BLHC4032 CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING

THE HUMAN BRAIN Brain Structures and their Functions Stages of Development of the Thinking Process Functions of LEFT BRAIN Vs RIGHT BRAIN Academics and thinking How Left-Brain vs. Right-Brain Thinking Impacts

Learning Cognitive-Style Quiz

The nervous system is your body's decision and communication center. The central nervous system (CNS) is made of the brain and the spinal cord and the peripheral nervous system (PNS) is made of nerves. Together they control every part of your daily life, from breathing and blinking to helping you memorize facts for a test.

Nerves reach from your brain to your face, ears, eyes, nose, and spinal cord... and from the spinal cord to the rest of your body. Sensory nerves gather information from the environment, send that info to the spinal cord, which then speed the message to the brain.

The brain then makes sense of that message and fires off a response. Motor neurons deliver the instructions from the brain to the rest of your body. The spinal cord, made of a bundle of nerves running up and down the spine, is similar to a superhighway, speeding messages to and from the brain at every second.

Brain Structures and their Functions

Cerebrum Cerebellum

Limbic System Brain Stem

The brain is made of three main parts: the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain. The forebrain consists of the cerebrum, thalamus, and hypothalamus (part of the limbic system). The midbrain consists of the tectum and tegmentum. The hindbrain is made of the cerebellum, pons and medulla. Often the midbrain, pons, and medulla are referred to together as the brainstem.

The Cerebrum

The cerebrum or cortex is the largest part of the human brain, associated with higher brain function such as thought and action. The cerebral cortex is divided into four sections, called "lobes": the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe, and temporal lobe. Here is a visual representation of the cortex:

What do each of these lobes do?

Frontal Lobe- associated with reasoning, planning, parts of speech, movement, emotions, and problem solving

Parietal Lobe- associated with movement, orientation, recognition, perception of stimuli

Occipital Lobe- associated with visual processing Temporal Lobe- associated with perception and

recognition of auditory stimuli, memory, and speech

The Cerebellum The cerebellum, or "little brain", is similar to the cerebrum in that

it has two hemispheres and has a highly folded surface or cortex. This structure is associated with regulation and coordination of movement, posture, and balance.

The cerebellum is assumed to be much older than the cerebrum, evolutionarily. What do I mean by this? In other words, animals which scientists assume to have evolved prior to humans, for example reptiles, do have developed cerebellums.

Limbic System

The limbic system, often referred to as the "emotional brain", is found buried within the cerebrum. Like the cerebellum, evolutionarily the structure is rather old.

This system contains the thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, and hippocampus. Here is a visual representation of this system, from a midsagittal view of the human brain:

Brain Stem

Underneath the limbic system is the brain stem. This structure is responsible for basic vital life functions such as breathing, heartbeat, and blood pressure. Scientists say that this is the "simplest" part of human brains because animals' entire brains, such as reptiles

Stages of Development of the

Thinking Process

Stages of Cognitive Development - Jean Piaget:

1. Sensorimotor Stage: Birth to 2 years old - no thinking structures

2. Preoperational Stage: 2-7 years old - develop language skills cognitive structures – prelogical

Stages of Cognitive Development - Jean Piaget:

3. Concrete Operational Stage: 7 years to Adolescence - Begins to question life. Solves problems but haphazardly

4. Formal Operations Stage:  Adolescence and onward - capable of sophisticated logical thought. Can think both abstract & hypothetically and solve problems using the logic of combinations

Later Theorists have added Fifth Stage

Dialectical Reasoning - stage beyond logic where critical thinking lies. Ability to perceive the frequent paradoxes in life and question and analyze the assumptions that underlie logic. 

Being able to look at two sides of an argument or problem to get a broader, deeper, & more reasonable perspective on the issues being addressed

FUNCTIONS OF

LEFT BRAIN

Vs

RIGHT BRAIN

Are you Creative or Analytical?

Our brain has two halves – the right and the left. People using left part of the brain are usually logical and analytical. While those who use the right half of the brain are creative, innovative and imaginative.

Do you want to know whether you are right or left brained?

Try this! Read aloud, as quickly as possible, the colour in which the words are written but not the actual words.

GREEN YELLOW BLUE ORANGE WHITE RED GREEN BLUE ORANGE YELLOW WHITE GREEN RED BLUE WHITE GREEN ORANGE YELLOW ORANGE BLUE GREEN RED WHITE YELLOW RED BLUE YELLOW ORANGE RED WHITE BROWN WHITE

If you merely read the words,

you are likely to be using right brain.

