain more training, it is important to align your L&D strategy with your organization’s goals and nail down your learners’ persona(s).

Strategy

The first step in your learning & development audit is to refine your strategy. Without the big picture in mind, high-level objectives remain allusive. A tangible outline can kick start the process of materializing goals.

Consider these questions:

• What is the mission? What do you do? How do you do it? Who do you do it for?
• What are your L&D departmental objectives? Do they align with the organization’s mission?
• What initiatives will accomplish these objectives?
• What KPIs measure success of the initiatives?
• What is the timeline? What milestones will you set?

To sufficiently attack your initiatives and overall objectives, use the SMART approach. Your efforts should be specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, and timebound. Ultimately, your training content will reflect your initiatives and objectives, and L&D strategy at large. Amplifire’s rich analytics lets you know if your content is landing with learners or if they are struggling to grasp certain topics, skills, and ideas. A high struggle rate may indicate that it is time to update or refine training content.

Persona

Let’s be honest, one-size-fits-all never works. Don’t doom your new L&D strategy from the start by assuming it works for every individual. To ensure your new L&D strategy reaches all your employees, you must identify their learner personas.

A learner persona might include:

• Name, age, seniority, and previous experience
• Role
• Areas of struggle
• Hard skills acquired
• Career aspirations

Just as marketing teams use personas to reach their target audience as potently as possible, leadership can identify personas to guide decisions where content and learning materials are produced.

Modern learners expect a personalized learning experience. They don’t want to waste time reviewing content they have already mastered. As an adaptive learning platform, Amplifire assesses learners’ current knowledge level and tailors content to fill knowledge gaps, uncertainty, and misinformation. Meet all your employees’ needs through adaptive learning, whether they are brand new or have 20 years’ experience in your industry. They will appreciate that you have respected their time with an adaptive approach.

Personalized learning also works to keep learners engaged. Furthermore, Amplifire uses cognitive triggers that are proven to make learning last by stimulating the brain’s natural sense of curiosity. Our platform is based on powerful brain science discoveries, and curiosity is just one of 27 triggers used to make learning stick for good. Tech often makes the mistake of forgetting who is on the other end: a human being! A foundation in biology — cognitive and neuroscience, specifically — is what sets Amplifire’s platform apart. It’s critical appeal to how people actually learn to see results.

Data and learner analytics audit

Learning and development teams spend countless hours developing training courses for employees. But inevitably, organizations need to ask: is this training effective? Do employees find it useful? Are we properly supporting organizational goals and improving performance? Without robust learner analytics, a training program’s impact is subjective.

Some helpful questions to evaluate the analytics provided by your learning platform:

• What metrics are tracked?
  • Are they vanity metrics, or are they deeply insightful?
• Are the metrics indicative of your L&D strategy’s success?
  • Are you using initiative KPIs?
• Can you leverage these metrics in other ways?
  • Will they help refine your training content?
  • Will they report on the success of your initiatives?
  • Are they useful in informing ongoing L&D strategy?
  • Can you connect training outcomes to business outcomes?

We’re not talking about a cluttered dashboard of confusing acronyms and seemingly arbitrary numbers. At Amplifire, we’re talking specifics: the ability to pinpoint exactly who knows what, how much of it they know, and how well they know it. This type of learner analytic provides the unique ability to see inside the minds that make up your organization, allowing you to nurture your talent and mitigate risks that arise from commonly held misinformation.

Moreover, our struggle report allows L&D teams to identify which individuals may need further remediation. Intervening when employees struggle not only eliminates the risk of costly mistakes down the line, but also provides an additional learning opportunity, as well as a chance to genuinely invest in employees’ success.

These analytics equip instructors and L&D teams with tools to offer the highest quality training in a fraction of the time, often at a lower cost, and always with improved outcomes.

ROI and the Big Picture

Choosing an adaptive eLearning platform for your learning and development initiatives can provide deep insights into what kind of return on investment your employees are gaining from their training, and what return your organization is seeing in the long run. Amplifire customers often see returns in the form of shortened training time, reduced training costs, and improved outcomes for learners and organizations at large. Every organization has different learning and development priorities. Here are some examples:

Time Saved	Costs Saved	Revenue Gains
EHR installations can cost billions. At UCHealth, a national center for Epic training, classroom instruction has been fully replaced with Amplifire. Savings: 56% reduction in training time with $1.45 million estimated cost savings.	At Intermountain Healthcare, a  system of 23 hospitals, results are measured in mistakes avoided, lives saved, and reimbursement from insurers. Savings: $3.6 million ROI: 25×	At this leading telecom , where customer service performance is measured in revenue per 100 calls, Amplifire was tested against legacy training. Revenue increase: 123%

We help organizations achieve results like this because we make learning stick. With brain science-based techniques, adaptive learning, and a plethora of robust reporting at your fingertips, your L&D strategy can come to life, propelling your organization full steam ahead into the new reality.

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by checking out a demo.

How Hybrid Learning Can Inform Instructor-Led Training

Most industries are using help from data analytics, including education and training. Data analytics applied in a learning context is also known as learning analytics. The learning analytics market value is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of ~24% to reach $36.59 billion by 2029, according to the latest market projections. There is a reason why the learning analytics market is growing so rapidly, and that’s because educators and learning & development leaders have recognized the untapped potential in learning optimization. In a world where ROI is becoming increasingly critical, learning analytics can provide diagnostic and predictive analysis for a faster, more effective learning experience. New learning technologies — specifically adaptive eLearning platforms — that collect learner data can facilitate personalized learning and interventions that enhance the learning experience and improve learner outcomes.

