Born to learn

By CLAUDIA QUIGG - For the Herald & Review | Posted: Friday, January 29, 2010

So which is it? Are babies mindless beings who only eat, sleep and cry? Or are they little geniuses, ready for academic pursuits?

According to David Bjorklund, evolutionary psychologist at Florida Atlantic University, babies have not changed much over the last 50,000 years. It's only the way we understand them that has.

While astute observers of human development have always believed that the early years were critical to developing potential, the year 1992 started the "Decade of the Brain." New technology like PET scans and MRIs allowed researchers to see clear evidence of what goes on inside the brains of young children.

While this information was exciting and hopeful, it also posed a danger as professionals and parents thought it meant we should apply principles of teaching third graders to teaching babies. Enter the billion-dollar baby industrial complex to sell us videos and flash cards to make our babies "smarter."

But a number of researchers have found clear evidence that some promotion of early learning tasks can actually interfere with later learning.

Science indicates that watching baby videos actually costs babies in their ability to produce language. Following a class action suit, the makers of the Baby Einstein videos were forced to refund the purchase price of thousands of videos they had sold using false claims that these videos would make babies smarter.

Here's the dilemma: We know we're supposed to be doing something to take advantage of the early years of brain development, but what? The answers to this query may be simpler than we think. They require only the simplest understanding of how babies operate.

First, babies are wired for relationships. To paraphrase the late Fred Rogers, everything children need to know comes to them through relationships that mean something to them personally.

From birth, they use their emerging skills to seek out those they can learn to trust. They flourish when they know they are secure. They fall apart and underperform when they are stressed.

Their behavior is organized and meaningful. They communicate clearly when stressed if we will but pay attention to their cues. When their needs are met, they snuggle, coo and sleep. When they feel overwhelmed, they fuss, turn red and lose motor coordination.

So babies need to be cared for by their parents and grandparents and other caregivers in a way that "listens" to what they tell us with their behavior. Responsive caregiving gives children evidence that their needs matter. It teaches them to respect themselves and others.

They need to be cared for by people who are emotionally available to them. They need to see a smile reflect their own and a look of concern in someone's face when they cry. When they make attempts at language, they need to be heard and responded to by someone who really wants to know what they have to say.

They need opportunities to play with other children and figure out what works in human interaction. They need some freedom to choose their own play activities and interact with others in their own comfortable style.

When children are confident in their safety and acceptance, they can relax and learn. According to Bjorklund and other evolutionary psychologists, learning is inhibited by fear and anxiety but facilitated by security and the opportunity to choose.

Children are born learning as a natural response to their interesting world. They only need our interest and support. We adults serve as tour guides to help them find their way.