Whereas, if you read the colours,

you are using your left brain.

I'm creative and he's analytical

Have you ever thought why some people can paint beautifully, but have difficulty adding two and two? Or why some people can understand the intricacies of calculus effortlessly, but struggle to write a one-page essay?

It's all about which side of your brain dominates - the left or the right.

Left Brain vs. Right Brain

The human brain is bifurcated down the middle into two parts, popularly known as the left brain and right brain respectively. We know that different parts of the

brain control different bodily and mental functions.

Over the years, a theory that has gained in popularity is that the right brain and the left brain are responsible for different modes of thought and that the way in which a person thinks will depend on which side of his brain predominates.

Left brain vs. right brain

People who rely more heavily on the right half of their brain tend to be more imaginative and intuitive. They see things as a whole and are interested in patterns, shapes and sizes. The right brain is associated with artistic ability like singing, painting, writing poetry, etc.

Left-brain dominated people may find their thought processes vague and difficult to follow, for they are quite opposite in the way they think. Left-brain dominated people tend to be more logical and analytical in their thinking and usually excel at mathematics and word skills.

But this does not mean that a person who is left or right brain dominated does not use the other part of his brain. For most people, the two parts of the brain work in tandem to enable them to function as well-rounded personalities.

The right brain absorbs new information in chunks, but it is the job of the left-brain to sift and sort it in an organized fashion. However, there is no clear-cut definition of the functions of the two parts of the brain. Each can do the other's work, just not as efficiently.

Most people have a tendency to lean towards using the left or right brain while thinking or learning. For instance, right brain dominated people are often poor spellers as they tend to rely more on their intuition rather than actually studying the order in which the letters in a word occur.

Left Brain and Right Brain Inventory

An inventory of the different ways the left brain and right brain process information.

While we have a natural tendency towards one way of thinking, the two sides of our brain work together in our everyday lives. The right brain of the brain focuses on the visual, and processes information in an intuitive and simultaneous way, looking first at the whole picture then the details. The focus of the left brain is verbal, processing information in an analytical and sequential way, looking first at the pieces then putting them together to get the whole.

Left Brain Inventory Right Brain Inventory

Verbal, f ocusing on words, symbols, numbers Visual, f ocusing on images, patterns

Analytical, led by logic I ntuitive, led by f eelings

Process ideas sequentially, step by step Process ideas simultaneously

Words used to remember things, remember

names rather than f aces

Mind photos' used to remember things, writing things

down or illustrating them helps you remember

Make logical deductions f rom inf ormation Make lateral connections f rom inf ormation

Work up to the whole step by step, f ocusing on

details, inf ormation organised See the whole fi rst, then the details

Left Brain Inventory Right Brain Inventory

Highly organised Organisation tends to be lacking

Like making lists and planning Free association

Likely to f ollow rules without questioning them Like to know why you're doing something or why rules

exist (reasons)

Good at keeping track of time No sense of time

Spelling and mathematical f ormula easily

memorised

May have trouble with spelling and fi nding words to

express yourself

Enjoy observing Enjoy touching and f eeling actual objects (sensory

input)

Left Brain Inventory Right Brain Inventory

Plan ahead Trouble prioritising. So, of ten late, impulsive

Likely to read instruction manual bef ore trying Unlikely to read instruction manual bef ore trying

Listen to what is being said Listen to how something is being said

Rarely use gestures when talking Talk with your hands

Likely to believe you're not creative, need to

be willing to try and take risks to develop your

potential

Likely to think you're naturally creative, but need to

apply yourself to develop your potential

Left Brain Right Brain

Logical RandomSequential IntuitiveRational HolisticAnalytical SynthesizingObjective SubjectiveLooks at parts Looks at whole

Academics and thinking

At the time of their birth, babies are not predisposed to be either left brain or right brain thinkers. Unfortunately, our education system with its emphasis on rote learning and exam syllabi is more tuned to encourage left-brain activity, often to the detriment of right brain creativity.

School examinations are designed to test left-brain activity and encourage conformity in thought. There is a possibility that if right brain skills are not exercised, they may not develop sufficiently.

When it comes to academics, left brain dominated children do well at school, as they are more likely to respond to formal learning. They exhibit greater responsibility, are quite content to study by themselves and have greater concentration.

Right brain dominated children, on the other hand, are less likely to perform well academically. They prefer to study with company, cannot sit still for very long and are more responsive in informal settings.

Convergent and divergent thinking

Left brain and Right brain dominated people can also be categorized as divergent and convergent thinkers respectively. A convergent thinker has a systematic approach and plays by the rules. He analyzes everything and reaches a logical conclusion. Thus, scientific and mathematical activities are more up his street. Such people do very well on straightforward question and answer type tests.