Without the support of an eLearning platform that provides robust analytics, it can be difficult, if not impossible, to provide an optimized, personalized learning experience. We’re not referring to a tech takeover, but rather to the ability to harness insights gathered by learning algorithms that can inform instructor-led training and teaching.

For Amplifire, our eLearning solution is often used in a hybrid learning environment to supplement in-person instruction with online learning, or in a primarily online setting with in-person intervention and remediation. The platform gives you the remarkable ability to see how the facts, concepts, processes, and procedures that you are teaching are arrayed in the minds of your learners so that you can make necessary adjustments to the curriculum until all have mastered it. This deeper level of insight into your learners’ minds would not be possible without learner analytics — analytics that only Amplifire works to provide to instructors. Not all eLearning platforms offer insights that instructors can use in an actionable way to optimize their instruction. Here are some of the ways you can use Amplifire’s eLearning platform in a hybrid environment: 

5 ways hybrid learning informs instructor-led training: 

1.     Identify knowledge gaps

Not all learners start at the same knowledge level. Knowledge gaps exist in all types of learners, from students in a classroom, to trainees with no experience to twenty years’ experience. As an instructor, it can be difficult to tailor lessons to wide ranging gaps in knowledge — not to mention the gaps that learners aren’t aware of. When instructors use Amplifire as a priming tool, they not only prepare learners for an upcoming lesson, but they can also use the data from the assessment to identify what topics need to be covered and what learners already know. This makes instructors’ efforts more efficient and relevant to the learners.

2.     Increase learner engagement

If learners aren’t engaged, they’re not learning. Some eLearning platforms use passive learning techniques — like PowerPoint or video. Without active engagement, learners can zone out. As it turns out, there is a science behind learner engagement and improved learning quality — at Amplifire, we like to call it: how to make learning stick, as our Science Advisory Board member Henry Roediger writes in his book “Make it Stick: The Science of Successful Learning.” Around 27 cognitive triggers are built into the platform and are proven to keep learners engaged, who subsequently learn faster and retain more. Tap into learners’ curiosity effortlessly with the help of cognitive science.

3.     Pinpoint struggle

As an instructor, guiding learners to the best possible outcome is the top priority. However, doing so is difficult without a personalized approach. In other eLearning platforms, a learner can click enough times to finally get the right answer without much learning taking place. This behavior can indicate that a learner doesn’t truly understand the material and hasn’t actually learned it. Amplifire, however, tracks the amount of struggle a learner faces and with what questions they are associated — pinpointing what topics they may need further coaching. Not all material comes as naturally to every learner. With a feature like this, instructors can offer a personalized learning experience for individuals, or create small study groups for those with similar struggle. 

4.     Create robust remediation plans

Identifying knowledge gaps and struggle are one thing but refining exactly what topics need elaboration or remediation is another. Amplifire can provide these insights to instructors on the topic-specific, individual, or group levels via reporting. 

When Amplifire’s platform was deployed at a private university, instructors were able to access reporting that detailed exactly which students were struggling and where. Instructors were able to be proactive with an intervention plan that was personalized for the student. Using this approach, student grades increased by over 51% in a class with notoriously high failure rates.

Additionally, when Amplifire is used in on-the-job training, it detects and corrects instances of misinformation, knowledge gaps, and struggle. But for learners who show significant signs of struggle, especially with life-threatening topics such as central-line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI), actionable reports are generated from individuals’ interactions for instructors to conduct highly informed interventions. In a case where 588 nurses took a course covering CLABSI topics, 89 learners showed evidence of high struggle. In this case, instructors were able to offer personalized remediation to help these learners succeed on the job. When lives are at stake, this level of individualized attention and personalized intervention is critical.

Sometimes, multiple people struggle on the same topics. If, as an instructor, you could access data that organizes who struggles by what topic, you may then create study groups by topic, making your instruction more efficient and impactful because it is optimized to your learners’ needs. Moreover, in onboarding situations, learners can begin with a wide range of preexisting knowledge. Some learners may fly through material, while some may struggle with more advanced topics. Instructors can then group students by experience and struggle, ensuring everyone achieves mastery. 

5.     Enrich course content

When instructional design and eLearning come together, design intersects with science to create a powerful, efficient, and effective learning experience. Instructors can bring their designs to life and enrich lessons with dynamic content to illustrate information in the most effective way.

Struggle data can inform not only where there is learner struggle but an issue with the content itself. For instance, if instructors see that a lot of learners are struggling with a particular question or topic, it could be an indicator that there may be room for revision on the content level.

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by checking out a demo.

Dos and Don’ts of Hybrid Learning

For more than two years now, virtual has been the new reality. Corporate America has leaned into virtual work and training, and few have looked back (and those who have, have been met with a wrath of protest). Schools have incorporated more technology than ever before to keep students on track. While the circumstances of the pandemic forced this virtual experiment, we’re now — thankfully — in a place where we have the privilege to ask, “Is this new reality working?”

There are pros and cons to each side: in-person interaction is still invaluable in many situations, and virtual solutions can make life easier in between (read: work and training has become more efficient, and students are more engaged). The fact is, we can’t go back to the way it was before — we live in a changed world, post-pandemic. But what we can do is take a look at the things that work and the things that don’t and forge a more efficient, modern world. Thus, hybrid learning rises from the firestorm of virtual trial and error.

