Executive Function Support in and out of the Classroom
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Executive Function Support in
and out of the Classroom
Rick Bryck, Ph.D.
Senior Academic Researcher;
Associate Director LCIRT
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function
The cognitive processes that regulate an individual’s
ability to sustain self-directed behavior toward a goal.
• Considered building block of higher level thought and
cognition in humans.
• More than 30 definitions and 33 constructs
underlying EF (Barkley, 2011)
• Involved in: Planning, problem solving, trouble
shooting, inhibiting or delaying responding, and
shifting attention, delaying gratification.
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function: History
P h in e a s G a g e
© Landmark College 2018
1
Executive Function: History
Frontal lobe patients:
Executive Dysfunction
• NO impairments on language, memory, learning
• IQ generally fine
• Disorganized actions
• Lack of strategies for everyday tasks
• Perseverative behavior
• Utilization behavior
© Landmark College 2018
Cortical Development
Conventional wisdom held that brain
development was complete relatively early in
development
We now know that dynamic and continuing
changes in brain architecture occur through
development
G ogtay et al. (2010)
ADHD Brain Maturation
Shaw et al., (2007), PNAS
©LandmarkCollege2017
2
Neuroplasticity
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELpfYCZa87g
C o g n itiv e L o a d
• Learning is efficient when cognitive load
doesn’t exceed working memory capacity
– When extraneous loads are low
– When intrinsic loads are appropriate to the
learner’s ability level
Extraneous Intrinsic
Working Memory
Load Load
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C o g n itiv e L o a d
• Factors limiting available working memory
– W e a k n e s s in m e m o r y, a tte n tio n , o r e x e c u tiv e
fu n c tio n s
– L a n g u a g e d e fic its
– P o o r ly a u to m a tiz e d s k ills
– A n x ie ty o r o th e r a ffe c tiv e is s u e s
Working Memory
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3
C o g n itiv e L o a d
• Skills and strategies can reduce extraneous
cognitive load and free up working memory
– A u to m a tiz a tio n o f s k ills
– A d d r e s s in g c o n fid e n c e a n d o th e r a ffe c tiv e is s u e s
– E ffe c tiv e s tr a te g y u s e
Working Memory
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Executive Functions
Clusters of Executive Functions
(work together in various com binations)
Activation Focus Effort Em otion M em ory Action
Organizing, Focusing, Regulating Managing Utilizing
prioritizing, sustaining, alertness, frustration working Monitoring
and and shifting sustaining and memory and and self-
activating to effort, and modulating accessing regulating
attention to processing action
work tasks speed emotions recall
Adapted from Brown, T.E. (2001). Manual for Attention Deficit Disorder Scales for Children and Adolescents.
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
O rg a n iz in g ,
p rio ritiz in g ,
“EF breakdowns” in the classroom
& •Can’t get started – “What to do first!”
a c tiv a tin g •Assigning priorities
to w o rk •Procrastination – putting off tasks until in an
“emergency” situation
•Getting to appointments on time
•Estimating the time a task will take
•Getting into the ‘academic mindset’
1. A c tiv a tio n
Brown, T. E. (2001) Manual for Attention Deficit Disorder Scales for Children and Adolescents
© Landmark College 2018
4
Activators
• S c a ffo ld c o m p re h e n s io n b y a c tiv a tin g o r
s u p p ly in g b a c k g ro u n d k n o w le d g e
© Landmark College 2018
Scaffold Comprehension:
Connect new learning to old
• K -W -L (K n o w -W a n t to K n o w -L e a rn e d )
• T ic k e t o u t th e D o o r
• N o te R e v is io n : E la b o ra tiv e R e h e a rs a l
• S tu d e n ts g e n e ra te te x t/e x a m q u e s tio n s
• W h a t e ls e ? T h in k – P a ir – S h a re
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
O rg a n iz in g , Strategies for combating these challenges
p rio ritiz in g , •“What’s one small step I can take right now?”
