The Importance of Focus

"Our tech — tablets, texts, Facebook, tweets, you name it — has changed childhood. And that has huge implications for how our kids’ brains develop the ability to pay attention — and to learn," observes Daniel Goleman.  He continues...

"Kids learn best when they can maintain sustained attention, whether to what a teacher is saying, their textbook, or their homework.  The root of learning is keen focus; distractions kill comprehension.  But the new normal for young people continually interrupts their focus with distractions.  This is particularly alarming in light of very strong research results showing that a child’s ability to resist the temptation of distraction and stay focused predicts how she will fare financially and health-wise in adulthood....

"Neuroscientists tell us this crucial mental ability hinges on the growth of a neural strip in the brain’s prefrontal cortex, just behind the forehead, which connects to circuitry that helps manage both attention and unruly emotions.  This circuitry grows with the rest of the brain from birth throughout childhood and the teen years.  The more a youngster can practice keeping her focus and resist distraction, the stronger and more richly connected this neural real estate becomes.  By the same token, the more distracted, the less so."

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