As an eLearning platform, hybrid learning is the name of the game here at Amplifire. Built on brain science principles, our platform is designed to harness technology to promote faster, longer lasting learning. Whether in schools or the workforce, our users benefit from a personalized learning experience made possible by brain-science-backed techniques and analytics. However, humanity is at the core of what we do. Our platform is meant to support people working to achieve better outcomes through learning, which is why we want to share some of our experience with hybrid learning and discuss the dos and don’ts when it comes to navigating this space.

What is hybrid learning?

Hybrid learning is the comprehensive approach of combining the best parts of in-person learning with the most effective parts of virtual learning. It’s more than just half in-person, half online. It’s a strategic format that puts the learner at the center of the experience, incorporating the best teaching strategies for better learning and stronger retention.

Many resources will describe hybrid learning as a type of blended learning or use the terms interchangeably, but they are two separate teaching styles. Blended learning refers to combining the traditional in-person setting with any digital technology. Examples include the use of whiteboards, learning software, computer labs, etc. On the other hand, hybrid learning uses a virtual setting to complement, enrich, or supplement in-person learning, usually in equal parts. In this way, it takes blended learning into the post-pandemic space where teaching is more learner-centric, rather than forcing the learner to conform to one setting.

What are the benefits of hybrid learning?

For a while, in-person learning was all we knew. Virtual learning had been growing since before the pandemic, particularly in adult learning settings, from higher education to on-the-job training and beyond. While the pandemic gave virtual solutions a bad rap (we know, the Slack sound is triggering), hybrid learning is truly an asset to schools and corporations moving forward. Here’s why:

Flexibility. Hybrid learning doesn’t eliminate in-person learning, it just adds to it. Learning comes to the learner, rather than the other way around. When learners can participate in their own time at their own pace, they ultimately spend more time learning than figuring out transportation or scheduling.

Inclusivity. Hybrid learning is more inclusive than the traditional in-person setting. The ability to learn anywhere allows those who don’t have access to reliable transportation to participate more regularly. Hybrid learning is more accommodating for those with other work, family, and educational obligations. For students who require accommodations for special needs or disabilities, eLearning can offer support where schools and organizations might not have the resources.

Efficacy. Let’s face it: in-person learning is simply not the most effective method for teaching and training. Thanks to the work done by German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus on the forgetting curve, we understand the importance of incorporating brain science principles like repetition. Just seven days after a training session, employees will have forgotten 65% of the material covered. The same applies to students. Replace that one-and-done session with a hybrid scenario where learners are presented and quizzed on the material more than once, and the material is more likely to stick.

Personalization. The one-size-fits-all approach never works — whether it’s a tee-shirt or a lesson plan, uniformity is ineffective. Learners progress at different rates, depending on prior knowledge, misconceptions, distractions, and other factors. Technology has the bandwidth to make it possible for instructors to incorporate adaptive learning and meet learners where they are.

Cost. The pandemic has had a lasting effect on the workforce. Many schools and organizations are feeling the pressure of labor shortages and increasing costs, leaving employees feeling the strain. Employees need more support as employers work to offer what they can. eLearning has emerged as a cost-effective solution. Data insights and virtual tools can support teachers who are overextended. Amplifire’s learning algorithms have shown to deliver effective employee training in less time at lower costs. In a time of financial strain, hybrid solutions ease the burden on all fronts.

Hybrid learning dos and don’ts:

Don’t: let learners get discouraged

Remote learners are susceptible to virtual burnout (think: the Zoom meeting that could have been an email; students getting antsy during virtual class). So, it’s imperative that instructors keep things interesting. It’s okay to acknowledge the burnout and prime hybrid learning with a positive outlook.

Do: take advantage of different teaching mediums

Hybrid learning allows for a variety of teaching styles that are limited in person. With the help of tech, instructors can offer in-person lectures, debates, discussion groups, self-paced learning, videos, graphics, pre-recorded lessons, interactive games, and more. Each style has its best use case where it’s most effective.

Don’t: neglect change management features

The transition to hybrid learning doesn’t have to be challenging. You won’t have to manage everything on your own — a good platform will support your change. Consider how your lesson plan or training program can adapt to a virtual format. Implement instructional design principles to build a hybrid program that suits your needs.

Do: invest in the right tech

Not all eLearning platforms are created equal. Choose a platform that enhances the learning experience. When used correctly, they make learning stick better and longer. Techniques based in brain science, like gamification, repetition, curiosity, feedback, and metacognition, enrich any lesson plan, making it more effective on a biological level.

For example, when the Amplifire eLearning platform — which is built using the techniques mentioned above — was implemented at a private university as a supplement to classroom learning, grades increased by 51%, and the average final grade increased from 57% to 86%. Retention rates increased and failure rates decreased — dramatically.

Do: let virtual instruction inform in-person interactions

Virtual and in-person learning should complement each other in a hybrid scenario. Instructors can use insights from virtual learning to inform in-person sessions. For example, Amplifire’s Virtual AI  identifies where specific students are struggling and helps instructors formulate an action plan for further teaching. Tech doesn’t replace instructors — it supports them.

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by checking out a demo.