&
•Intentionally move back and forth between big
a c tiv a tin g
picture and details (“ant and eagle” view)
to w o rk
•Break the project down > very specific parts
•Separate the set-up from the task
•Use “next action” format when organizing or
planning tasks
1. A c tiv a tio n
•Establish max.+ min. – create a window of time
•Identify and plan for hindrances to getting
started
© Landmark College 2018
5Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
F o c u s in g ,
s u s ta in in g ,
& •Over/under focus on a task
s h iftin g •Difficulty with distractions
a tte n tio n
to ta s k
•Actively inefficient
•Difficulty focusing, especially if
uninterested
•Perseveration
2. F o c u s
© Landmark College 2018
Cognitive Flexibility
• Switching mental sets (focus) to adapt to
changing situations or transitions
• Engaging in mental play for problem-
solving or finding new options
• Moving from big picture to details and vice
versa
Multi-tasking is bad!
• Ophir, Nass, & W agner, 2009 © Landmark College 2018
Break up the work:
Pomodoro technique
1. Decide on the task(s).
2. Set the timer (usually 20-25 minutes).
3. Work on the task until the timer rings.
4. After the timer ends, put a checkmark on a piece of
paper.
5. After the first three checkmarks, take a short break (3–5
minutes), then go to step 2.
6. After four pomodoros (checkmarks), take a longer break
(15–30 minutes), reset your checkmark count to zero,
then go to step 1.
•© Landmark College 2018
6Apps to: Break up tasks, reduce
distractions/multi-tasking
• focusbooster
• 30/30
– Divides your tasks into 30 minutes segments
• Rescue Time
– Accurate automatic time tracking of your mobile apps
• Unplug and Reconnect
– Do not disturb mode : can send an automatic “away
message’ texts to callers
• StayFocused & LeechBlock
– Browser extension: block specified sites during certain
times or set time limits
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
F o c u s in g ,
• Break up work with physical activity
s u s ta in in g ,
& • For hyper focused: awareness of what
s h iftin g contributes to hyper focus
a tte n tio n
to ta s k
• Create max/min guidelines + timer
• Verbalize to guide through transition
• Use a fidget toy/manipulative
• Stand up working
• Make it a game/challenge.
2. F o c u s • Write out your intention
• Identify and plan for obstacles
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
R e g u la tin g
•Easily exhausted
a le rtn e s s ,
s u s ta in in g •Slow processing speed
e ffo rt, & •Sleep regulation difficulties
p ro c e s s in g •Long-term project difficulties
speed
•Being still/quiet -- drowsiness in a
lecture
•Short, quick projects ok, but hard
time sustaining longer ones
•Speed/Accuracy tradeoff
3. E ffo rt
© Landmark College 2018
7Routines to Support Effort
• Beginning of class
• W riting down assignm ents
• Form atting assignm ents
• Handing in assignm ents
• O rganizing notebooks and m aterials
• Preparing for tests and projects
• Taking out and putting away supplies
• End of class (checking assignm ents,
gathering m aterials)
W hat else?
adapted from Dawson & Guare, ©Executive
Landmark College
Skills 2018 and Adolescents, p.61)
in Children
Movement and Learning
• Walk and talk idea
generation
• Walking stories and
essays
“Walking, Tinkertoys, and Legos”
available at ldonline.org
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
R e g u la tin g •Self-observation: where does effort wane?
a le rtn e s s ,
s u s ta in in g •Use multiple “pick up and put down”
e ffo rt, & approaches
p ro c e s s in g •Break task down into specific next actions
speed •Use a timer
•Work with a buddy
•Identify and plan for obstacles
•Movement!
3. E ffo rt
© Landmark College 2018
8Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
M a n a g in g
•Easily frustrated and/or F ru s tra tio n
&
overwhelmed m o d u la tin g
•Learned helplessness e m o tio n s
•Hyper-focus on feelings
•Blame others for problems
•Overreacts
•Short fuse
•Overly sensitive 4. E m o tio n
•Difficulty in modulating emotions
© Landmark College 2018
ASD and emotion
Gotts, Simmons, Milbury, Wallace, Cox, and Martin, 2012
© Landmark College 2017
Exercise, EF, & LD
A D H D S tu d ie s
• D e c re a s e d im p u ls iv ity in
ra ts w / A D H D -lik e
s y m p to m s .
