Synaptic tenacity or the ability to learn. How much do you own?

There is much talk in the business and academic worlds about “learning”. It is normal. In the first case it is a necessary condition and in the second, essential.

The truth is that from a neurobiological point of view, learning is measured in a unit called “Synaptic Tenacity”, since that is what it really is. An indicator of greater or lesser tenacity in the communication between two or more neurons.

The psychiatrist, Nobel laureate in Medicine (2000), Eric Kandel, coined this concept although the physiologist Pavlov, Nobel laureate in 1904, perfectly interpreted this concept from his gastric/digestive specialty.

Therefore, learning is the result of such communication, which is made up of the transmission of different molecules without them penetrating the nucleus of the neuron.

On the other hand, to generate memory and recollection, different protein calls must be generated inside said nucleus.

That is why we know that learning is superficial, limited and not always good. We also learn bad things that we often call “vices”. For example, to hold a racket correctly after having acquired “a vice”, we are obliged to generate more tenacious synapses than in the case of having held it (handle) well from the beginning.

For this correction to occur, we are obliged to carry out a “synaptic pruning” or else, to tenaciously connect originally signaled neurons to facilitate other activities.

The truth is that from learning based on “the letter with blood enters” until today, different theories have appeared that have colored this concept.

In 1983, the psychologist Howard Gardner characterized, without identifying or measuring, different types of intelligence based more on the perceptual model than on the cognitive one. This particularity directly attacked the percentile concept that the psychologist David Wechsler stated in 1939 and was later revised in 1967. In this way, for Wechsler, the world was divided into people who were below average, average, and above average.

Likewise, the “innovative” idea that learning is emotional is nothing more than obvious, since emotions and cognitive faculties are also the result of different synapses determined by the combination of specific neurotransmitters.

Therefore, learning is the tenacious connection while its result or expression is dependent on the neurotransmitter mixture that is connected.

As you can see Wechsler proposed “numbers”, while Gardner ignores them. Pavlov watched as Kandel analyzes. Past and present.

The future? eDNA®

The good news, and it is not for everyone, is that thanks to the application of the DNAe® algorithmic technology in neurobiological developments, the 8 characteristics of learning have been established and, furthermore, they are measured with precision and scientific significance.

These 8 characteristics are not disjunctive (if I have one, I do not have the others), rather, they define us through the combinable capacities that indicate the routes required for two different people to learn the same thing with a similar effort.

Let’s say that what is proposed as a determining factor in learning, regardless of the content, is the path to be traveled. As you can see, “more the how than the what”. If you prefer, the phrase “All roads lead to Rome” is also valid.

The characterization proposed by this innovative theory developed by Jacobson, Steinberg & Goldman and successfully applied in the Innovation Chair of the Polytechnic University of Valencia, as well as in different corporations, includes Acceleration, Constancy, Fixation, Specialization, Transversality , Memorization, Blocking Tolerance and Experiential Learning.

Let’s go with a brief description:

What am I going to tell him about the Acceleration? You know, there are people who learn fast. Nope! Don’t think about that “He runs a lot, he soon stops”. There are people who, due to their synaptic condition, learn quickly and do not stop learning.

The Constancy? This concept is also clear to us. A way like any other to learn can be based on a greater or lesser persistence. Others call it “being stubborn.”

doFixation? Although a good way to fix ideas and concepts is what we call a “repetitive model”, there are people who disconnect when automating a response. Let’s say that they lose awareness of what they have learned and with it, they are impervious to the evolution of what they have assimilated.

doSpecialization? Do not fall into the trap of thinking that specialization and transversality are opposites. If it does, it means that its “Fixation” is very high.

Specialization is that characteristic that invites you to deepen what you have learned. More vertically than horizontally.

There are people who miss out on great wonders when they over-specialize, forgetting about a transversal scenario.

doTransversality? As I anticipated, this feature is not at odds with the previous one. In this case, the invitation is to broaden the spectrum of topics learned. If you also delve into them, you will meet both requirements, reaching a high rate of transdisciplinarity (Edgar Morín and Basarab Nicolescu, among others).

domemorization? This concept, in relation to learning, includes both what is memorized and the call of the memory to recover what has been memorized. Although it sounds strange to you, they are different neurobiological processes.
In any case, we refer to the intensity and quantity of information that a person is capable of associating and consolidating. Keep in mind that memory is not a store of data, but rather the ability to summon perceptual relationships that by themselves do not correspond to a concrete definition.

doblocking tolerance? There are people who “get tired” right away. They do not know how to overcome a learning block and avoid looking for other ways to reach the proposed goal. Let’s say that while some give up, others can develop perseverance or simply tolerate and manage the blockage.
Has it happened to you with trigonometry or with the addition and subtraction of broken numbers (fractions)? Me. To others, no.

doexperiential learning? Here we talk about the “trial/error” condition and also about “learning from failure”. Look… I’m going to be honest. It’s not exactly about that. In reality, it is about consolidating what has been learned based on what has been experienced, including acquired biases. Therefore, if you do not have much acceleration, you will need a lot of time. If you have it, less.

If you don’t have much fixation, you will continually make the same mistakes and enjoy the same successes. If you focus on specialization, you will have few experiences, but if you have a lot of transversality, perhaps “everything happens to you”.

What is clear is that by measuring each of these characteristics, we have valuable information for the teaching professional and for the student or manager. Having a percentage key metric (in the proposed order) of 85:52:74:69:44:73:55:73 is not the same as having 65:74:72:62:45:84:56:43.

I’m just telling you that the first guy will learn more and better by practicing while the second guy won’t.

Anyway… as you can see, the 8 characteristics are as close as the stones to the ground.

How to learn?

Already in 2018, the prestigious JMBE (Journal of Management and Business Education) magazine of the European Academy of Economics and Management published that the ADNe® algorithmic technology marked a before and after in personalized teaching, changing the model forever. educational. In reality, it is an effort more related to the activities of the teaching staff than to that of the students, the latter being the true beneficiaries of this innovative methodology.

In the business framework, when using this technology, we have realized that approximately 50% of the training programs proposed are not useful or necessary for any member of the company.

That is why, nowadays, the algorithm not only advises what and how a person should study, but also recommends to the trainers the ideal route that the students should follow. People who are better suited to attendance and people who prefer an asynchronous program. Human stuff! @worldwide