Instructional Design and eLearning: Education’s Dynamic Duo

Instructional design dates back to World War II, when hundreds of thousands of soldiers needed to be well trained — and fast. Psychologists and education specialists were called upon to both assess soldiers’ learning abilities and to create training materials en masse. B.F. Skinner’s stimulus-response techniques, positive reinforcement training, and behavior-based feedback were put to practice, where instructors maintained the optimistic assumption that all learners could achieve mastery through better training. This was also the first time that audio-visual aids, like short films, were used for training purposes. This marked the beginning of technology being used for teaching. From the start, instructional design and its precursors were always forward thinking.

Instructional design is an essential component of effective teaching today. When coupled with an eLearning environment, teaching can be optimized in ways that make the potential for learning limitless. Let’s investigate.

What is instructional design and why is it important for better learning?

Instructional design is the process by which learning experiences are designed, developed, and delivered. It is so much more than simply creating instructional material. It blends learning theory, behavioral psychology, and communication strategies to craft an effective learning experience for a target group of people. In this way, instructional design is inherently learner-centric, focusing on why students learn, how they learn best, and what methods of instruction will be most effective.

The instructional designer is the one who applies the aspects mentioned above and is responsible for creating the course design as well as instructional materials. The instructional designer conducts analysis to determine the best strategies to use for learners. Again, it’s an extremely learner-centric process.

Instructional design is important because it puts the learner back at the center of the learning process. Oftentimes, teaching the material is the main priority, but that doesn’t mean the material will be retained by default. Sure, instructors can lecture at length, or splice in a variety of videos, images, sounds, etc. to spice up a lesson. But without intention, these efforts are in vain. Instructional design ensures the material is taught effectively by the most appropriate means.

Key principles of instructional design

Depending on where you look, you may find anywhere from five to nine standard instructional design principles. To cover all the bases, we’ll include all nine, which derive from American education psychologist Robert Gagné. The principles are also known as Gagné’s Nine Events of Instruction and serve as a checklist to help managers, trainers, and facilitators structure their training. They fall into three phases:

1. Preparation
   • Gain attention
   • Inform learners of the objectives
   • Stimulate recall of prior learning
2. Instruction and practice
   • Present new content
   • Provide guidance
   • Elicit performance
   • Provide feedback
3. Assessment and transfer
   • Assess learning performance
   • Enhance retention and performance

These principles guide the process of teaching to ensure a better learning experience on behalf of the learner. The principles are step one. Step two is to determine the best mode of teaching — the best way to make the lessons stick. This is where an eLearning platform can be extremely useful.

Instructional design and eLearning

When instructional design meets eLearning, a dynamic duo is born. It’s no coincidence that Amplifire’s own eLearning platform, which is built on brain science discoveries, echos many Gagné’s principles for effective learning. Research like Gagné’s and the members of Amplifire’s Science Advisory Board exists so instructors in any setting can maximize teaching’s effectiveness.

Technological mediums, like eLearning platforms, enable instructional design to operate at its highest capacity. For example, Amplifire’s teaching algorithms prime and prepare learners for new material — one of the most effective triggers for better learning. During the “instruction and practice” phase, Amplifire actively engages learners with more research-backed learning triggers. The platform gauges learners’ confidence to determine their knowledge level and meets them where they are to provide feedback and guidance in real time. Meanwhile, instructors have access to analytical data on the back end to assess learners’ performance to offer further guidance. These features are proven to improve retention and performance, which align with the goals of instructional design.

When instructional design and eLearning come together, design intersects with science to create a powerful, efficient, and effective learning experience. Teaching is really about how well a student learns, so why not use practices that put the learner at the center of the whole process?

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by checking out a demo.

How eLearning Will Close the Learning Gaps in K-12 Math

The pandemic has created a lasting, devasting effect on education, leaving many students struggling to keep pace with their grade standard. Many point in blame to the coldhearted limitations of virtual learning. Others cite systemic powers at large for widening education gaps and poor test scores. The bottom line is that the education system desperately needs a solution, and one that satisfies a very nuanced set of requirements, at that. eLearning and other hybrid and virtual solutions are not the enemy, but rather, may be the bridge that closes the learning gaps.

According to a 2021 study that analyzed data from more than 2,500 K-12 students using curriculum-based online learning software both before and during the pandemic shutdown found that students’ performance actually increased during the shutdown. Evidence of the improvement was shown through teachers assigning more difficult problem sets to students during the school closures compared to the year before. Even more interesting, the data indicate performance improvements were higher for students categorized as low performing, suggesting a narrowing learning gap between students.

Even still, math scores are lower than ever in the U.S., and there is no shortage of reasoning behind it. Although eLearning has shown positive results in action, what is required to implement edtech in a realistic, effective way?

Barriers and difficulties for students learning mathematics

Many students are still feeling the effects of the pandemic where their education is concerned. In-person learning has resumed and has shown that the hardships of the pandemic exacerbated existing problems, while piling on a few new ones, too.

Statistics continue to emerge which reveal socioeconomic barriers for K-12 students learning math. According to the latest research covering 5.4 M U.S. students, average fall 2021 math test scores in grades 3-8 were 0.20-0.27 standard deviations (SDs) lower relative to same-grade peers in fall 2019 — a significant drop. Moreover, test-score gaps between students in low-poverty and high-poverty elementary schools grew by approximately 20% in math. So, A) students aren’t learning as well as they should be and B) more resources are needed to serve children from all communities in pursuit of education.

On the topic of resources, the U.S. education system — like most other industries — is facing a shortage. Teachers are over-worked and under-paid, and schools lack funding to solve this issue. Schools also lack funds to offer the resources to ensure all students are adequately served, for one reason or another.

