Xq knowledge module no. 3 Discover the Science of Adolescent Learning How do teenagers learn and grow?

How to foster a mathematical mindset, 
from Jo Boaler, author of Mathematical 
Mindsets.
How Kids Really Succeed 
Developing a Growth Mindset
Student Motivation
Embedding Youth Development in Schools
Have you heard of the “power of yet”? In an engaging 
introduction to the concept of the growth mindset, 
Carol S. Dweck shares ways to grow the brain’s capacity 
to solve tough problems.
Thought leaders Michele Cahill and Karen J. Pittman 
discuss how strong schools can empower students to 
discover their identities and take charge of their own 
learning.
Clayton M. Christensen applies lessons from business 
to motivate student learning in the classroom.
In a thoughtful article in The Atlantic, Paul Tough explains 
how schools can help students growing up in difficult 
circumstances overcome the effects of adversity.

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XQ Knowledge Module No. 3 The Science of Adolescent Learning
 
11
Learning is cumulative.
FACT 09

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XQ Knowledge Module No. 3 The Science of Adolescent Learning
 
12
To develop new 
skills, people must 
build on a foundation 
of prior skills and 
knowledge.
Many aspects of learning are cumulative. That is, certain types of 
learning build on other learning in predictable ways. For example: 
you have to understand fractions in order to do algebra. And you 
have to be able to read fluently in order to absorb the information 
in a complex essay question.
Teenagers learn better when they’re challenged with 
successively more sophisticated ways of thinking. Not all 
cognitive progressions are linear, so for optimal learning to take 
place, students need to practice multiple types of thinking. They 
need to develop foundational skills, and then test and stretch 
those skills with demanding content in order to move to higher 
levels of learning. The repetition of these two steps throughout 
a young person’s learning journey is the most effective way to 
engage their brains.
Too often, students who get to high school without the 
foundational skills they need are assigned to classes that are not 
truly engaging. Instead, they need a curriculum that fascinates 
and challenges them, that connects with their interests as 
adolescents. And they need instruction that helps them stay 
motivated, encourages them to work hard, and purposefully 
enables them to develop the skills they need to do successively 
more demanding work.