• Im p ro v e d a tte n tio n a n d
c o g n itio n , re d u c e d
b e h a v io ra l p ro b le m s in
y o u n g c h ild re n w ith A D H D
• ( V e r r e t e t a l., 2 0 1 2 ; M c K u n e , P a u tz , &
L o m jb a r d , 2 0 0 4 ; S m ith e t a l, 2 0 1 3 )
9Exercise, EF, & LD
A S D S tu d ie s
M o to r & b e h a v io ra l
im p ro v e m e n ts
(Duronjić & Válková, 2010)
S e lf-c o n fid e n c e , a n ti-s o c ia l
b e h a v io r (p a re n t ra te d )
(Pan, 2010)
M e ta -a n a ly s is : In c re a s e d s o c ia l
s k (Sowa
ills &&Meulenbroek,
re d u c2012)
e d s y m p to m s
Exercise as Intervention
• S c h e d u le it
• B e s o c ia l
• D o it a n y w h e re
• e.g., NYT 7 min. workout app
• D o w h a t y o u e n jo y
• T h in k d iffe re n tly
Mindfulness Based Interventions
MBIs hold promise for improving EF
• “non-judgmental attention to experience in the present
moment” (Tang et al., 2005)
• Reduced academic anxiety, improved emotional
regulation, and reduced depression (Shapiro et al., 2008)
• ADHD symptom reduction (Hepark et al., 2015),
• Significant reduction in depression, anxiety, and
rumination; increased positive affect in an ASD
intervention group (Spek et al., 2013)
• Improvements in WM capacity in adolescents; > than
Hatha yoga group (Quach et al., 2016)
http://marc.ucla.edu/mindful-meditations
© Landmark College 2018
10Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
M a n a g in g
•Lead with empathy and understanding F ru s tra tio n
•Awareness of facts/feelings/thoughts &
around specific situations m o d u la tin g
•Create a “box” in which the student can e m o tio n s
temporarily put the strong emotion
•“Walk me through it”. Help visualize and
develop awareness
•Brainstorm alternative actions, then 4. E m o tio n
practice
© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
U tiliz in g
w o rk in g
m e m o ry &
•Difficulty with hindsight and foresight a c c e s s in g
•Difficulty remembering directions re c a ll
•Difficulty remembering sequence of ideas
•Hard to participate in group discussion or
individual conversation
•Hard to hold one bit of information while
doing something else 5. M e m o ry
© Landmark College 2018
© Landmark College 2018
11Attention Loads
• Distracters
• Sensory distracters
• Clutter and unnecessary complexity
• Lack of perceived importance
• Lack of context
• No personal relevance
• Split-attention effect
• Information spatially scattered
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S p lit A tte n tio n E ffe c t
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In fo rm a tio n In te g ra tio n
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12© Landmark College 2018
Recommendation: Space learning
How to: Key is to design curriculum so that material
is reviewed at least several weeks, if not months,
after initial presentation
• Use class time to review
• Homework assignments contain old materials
• Cumulative midterm and finals
© Landmark College 2018
Recommendation: Interleaving
• Students alternate practice / study of different
kinds of items, problems, or topics
Roher & Taylor (2007)
© Landmark College 2018
13Recommendation: Quizzing
Evidence
•Hundreds of laboratory exam ples of “testing
effect”
•Taking a test > spend sam e tim e studying the
m aterial
“By taking the test, student is practicing the art
of recalling the inform ation from m em ory”
•retrieval lays down new ‘m em ory’ traces
© Landmark College 2018
Recommendation: Quizzing
How -to
• Closed book interval quizzes with feedback
– Both formal or informal : no or low stakes!