All this considered, why should schools invest in tech? Well, the Wall Street Journal reported that “K–12 school districts in the US haven’t spent 93% of the $122 billion in Covid relief they were awarded last year.” These funds will disappear in September 2024 if they’re not used. And while this money could not reasonably support new full-time hires (due to the limited time frame of the money allowance) and supply chain shortages prevent infrastructure projects (ventilation systems, etc.) from moving ahead, tech is still on the table.

Benefits of eLearning for K-12 learners

With over 3.8 billion learner interactions on our platform, we can speak with confidence from our own experience at Amplifire about the benefits of eLearning:

Support struggling students with intervention and remediation

Students struggle to learn for a variety of reasons. It can be difficult from the school’s standpoint to accommodate each and every reason, whether due to a lack of resources or bandwidth. When the responsibility falls on the teacher, this can be daunting as well, especially when teachers are stretched to the max. This is where a solution, like Amplifire specifically, can help.

Again, we are speaking from experience. Our platform collects data to pinpoint where students struggle or have misconceptions. Analytics identify knowledge gaps and offer remediation suggestions based on the actual course material. This reporting capability is completely personalized to the student and their learning habits. This way, teachers are able to offer at-the-elbow assistance with all the information they need to help struggling students on a more personal level, preventing them from falling behind or missing necessary lessons.

Self-paced learning opportunities allow for advanced learning

eLearning has the bandwidth to support students at varying levels of proficiency. Where schools may lack the resources to accommodate “gifted” students as well as “average” or “struggling” students all at once, technology-based instruction can adapt to students’ needs. Students who have demonstrated mastery can move ahead or take more advanced courses while the platform still ensures struggling students get the help they need. It’s a win-win.

Course design supports the way teachers want to help their students

While smaller classrooms are usually preferred for the sake of more hands-on teaching and individualized attention, it’s not always possible to offer them. eLearning solutions like Amplifire give instructors the bandwidth to offer more guidance without overexertion and burnout. Schools and instructors can design and customize courses to meet educational standards and to best serve their students. Instructors can then see how students are learning, whether many students are struggling with a certain topic, or only a few individuals are having trouble. This can inform how class time is spent, allowing instructors to increase the overall efficiency of their lessons. Moreover, like we mentioned before, instructors can also have the tools in formation they need to offer more robust individualized support when needed.

By incorporating cognitive and brain science, the quality of learning improves

A unique characteristic of a platform like Amplifire, specifically, is that our solution is based in cognitive and neuroscience principles. These principles have been researched by some of the world’s leading brain scientists and are proven to make learning stick. Our teaching algorithms are tuned to the way the brain naturally works — using techniques like gamification, spacing, feedback, retrieval, and more — so students learn faster and retain more.

By learning in ways that are more naturally aligned with the way the brain works best, eLearning can foster a more positive relationship between students and academics. When Amplifire was used to teach a class notorious for high failure rates at a private university, professors saw a 51% increase in student grades. Students gave testimonials like, “I loved this class and the new format! I felt much more engaged with the professor with this format as well,” and, “I love using this to study. If I get the answer wrong, it explains the correct answer and tells me what I put down actually is.” Beyond that, in a survey of 24,356 students, traditional classroom learning produced only a 75% pass rate, whereas of students who used Amplifire, 91% passed the class.

The reality of implementing eLearning in the K-12 setting

The benefits of eLearning directly address the main barriers associated with struggling students learning math in the U.S., as well as issues present in the education system that generally inhibit effective reform (like lack of monetary, personnel, and infrastructural resources).

But is implementing eLearning on a large scale realistic? Most tech is scalable, meaning it can grow to accommodate changing needs. It fills in the worker shortage gap by offering valuable support to teachers already in classrooms. Students are already familiar with virtual learning formats from the pandemic. Rather than being an isolating, restricting experience, hybrid/technologically enriched learning only enhances the quality of education schools can offer.

There remains the dilemma of providing computers and equipment to underprivileged students, and training students and teachers to use new systems. If schools have the means to offer computer access, whether with the COVID-19 stimulus options or otherwise, many long-term issues can be eliminated.

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. To learn more about how Amplifire can benefit your educational needs, download our education case study or check out a demo.

101 Series: 5 Motivation Strategies to Improve Learning and Memory

This blog is the last of six installments in the “Learning and Memory” series that investigates the science behind learning. Each blog is a bite-sized version of articles written by Amplifire’s chief research officer, Charles Smith. To read the full article, follow the link to “Motivational Triggers for Learning.”

As humans, we are motivated to act for a variety of reasons. If our bodies need food or water, the sensation of hunger or thirst drives us to eat or drink. Our bodies need oxygen, so if you try to hold your breath, the sensation of suffocating drives you to breathe. But to the procrastinator, the will to complete a task sits on the back burner without a clear motivation. So, how does one “find” motivation?

So far, we’ve discussed cognitive and emotional triggers for learning. The third element of the triparte self is motivation, of which neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux describes as a “neural activity that guides us toward goals and outcomes that we desire and for which we will exert effort.” Unfortunately, many students find themselves lacking the motivation to learn, but this lack of motivation is not entirely their fault. Our education system is not complementary to the ways people learn best. Motivation readily exists in our minds, we just have to trigger it.

If motivational triggers could be better used in learning situations, they could help students make learning stick.

