Executive Function Development
It is well known that the early years of a child’s life are formative in establishing essential skills and building positive relationships. We are often reminded by psychologists and theorists that the first three years of childhood are integral to overall growth, as this is the time when many new concepts are introduced, practiced, and mastered in a short period of time. Although children are profoundly influenced by early learning experiences, many regions of the brain continue to develop throughout adolescence and into early adulthood. Specifically, executive function skills start to develop in toddlers and continue to be solidified into a person’s mid-twenties (Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, 2024). Cognitive scientist Sabine Doebel (2018) explains that “executive function is our amazing ability to consciously control our thoughts, emotions, and actions in order to achieve goals.” Educators at all levels have the unique opportunity to significantly impact student growth and brain development by teaching, reinforcing, and encouraging the independent application of executive function skills in school and life.
In elementary school, students are introduced to routines and organizational methods. Teachers may color-code materials by subject matter, introduce basic desk/cubby organizational skills, and work on time awareness with schedules, timers, and clocks. These basic study skills are meant to reinforce structure and provide clear expectations. Once students reach upper elementary and middle school grades, much of this structure is gradually removed, though certain expectations and checks likely still exist to ensure students are comfortable meeting classroom expectations with greater independence. By high school, application of these skills is expected without prompting. Students can use their own systems and strategies for navigating the increased pace, volume, and complexity of the content. In addition to basic study skills techniques, executive function instruction is also meant to reinforce three key brain functions identified by the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University (2024): working memory, mental flexibility, and self-control.
Although executive function expectations differ at each level of schooling, there are some essential practices that transcend age or grade level. Scaffolded instruction ensures student comfort with the autonomous application of appropriate skills. The need for these best practices is especially necessary for students with learning disabilities. Research shows that they require additional time and assistance to develop executive function skills, often progressing more slowly and taking longer to demonstrate independence than their grade-level peers.
Model Essential Skills
When you are learning something new, it helps to see an example of the expected process and/or product in order to ensure that you are on track for success. For this reason, YouTube is full of tutorial videos that can show you everything from how to change your own oil to how to plan a vacation on a budget. Considering that executive function skills are brand new concepts for children in elementary school, significant modeling is required by their teachers. However, this doesn’t mean that modeling is less necessary in middle or high school. As skills become more complex, a similar level of teacher demonstration is likely required. Remember the first time you were asked to “take notes?” If you had a model to recall, this task was at least familiar. Without a model, you were likely confused and overwhelmed. Whenever a new skill is introduced, modeling always eases the anxiety experienced by students who don’t know where to start.
Provide Appropriate Scaffolding
Executive function skills are complex and multifaceted. Whether a student is learning to organize their backpack or working through an emotional experience that is inhibiting their progress toward a goal, teachers are essential in breaking things down to provide structured support. For students who struggle with executive function, step-by-step instructions help them to achieve success. As students become more comfortable with independent application, this scaffolding can be appropriately stripped away with the end goal of independence. However, students will not fully develop executive function skills if the scaffolding is not properly constructed to support them or is removed before they are ready to practice these skills on their own.
Encourage Self-assessment
Metacognition is one of the most beneficial skills that can be introduced in order to help students build effective skills to manage executive function. Pausing to reflect on the usefulness of various skills and strategies, as well as individual strengths and weaknesses, allows students to figure out what works best for them as they manage the demands of the school day. Furthermore, encouraging self-assessment in elementary school builds the foundation for it to become a more automatic process later in a student’s educational career. Self-assessment is central to goal-setting and progress monitoring by providing students with a framework to better understand themselves.
By following these best practices for executive function, educators set students up for success throughout their lives, both as students and individual members of society.
References
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (n.d.). InBrief: Executive Function. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. Retrieved November 7, 2024, from https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/inbrief-executive-function/
Doebel, S. (2018, December). How your brain’s executive function works — and how to improve it [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/sabine_doebel_how_your_brain_s_executive_function_works_and_how_to_improve_it