Divergent thinkers, on the other hand, are creative and tend to throw the rules out of the window. They are artistic and always looking for ways to express themselves. They do much better in exams that require essay-type answers.

There is no such thing that it is better to be left brain dominated or right brain dominated. You need both kinds of thinking to function well. While a person may have a dominant style of thinking, it would be interesting to see how the other half works and even learn to develop the skills that you lack.

How Left-Brain vs. Right-Brain Thinking Impacts Learning

Curriculum--In order to be more "whole-brained" in their orientation, schools need to give equal weight to the arts, creativity and the skills of imagination and synthesis.

  Instruction--To foster a more whole-brained scholastic experience,

teachers should use instruction techniques that connect with both sides of the brain. They can increase their classroom's right-brain learning activities by incorporating more patterning, metaphors, analogies, role playing, visuals and movement into their reading, calculation, and analytical activities.

Assessment--For a more accurate whole-brained evaluation of student learning, educators must develop new forms of assessment that honor right-brained talents and skills.

The above information helps us to understand the vast range of difference in people’s thinking and the need to use both sides of the brain effectively.

Research on brain theory helps you understand why some people are excellent inventors but poor producers or good managers but weak leaders.

The research indicates that the brain is divided into two hemispheres, the left and the right, and that each hemisphere specializes in different functions, processes different kinds of information, and deals with different kinds of problems. The left brain works more with logic and analysis, the right works more with emotions and imagination.

"As we apply brain dominance theory to the three essential roles of organizations, we see that the manager's role primarily would be left brain and the leader's role right brain. The producer's role would depend upon the nature of the work. If it's verbal, logical, analytical work, that would be essentially left brain; if it's more intuitive, emotional, or creative work, it would be right brain. People who are excellent managers but poor leaders may be extremely well organized and run a tight ship with superior systems and procedures and detailed job descriptions

But unless they are internally motivated, little gets done because there is no feeling, no heart; everything is too mechanical, too formal, too tight, too protective. A looser organization may work much better even though it may appear to an outsider observer to be disorganized and confused. Truly significant accomplishments may result simply because people share a common vision, purpose, or sense of mission."

Cognitive-Style QuizChoose the one sentence that is more true. Do not leave any blanks.

1. A ) It's fun to take risks. B ) I have fun without taking risks.

2. A ) I look for new ways to do old jobs. B ) When one way works well, I don't change it.

3. A ) I begin many jobs that I never finish. B ) I finish a job before starting a new one.

4. A ) I'm not very imaginative in my work. B ) I use my imagination in everything I do.

5. A ) I can analyze what is going to happen next. B ) I can sense what is going to happen next.

6. A ) I try to find the one best way to solve a problem. B ) I try to find different answers to problems.

7. A ) My thinking is like pictures going through my head. B ) My thinking is like words going through my head.

8. A ) I agree with new ideas before other people do. B ) I question new ideas more than other people do.

9. A ) Other people don't understand how I organize things. B ) Other people think I organize well.

10. A ) I have good self-discipline. B ) I usually act on my feelings.

11. A ) I plan time for doing my work. B ) I don't think about the time when I work.

12. A ) With a hard decision, I choose what I know is right. B ) With a hard decision, I choose what I feel is right.

13. A ) I do easy things first and important things later. B ) I do the important things first and the easy things later.

14. A ) Sometimes in a new situation, I have too many ideas. B ) Sometimes in a new situation, I don't have any ideas.

15. A ) I have to have a lot of change and variety in my life. B ) I have to have an orderly and well-planned life.

16. A ) I know I'm right, because I have good reasons. B ) I know I'm right, even without good reasons.

17. A ) I spread my work evenly over the time I have. B ) I prefer to do my work at the last minute.

18. A ) I keep everything in a particular place. B ) Where I keep things depends on what I'm doing.

19. A ) I have to make my own plans. B ) I can follow anyone's plans.

20. A ) I am a very flexible and unpredictable person. B ) I am a consistent and stable person.

21. A ) With a new task, I want to find my own way of doing it. B ) With a new task, I want to be told the best way to it.

To Score

Give yourself one point for each time you answered "A" for questions: 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 19, 20, 21.

Give yourself one point for each time you answered "B" for questions: 4 ,5, 6, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18.

Add all points. Totals imply: 0-4: strong left brain 5-8: moderate left brain 9-13: middle brain 14-16: moderate right brain 17-21: strong right brain