How does motivation work?

On a molecular level, motivation is generally facilitated by the neurotransmitter called dopamine. While many people associate dopamine with pleasure, it is actually responsible for kickstarting pleasure by prioritizing human attention and interest. Imagine pleasure as a pathway with a start and an end, and imagine dopamine as the journey between both points. Dopamine levels are at their highest during the anticipation stage, allowing humans to focus and pay attention to a particular stimulus and tune out the rest. Dopamine is the chemical that creates our sense of motivation and compels us to a certain (happy/pleasurable/satisfactory) end.

So how can dopamine be successfully triggered in a learning scenario? First, we must understand how we, as humans, are naturally motivated.

Why is motivation important for learning?

Like cognition and emotion, motivation is a neurological mechanism that helps humans interpret and interact in the world successfully. Motivation to satisfy basic biological needs is only the preliminary stage and leads to the motivation achieve the pinnacles of human aspiration. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs illustrates stages of motivation:

Motivational drives are created by negative bodily states in which a biological need (like hunger) creates internal feelings called drives that lead to behavior that aims to reduce that need. Humans share the sensation of motivational drive with all animals. Here are some examples you’ve seen in the introduction:

Motivational incentives take drives to the next level of sophistication. Humans have a nearly limitless ability to generate incentives, whether extrinsic, like the reward of good grades compelling a student to work hard in school, or intrinsic, like reading a novel, traveling, or exercising.

Motivational goals are future-based aspirations. People who exercise this type of motivation often exhibit better performance. Human’s ability to place value in the wellbeing of our future selves is a major evolutionary differentiator. This capability is what allows us to weigh what is immediately satisfactory against what benefits us more in the long run.

Motivation compels us to acquire the necessary information to get us from when we are to where we want to be or what we want to do. Understanding the motivational feedback loops can help us channel these drives, incentives, and goals into long-term learning.

5 types of motivational triggers to improve learning and memory

Finding the motivation to learn can be hard, especially in a world with endless distractions. In the face of distractions, we don’t process new information as well as we could, and that information isn’t stored correctly, thus affecting our ability to recall what we’ve learned in the future.

The good news is that humans have motivation hard wired in our mind. The sense of motivation is naturally built into our brains, we just have to tap in. Here are a few powerful motivational triggers — used by us here at Amplifire — that are proven to improve the effectiveness of learning by creating stronger memories:

1. Curiosity

Curiosity is the drive that closes the information gap. We’ve all heard the expression: curiosity killed the cat. However, in reality, the opposite is true. Cats’ strong sense of curiosity allows them to be so in tune with their surroundings that they can identify danger with astonishing ease. By constantly investigating, cats can more easily identify what is normal and what is new and rectify any discrepancies.

Psychologists call these discrepancies information gaps. Information gaps can be simulated or called out in learning situations to stimulate curiosity — a heightened state of learning. Through a sense of curiosity, one closes the information gap, doubts are eliminated, and learning occurs!

2. Rewards

Reward is the classic motivator. Perhaps you’re familiar with an experiment conducted by Russian psychologist, Ivan Pavlov, who conditioned dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell, with the anticipation of a reward of meat. While the human mind is more complex than a dog’s, we, too, respond strongly to rewards.

Rewarding has been found to be most effective as a learning tool when the recipient is uncertain about the ratio in which rewards are given — when they seem to occur randomly. The unpredictable nature of the effective reward system keeps the brain on its toes, and keeps the learner invested in the outcome.

3. Uncertainty and Risk

Uncertainty and risk create a circumstance that causes dopamine levels to rise, thus sharpening focus and attention. Moderate risk is one of the great motivators. Risk-taking is a powerful emotional trigger for a range of creatures because organisms that made the best bets were rewarded when the bets paid off. This explains why calculated risk feels good. As long as uncertainty does not start to create feelings of fear, it will help motivate learning and create long-term memory through arousal and attention.

The key point is that learners are motivated to go back for more of the mental charge they felt from a moment of uncertainty and risk, and they learn deeply in that state. Teachers — and teaching tools — can create this scenario in a learning situation to hold students’ attention, thus resulting in higher-quality learning.

4. Progress and Optimism

Progress and optimism are highly correlated with learning and achievement. We are wired to feel best, learn well, and perform productively when we are making progress towards attaining our goals. This motivation has proved important from an evolutionary standpoint, and it’s no coincidence that education in both western and eastern traditions has emphasized personal improvement through the power of knowledge, self-discipline, hard work, and perseverance in the face of adversity.

In one study, English speaking students in a poor, inner-city setting struggled learn how to read. No matter what techniques were used. Then, researchers tried again, using Chinese characters instead of English words. Miraculously, within a few hours, the students could read Chinese sentences better than they read English. This change in perspective revealed that students’ previous negative experiences with parents, the educational system, and general social circumstances of failure had left them inherently pessimistic. This pessimistic mindset associated with their familiar language prevented them from learning, whereas a new perspective allowed for optimism, and resulted in rapid learning.

The evidence for optimism’s effects on learning is unequivocal. Students with higher levels of optimism and positive explanatory style regularly perform at higher levels than their “talent” (as measured by IQ and SAT scores) would indicate.

5. Games

Game playing is observed in all mammals, especially the young, and causes effortless learning. If you’ve ever seen a nature discovery show, or even observed young animals in the wild, you’ve seen babies explore their place in a social hierarchy, hunt for food (or avoid becoming food), find a mate, and successfully reproduce through playing. The desire for fun and games is how nature inspires creatures to practice, learn, and remember to prepare us for successful lives.

