The Age of Effortless Learning: Childhood
And how to reach the same phase anytime
Children can learn anything faster. Even faster than us adults because of a factor called the critical period.
Below we’ll see what the critical period is, what happens when it is active, why it stops in adults and how to activate it again.
The critical period
In neuroplasticity, the critical period is the stage when the brain is responsive to various types of stimuli. For example, learning a new language, learning how to walk, write, speak, etc. These all are difficult tasks which require intense practice, that’s why primary schooling is mandatory.
Try learning a new language in your twenties, and you’ll understand. You’ll quit if you don’t have a strict mentor. The same is valid for learning a new dance form.
Learning in the critical period
In the book, The Brain That Changes Itself by Dr Norman Doidge,
“Learning in the critical period is effortless because during that period the nucleus basalis is always on.”
What is nucleus basalis, and what does it have to do with learning? This book talks about nucleus basalis and its role in the neuroplasticity. In simpler words, nucleus basalis is the part of the brain with the most extensive collection of acetylcholine neurons.
Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter that is present everywhere in the nervous system and is responsible for the signal transfer. The more density of this chemical we have, the faster we adapt to a new environment and learn quickly.
Effortless learning means neuroplasticity is in action
When the nucleus basalis is on, the brain is in the plastic stage and can learn anything quickly. But when the critical period ends, the nucleus basalis gets turned off, and the brain plasticity is not so prominent as it is in childhood.
The critical period is the growing stage of the brain. During these time, nucleus basalis is always on, and whatever events we experience, we register in the memory.
Since children don’t have a lot of responsibility, what they’re exposed to is highly monitored for a healthy upbringing. That’s why children have a better memory than adults. Acetylcholine releases faster, and thus signal transfer also happens more quickly.
How to reach the stage of effortless learning in adulthood
Since the nucleus basalis has the most extensive collection of acetylcholine, turning it on helps in improving the memory, which is a common problem in old age.
Michael Merzenich, a neuroscientist at the University of California, San Francisco, has started a company Posit Science devoted to helping people preserve the plasticity of their brains as they age and extent their mental lifespan.
The more plastic your brain becomes, the easier it is to learn new things while enjoying it because you’ll also easily remember, and it’ll take less time to learn.
The method to practice effortless learning is to do mental exercises that require intense concentration. One example is learning a new language. This book also talks about how learning a new language in the old age has helped reduce the brain age by over 25 years:
“…learning a new language in old age is so good for improving and maintaining the memory generally. Because it requires intense focus, studying a new language turns on the control system for plasticity and keeps it in good shape for laying down sharp memories of all kinds.”
Final words
Merzenich studied brain maps in detail and how the critical period affects our brain development. If we don’t train our brain holistically during the critical period, then it is difficult to get the same fast learning speed in adult as we see in children.
The ability to control neuroplasticity is one way we can improve our brain age. By involving in brain exercises that require attention, we can improve our mental health, while also enhancing other cognitive aspects like memory, concentration, and perception.
This article belongs to a series of blogs I am publishing on a daily streak. Today is day 145 of 150. Here is the first blog that started the streak.
Thank you for reading!
~ Sanjeev