Designing Learning for the Brain: A Playful Dive into Science-Driven Instructional Design

Did you know we’ve been learning the same way for over 300 years? Take a moment to let that sink in. Now think about how much science has progressed since then. Chances are you’re sitting in a room with electricity, have a phone that you can carry in your pocket, and are enjoying several other modern luxuries that science has given us. All dreamed up and brought to life by a brain. 

So how about we now talk about an evolutionary way to design learning—with the brain in mind, but before we do…

Start with a Stretch (and a Breath)

Before we dive in, how long have you been sitting looking at the screen? Longer than 20mins? GET UP!  Let’s get the blood and oxygen flow back to where we need it. And if it’s been a while since you’ve had some water, you might want to do that as well, considering the brain is made up of about 75% of it.   

Ok, now you’re ready to have your mind proverbially blown.

Did you know you’re the owner of billions of things???

Our brains are home to about 86 billion neurons, each one a tiny superstar in the grand symphony of learning and memory. Neurons are like a perfectly choreographed dance communicating amongst themselves to allow us to do nearly everything that we do. Three basic parts that explain this function are: 

• Dendrites (Receivers): These are like antennas that pick up messages from other neurons.
• Cell Body (Processor): This is the control center where the messages are combined, and a decision is made to send them forward.
• Axon (Sender): A long cable that delivers the message to the next neuron, like passing a note down a line.

It’s a smooth relay system for sending information throughout your brain and body!

Image courtesy of Professor Guosong Liu, Tsinghua University

And if you thought that was impressive…

Then there are the synapses, passing along the messages to one another through chemicals, and you’ve got trillions of those. Yeah, you read that right. TRILLIONS! 

It’s this microscopic teamwork and its ability to change and reorganize that forms the foundation for all learning, memory, behavioral change, etc. When we design learning, it’s to help facilitate this process—the process of changing another human brain.

 Isn’t that incredible? (If you’re nodding your head in awe, you’re not alone.)

So how does this impact our work as learning professionals? Well, riddle me this: Are You Designing for Learning or Remembering?

When you design learning experiences, are you designing for someone to learn or to remember? If you hesitated with an answer, you’re not alone. That was a trick question, though, because the answer is both. Learning and remembering are inseparable. It’s the process along with the desired outcome. To truly design for the brain, you should aim to:

1. Help learners create memory traces during the learning process.
2. Ensure those traces are reactivated to solidify retention and transfer, which is done through practice, repetition, testing, etc. 

When learning designs fail, it’s often because they skip the critical step of reactivation. It’s not enough to simply plant seeds of knowledge—you need to water them consistently, not just once. Most of us understand that much. However, what’s often overlooked are the underlying processes that make it all work and help us understand the reasons behind them.

Looking for tangible, measurable results? Look no further than the process of memory.

Memory is a highly complex process in the brain, and there are different types of memories, but here are three basic steps to help you understand the process: 

1. Encode: While you’re in the process of learning, sensory information turns into neural signals, creating patterns of connections between brain cells.
2. Store: Memories are strengthened in the brain when we reactivate those cells. For memories to become strong and stable, repetition is
   key—it reinforces the pathways and solidifies them, which is why one-and-done learning just doesn’t cut it. 
3. Retrieve: When we repeatedly access a memory, those pathways become more robust, and recalling it becomes almost effortless. This solidification also allows us to transfer the memory more easily to new situations, which is exactly what we should be aiming for in our designs. 

A continuous cycle of creating, storing, and retrieving memories!

Can those memories and pathways work against us, though? 

The Role of Schemas: Building Bridges or Battling Conflicts

Schemas are mental frameworks we use to organize information. They’re incredibly valuable in learning design, but they can also work against us. When designing for learning, we want to consider these three scenarios, are we: 

1. Extending a schema?: Building upon an existing framework or skill.
2. Competing with a schema?: Challenging a preexisting schema that conflicts with the new material. This can be confusing when something we’re learning is very similar to something we have previously stored in our brains. 
3. Building a new one?: Creating entirely new schemas from scratch. If it’s brand-new learning with no pre-existing knowledge, it could take more time to create that organizational framework. 

Understanding schemas helps you decide what content, context, and strategies to prioritize. It’s like choosing the best path through a maze—efficient and purposeful.

Your real ace up the sleeve, though?

Attention: The Secret Sauce for Focus

Attention isn’t just important—it’s everything. Our brain’s attentional networks can be divided into two categories:

1. Dorsal Attention Network (DAN): Helps with goal-directed focus, like finding an exit in a room.
2. Ventral Attention Network (VAN): Keeps you alert to sudden changes or novel stimuli, like noticing a bright color or loud sound.

Great learning design strategically leverages these networks to guide focus effectively. Use tools like:

• Colors to draw the eye and prime the brain.
• Sounds to signal shifts. 
• Surprises to spark curiosity *the brain loves novelty; just be careful not to overuse it. 
• Focused tasks to encourage exploration (think “Where’s Waldo?”).

But here’s the catch: Don’t overdo it. Mixing too many elements at once will activate multiple attentional networks and split attention, which means less focus. Remember this if anything else, attention is your mechanism to focus, so how can you best use it?

Let’s Talk Challenges

The brain can be a bit of a troublemaker during the learning process. Here’s why:

• Cognitive Overload: Too much information at once leads to mental gridlock.
• Competing Schemas: Old knowledge can block new insights.
• Inattention: Distractions pull learners away from the task at hand.

Good design acknowledges these hurdles and addresses them head-on. It’s like giving the brain a friendly nudge in the right direction.

The Bigger Picture: A Brain-First Revolution

As much as I wish that one blog post could cover the vast knowledge of the brain and how to apply the science to learning design, it most certainly cannot. There’s always more to learn! By focusing on the interplay between neuroscience and learning design, we can:

• Improve retention and transfer rates.
• Encourage lifelong learning habits.
• Foster deeper connections between learners and their own brains.

Whether you’re designing for students, employees, or yourself, remember: Learning is a journey, and the brain is your most powerful ally.

Final Thoughts: A Round of Applause for Your Brain

Take a moment to give your brain a round of applause. Seriously! Designing learning for the brain isn’t just about science—it’s about curiosity, creativity, and connection. And if you’re thinking, “Lauren, this is great, but I’ll never remember all of this,” don’t worry. That’s what repetition and reinforcement are for!

Need a hug, or want to dive deeper into these ideas? Let’s connect. Together, we can make learning not only effective but unforgettable. Cheers to science, design, and all the neural pathways we’ve yet to create!

Oh, and if you’d like to see the webinar that spurred this blog, the recording is right here.

YARR!