Today, gaming companies utilize the services of neuroscientists and psychologists who are fully aware of the role of dopamine, reward schedules, mirror neurons, evolutionary psychology, and uncertainty in motivation and behavior. The gaming industry is worth more than $300 billion in 2022. Applying the psychology of gaming to education, rather than just recreation, creates a powerful learning tool. Rather than generate revenue, games could cultivate stronger, more knowledgeable minds!

Interested in investigating more motivational learning triggers? Check out the full research article “Motivational Triggers for Learning” for more cognitive science discoveries, theories, and scenarios.

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by checking out a demo.

101 Series: How Emotion is Linked to Better Learning and Memory

This blog is the fifth of six installments in the “Learning and Memory” series that investigates the science behind learning. Each blog is a bite-sized version of articles written by Amplifire’s chief research officer, Charles Smith. To read the full article, follow the link to “Emotional Triggers for Learning.”

We’ve often been presented with the emotion-versus-logic dichotomy. We’ve been told that emotion is the enemy of rational thought and have been conditioned to value logic over feeling. But, what if all of that is wrong? What if the real relationship between emotion and rationality is not antagonistic, but harmonious instead?

Why are emotions important?

In terms of biology, emotions were (and are) essential to human survival and fitness, from an evolutionary standpoint.

Emotion is the way that organisms apply value to information perceived in the environment. Fear, happiness, alertness, and fatigue are a few of the many feelings that humans experience. They are nature’s method of enabling rapid decision-making, because there is rarely time to mull over the rationality of a life-or-death situation. Emotions are a critical factor in human survival.

Emotions tend to get a bad rap, especially in American society. Culturally imposed stigmas aside, emotions are important not only for evolution, but also on a day-to-day basis when it comes to learning and memory. Emotion usually falls second to “rational thought,” but as it turns out, emotion is the key to making successful or advantageous decisions. Moreover, much of your memory is based on emotionally attached signals, since emotion is the mechanism by which our brains assign value to incoming information. Without emotion — generated by specific neurotransmitters — it would be impossible to distinguish things like safety, danger, confidence, hesitation, behavioral cues, etc. Interacting successfully in the world would be impossible.

How emotion affects memory

The emotions we feel have a significant effect on our memories. Some promote retention, others deter it. The way emotions flare up moderates our experience in the world and our outward behavior, as well. External stimuli cause the release of certain neurotransmitters, which make us feel a certain way. In turn, this makes us act in a certain way and codes our experience to be remembered or forgotten. This chart illustrates the states (aroused, not aroused, negative, positive) prescribed to certain emotions, as well as their subsequent effect on emotion:

When we consider triggers for learning, the neurotransmitters that are involved in strong emotions like fear create the high states of arousal (activation) that we noticed on the circumplex map of emotion. The trick for effective learning is creating activation with positive arousal. These feelings include alert, excited, elated, happy.

Also notice that the aroused, negative feelings still generally allow for memories to be formed, but these memories are not usually cemented in long-term memory. This means that in high stress situations — like ones that often accompany learning scenarios, like studying for an important test — inhibit your ability to retain the things you learn for long.

All states in non-arousal are not conducive to learning new information, and negative, not-aroused feelings are not likely to be retained. This is why the state of an individual’s mental health is important in learning scenarios. Oftentimes, anxious or stressed employees, like nurses, will struggle with training because they are not in an ideal headspace to learn. This is also why we often see depressed students struggle in school. And so on and so forth.

The intricacies of the interaction between neurotransmitters and subsequent emotion coupled with incoming information are endless. However, knowing what conditions are best for information intake and memory can allow us to create more successful circumstances for learning.

How to harness the power of emotion to learn better

Understanding how to tap into the power of your emotions can help you learn better, faster and help you remember more. At Amplifire, we have weaved this power into our learning platform, which is designed to work with the emotions that are most advantageous to learning. This is why our results show that we’re a faster and more effective tool for learning and training. We’re not just preaching it; we’re putting it into practice.

A few examples of powerful emotional learning triggers are confidence, optimism, and arousal (which includes feelings like excitement or intrigue).

A particularly potent emotional tool when it comes to learning new things is the “emotion of knowledge.” In the Amplifire format, feelings of knowing are expressed in terms of doubt, certainty, or ignorance. According to Robert Burton, a neuroscientist at UCSF, the feeling of knowing is a core emotion like love, fear, sadness, or hate. The deeper evolutionary perspective tells us that the feeling of knowing is of utmost importance because it leads directly to behavior.

In terms of faster, more effective learning, the Amplifire platform brings these emotions of knowledge to the forefront of learner’s conscious awareness. For example, when answering a question, learners are asked to indicate if they are sure, unsure, or do not know an answer — without penalty. This obvious expression of the feeling of knowing helps learners encode and store an enduring memory of the information.

Interested in investigating more emotional learning triggers? Check out the full research article “Emotional Triggers for Learning” for more cognitive science discoveries, theories, and scenarios. Next in the series, we’ll go even deeper into brain function by discussing motivational triggers as powerful conditions for learning.

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by scheduling a demo.

101 Series: How Neurons Learn and Form Memories

This blog is the third of six installments in the “Learning and Memory” series that investigates the science behind learning. Each blog is a bite-sized version of articles written by Amplifire’s chief research officer, Charles Smith. To read the full article, follow the link to “Neurons that Learn.”