– Trivia/Jeopardy, flashcards, end of chapter
problems, Cornell note-taking system
– Flash
Challenges
• Tim e/effort to create new m aterial
– Websites that allow teachers to create quizzes
and puzzles quickly
– Academic publishers often provide self-check
quizzes, or electronic supplements
© Landmark College 2018
Harold Pashler, 2007
© Landmark College 2018
14Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
U tiliz in g
•Write it down – all of it ! w o rk in g
•Create visuals, diagrams, mind maps m e m o ry &
•Self-testing (e.g. flash cards) a c c e s s in g
•Distribute practice – space learning sessions re c a ll
•Interleave – study different subjects in chunks
•Elaboration--integrate into what is already
known, relate to areas of interest
•Teach and create mnemonics
5. M e m o ry
•© Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
M o n ito rin g &
s e lf-
•Difficulty holding back action and/or re g u la tin g
a c tio n
engaging in action
•Acting impulsively
•Difficulty acting effectively in a group
•Executing the appropriate action when
needed
6. A c tio n
© Landmark College 2018
Inhibition
(Self-Restraint and Self-Control)
Inhibiting the tendency to:
•Quit in frustration, boredom or anger
•Procrastinate or do nothing
•Blurt out the first response that comes
to mind
•Do what is immediately satisfying
•Prematurely shift focus or hyper-focus
© Landmark College 2018
151. Wish
Have students verbalize an im portant goal the wish to achieve. It
should be feasible, yet som ewhat challenging goal they can Make a W.O.O.P.
achieve in the near future (within say a few weeks).
2. Outcome
Have students im agine what life would be like if this wish was
achieved. W hat would the best future look like after achieving this
positive outcom e? How would it m ake you feel?
3. Obstacle
Im agine what is the m ost critical barrier, within you, that is
holding you back? Could be an em otion, bad habit, or belief.
4. Plan *Adapted fromthe woopmylife.orgwebpage
Have students m ake an effective plan to overcom e the obstacle,
using an if-then statem ent. Such as: “If… (obstacle), then I will …
(action or thought).
Evidence -base: e.g., Duckworth et al., 2011, Education Psychology; Duckworth et al, Social Psychological and
Personality Science 2013; Oettingen et al., European Journal of Social Psychology, 2015
©LandmarkCollege 2018
if – th e n p la n s
aka “implementation intentions”
Explicitly teach these to students
Can be rehearsed in the mind as self-instruction
• If Kyle asks m e to play video gam es at his house, I will say ’no thank you’
• W hen the waiter ask for my order I will say “salad”
• W hen my room m ates invite m e to the party, I will say I’m studying tonight
• W hen I write a sentence, then I will read it aloud to see if it m akes sense
• If an assignm ent is given by the instructor, I will write it down im m ediately and put it in my to-do list
• If I’m worried about a test next week, I will m eet with my teacher this week to talk about how to study
Forming such clear plans has been found to be remarkably
effective –average effect size on performance is around .60
( G o llw it z e r & O e t t in g e n , 2 0 1 2 )
©LandmarkCollege 2018
Why do we care about
metacognition?
Metacognitive awareness
shown to compensate for
IQ and lack of prior
knowledge
(Swanson, 1990)
Successful students are self-
aware &strategies
learning modifytheir
“thermostat of learning”
©LandmarkCollege 2018
16But is metacognition malleable?
Math performance improved when taught
metacognitive prompting
( Kramarski & Zeichner, 2001; Mevarech & Kramarski, 1997)
“ w h a t is t h is p ro b le m a b o u t ? ”
“ w h a t s te p s a re y o u u s in g to s o lv e t h is p ro b le m ? ’
Meta-analysis found training on both
cognitive AND metacognitive skills
effective.
A v e ra g e e ffe c t s iz e to b e .5 7 o n a c a d e m ic
p e r fo r m a n c e
(Hattie, Biggs, Purdie, 1996)
Metacognition in Practice:
Cognitive Wrappers
Try it yourself!
-Brainstorm some
questions to ask students
as a wrapper.
-Include both broad
questions, and questions
specific to your course
http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designte Gezer-Tem pleton et al, 2017
ach/teach/examwrappers/ © Landmark College 2018
Executive Function Model
Executive Functions
(work in various combinations)
M o n ito rin g &
•Develop awareness of facts, feelings, thoughts, s e lf-
sensations around specific situations re g u la tin g
•Say to student “ walk me through it to help him a c tio n
visualize situation and develop awareness
•Brainstorm alternative actions. Then practice
envisioning or acting out alternative actions
• Ask student to imagine what the feelings,
thoughts, sensations might be with new 6. A c tio n
approach
• Suggest “try it as an experiment”
© Landmark College 2018
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