Did you know: the learning process actually physically changes your brain? Experiences that happen outside our minds become information from the point of view of the smallest physical structure in the brain: the neuron. And while the number of neurons in a brain won’t change much over a lifetime, the connections among neurons — the synapses that bind them together into patterns that represent our memories – do.

What are neurons, and how do they work?

The neuron is the fundamental unit of learning and memory – and these units are formed together in circuits that can be shaped by our human experiences. A neuron is comprised of four components: the cell body, axon, dendrites, and pre-synaptic terminal. Like all cells, the neuron cell contains organelles that keep cells energized and maintained, including the nucleus – the membrane that encloses DNA, or genetic code.

We owe much of what we know about neurons to Spanish anatomist, Santiago Ramon y Cajal, who won the Nobel Prize in 1906 for his neurobiological efforts. In addition to revealing the true structure of neurons, he also set forth the four principles of neurons:

1. The neuron is the fundamental unit of the brain. It is both the building block and the signaling device of nervous systems in all creatures.
2. The synapse is the site of communication between one neuron’s axon and another neuron’s dendrites. A very small space exists between the axon and the dendrite, called the synaptic cleft.
3. Connection specificity: Neurons connect with specific neurons and not necessarily only with those that are the closest. The axon of any one neuron can send a message to thousands of widely distributed neurons through branching. On the other hand, the dendrites of a neuron can receive information from thousands of other neurons.
4. Information flows in one direction only. Signals travel from the cell body through the axon, across the synaptic cleft and into the dendrite and cell body of another neuron – always in that order.

The signal that neurons use to communicate is an electrical current, created by action potential, that moves at about 40 mph. The action potential is produced using the difference between sodium and potassium ions.

How it works: Think of the action potential as a pulse of electricity traveling down the axon towards the dendrites or cell body of another neuron. As it approaches the pre-synaptic terminal, the electrical pulse causes neurotransmitters, or the chemicals of neural communication, to release into the synapse. The neurotransmitters are detected on the other side of the cleft at the post synaptic terminal by receptors. You may be familiar with certain types of neurotransmitters, such as dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate – which all trigger a unique response.

Types of neurons

There are three types of neurons, as first distinguished by Cajal:

• Sensory neurons: bring signals to the brain from the sensory organs. For example: eyes transform light into sensory signals and ears turn airborne pressure waves into information.
• Motor neurons: send signals from the brain to limbs which initiate a physical action via the contraction of a muscle cell.
• Interneurons: are situated between sensory and motor neurons to moderate information as it flows through the network. One of their main tasks is to prevent or encourage the firing of neurons.

How learning changes the brain

It may seem that our brains are hard wired in one way or another from birth. However, the DNA that codes cell growth can be activated or deactivated under certain conditions – such as the repeated presences of certain neurotransmitters – can code the physical growth of new synapses. This is the process of forming long-term memory, a mere pattern of neural connections that form a representation of something in the real world.

Researchers like Cajal had felt that memory and learning must somehow depend on synaptic changes between neurons. It wasn’t until 1949 that Donald Hebb made progress on this idea by proposing that synaptic change is the factor that leads to learning. He wrote, “When an axon of cell A is near enough to excite cell B and repeatedly or persistently takes part in firing it, some growth process or metabolic change takes place in one or both cells such that A’s efficiency, as one of the cells firing B, is increased.” In other words, “Cells that fire together, wire together.” The idea that repetition causes synapses to change and memory to form is called Hebbian Learning.

The circularity of the learning process is extraordinary. The external environment presents information to the body through the senses. Under the right conditions, genes are activated to build or strengthen synapses between neurons. The new synapses create connectivity among neurons and form a pattern. The pattern, now encoded in the brain, can then be retrieved later on to help understand and react to similar external conditions that caused the memory in the first place. When we put it that way, the process of learning really starts to come together.

The best learning conditions for neurons

To add another layer to Hebbian Learning, there are certain circumstances in which learning is optimized. Under these conditions, synaptic formation and growth are promoted. Factors including repetition, attention, and emotion influence the strength of a synaptic connection pattern.

When a stimulus is repeated frequently, the repressor threshold is overcome, and synapses grow or strengthen their connections.

Emotionally vivid events create a flood of neurotransmitters like serotonin and glutamate that overcome a neuron’s naturally occurring inhibitors. These transmitter molecules switch on the genes that activate growth. In terms of an organism’s selective advantage, an event’s memory prepares the learner to better handle a similar circumstance in the future.

Attention gives organisms the ability to distinguish interesting events in the environment from those that are unimportant. This ability is crucial to an organism’s fitness, success, and survival. For example, a cat perceives a dog and pays attention to its every move because survival is contingent on the outcome. A student might pay attention to her homework because the material is inherently interesting or because her grade depends on the outcome of a mid-term. These kinds of experiences that create attention are likely to be important in the future and, hence, synaptic patterns are built to reflect that.

Interested in diving deeper into this subject? Check out the full research article “Neurons that Learn” for more cognitive science discoveries, theories, and scenarios. Next in the series, we’ll go even deeper into the best conditions for optimal learning.

From the beginning, Amplifire has relied on innovative brain science to guide its product development to create the most effective learning and training solution, perfectly tailored to the way the human brain works. Learn more about how Amplifire helps people learn better and faster by scheduling a demo.